The Cause and Effect of the Employees Lack of Professionalism - Case Study Example

Human Resource Management Executive Summary This paper presents a human resource case study involving volunteer workers who begun displaying a lack professionalism and work ethics after the first few days on the job. It had been observed that the problem revolved around the formation of the psychological contract that both the manager and the workers failed to establish in the early stage of employment. As a resolution, it is highly recommended that both workers undergo a performance evaluation and feedback session with the middle manager in order to renegotiate or reconstitute the psychological contract if it can still be helped. The last option being recommended is to discharge them of the job although this only applies if the performance evaluation and feedback procedure fails. I. Key Issue and Solution A. Problem Statement This case involves two volunteers who were made to temporarily serve as receptionists. Since they were volunteers, their orientation with regard to the working terms and conditions was marked with haste and less definite. Specifically, the whole orientation procedure covered only an insubstantial induction to the scope of the job and to a few less important people and areas in the company. The manager did not even impose a strict working time, giving them enough room to prepare for work since they were volunteers in the first place. Although they had the primary motive to become project workers in the area of substance abuse, they were delegated to the front desk to test whether they are fit for the job they wanted. It is to be determined on how they apply appropriate skills and attitude in attending to clients. Apparently, failure to pass the initial screening renders them unfit for the more hectic demands of the ‘real’ job. On their first few days, they manifested eagerness for the work such as in coming in on time. However as is in many cases, the problem only surfaced on the succeeding days. They began to slack. They shirked basic and major obligations; became too comfortable in the office and with the employees; played on or used mobile phones for leisure during office hours; and developed absenteeism and tardiness. B. Analysis of the Problem Based on the situation provided, the principle of psychological contract applies as the underlying ground. The concept of psychological contract can be found in Session 1 of Book 2 (An Introduction to HRM in Business by Diane Preston). A psychological contract refers to the unwritten “expectations, obligations, and promises which both parties [employer and employee] believe have been made with regard to what each owes and expects to receive from the other” (Preston, 2010). There are several definitions as to the framework of the psychological contract but most of them centered on the breadth of exchange relationships. It encompasses the development of skills and knowledge; motivation; relationships; job design; ethical conduct; and the presupposed reinforcement (Entrepreneur, 1999). Generally, the psychological contract is a form of abstraction which may not legally bind both involved parties but could directly affect their individual delivery of perceived performance. A breach of a psychological contract happens when either of the party reaches the point of feeling disappointed or dissatisfied of the other’s conduct, behavior, or largely, the performance. From the given situation, there can only be two factors that might have induced such a negative behavior at work, the intrinsic and extrinsic. Intrinsic Forces The intrinsic impetus refers to the inherent attitude of the volunteer workers. More exactly, this is the attitude that has become typical of them while atypical for others. It is therefore assumed that neither of them had any significant experience in the corporate world prior to joining the company, hence the immature frame of mind and incompetence. While the fact remains that they were able to present themselves well in the earlier stage of their tenure, an ever-present corporate state of mind should be enough driving force for an individual to perform and relate well in the workplace in a consistent manner. This did not become the case for both workers however. Apparently, they were not able to develop an initial perception prior to and a psychological contract upon joining the workforce despite merely being volunteers. Another intrinsic factor pertains to the possible mentality created by being uncompensated. The difference between the volunteers and the regular employees rests on the form of compensation. This puts the volunteers in a different position from the regular employees. While the paid workers were compelled to work for money, the volunteers may have only been working for the sake of improving the credentials which is not much of a motivation especially when the work becomes increasingly unattractive. The intrinsic factors can be easily diagnosed but can be hard to manipulate. Nevertheless, these factors should not be taken so much against them as persons. Rather, they should be given enough room for improvement since they still offered to render services for the company in the first place without having obliged the latter to reward them financially. Extrinsic Forces The extrinsic stimuli can be traced back during the induction and socialisation phases. These are external (to the workers) and controllable (by the superiors) factors that affect the perceived organizational culture or norm from the volunteers’ point of view. Poor Orientation. During the induction phase, there was a poor, laid-back orientation as what may be evident in the change in behavior of the two volunteers. The manager seemed to have failed in imposing strict and appropriate rules or policies for them. There was rather a lenient introduction such as in giving them an unconstrained leeway with regard to their time of arrival. The company failed to create an atmosphere that could have enabled the volunteers to delineate the line of authority or command -- identify a bureaucratic culture. To be exact, there were no pertinent implications and factors of the job basics which could have influenced their psychological contract. Sufficient and effective orientation and training are two important processes a newcomer should undergo because in this stage, he/she develops his/her own outlook or perception for the workplace. The standards of performance should have been made clear to begin with. This aspect pertains to the variety of factors affecting performance and standards, employment contract, quality of work, productivity, and interpersonal behavior (Preston, 2010). Setting the standards of performance is a crucial stage which could have altered or affected their psychological contract. On another light, although they were uncompensated workers, thus the company had no technical and legal hold of them; managers should never take them on the surface all the more. As long as they are staying in the company, they still have the avenue to gain access to the company’s intellectual capital, involve in its operations, and basic processes. Since the employer and an unpaid worker are not required to sign an employment contract, the latter is susceptible to committing inappropriate behavior and conduct outside or even inside the company premises without being made liable for any damages he/she exacts. This is to say that regardless of the status of a worker in the company, he/she must be properly oriented and trained nevertheless. When there is no employment contract, then the psychological contract is very important regardless of the experience. Ineffective Relay of the Job Design. Another plausible reason to explain the situation is that the manager came short in communicating the job design effectively (e.g. as to the reason they were deputed to the front desk to answer calls and/or attend to the preliminary concerns of the clients instead of serving as project workers). The negative change in attitude is a reasonable implication in a way they grew dissatisfied of the job or just did not understand the real essence they were made to do a clerical job first. Absence of Employee Motivation. The last possible factor that may have influenced such behavior is that the volunteers did not see the commitment of the employees themselves to the work. The employees may not be completely obedient to the company regulations or standards. Commitment is infectious and will eventually manifest in the workplace. Because there was a lack of it, the two volunteers failed to implant the essence of unwavering professionalism into their minds and consequently, became too comfortable with the others in the workplace, and crossed the line. Indeed, they showed commitment to work in the first few days but because there was no sign of who owns the authority, they slacked. Summary The two volunteers had their share of fault but so had the manager and/or the company itself. To sum up, it can be presumed that there was an inadequate provision of a normative psychological contract for professionalism or self-discipline in the workplace for the two volunteers. It could have been established in a short interview prior to or even during the induction phase. The psychological contract plays a critical role in molding a worker’s initial perception of his/her own obligations and boundaries that, in turn, could affect his/her feelings towards the employer or the work place. C. Proposed Solution The problem is not irresolvable. In fact, there are a number of alternatives (e.g. positive reinforcement) that may settle the matter. Although sacking the two volunteers is the easiest way, assessing and giving them a feedback about their performance and simultaneously reorienting them as to the company culture is still a more professional, appropriate and not to mention, less afflictive approach, to be precise, in reducing or preventing any potential damage upon both ends. Periodically evaluating and providing a feedback on a worker’s performance is the corrective action as this will grant them a chance to change or improve. Assessing the performance is to determine the positive and negative aspects about an employee in a certain period according to a reference point; and prioritize among these aspects depending on the impact that a certain aspect creates on the operations and the human capital of the company. The frame of reference pertains to the components that pinpoint the standards of working effectively (Barnes, 1978). The evaluation system has to be fair. An evaluation procedure is perceived to be fair when a middle manager performs evaluations frequently, knows the performance level of the subordinate, and discusses options with or assists the subordinate in overcoming the negative aspects or weaknesses and in capitalizing on the strengths (Barnes, 1978). A feedback on performance is another step in the whole process, requiring both the manager and the employee in a one-on-one convention. The superior should not concentrate on the negative aspects alone nor should it feel one-sided. It should be formal and impersonal as in not resorting to verbal assailing (UHRS, 2006) on the basis of praise-criticism-praise format. The praises and criticism should be related to the standards of performance (UHRS, 2006). While they may have fallen short on the positive aspects, they still showed some potential in their first few days which the superior could point out and suggest taking advantage of in the future. Moreover, this is a critical point where the manager should not be only one talking, providing the praises and criticisms while the other party listens for the rest of the session. The superior should most importantly be listening to what the employee has to say concerning the points taken for purposes of evaluating his/her performance. There was a breach of psychological contract to the employer’s end but through fair evaluation and feedback on performance, it can be renegotiated. Since the frame of reference was not properly established from the beginning, the manager will have to reiterate the standards of performance so that in the future, both the subordinates and superior could have a wider and firmer point of reference for performance appraisal. This should give the workers the incentive that professionalism is the company’s religion. However, if the performance appraisal and feedback did not inspire any positive change in behavior which should become salient in the long run, then the management cannot be made responsible any longer because the problem is entirely intrinsic. Although attitude can be eventually modified, it would be impractical for the company to invest in on something that could not promise desirable results as soon as reasonably feasible for the most critical periods. The fact alone that they [workers] are not obliged to produce desirable results since they have no legal contractual obligations warrants that the company could incur higher costs from molding their faulty attitude than from letting them stay with the same incompetent attitude. Indeed if all else fails, it is only proper to let go of them before they inflict any further damage to the company management and operations. II. Web-based Information Entrepreneur.com. (1999). The psychological contract: Checklist 161. Retrieved from http://www.entrepreneur.com/tradejournals/article/100509022.html This web page was accessed on December 21, 2010. This page presents a concise definition, scope, and importance of the psychological contract in the work setting. It also includes a number of ways to establish a psychological contract. As it appears, the page is rich with the overall information regarding the topic pertinent for this report while being presented in the simplest terms. For the attributes mentioned, I think this is a very valuable source to elaborate the point discussed in this paper. Entrepreneur is an online- and print-based publication that helps small businesses and enterprises throughout the start-up, growth and management processes. Aside from being an impersonal website, it covers a wide range of subject areas through its trade journals, books, magazines, newsletters, encyclopedia, and etc. Those are reasons the site is a valuable and reliable source of information. University of Human Resource Services. (2006, July 26). Corrective Action: Performance Feedback. Retrieved from http://www.indiana.edu/~uhrs/training/ca/feedback.html This page was accessed on December 22, 2010. The page presents an outline about the scope of feedback on performance of an employee. More importantly, it provides some insights on how to deal with problematic employees through constructive criticisms. Like in the previous reference material, the information are presented in a terse though in a substantial manner which is why I chose this as a source of information. The University of Human Resource Services is a subset of Indiana University and provides human resource services to the academe. This makes the page a reliable source of information for this report. III. Conclusion An employee becomes deficient in terms of professional and ethical conduct for several reasons that can be intrinsic or extrinsic. Either way, such problems can be properly and effectively mediated such that no party incurs huge harm. Without a doubt, people or relationship issues are oftentimes the hardest problems to deal with in the workplace. Therefore, more important than corrective action, there should be preclusion. In this case, the psychological contract should set the pace. Without it, ends will never meet. Human resources are the most intricate and indispensable component in an organization. More often than not, however, it is the aspect that gains a minimal consideration or concentration from the senior management which is why people issues account for most of the problems encountered everyday at work. In order to minimize these occurrences, an effective system on performance appraisal and feedback should be exercised periodically. References Barnes, J., Landy, F., & Murphy, K. (1978). Correlates of perceived fairness and accuracy of performance evaluation. Journal of Applied Psychology, 63(6), 751-754. Retrieved from http://www.tamu.edu/classes/payne/PA/ Landy%20et%20al.%201978.pdf Entrepreneur.com. (1999). The psychological contract: Checklist 161. Retrieved from http://www.entrepreneur.com/tradejournals/article/100509022.html Preston, D. (2010). Book 1: An introduction to human resource management in business. Milton Keynes: The Open University. University of Human Resource Services. (2006, July 26). Corrective action: Performance feedback. 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