Employee Dissatisfaction: First Day on the Job - Essay Example

? Employee Dissatisfaction: First Day on the Job of First Day on the Job Employee satisfaction is critical for the success of any organization and a high level of employee contentedness relates directly to a low turnover rate (Gregory, 2011). Job satisfaction is defined as a positive or pleasurable emotional state that results from the appraisal of a personal job or job experiences (Saari and Judge, 2004). The various reasons for employees’ dissatisfaction include high levels of stress, lack of communication with the organization and lack of recognition. Moreover, limited opportunity for growth leads to dissatisfaction at the workplace. Employees become bored with their work due to lack of motivation to succeed (Gregory, 2011). In addition, he explains that finding the daily job unexciting brings down an individual’s desire to report to work and to work well. When responsibilities prove too demanding and an employee is overwhelmed with work, he/she become dissatisfied and opt to search for another workplace. This paper is based on the case study of Malik during his first day at work. Malik’s first day as a manager at a new place proved to be more challenging than he had anticipated. In addition to the fact that he had to adjust to a new environment and new colleagues, Malik was consulted by an employee who looked frustrated and worn out (Stewart and Brown, 2008). Malik learns that this is a high-potential employee who can turn out to be a great asset for the company. The employee confided to him that she was planning to quit the job although without providing much details or history. The only information she provided to Malik is that she is frustrated and exhausted due to great variations in the amount of work; too much at times and too little in other times. The employee explains to Malik that she does not feel any excitement about her work nor does the job give her challenges to learn new skills to achieve the ultimate goal of owning a personal business (Stewart and Brown, 2008). Although Malik leaves without offering much more details, it is evident that the employee is dissatisfied with her present workplace. This brings up the question of the factors that cause employee dissatisfaction and how this can be addressed. Stress is the major cause of employee dissatisfaction (Gregory, 2011). Branham (2005) concurs with this and reckons that stress negatively affects the productivity and the probability of employees staying at their workplace. There are various causes of stress, including instances when companies cannot provide the necessary tools to perform some task efficiently (Gregory, 2011). The other cause of stress is when companies in an attempt to cut down on cost eliminates some positions and shares the workload to the other employees. This results in too much workload for others who have to work during their personal time. According to Gregory (2011), termination of jobs for some employees due to some reasons leads to stress among the remaining employees, consequently, leading to lower productivity. Branham (2005) argues that an untrustworthy employer causes stress among employees. Lack of trust can result from any form of harassment. Other than stress, employers viewed as unethical by employees may cause employee dissatisfaction. Employees may view their employers as unethical when they seem to care exclusively about the revenues of the company rather than being concerned about the employees’ welfare. Dissatisfaction may be caused by lack of flexibility or any source of enjoyment for the employees (Gregory, 2011). Furthermore, lack of communication at the workplace causes dissatisfaction. This happens when the management in a company is isolated and has a poor professional and personal relationship with the staff (Branham, 2005). Poor communication makes employees to feel discontented in the organization. Failure to appreciate the efforts of the employees leads to dissatisfaction (Gregory, 2011). Employees also become dissatisfied when the management takes their ideas lightly and, hence, they see no future in the organization. Disparity in the levels of pay in the organization also leads to employee dissatisfaction (Branham, 2005). Failure to offer employees with chances to grow within the company leads to their frustration. Branham (2005) explains that there may be barriers within the company, which could hinder employees from attaining their full potential. These barriers include; favoritism of some employees or discriminative company policies that require hiring from outside the company. Setting a limit for the minority employees may also lead to dissatisfaction. Moreover, failure to provide training opportunities to employees leads to their discontent. The company in the case study needs to offer more training and coaching for their employees. This will help them grow and provide them with valuable skills that will help them achieve their ultimate goals. The company must also open up the channels of communication between the management and the employees. The company can come up with new projects to engage their employees and provide some challenging tasks as this will give them confidence that they can handle different projects. The following day, Malik must show care to his employee. He should call the employee and get to the bottom line on the issues that are affecting her. He must pay keen attention to her and be supportive. Malik should also be supportive by showing that he understands what the employee is going through and make a commitment to resolve the matter. Malik should also be appreciative of the role played by the employee in the organization as he has learnt from others. This will reassure the employee that her role in the organization is recognized and appreciated. To address the problem of employee dissatisfaction in the organization; Malik, needs to foster development in the organization and recommend some policy changes. An organization development can be achieved through continuously providing feedback to the employees about their performance. Consequently, Malik should recommend that in the long term, the organization should also conduct opinion surveys that help to understand the employees’ feelings. This in turn helps the management to adjust accordingly to remain responsive of the employee requirements. In addition, the management should organize one on one meetings with the employees as a chance to discuss employee problems. Moreover, Malik should recommend periodic training of employees to continuously equip them with new skills. Coaching should be provided to equip the employees with the required skills to perform their tasks. In addition, to offer challenging tasks to the employees and reduce boredom among them, Malik should recommend that the company must have new projects. Cultural assessment and planning is also identified as a crucial factor in organizational development (Gregory, 2011). The culture of an organization plays a major role in the way people interact; perform their jobs and the productivity of an organization. The human resource policies should be re-evaluated to ensure that employees are competitively rewarded and appreciated for their contribution to the organization. Moreover, the hiring policies should facilitate equal opportunities for all and allow for the promotion of employees from within the organization. In conclusion, employee satisfaction is critical in ensuring the outcome of the organization’s productivity. The level of stress, type of communication and the level of appreciation of employees in an organization influence satisfaction at a work place. Lack of opportunities for personal development and challenging tasks leads to boredom at work, eventually resulting in dissatisfaction. To curb employee dissatisfaction, the management should provide training and coaching to its employees. Moreover, companies should come up with new projects that expose the staff to challenges to reduce boredom and enhance growth. There should be frequent employee satisfaction surveys to understand their feelings. References Branham, L. (2005). The 7 hidden reasons employees leave: How to recognize the subtle signs and act before it’s too late. New York, NY: Amacom. Gregory, K. (2011). The importance of employee satisfaction. Retrieved February 17, 2012 from http://www.neumann.edu/academics/divisions/business/journal/Review2011/Gregory.pdf Saari & Judge, T. (2004). Employee attitudes and job satisfaction. Human Resource Management. Winter Vol. 43, No. 4: Wiley Periodicals. Stewart, G., & Brown, K. (2008). Human resource management: Linking Strategy to Practice. (Ist Edition). Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons Read More