When a Happy Worker is a Productive Worker - Case Study Example

When a happy worker is a productive worker: A preliminary examination of three models Introduction Is a person’s happiness at work reflective of the working condition, or is the happy worker a factor in the output at work? This is an open ended question. One can be happy doing what one likes is commonsense. If a person ends up with a work which he loves then naturally he is bound to put his soul into it and therefore we will have quality output. But the situation today where the cheese is being moved at the speed of light does not afford the mass of people to select the work they love. Mundane tasks like work in an automobile assembly line cannot be said to be a task that anyone takes on with love. It is a work of necessity which becomes mechanical. If a person of happy disposition takes up such work and brings his sunny nature into the work place, will he or she be more productive than the normal or even the sullen counterpart? That is the quest of this paper fro which we analyze three models along with oriental views that came down through the centuries regarding this question. The Proposition The hypothesis theorises that a happy worker will be more productive than his counterpart. The fact that supporting evidence that can conclude the issue is not available cannot be indicative that it cannot be finalized. We propose that we find no correlation between the two as a result of the inability to properly define happiness and create a quantifiable way to relate happiness of the individual to the performance exhibited at work. This is a longitudinal study which will analyse job factors in relation to the mental well being and performance ratios. Pioneering work was done by Hawthorne the proposition can be stated as "the workers with happy disposition tend to be more productive than those who are not happy at work." The term happiness is elusive. what can be happiness? Happiness cannot be measured on a rigid scale (Wright & Cropanzano, 2000). This two year long study the factors affecting the worker (termed an affect) is studied in constant scale with noting on other factors like job satisfaction, and affects being two, either positive or negative. With this study and data a rational analysis will prove whether or not a relation exists between the two. In the two-year longitudinal field study, investigations into the contribution of job satisfaction, two measures of dispositional affect - positive and negative affectivity - and psychological well-being as predictors of job performance. We begin by reviewing the theoretical rationales that have been offered for why relations may exist among these variables and performance. Job Satisfaction and Performance The important method of analysis is to correlate the factors - Job satisfaction and performance of the worker. This system emphasized that job satisfaction is the prime criteria of what could be described as happiness. This view as held by the Management school that is known to insist on human relations, for example Perrow, 1986, p. 60 argued that employees feel a need to get on with their colleagues and derive satisfaction from their work and interactions. Thus the train of thought gave rise to a stream of questions and analysis on many observed causes or factors that reportedly stemmed from employee disaffection like absenteeism, and hostile behaviour, and so on. Many models have thereafter been proposed which came to the conclusion that there exists a direct relation between employee happiness and productivity and the happiness not only stems from the conditions of the workplace but also is based on interpersonal interaction. Thus there came to be many thinkers who subscribed to this view and sought to prove it further. There were some critics of this model of analysis for example (Brief, 1998). And have not entirely accepted the findings of this school of thought. Affects and Output The theory however can be examined in the paradigm of affects, the negative and the positive. The two traits exhibited by workers consistently could be a positive affect, which includes love and esteem of the work, a healthy ego, bonhomie, and all round good will. a negative affect will send signals that can be interpreted as angry, inconsistent, irritated and dissatisfied. Each of this group send out signals about their mental states that can be observed and related to performance. (George, 1996, p. 147). The findings have somewhat been sobered with the observation that a worker can exhibit both these traits in the workplace at different times. The border becomes fuzzy with a worker at times being in the positive affect and immediately going into the negative affect. Thus there is no way to say if at the production point the worker was a positive or negative affect and thus it will not be possible to relate productivity with the affects. Changing environment and work patterns Can a person be happy if the work patterns are changed? or the work place made more attractive? how far does it relate to productivity? We can agree that a person free from stress will be more effective than a person in stressful situations. By changing some work situations, like proper deadlines, and leeway in work time to accommodate some other harmless pursuit for intervals like a game or aerobics, it has been found that stress is reduced and productivity increases. China has a policy of compulsory break in factories for 10 minutes in the afternoons for sport and exercise. The authorities claim that it removes stress and ill feeling thereby increasing productivity. A person who has no ill feeling and stress can be called happy. Where the work place is informal and less rigid with familiarities across the power structure makes higher ups accessible, stress and grouse is reduced and such companies have reported more productivity. Similarly festivals, memorial events, celebrations of success of employees boost happiness quotient and have proved to be effective in raising productivity. Where employees are treated with humane consideration and also with respect it boosts confidence and loyalty thereby making them secure and happy. This motivation alone leads to more production because a concept of "our" enters their psyche. Test and results: Case study as proof It is claimed that the Centre for Economic Performance (CEP) has been able to prove that the happy worker is more productive. According to Professor Michael West of the Aston Business School the employee of a company are their major assets and therefore their well being and moulding is paramount in increasing productivity. Companies are exhorted to show more care in the wellbeing of their employees and their problems. This negates the arguments of Prof. west that some distressed employees perform better than happy ones. the research conducted by the Centre for Economic Performance took forty two units into account and covered five thousand employees from various industries. The questionnaires collected information about various aspects of job satisfaction, well being and attitude and output of the employees. The results were juxtaposed against the financial statements of the company and the researchers were able to predict the future outcomes in terms of productivity based on the information obtained. This proved beyond doubt that there was a correlation between the two aspects. These results apply to both managerial and working staff. The companies tested include Zotefoams, Foam manufacturer where after changing the situation and working attitudes and training in problem solving and other interpersonal skills, employees were found to be more comfortable with work and also were more productive in terms of turnout. Training and motivation make the happy employee which in turn makes their work productive. In the face of increasing evidence that where the company cared for its employees and where some collective activity and training were given, employee satisfaction and consequently commitment to work increase as a result of which productivity increase. From this finding we may even say that the company’s performance indicator like financial statements will indirectly reflect how happy their employees are. Some of these concepts were incorporated into Eastern religion and life. Hinduism, Oriental ideas on Productivity The mystic religion eschews results of labour and believes in the fatalist concept of work being a result of the aptitude and previous accumulation of merits by the soul. However the Bhagavath Geetha and other work reveal the nature of what was called Karma to be more than work; it was also an allusion to the way of life. In the Hindu way, a person his personality and karma or occupation cannot be alienated. The three are interdependent one causing the other. Thus a person well disposed to his karma or work and way of life will not only be useful but also productive. The theory of occupation among Hindus is deeper than is commonly known. The happiness at the occupation it is believed stems from ones ancestry. What did the ancestors bequeath the persons with in terms of skills, heredity and culture? What are the aptitudes and attitudes of a person choosing a vocation? Every vocation is happy to those who have the inclination and a burden to those who do not. A person is therefore happy when he does what he likes most. In most cases liking and aptitude get passed on from parents and thus heredity and family occupations make a person happier. The environment where one works, especially in a place where one is familiar, and where one meets the persons of ones owns community will foster a sense of commitment and well being raising the happiness of the persons and thus the output. Hinduism argues that work is not an end in itself, and not only for survival but it is the work that uplifts the soul of the person and gives him salvation. Souls have instincts and instinctive liking for an occupation generates happiness if the person engages in it. A person’s occupation and karma and life as a whole is linked into a concept called individual duty or swadharma which the person follows to the grave. The emphasis is on the spiritual and moral development and honing of the skills of the person so as to make him able to deliver the best possible fruits of labour. if a person is engaged in a vocation with all these considerations he will be happy and effective. It can be noted that training, feeling of belonging and also the interest and making the work a part of life is important to the individual. The perception is that when the individual is happy and content will result in a larger benefit for the community was prevalent from the very ancient cultures of the world, and it has become an inherent part of the eastern religion. Therefore to say that happiness of the employee directly affects productivity is correct and has been observed by man many centuries ago. To make the concept a part of life, it was included into the spiritual and mystic lore. Today many companies are adopting diverse policies including human resource management techniques, training, seminars and other perks to boost the morale of the employee and achieve overall performance. Thus it becomes imperative that the business community takes this important aspect as a part of the general business strategy. Conclusion We may in the light of all that discussed above conclude with certainty that there is a direct relation between employee happiness and productivity and that by training the employee it is possible to make up for negative personality traits and make the employee happy at the workplace. A person is happy when he does what he likes most. In most cases selection must be made on the basis of aptitude or work rescheduled to accommodate the aptitude of the person. . The perception is that when the individual is happy and content will result in a larger benefit for the community was prevalent from the very ancient cultures of the world, and it has become an inherent part of the eastern religion. One cannot dismiss this belief because in the ancient cultures it was effective in creating a very rich and powerful community. Motivating the employees to build a positive goal oriented approach to work and building interpersonal relations will create more happiness which certainly will increase productivity inn the long run. The employees are the first asset of any organization. References 1 A Wright, Russell Cropanzano, Philip J Denney, Gary L Moline, When a happy worker is a productive worker: A preliminary examination of three models 2 Canadian Journal of Behavioural Science, Jul 2002, Online: http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qa3717/is_200207/ai_n9121451, Accessed December 07 2007 3. Happy workforces are productive workforces, The Edge, Issue 1, Online: http://www.esrcsocietytoday.ac.uk/ESRCInfoCentre/about/CI/CP/the_edge/Issue1/happyworkforce_1.aspx?ComponentId=1904&SourcePageId=1941, Accessed December 07 2007) 4 NFIB, The Voice of Small Business, Boost Your Business by Minimizing Stress, Online: http://www.nfib.com/object/IO_29489.html, Accessed December 07 2007 5. Swami Ganeswarananda, Secret of Productive Work - The Vedanta Way, Online: http://www.boloji.com/hinduism/104.htm, Accessed December 07 2007 Read More