Multinational Companies Management - Essay Example

RESEARCH PROPOSAL EXECUTIVE SUMMARY In this document the proposes to study what an organisation with a diverse workforce should do to retain its employees, ensure engagement and loyalty of employees even in tough economic times. The objective of this research study is for the author to gain an in depth understanding of how diverse workforces should be managed and what the optimal management method is to ensure employee loyalty, engagement, employee retention. It is also author's objective to gain an understanding of the differences between employee engagement, employee loyalty and how the organisation can remain profitable while paying attention to the above. According to the initial study that has been conducted the author has gained an understanding on the following, employee engagement and employee loyalty are very different from one another and both variables are related and essential to the profitability of the organisation. This is the same in the case of employee retention. However it is very difficult for any organisation to take the necessary steps to retain its workforce and ensure that they remain loyal and engaged, and when this has to be carried out by an organisation with many different cultural dimensions the strategies that need to be adopted become even more difficult and complex. The author believes that through this study, she will be able to gain sufficient information on the specific steps that can be taken by a transnational organisations with regard to managing and retaining employees while remaining profitable and ensuring that they remain loyal and engaged and highly productive, thus making the organisation even more profitable. Table of Contents 1 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 1 Table of Contents 2 Introduction 3 Research Objectives 3 Research Topic 4 Resources 4 Literature Review 5 Theoretical Framework 6 Methodology 6 Research Design 6 Research Context 7 Procedure 7 Data collection Method 8 Data Analysis 8 Limitations 8 Timeline and Work Schedule 9 Proposed Research Report Structure 10 References 12 Bibliography 12 THE DIFFERENT MANAGEMENT STRATEGIES THAT CAN BE ADOPTED BY AN ORGANISATION WITH A DIVERSE WORKFORCE TO RETAIN ITS WORKFORCE, ENSURE EMPLOYEE LOYALTY AND ENGAGEMENT AND CONTINUE TO STAY PROFITABLE IN BOOM AND BUST CONDITIONS Introduction In this document the author proposes the methods and the type of research study that she will undertake in fulfillment of her degree requirement. The author is currently interested in studying how Multinational Companies such as Microsoft, IBM, Toyota, Honda, General Electric, Coke Cola, Unilevers, General Motors, Hewlett Packard and Sony can do to retain its employees, keep them engaged and loyal to the organisation, while ensuring that the organisation remains profitable through boom and bust conditions. In this proposal the author discusses the research objectives, the research topic, the methodology that she wishes to adopt, the limitations of the study, and finally the dissertation structure and the time line for the study. The author has carried out a brief literature review into the subject area and has presented it in this research to give the proposal more background and to justify the reason for the choice. Research Objectives Here the author will give a brief overview of the objectives of the research study that she will evaluate for completion at the end of the research. Gain an in-depth understanding of the importance of employee retention for a multi-national organisation. Gain an in-depth understanding of the importance of employee engagement for a multi-national organisation. Gain an understanding of the co-relationship between the profitability of the organisation, employee retention, employee engagement and loyalty. To understand the benefits that can be gained by an organisation in boom and bust condition when it retains and engages its employees. To understand the positive correlation between employee retention, employee engagement and managing diverse workforce, working in one country and working in different countries and locations around the world. Research Topic The research topic that has been proposed by the author is "the different management strategies that can be adopted by an organisation with a diverse workforce to retain its workforce, ensure employee loyalty and engagement and continue to stay profitable in boom and bust conditions" As apparent from the research topic that has been stated above the research study has to be carried out in phases, each phase studying a different aspect of the proposed research. In the first section of the study the author will study the benefits that can be gained by a multi-national organisation through employee retention, employee engagement and employee loyalty and the correlation it has to the profitability of the organisation in boom and bust economies. Next the author will study the benefits of the above to an organisation managing a diverse workforce in diverse locations as opposed to a domestic only organisation. In the next part of the research the author will study the impact of all of the above in the context of ten large multinational companies. The companies that will be studies are Microsoft, IBM, Toyota, Honda, General Electric, Coke Cola, Unilevers, General Motors, Hewlett Packard and Sony. Resources In this section the author will give a detailed description of all the different resources that she believes she would need to carry out the stated research study. Access to an online library or any library that has access to the secondary data that the author will need to gather for the literature review Access to the local as well as international human resources personnel at the following companies Microsoft, IBM, Toyota, Honda, General Electric, Coke Cola, Unilevers, General Motors, Hewlett Packard and Sony. Reasonable access to mid level managers in the local and international locations of the above companies. Reasonable access to employees in the local and international locations of the above companies Access to sufficient numbers of employees at human resources, mid-management and individual employees that would make the sample group reflective of the wider and broader population Resources such as stationary, availability to long distance phone services, email, and a research assistant to help with the distribution, gathering and data input and analysis of the information gathered from questionnaires. Access to a computer with MS Excel, which will be used for the analysis and interpretation of data Adequate time to carry out the research study, gather the necessary data and interpret the information that has been gathered. Literature Review Employees are the greatest asset that any organisation has access to. And when the organisation has to compete in a globalized environment the contribution that can be made by effective employees gives an organisation its competitive edge. Unfortunately not every organisation views its workforce as its most valuable asset and as a result in times of economic crisis the first casualty is always the workforce in the organisation (Mudacumura, 2000). However in difficult times not very many transnational organisations see their employees as their greatest asset and as a result most often than not in difficult economic conditions (Lepsinger, 2007). Such treatment results in the employees feeling disengaged and even reduces loyalty and employees feel that if the organisation is not loyal to them - why should they be loyal to the organisation (which is a justifiable argument from the point of view of the employees). Organisations most often fail to see how employees can help to increase an organisation's profitability and its competitive edge in difficult times even more than in economic boom times (Wiley & Legge, 2006) and therefore they do not think twice before restructuring and reorganizing and shedding its workforce. It is a common notion between management theorists that standing by the employees in the times of economic difficulty will ensure that those same employees will be more loyal and even more engaged during boom times once they all see that the organisation is willing to increase safeguard and protect its employees through difficult times (Combs, 2002). Further in a transnational company where there are diverse cultures to manage such strategies of retention, increasing engagement, commitment and loyalty are all very important aspects and will be in the best interest of the organisation in the long term (Carson, Carson, Birkenmeier & Toma, 2006). Theoretical Framework The author will use the information that is gathered through the literature review to build the theoretical framework for the entire research study. Methodology The author will now describe the method that is adopted for the entire research study. The design of the research, the research context, the research procedures, the data collection methods and the data analysis methods are all part of the research methodology and will be identified and explained in the following sections. Research Design The research will be carried out in many different stages and phases as stated above. However the very first step that will be undertaken by the author will be in-depth literature review that will study all the different aspects that have been named above. Next the author will use the secondary data that has been gathered through the literature review to build as many hypotheses as necessary to make the research study meaningful. The hypotheses that are built will then be used to design and develop questionnaires for the different segments of the identified sample groups, human resources, mid level manager and individual contributors or staff in the company. The information gathered through the primary data will then be used to confirm or reject the hypotheses that were built. Research Context The author will use the hypotheses that were built from the information that was gathered through the literature review, which will then be used to design a questionnaire to gather information from all six segments of the sample groups. Local and international Human Resources Personnel, local and international human mid-level managers and local and international employees at Microsoft, IBM, Toyota, Honda, General Electric, Coke Cola, Unilevers, General Motors, Hewlett Packard and Sony. Procedure The author will first use the hypotheses that are built to design and develop three sets of questionnaires for each of the sample group segments. The same questionnaire will be used whether the segment is local or international. This initial set of questionnaires will then be piloted on a group of the author's peers amounting to not more than 15 individuals and feedback will be gathered from the peers as well as the supervisor. The questionnaires will then be fine tuned and redesigned based on the feedback that has been gathered after piloting the questionnaires. Data collection Method The author will create a list of all the employees that the author can gain access to in all of the 10 companies that have been named. Next the list will be categorized according to the segments they belong to The author will decide on proportionate numbers to be sampled in each segment All those in picked to be sampled will then be contacted and requested to participate in the study on voluntary basis. Those agreeing to participate in the survey will be sent questionnaires via email and requested to complete it and return it. Telephone interviews will be conducted with each individual participating in the study to further understand and probe the information that has been provided in the research study. Data Analysis The questionnaire will consist of statements that have to be rated by the respondents on a Likert scale. The findings will then be analyzed using Excel. Limitations In this section the author will discuss the different limitations of the research study and its findings and significance. The biggest limitation maybe that the author will not be able to gain access to sufficient numbers of human resources personnel, managers and employees in the different companies that have been named (Microsoft, IBM, Toyota, Honda, General Electric, Coke Cola, Unilevers, General Motors, Hewlett Packard and Sony) Another huge limitation that the author will be faced with throughout the research study is the time constraint and this is especially true in the case of primary data collection as the author does not control all the elements once the questionnaires are distributed and she is dependent on the respondents to return the questionnaires in time. Individuals may not be very forthcoming for fear for their job, mistrust and other factors that the author may not be able to address due to the impersonal methods of contact and the insufficient time to build a relationship with the respondents and reassure them. Further it might not be possible to gain access to personnel from all the different regions of the globe such as Africa, Asia, and Australia as well as Europe and the Americas. If the author is unable to gain access to personnel in all these different regions the study may not be accurately reflective in nature. The author is not gathering information from the executives in the different organisations and therefore the information gathered may not be as significant as it could be. Lastly there maybe unforeseen challenges in terms of insufficient numbers of questionnaires being returned etc that may make the research inaccurate and cause the research study not to be reflective of the opinion of the larger population. Timeline and Work Schedule Given below is a list of the milestones and their corresponding deadlines for the research study. The author has added in 3 - 7 days in addition to the required time to ensure that unforeseen circumstances will not stall the progress of the research study. ACTIVITY DEADLINE Brainstorming and settling on a topic for the research 15 - May Carrying out an initial study of the secondary research that would be necessary for the research proposal 31 - May Designing and developing the research proposal 05 - Jun Submitting the proposal and awaiting feedback for the proposal from the supervisor 15 - Jun Incorporating the feedback that has been suggested by the supervisor and make necessary changes to research plan. 30 - Jun Researching and collecting secondary information to complete the literature review and create the basis for the building of hypotheses 10 - Jul Designing and building the hypotheses 01 - Aug Preparing initial questionnaire 15 - Aug Selecting sample group 25 - Aug Piloting the questionnaire on a group of peers and making necessary changes to questionnaire based on peer and supervisor's feedback 31 - Aug Administering the questionnaires, gathering the questionnaires and inputing the findings into spreadsheets for analysis 05 - Sep Analyzing and interpreting primary data 15 - Nov Preparation of the final report 30 - Nov Submitting final report 31 - Dec Proposed Research Report Structure In this section the author will give an overview of the structure of the dissertation. Chapter One - Introduction - This is the first chapter of the research report and will give an overview of the entire research study, therefore it will be very similar to the research proposal but will not have included in the initial literature review that is included in the current research proposal. This chapter will include the research topic, the methodology, the justification, the limitations of the research study etc. Chapter Two - Literature Review - In this chapter the author will carry out an in depth literature review that will be directly related to the research objectives that have been set out. However this chapter will be grouped into three phases, each phase will correspond with the research method that has been stated above and will be the basis of the theoretical framework for the study as the hypotheses will be built on the findings in this chapter. Chapter Three - Methodology - Based on the information that has been gathered in the literature review the author will build a few hypotheses that will then be tested on the chosen sample group. The hypotheses will be tested through the gathering of primary data from local and international human resources personnel, local and international mid-level managers and local and international employees at Microsoft, IBM, Toyota, Honda, General Electric, Coke Cola, Unilevers, General Motors, Hewlett Packard and Sony. This chapter will also describe the questionnaires that will be used, the reasons for the use of specific questions and finally the manner in which the data that is gathered will be analyzed. Chapter Four - Findings - In this chapter the author will present the data that has been gathered and analyzed. The data will be presented with the help of excel spreadsheets and tables and bar charts. Chapter Five - Data Interpretation and Conclusions - In this chapter the author will discuss the data that was gathered and the correlate it to the findings that were made through the secondary data that was gathered in the literature review. The author will further correlate the secondary and primary data to each other and then draw conclusions with the use of some assumptions, confirm and reject some or all of the hypotheses and use the knowledge that has been gained to make suggestions and recommendations on what can be done to improve the situation of the employee retention, employee engagement and loyalty. Chapter Six - Reflections, Limitations and Future work - This is the last chapter of the research study and therefore the author will look back at the entire study and the manner in which it was carried out and make an observation of what she thinks could have been done better, and the things that she would do differently next time. In this chapter the author will also evaluate the research objectives and analyze if they have been met and if not why they were not met. The author will make a statement on the significance and the contribution of the research study and make suggestions on the proposed future work that the author wishes to undertake. References 1. Carson, P. P., Carson, K. D., Birkenmeier, B., & Toma, A. G. (2006). Looking for Loyalty in All the Wrong Places: A Study of Union and Organisation Commitments. Public Personnel Management, 35(2). 2. Combs, G. M. (2002). Meeting the Leadership Challenge of a Diverse and Pluralistic Workplace: Implications of Self-Efficacy for Diversity Training. Journal of Leadership Studies, 8(4). 3. Lepsinger, R. (2007, July). Avoiding the Commitment Dip: Seven Ways to Keep Your Employees Focused on and Committed to Change. Public Management, 89. 4. Mudacumura, G. M. (2000). Participative Management in Global Transformational Change. International Journal of Public Administration, 23(12), p. 2051. 5. Wiley, J. W., & Legge, M. (2006). Disciplined Action Planning Drives Employee Engagement. Human Resource Planning, 29(4). Bibliography 6. Coyle-Shapiro, J. A., & Kessler, I. (2003). The Employment Relationship in the U.K. Public Sector: A Psychological Contract Perspective. Journal of Public Administration Research and Theory, 13(2). 7. Luthans, K. W., & Sommer, S. M. (2005). The Impact of High Performance Work on Industry-Level Outcomes. Journal of Managerial Issues, 17(3). 8. Rothbard, N. P. (2001). Enriching or Depleting The Dynamics of Engagement in Work and Family Roles. Administrative Science Quarterly, 46(4). 9. Smith, V. (1997). New Forms of Work Organisation. 10. Theurer, J. (1998, July). Seven Pitfalls to Avoid When Establishing Performance Measures. Public Management, 80. Read More