JOMO KENYATTA UNIVERSITY OF AGRICULTURE AND TECHNOLOGY CBD CUMPUS MSC HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT MHR 3103: EMPLOYEE RESOURCING EMPLOYEE COMMITMENT IS IMPORTANT TO ORGANIZATIONS. DISCUSS PRESENTED BY: GROUP SIX 1. MARTIN SIMIYU HD 312 1354/09 2. EVELYLINE AGALA HD 312 0373/09 3. SAMUEL KINUTHIA HD 312 1346/09 4. SUSAN NKOIBONI HD 312 1616/09 5. CAROLINE GATERU HD 312 1351/09 6. AHMED GALGALO HD 312 1643/09 7. ZAITUNI KIOKO HD 312 1407/09 8. ANDREW ONDARI HD 312 1403/09 PRESENTED TO: ABOK M.A DATE: 18 TH NOVEMBER 2009 1
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JOMO KENYATTA UNIVERSITY OF AGRICULTURE AND
TECHNOLOGY
CBD CUMPUS
MSC HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT
MHR 3103: EMPLOYEE RESOURCING
EMPLOYEE COMMITMENT IS IMPORTANT TO ORGANIZATIONS. DISCUSS
PRESENTED BY: GROUP SIX
1. MARTIN SIMIYU HD 312 1354/09
2. EVELYLINE AGALA HD 312 0373/09
3. SAMUEL KINUTHIA HD 312 1346/09
4. SUSAN NKOIBONI HD 312 1616/09
5. CAROLINE GATERU HD 312 1351/09
6. AHMED GALGALO HD 312 1643/09
7. ZAITUNI KIOKO HD 312 1407/09
8. ANDREW ONDARI HD 312 1403/09
PRESENTED TO: ABOK M.A
DATE: 18 TH NOVEMBER 2009
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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Over the last ten years, the study of commitment has advanced in many different
directions. A variety of disciplines have adopted the topic as a theme in their
research and these have offered fresh and significant insights. These recent
advances include new approaches to both the conceptualization of employee
commitment and the particular human resource practices intended to increase it.
Current research concerning employee commitment highlights the pitfalls of viewing
commitment as a one-dimensional construct that can be enhanced by a particular
human resource policy. This assumes that a particular practice, for example offering
flexible working arrangements or more training, will have a significant and beneficial
effect on employee commitment. Unfortunately, in practice it is not that simple
because there is no single solution. All employees’ wants and needs cannot be
addressed by a single policy.
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TABLE OF CONTENTS 1. Introduction……………………………………………………………………………32. Definition of terms……………………………………………………………………..53. Types of commitment………………………………………………………………….94. Factors affecting employee commitment……………………………………………..115. Benefits of employee commitment…………………………………………………...166. Negative effects of low commitment……………………………………………...….177. Measuring employee commitment……………………………………………….......188. Ways of enhancing employee commitment……………………………………….…189. Developing a commitment strategy……………………………………………….....2610. Recommendations……………………………………………………………………2811. Summary & conclusion………………………………………………………………2912. References…………………………………………………………………………....32
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Introduction
The effective functioning of an organization highly depends on the commitment of its
employees. In fact, the commitment of employees may be a key factor that
determines the success of a company in the modern world since, in the situation of
the growing competition and the constant implementation of new technologies a
company needs to have well-qualified and reliable personnel to maintain its position
in the market. At the same time, the effectiveness and productivity of work of
employees still remain the major factors that can contribute to the progress of the
company. On the other hand, nowadays it is obvious that financial stimuli solely can
hardly motivate employees to work more effectively and productively. In such a
situation, employees commitment turns to be of a paramount importance since it is
due to the high commitment of employees they can perform positive results of their
work, increase its effectiveness and productivity, while low commitment leads, as a
rule, to poor results of the functioning of the entire organization.
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DEFINATION OF TERMS.
COMMITMENT
Meyer & Allen 2001 define commitment as is a stabilizing force that acts to
maintain behavioural direction when expectancy/equity conditions are not met and do
not function.
An obliging force which requires that the person honor the commitment even in the
face of fluctuating attitudes and whims. (Brown 1996)
The relative strength of an individual’s identification with and involvement in a
particular organization (Mowday et al 1979)
According to Salancik (1977) commitment is a state of being in which an individual
becomes bound by his action to beliefs that sustain his activities and his own
involvement
Allen & meyer,1990, commitment is a psychological state that binds the individual to
the organization.
EMPLOYEE COMMITMENT
It is the psychological bond of an employee to an organization, the strength of which
depends on the degree of employee involvement, employee loyalty and belief in the
values of the organization.
As defined by Poter (1974) Employee commitment is the relative strength of the
individual's identification with and involvement in a particular organization. It consists
of three factors:A strong desire to remain a member of the organization;
A strong belief in, and acceptance of, the values and goals of the organization
A readiness to exert considerable effort on behalf of the organization
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MODELS OF COMMITMENT
A THREE MODEL CONCEPTUALIZATION OF ORGANIZATION COMMITMENT.
This model of organizational commitment model was developed by Meyer and Allen.
According to the model, organizational commitment reflects at least three general
themes.
1. Affective commitment to the organization
2. Continuance Commitment – The perceived cost associated with leaving it
3. Normative Commitment- The obligation to remain with it.
Affective Commitment
It’s the employees emotional attachment to, identification with and involvement in the
organization.
Employees with a strong affective commitment continue employment with the
organization because they want to.
Continuance Commitment
The individual commits to the organization because he/she perceives high costs of
losing organizational membership including economic costs (such as pension
accruals) and social costs (friendship ties with co-workers) that could be incurred.
The employee remains with the organization because he/she “has to”.
I t refers to an awareness of the costs associated with leaving the organization. The
potential cost of leaving an organization include the threat of wasting the time and
effort spent acquiring non transferable skills, losing attractive benefits, giving up
seniority – based privileges or having to uproot family and disrupt personal
relationships.
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It also develops as a result of lack of alternative employment opportunities.
Employees in this category remain because they need to.
NORTMATIVE COMMITMENTS
Refers to a feeling of obligation to continue employment . Employees in this category
remain in the organization because they feel they ought to.
Organization can develop normative commitment by providing reward in advance
e.g. paying college tuition. Normative pressures may also make an individual feel that
they ought to remain within the organization.
Acknowledging these investments makes employees feel a sense of obligation to
reciprocate by committing themselves to the organization until the debt has been
paid .
One important point is that not all forms of employee commitment are positively
associated with superior performance (Meyer & Allen, 1997). For example, an
employee who has low affective and normative commitment, but who has high
continuance commitment is unlikely to yield performance benefits. The main reason
such an employee remains with an organisation is for the negative reason that the
costs associated with leaving are too great.
THE HIGH COMMITMENT MODEL. ( IN STRATEGIC HRM.)
This model embraces workforce commitment and identification with the organizations
values and goals. The main features of high commitment model are:
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1. Development of career ladders and emphasis on trainability and commitment as
highly characteristic of employees at all levels in the organization.
2. A high level of functional flexibility with the abandonment of potentially rigid job
descriptions.
3. The reduction of hierarchies and the ending of status differentials.
4. Heavy reliance on the team structure for dissemination of information (team
building) structure work and problem solving.
5. Job design as something management consciously does in order to provide
jobs which have a considerable level of intrinsic motivation.
6. A policy of no compulsory layoff or redundancies and use of permanent
employee with possible use of temporary workers to cushion fluctuation in the
demand for labour.
7. New forms of assessment and pay system and more specifically merit pay profit
sharing
8. A high involvement of employees in the management of quality.
CONCEPTUALISATION OF COMMITMENT: MODEL DEVELOPED BY O’REILLY
AND CHATMAN. (1986)
O'Reilly and Chatman(1986) developed their multidimensional framework on the
basis of the assumption that commitment represents an attitude towards the
organization. For them, commitment takes on three distinct forms, which they labeled
1. Compliance
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2. Identification
3. Internalization
Compliance occurs when attitudes and corresponding behaviors are adopted in
order to gain specific rewards. E.g being very considerate towards people so that
you get that promotion
Identification occurs when an individual accepts influence to establish or maintain a
satisfying relationship
Relationship / Internalization occurs when influence is accepted because the
attitudes and behaviors’ one is being encouraged to adopt are congruent with
existing values. Employees thus become committed to organizations which they
share value e.g. an organization that encourages integrity is likely to win the
commitment of an individual who believes in integrity.
TYPES OF COMMITMENT .
O’Malley (2000) contends that a review of the commitment literature produces five
general factors which relate to the development of employee commitment:
Affiliative Commitment:
An organization’s interests and values are compatible with those of the employee,
and the employee feels accepted by the social environment of the organization.
Associative Commitment:
Organizational membership increases employees’ self-esteem and status. The
employee feels privileged to be associated with the organisation.
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Moral Commitment:
Employees perceive the organization to be on their side and the organization evokes
a sense of mutual obligation in which both the organization and the employee feel a
sense of responsibility to each other. This type of commitment is also frequently
referred to in the literature as Normative Commitment.
Affective commitment:
Employees derive satisfaction from their work and their colleagues, and their work
environment is supportive of that satisfaction. Some researchers (eg Allen & Meyer,
1991) suggest that this is the most important form of commitment as it has the most
potential benefits for organizations. Employees who have high affective commitment
are those who will go beyond the call of duty for the good of the organization. In
recent literature this form of commitment has also been referred to as ‘engagement’
and is the form of commitment that is most usually measured by organizations.
Structural commitment:
Employees believe they are involved in a fair economic exchange in which they
benefit from the relationship in material ways. There are enticements to enter and
remain in the organization and there are barriers to leaving. This type of commitment
is also frequently referred to in the literature as Continuance Commitment.
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FACTORS AFFECTING EMPLOYEE COMMITMENT.
The workplace is a dynamic field and to remain competitive, employee commitment
is important..The following factors affect employee comittemnt:
Workplace values.
If employees believe that their organization values quality products they will engage
in behaviors’ that will contribute to high quality. If employees are convinced that their
organization values participation they will be more likely to feel as though their
participation will make a difference.
They will thus be motivated and be more willing to seek solutions and make
suggestions to contribute to the organization success.