High Involvement Management, Work Enrichment, Well - being and Productivity: An Analysis using WERS2004

1. High Involvement Management, Work Enrichment, Well-being and Productivity: An Analysis using WERS2004 Stephen Wood Institute of Work Psychology September 25th 2008 Seminar Centre for Well-being in Public Policy

2. Outline • Theoretical Context • Research Aims • Hypotheses • The Data • Model • Results • Conclusion

3. Theoretical Context • High Involvement Management • Karasek’s (1979) demand-control model + support • Industrial Relations – Voice • Economists interest in happiness – importance of team-based cooperative system • Shared Capitalism – the importance of share ownership and profit-sharing

4. Research Aims • Investigate the link between the High Involvement Management, Work Enrichment, Voice and two types of Job-related Well-being (Job Satisfaction, Contentment) • Test hypotheses based on the Human Resource Management Industrial Relations, the Industrial/Organizational Psychology, Economics literatures

5. Employee Involvement Well-being High Involvement Management Contentment Work Enrichment Job Satisfaction Employee Voice Motivational Variable Pay, Job Security, Internal Recruitment

6. Main Hypotheses • High Involvement Management is positively associated with Job Satisfaction and Contentment. • Work Enrichment is positively associated with Job Satisfaction and Contentment. • Employee Voice is positively associated with Job Satisfaction and Contentment. • Motivational Supports are positively associated with Job Satisfaction and Contentment.

7. Hypotheses: High Involvement Management and Well-being • High Involvement Management is positively associated with Job Satisfaction and Contentment. High Involvement Management moderates the association between Work Enrichment and (a) Job Satisfaction and (b) Contentment.

8. Hypotheses: Work Enrichment and Well-being • Work Enrichment is positively associated with Job Satisfaction and Contentment. The association between Work Enrichment and Job Satisfaction is stronger than that with Contentment. The association of Work Enrichment with (a) job satisfaction and (b) Contentment is moderated by job demands. The moderating effect of job demands on the relationship of Work Enrichment with (a) job satisfaction and (b) Contentment is stronger for Contentment than it is for Job Satisfaction.

9. Hypotheses: Employee Voice and Well-being • Trade Union Representation and Consultative methods are associated positively with Job Satisfaction and Contentment. The interaction between Trade union representation and Consultative Methods is associated positively with Well-being. Trade Union Representation will moderate the association between job demands and job satisfaction and Contentment and this moderation will be larger for Contentment than for job satisfaction. Trade Union Membership will moderate the association between trade union representation and Well-being.

10. Hypotheses:Supports and Well-being • Job security Guarantees and Internal Labour Markets are positively associated with Well-being. • Individual-level Payments Systems are negatively associated with Well-being. The interaction of Individual-level Payments Systems and Work Enrichment is negatively associated with Well-being. • Group- or Organizational-wide Payment Systems are positively associated with Well-being. The interaction of group- or organizational-wide payments systems and (a) Work Enrichment and (b) High Involvement Management are associated with Well-being.

11. Hypotheses:Supportive Management and Well-being • Supportive Management is positively associated with Well-being. Supportive Management has a moderating effect on the associations between both work enrichment, High Involvement Management or Voice with Well-being

12. Hypothesis: Work Enrichment and High Involvement Management and Organizational Performance • Work Enrichment and High Involvement Management are independently and positively associated with Organizational Performance.

13. Hypothesis: Work Enrichment and High Involvement Management and Organizational Performance • Well-being mediates the relationship between Work Enrichment and High Involvement Management and Organizational Performance. • (Critical) Work Enrichment and High Involvement Management are independently and negatively associated with Well-being, which does not mediate the positive relationship between these two management practices and Organizational Performance.

14. Testing Hypotheses • Two-level data: employees are nested within workplaces • Observations at the employee level are not independent observations • Use weighted multi-level regressions to reflect sample design

15. Data • Workplace Employee Relations Survey of 2004 • 2,295 workplaces with five or more employees from an in-scope sample of 3,587 addresses (response rate = 64%) • 22,451 employees (response rate = 61%) • Up to 25 employees in each workplace were randomly selected (median/workplace= 13)

16. Measures of Job Satisfaction • Amount of influence the person has over their job • Amount of pay they receives • Sense of achievement they get from their work • Scope for using initiative • Training the person receives • Job security • Involvement in decision-making • The work itself

17. Warr’s Anxiety-Contentment Measure Calm Contented Relaxed Tense Uneasy Worried

18. High Involvement Management • Teamwork • Functional Flexibility • Quality Circles • Suggestion Schemes • Team briefing • Induction • Training for Human Relations Skills • Information Disclosure • Appraisal

19. Work Enrichment How much influence they have over five areas of work: • “the tasks they do in their job” • “the pace at which they work” • “how they do their work” • “the order in which they carry out their tasks” • “the time they start or finish their work”

20. Consultative Management Perceptions of how good managers are at: • “seeking the views of employees or employee representatives” • “responding to suggestions from employees or employee representatives” • “allowing employees or employee representatives to influence final decisions”

21. Supportive Management How good employees felt mangers are at keeping employees informed about the following: • “changes to the way the organization is run” • “changes in staffing” • “changes in the way you do your job” • “financial matters including budgets or profits”

22. Motivational Supports • Job security guarantees • Internal recruitment • Individual-level performance-related • Pay • Profit sharing • Employee share ownership

23. Supportive Management The extent to which the managers at the workplaces are perceived to have the following characteristics: • “can be relied upon to keep to their promises” • “are sincere in attempting to understand employees’ views” • “deal with employees honestly” • “understand about employees having to meet responsibilities outside work” • “encourage people to develop their skills” • “treat employees fairly”.

24. Organizational Performance • Multiple indicators: - Financial performance - Productivity - Quality - Absenteeism • Control variables: - Percentage of unionization - Size of workplace - Part of larger organization - Private/public ownership

25. The Two-level Model workplace individual fixed random

26. Well-being • Work Enrichment and Supportive Management are positively associated with Job Satisfaction and Contentment • High Involvement Management is unrelated to Job Satisfaction and negatively associated with Contentment • Consultative Management is associated only with Job Satisfaction • No evidence for hypotheses entailing Motivational Supports or their moderated relationships • Supportive Management is positively associated with Job Satisfaction and Contentment

27. Practices and Performance: WERS • No strong individual practice or synergistic effects • High Involvement Management linked with productivity level • Work Enrichment more significant for productivity and other performance criteria

28. Testing Multi-level Mediation on WERS 2004 Data High Involvement Management Work Enrichment • Organizational • Performance: • Financial • Productivity • Quality • Absenteeism WORKPLACE -> INDIVIDUAL -> • Employee • Well-being • Job Satisfaction • Anxiety- • Contentment

29. High Involvement Management, Well-being and Performance • High Involvement Management positively associated with financial performance and productivity • High Involvement Management is negatively associated with Contentment • No mediation

30. High Involvement Management Financial performance and productivity + - Contentment Performance Work Enrichment + Job satisfaction + +

31. Work Enrichment , Well-being and Performance • Work Enrichment good for all outcomes • Work Enrichment positively related to Job Satisfaction • Job Satisfaction mediates the relationship between Work Enrichment and Outcomes

32. Conclusion: differentiated pattern • Evidence of direct effects of both High Involvement Management and Work Enrichment but on different Performance Outcomes • Evidence of mediation by Job Satisfaction in the relationship between Work Enrichment and Performance • Anxiety-Contentment a separate outcome not a mediator: possible downside of High Involvement Management

33. Voice • Lack of support for any of the theories involving payment systems or shared capitalism • The insignificance of trade unions, especially given the significance of Consultative Management is also important • The positive role that Supportive Management and Supportive Management have reinforces the importance of transformational leadership

34. High Involvement Management & Well-being • High Involvement Management entails pressures to improve employees’ performance, raises concerns amongst them about their competencies and job security

35. Contact Details Professor Stephen Wood Institute of Work Psychology University of Sheffield Mushroom Lane Sheffield S10 2TN UK Tel: +44(0)114 222 3230 Fax: +44(0)114 272 7206 E-mail: s.j.wood@sheffield.ac.uk