Business Commons^™

Strategies For Developing Effective Teams Within Small Businesses, Jennifer Holly Wolfson

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Due to the prominence of building larger teams, some small businesses lack strategies to create effective teams for improving organizational performance. Small business managers yearn to instill team development strategies because they could produce a team that will use their abilities to enhance organizational performance. Grounded in Tuckman’s group development theory, the purpose of this qualitative multiple case study was to explore strategies small business managers use to create effective teams for improving organizational performance. The participants were three managers from three small businesses who created effective teams. Data were collected using semistructured interviews and reviewing manuals, protocols, and training …

Strategies For Developing Effective Teams Within Small Businesses, Jennifer Holly Wolfson

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Due to the prominence of building larger teams, some small businesses lack strategies to create effective teams for improving organizational performance. Small business managers yearn to instill team development strategies because they could produce a team that will use their abilities to enhance organizational performance. Grounded in Tuckman’s group development theory, the purpose of this qualitative multiple case study was to explore strategies small business managers use to create effective teams for improving organizational performance. The participants were three managers from three small businesses who created effective teams. Data were collected using semistructured interviews and reviewing manuals, protocols, and training …

Small And Medium-Sized Enterprise Beauty Salon Employer Strategies Used To Improve Employee Retention, Angela Lynette Loyd

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Retention strategies are important to beauty salon leaders as they directly affect retaining a reliable workforce. Grounded in self-determination theory, the purpose of this generic qualitative case study was to explore retention strategies used by some SME beauty salon leaders in the United States to improve employee retention. The participants were five SME beauty salon leaders who retained at least two employees for 2 consecutive years. Data were collected using semistructured interviews and company documents. The four themes from the thematic analysis were leadership, psychological needs satisfaction, motivation, and engagement. A key recommendation is to have SME beauty salon leaders …

Meaningful Work And Remote Employee Engagement During The Covid-19 Pandemic, Monique Foster

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The COVID-19 pandemic accelerated the remote working trend, causing workplace leaders to be challenged and remote employees to feel meaninglessness and lose interest in their work. The subjective nature of meaningful work and enforced remote work is a relatively recent socioeconomic phenomenon, creating a gap in the literature regarding how middle managers foster meaningful work for employees in a remote work environment. The purpose of this qualitative narrative inquiry study was to understand how middle managers fostered meaningful work for employees in a remote work environment during the COVID-19 pandemic. Data were collected from semistructured interviews with 10 middle managers …

Strategies To Promote Employee Engagement In The Aerospace Industry, David R. Cunningham

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Disengaged employees harm organizational performance. Lack of employee engagement costs manufacturing leaders in the United States billions of dollars annually in productivity. Guided by the personal engagement theory, the purpose of this single case study was to identify strategies manufacturing leaders use to improve employee engagement. The participants were manufacturing leaders in the aerospace industry in southern California. Data were collected from face-to-face semistructured interviews with three participants and a review of company engagement strategies available on the company website. Data were analyzed using thematic analysis and methodological triangulation. Four themes emerged: (a) leadership competency, (b) intrinsic and extrinsic motivation, …

Strategies To Mitigate Voluntary Employee Turnover, Mutale Chilangwa Chisela

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

AbstractBanking leaders are negatively affected when employees voluntarily leave their employment. Banking leaders who implement strategies can enhance employee satisfaction to mitigate voluntary employee turnover. Grounded in the transformational leadership theory, the purpose of this qualitative multiple-case study was to explore strategies some banking leaders use to mitigate voluntary employee turnover. Participants were five banking leaders from local and international banks, four banks in Lusaka, Zambia, and one bank in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, who successfully implemented strategies to mitigate voluntary employee turnover. Data were collected from semistructured interviews and company documents and analyzed using Yin’s five phases. Three themes …

Strategies To Mitigate Voluntary Employee Turnover, Mutale Chilangwa Chisela

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

AbstractBanking leaders are negatively affected when employees voluntarily leave their employment. Banking leaders who implement strategies can enhance employee satisfaction to mitigate voluntary employee turnover. Grounded in the transformational leadership theory, the purpose of this qualitative multiple-case study was to explore strategies some banking leaders use to mitigate voluntary employee turnover. Participants were five banking leaders from local and international banks, four banks in Lusaka, Zambia, and one bank in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, who successfully implemented strategies to mitigate voluntary employee turnover. Data were collected from semistructured interviews and company documents and analyzed using Yin’s five phases. Three themes …

Enhancing Employee Engagement To Improve Financial Performance, Christine Lamacchia

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Business leaders are negatively affected when many employees are not engaged in their jobs. Business leaders who struggle to achieve employee engagement suffer decreased profitability, sales, employee retention, and customer satisfaction. Grounded in employee engagement theory, the purpose of this qualitative single case study was to explore strategies IT business leaders use to engage employees. The participants were five IT business leaders who successfully developed strategies to engage employees. Data were collected from semistructured interviews, company documents, and artifacts. Thematic analysis was used to analyze the data. Two themes emerged: creating a company culture conducive to employee engagement and using …

Strategies Nonprofit Leaders Use To Increase Client Engagement In Entrepreneurship Programs, Juanita Williams

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Since 1990, entrepreneurship has been declining in the United States, which negatively impacts the standard of living in the United States by creating fewer jobs and fewer innovations. Identifying and implementing strategies to increase client’s participation in entrepreneurship programs helps business leaders obtain additional funding sources, improve organizational performance, and obtain support from policymakers. Grounded in the human motivation theory, the purpose of this qualitative single case study was to explore strategies three senior business leaders of a nonprofit organization in the mid-Atlantic region of the United States used to increase client engagement in entrepreneurship programs. Data were collected from …

Enhancing Employee Engagement To Improve Financial Performance, Christine Lamacchia

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Business leaders are negatively affected when many employees are not engaged in their jobs. Business leaders who struggle to achieve employee engagement suffer decreased profitability, sales, employee retention, and customer satisfaction. Grounded in employee engagement theory, the purpose of this qualitative single case study was to explore strategies IT business leaders use to engage employees. The participants were five IT business leaders who successfully developed strategies to engage employees. Data were collected from semistructured interviews, company documents, and artifacts. Thematic analysis was used to analyze the data. Two themes emerged: creating a company culture conducive to employee engagement and using …

Strategies Healthcare Leaders Use To Reduce Employee Burnout, Ashley Ann Smith

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Healthcare workers are at an increased risk of being affected by burnout, which leads to decreased productivity, decreased job engagement, and increased organizational turnover. Employee burnout is a problem for healthcare leaders as burnout leads to decreased productivity and increased organizational turnover. The purpose of this qualitative multiple case study, guided by the job-demand resource theory, was to explore strategies healthcare leaders use to reduce employee burnout. Interviews were conducted with four healthcare leaders in the United States with at least 3 years of management experience who implemented strategies to reduce employee burnout at their organizations; a review of organizational …

Strategies To Increase Employees’ Morale, Shannon Gary Coffey

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Leaders who lack effective strategies to increase employee morale face an organizational decrease in productivity, sustainability, and profitability, increasing absenteeism and turnover and costing businesses millions of dollars. Grounded in Burns’s transformational leadership theory, the purpose of this qualitative single case study was to explore strategies used by successful organizational leaders to increase employee morale to improve productivity and profitability in their organization. Data were collected through semistructured interviews and a review of company documents. Participants comprised five leaders of a company located in Knoxville, Tennessee, who successfully used strategies to increase employee morale resulting in increased productivity and profitability. …

The Relationship Between Program Leadership, Resident Physicians’ Wellbeing, And Quality Of Care, Fatima Msheik

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Research studies have shown that organizational leadership and support affect organizational outcomes in many sectors, including healthcare. However, less is known about how organizational leadership influences the quality of patient care by physicians. This study was guided by the perceived organizational support theory and leader-member exchange theory that provide general understanding of how supportive leadership influences staff wellbeing and productivity. Ninety-five resident physicians residing in Lebanon participated in this cross-sectional study and completed an online survey, which consisted of demographics and five tools, namely, the Leader-Member Exchange 7, Perceived Organization Support 8, Maslach Burnout Inventory 7, Utrecht Work Engagement 9, …

Public Service Employee Perceptions Of Leadership Behaviors That Engage Or Disengage, Beverlyn A. Banks

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

A high percentage of U.S. employees do not engage in their work, resulting in lower productivity. U.S. corporations are losing more than $400–$500 billion per year because of low productivity at work. This phenomenological study involved an examination of leadership behaviors that engage or disengage employees in public service organizations. Kahn’s conceptual frame of engagement and Maslow’s hierarchy of needs motivation theory guided this study. The purpose was to determine why disengagement behavior continues despite extensive literature on the benefits of engagement and what organizations can do to encourage leadership behaviors that engage employees and discourage leadership behaviors that disengage …

Strategies For Increasing Workforce Engagement, Joanne White Hayes

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The existence of disengaged employees can reduce productivity and increase organizations’ costs. Engaged employees are vital to many organizations and the success of organizational leaders. Grounded in Herzberg's two factor theory, the purpose of this qualitative single case study was to explore strategies managers used to increase employee engagement in the nonprofit industry. Participants were 3 managers in South Carolina who successfully implemented strategies to increase employee engagement. Data were collected from semistructured interviews and a review of company documents. Data were analyzed using Yin’s 5-step method of analysis, and 3 themes emerged: providing clear and concise communication, recognition and …

Stress And Burnout: Empathy, Engagement, And Retention In Healthcare Support Staff, Burnette Vidal

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Research on stress and burnout and their influence on empathy, engagement, and retention, in healthcare support staff is scarce in the literature. The theoretical framework for this study was the conservation of resources (COR) theory which claims that when people are stressed, emotionally exhausted, and experiencing burnout, they protect and preserve their physical and mental resources from becoming depleted by reducing their effort and withdrawing from work. The key research question was: Does burnout mediate the relationship between stress and empathy, engagement, and turnover intentions in healthcare support staff working in a Federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC)? This quantitative, non-experimental, …

Effective Strategies To Increase Employee Commitment And Reduce Employee Turnover, Jonathan Paz

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Organizational leaders know that employee turnover negatively impacts an organization's finances and can be a result of a lack of employee commitment. Guided by Yukl's flexible leadership theory, this single case study was used to explore strategies that senior leaders have used to increase employee commitment and reduce employee turnover. Vice presidents and directors from a U.S. Fortune 500 financial firm in New Jersey participated in semistructured interviews. The 5 participants have implemented effective strategies to increase employee commitment and reduce employee turnover. Data collection comprised face-to-face interviews, review of company documentation, external website content, and member checking to explore …

Leadership Strategies For Increasing Employee Engagement In The Service Industry, Yavonda Malia Ulfig

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Companies lose an average of $1,000 in profit each year for every employee who feels disengaged and uncommitted to the firm's success. Employee engagement is critical to an organization's productivity, profitability, and competitive edge. The purpose of this single case study was to explore strategies that business leaders in a service organization use to increase employee engagement and work performance. The conceptual framework for this study was Homans's social exchange theory. A purposeful sample of 6 company leaders participated in the study based on their success in developing strategies that enhanced employee engagement and performance in an advertising services firm …

Strategies Small Business Leaders Use To Increase Employee Engagement, Akeia Simmons

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

When organizational leaders create cultures that foster employee engagement, the leaders experience multiple benefits such as enhanced organizational performance, increased profitability, and improved retention rates. Although small business leaders must create and sustain atmospheres that nurture employee engagement to experience maximized success, 85% of organizational leaders struggle with executing strategies that increase engagement. The purpose of this qualitative, single case study was to explore strategies that small business leaders use to increase employee engagement. Servant leadership theory was the conceptual framework chosen for this study. The population included 3 small business leaders of a coffee shop located in Birmingham, AL. …

Relationships Between Job Satisfaction, Organizational Commitment, And Teacher Engagement, Chakita Jackson

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Educational researchers contend that high-quality, sustaining teachers are critical to student success. However, few policymakers agree on the best way to improve teacher quality. Researchers outside of education found associations between employee engagement and job performance, which suggests that improving teacher work engagement may potentially improve teacher productivity. Engagement theories framed this correlational study; Kahn's engagement theory, Spector's job satisfaction theory and Meyer and Allen's organizational commitment theory. These theories contributed to examining relationships between job satisfaction, organizational commitment, and teacher work engagement. Additionally, this study further examined how these relationships mediated teacher demographics ( gender, age, educational level, and …

Healthcare Administrator Strategies For Nurse Engagement To Increase Patient Care, Nicole Sarah Morlock

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Healthcare administrators can improve patient care and safety by stimulating nurse engagement as a means of improving internal relationships. The purpose of this case study was to explore engagement strategies that healthcare administrators use to stimulate nurse engagement. Data were collected using semistructured interviews with 4 healthcare administrators in a Missouri hospital setting. The engagement theory informed the conceptual framework of the study. Data were analyzed using Yin's 5-step process that included compiling, disassembling, reassembling, interpreting, and concluding. Analysis revealed 4 major themes: teamwork, nurse and administrator communication, nurse recognition, and nurse empowerment. Strategies were identified through the exploration and …

Strategies For Increasing Volunteer Engagement In Nonprofit Healthcare Organizations, Sanja Katina Hudson

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Implementing effective strategies to address the challenges of volunteer engagement is critical for helping ensure the sustainability of nonprofit healthcare organizations. Nonprofit healthcare leaders seek strategies to increase the volunteer workforce and enhance volunteer engagement. Through the conceptual lens of Deci and Ryan's self-determination theory, the strategies nonprofit healthcare leaders used to reduce volunteer turnover were explored in this single-case study. Data were collected using semistructured interviews with 5 nonprofit healthcare leaders from a single organization in the southwestern United States. Analysis of internal and external organizational documents and publicly available data were manually coded and thematically organized. The use …

The Relationship Of Employee Engagement And Employee Job Satisfaction To Organizational Commitment, Rebecca Jones

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Business leaders in the accounting/auditing profession have limited knowledge of how employee engagement, employee job satisfaction, and organizational commitment relate to each other. The role of engaged, satisfied, and committed employees is important as globalization allows for unprecedented talent mobility. The purpose of this quantitative correlational study was to examine the relationship between employee engagement, employee job satisfaction, and organizational commitment. The theoretical framework incorporated Emerson's social exchange theory and Bakker and Demerouti's job demands-resource theory. The sample included 82 out of 295 members of the Northeast Chapter of the New York State Society of CPAs who work in Albany …

Spiritual Well-Being, Job Meaningfulness, And Engagement For Human Resource Managers, Dianne Marie Stains

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Employee engagement is a significant problem for leaders in most organizations today. Though many reasons are given for the growing number of disengaged employees, little is understood about what role spirituality in the workplace may play into employee engagement. Humanocracy theory guided the study on three aspects of workplace spirituality, employee engagement, and meaningfulness of work. An online survey combining elements of a Spiritual Well-being Scale, the Work and Meaning Inventory, and the Utrecht Work Engagement Scale was administered to 325 human resource managers. Linear multiple regression results showed a strong negative correlation between spiritual well-being and job engagement, and …

Leadership Strategies For Enhancing Employee Engagement, Ada Vanessa Bradley

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

In the food manufacturing industry, employee engagement is critical to the survival of organizations because engaged employees increase productivity, profitability, and sustainability. Using the transformational leadership theory, the purpose of this single case study was to explore strategies that leaders in the food-manufacturing industry in the northeastern region of the United States use to engage employees. Participants were purposefully selected based upon their experience implementing effective employee engagement strategies. Data were collected through face-to-face semistructured interviews with 7 food manufacturing leaders and the review of organizational documents on employee engagement. Data were analyzed using inductive coding of phrases, word frequency …

Factors Influencing Emergency Registered Nurse Satisfaction And Engagement, Catherine Larock-Mcmahon

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Employee satisfaction and engagement have a direct impact on customer satisfaction. Dissatisfaction and disengagement lead to an increased intent to leave a job, poor patient outcomes, and decreased productivity. The retention and recruitment of qualified staff becomes an urgent priority to ensure safe and prudent patient care. The purpose of the qualitative research study was to better understand the beliefs, attitudes, perceptions, and reasons for emergency department registered nurses (ED RN) satisfaction and engagement in the workplace focusing on Herzberg's, Vroom's, Yetton's, Maslow's, Benner's, and Kahn's motivation and engagement theoretical frameworks. The qualitative case research study focused on satisfaction and …

The Impact Of Transformational Leadership On Nonprofit Volunteer Engagement And Commitment, Victoria Bohannon Buck

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Nonprofit leadership attributes exert a significant effect on the nonprofit volunteer workforce to provide optimal service delivery to communities. Meeting the local community demands challenges nonprofit leadership to model inspirational behavior and attitudes that may motivate workers to transcend personal aspirations to support organizational goals more effectively. The purpose of this quantitative, correlational study was to determine whether transformational leadership influences the level of commitment and engagement of volunteer workers in nonprofit organizations. A theoretical framework based on transformational leadership guided the research. The research questions addressed the relationships between transformational leadership and nonprofit volunteer engagement and commitment. A sample …

Incorporating Stakeholder Input Into Financial Decision Making In California School Districts, Leann R. Nowlin

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

As of June 2013, all California public school districts are required to incorporate stakeholder input into their operational goals and expenditures to increase stakeholder trust. Trust is a belief by one party in a transaction that the other party in the transaction will act in a way that is fair and in the interest of both parties. The problem is that no guidance or direction relative to the methods or extent to which stakeholder input should be gathered and incorporated was provided within the new regulations. Lawmakers and stakeholders had no insight into the effectiveness or level of school district …

Employee Engagement Strategies To Improve Profitability In Retail, Kimberly D. Polite

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Abstract

Retail business leaders can improve profitability when they implement employee engagement strategies. The purpose of this single case study was to explore employee engagement strategies retail leaders use to improve profitability. The population included 6 department leaders in a single retail organization in the southeastern United States. The conceptual framework included Kahn's employee engagement theory. Using Yin's 5-step data analysis process, data from semistructured interviews were transcribed, coded, and analyzed to gain employee engagement strategies that retail leaders use to improve profitability. Four major themes emerged that retail business leaders use to increase profitability: having daily staff interaction, hiring …

Employee Engagement From The Viewpoint Of Employees In Academia, Stephanie Giles-Merrick

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Research does not address how staff in the United States perceive employee engagement in the university system. Leadership training and communication for managers are essential processes that help staff become highly engaged in universities. The purpose of phenomenological study was to explore the views of employees in a selected university within the state of Georgia in an attempt to address positive employee engagement in the academic environment. The engagement theory and social exchange theory were used as the conceptual frameworks to explore how employees engaged in their department working with their managers. To address this question, a purposeful sample of …