ASSESSING ORGANIZATIONAL CLIMATE AND …

1 The Journal of Human Resource and Adult Learning Vol. 4, Num. 1, June 2008 47 ASSESSING ORGANIZATIONAL CLIMATE and leadership as a means to evaluate potential for ORGANIZATIONAL change Dr. Tsai Chen Li, Department of Marketing Logistics Management, Chihlee Institute of Technology, Taipei, Taiwan ABSTRACT As a typical case, The shipping company Marglobal International Logistics Company (Marglobal) s story tells us that it is difficult for employees to work in an organization in which the rules are different for different employees and exceptions are always being made. That is to say that ORGANIZATIONAL principles and systems need to be consistent and practiced consistently by everyone. This action research study endeavored to answer three research questions regarding (a) education and training of the leadership to determine if these contribute to the improvement of team building and ORGANIZATIONAL values, (b) factors contributing to the development of quality leadership and management within a company or organization, and (c) the contribution of organization CLIMATE and culture guided by leadership on the development a quality and effective ORGANIZATIONAL CLIMATE .

2 The problem studied centered on trying to ascertain the mechanisms for developing leadership in order to maintain trust among employees. LITERATURE REVIEW There are so many studies on literature with special emphasis on the relationships between leadership qualities, ORGANIZATIONAL CLIMATE , and creating ORGANIZATIONAL change through shared ORGANIZATIONAL principles and values. It is claimed that the source of an organization s strengths, its abilities, and its projected global ORGANIZATIONAL culture rests with the leadership , and the key is to measurability link culture, leadership , and strategy, and then pinpoint where alignment is lacking (Schneider, 2000, p.)

3 29). There is a distinct need for ORGANIZATIONAL leaders to reflect a higher readiness and inclination to reflect an adaptive leadership style that is socio-emotionally supportive in leader-follower relationships (Jung & Avolio, 1999). In the quest for a better understanding of leadership effectiveness, researchers are most often interested in how particular kinds of leadership rate to individual, group, and ORGANIZATIONAL effectiveness (Pearce et al., , 2003), thereby seeking systematic leadership style definitions as a possible framework to support the ORGANIZATIONAL development efforts. Other literature suggests that global organizations are now facing significant challenges (Andersson, 2002) amidst an environment of many rapidly changing market environments (Dostaler, 2000).

4 Thus, finding the effective leadership practices that are conducive to addressing the diverse global cultural environment ( , de Vries et al., 2002; Hodgetts et al., 2006; Javidan et al., 2006; Low, & Shi, 2001; Schein, 2003; Terpsta-Tong & Ralston, (2002); Trompenaars & Woolliams, 2003) as well as adapting best practices in ORGANIZATIONAL cultures will foster follower commitment and productivity for ORGANIZATIONAL efficiency (Judge 2004). The Journal of Human Resource and Adult Learning Vol. 4, Num. 1, June 2008 48 The aim of this study was to examine the characteristics of ORGANIZATIONAL CLIMATE , leadership and teamwork as perceived by the staff of a large organization in Taiwan and explored the relationship between these three ORGANIZATIONAL characteristics.

5 The following chapter outlines the sampling process, research procedures and the instrumentation used in this study. METHODOLOGY The study looked at how leadership relationships influence employees' to change ORGANIZATIONAL CLIMATE perceptions. Specifically, it was expected that stronger leader influence on change CLIMATE perceptions among employees sharing a high-quality relationship with their supervisor would be found. The following hypotheses were proposed and tested: H1: Employees experiencing a higher quality leadership relationship with their supervisor will perceive the CLIMATE as change-conducive. H2: Employees working with a supervisor who perceives the CLIMATE as change-conducive will also perceive the CLIMATE as change-conducive.

6 H3: Employees experiencing a higher quality relationship with their team will perceive the CLIMATE as change-conducive. H4: Employees working with a team which perceives the CLIMATE as change-conducive will also perceive the CLIMATE as change-conducive. H5: Employees experiencing a high quality relationship with a team who perceives a change-conducive CLIMATE , will be more likely to perceive the CLIMATE as change-conducive. Sample The initial goal was to have a study sample of about 200 employees from all levels and operations of the shipping organization that was the focus of this study. Of the 200 total surveys to be collected, it was hoped that at least half will be matching pairs of surveys ( both employee and supervisor responding) and available for the study analyses.

7 Basic demographic data was also collected. Data was collected using self-administered surveys distributed and completed on-site during normal working hours by the principal researcher. The original goal of the research was to collect data from approximately 200 participants from all levels of the organization including both females and males and include line staff, executives and managers. This was a convenience study sample from all levels and operations of a major shipping organization. This company was chosen because the author works for the company has access to employees and the support of upper management. In addition, this is a large company with many employees.

8 Since the majority of companies in Taiwan are small and family centered businesses, this company provides a unique opportunity to study a large complex organization of a type that this not that commonly found in the Taiwan culture. Of the surveys collected, it was hoped that at least half would be matching pairs of surveys ( both employee and supervisor responding). The final sample was made up of 242 employees within the company who provided the data. These included individuals from twenty one work groups consisting of at least two people reporting to a single supervisor. Of the 242 employees surveyed 218 surveys or 90 per cent were returned. To have internally consistent data for all analyses, any surveys with missing data on any of the study variables were deleted.

9 This yielded a reduced sample size of 203 since another 15 respondents were eliminated for a final return rate of 84 %. Of the final sample it was possible to pair up the responses of supervisors and employees for The Journal of Human Resource and Adult Learning Vol. 4, Num. 1, June 2008 49 174 of the responses. Thus, responses were obtained for 32 supervisors and 142 employees supervised by them. Thus, the sample included of 32 work groups with responses from an average of members of the team as well as the supervisor. The proposed sample sizes were therefore exceeded. In terms of demographics of the sample, the average age of the respondents was years. Of the sample 130 or 64% were female and 73 or 36% per cent were male.

10 Average time working for the company was years with an average of years in their current job. In addition, they averaged years working under their current supervisor. The sample had fairly high education levels with per cent with graduate degrees, per cent had either a bachelor s degree or some graduate school, per cent had attended some college, and per cent had completed high school. Procedure Participants were informed about the study prior to the administration of the survey by a letter from a senior executive and they were told that the investigation involved factors affecting leadership and work unit performance. The voluntary and confidential nature of the study was stressed.