The Ultimate Responsibility of Job Satisfaction

While there are a few different methods of evaluating job satisfaction the bottom line is personal responsibility for one’s own satisfaction, or lack of. Protecting and nurturing ones health and emotional well being by communicating their needs assertively in their work relationships is a part of taking self-responsibility. Other important parts of self-responsibility include acknowledging sole responsible for life choices, accepting responsibility for feelings and thoughts not blaming others, developing self esteem, structuring time management, stress management, confronting fears and pro-active burnout prevention. While all of this may sound harsh and there is no mention of entitlements for all the hard work produced and countless hours of dedication, it is the reality.

Job satisfaction is psychological relating to one’s feelings or state-of-mind regarding the nature of their work. Job satisfaction can be influenced by a variety of factors. Regardless of the influences affecting job satisfaction there is one overriding psychological aspect that shapes work place behavior, and that is attitude. Attitude plays a very important part in job satisfaction and is a key metric in evaluating not only satisfaction, but also involvement, commitment and performance. Considering the state of world economy today it is reasonable for employee attitudes to be less than positive.

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor, a reported 2,157 mass layoff actions in July 2009 left 206,791 individuals out of work (Statistics, 2009b). As companies look to reduce the cost of doing business during slow economic times reduction in workforce is often necessary. If the business cannot support the number of employees with the current or forecasted revenues there is little else, short of increasing sales that a company can do to survive. The Bureau of Labor Statistics began reporting compensation costs for private industry in 1980. The smallest percent change ever reported was for the 12 month period ending June 2009 at a 1.5 percent increase in wages, salaries and benefits (Statistics, 2009a). The prior year 12 month change was 4.2 percent, reported in June 2008 (Statistics, 2009a). With statistics like these it is understandable why employee morale and job satisfaction are top priorities of management.

While payroll and benefits are a large part of the company’s budget, there would be no budget without productive employees. Studies have shown that employee attitudes are related to the financial performance of organizations (West, 2009). This scenario is reciprocal in that organizational financial performance affects employee attitude as much as the converse. Add the financial impacts of customer satisfaction to employee attitude and organizational performance. The cycle that could ensue with the combination of these three factors could further devastate an organizations financial performance beyond outside economic impacts. With the unemployment rate reported at 9.7 percent in August 2009 employees often fear the worst while employers try to figure out to ways keep the workforce motivated and productive (Statistics, 2009c).

Job security fears ultimately lead to decreased job satisfaction and a greater propensity to seek other employment. As employees focus more on their fears of pay cuts and unemployment they become concerned about their marketability and skill sets in a job market oversaturated with available candidates. The high costs to the organization involved in workforce attrition include the hard dollar costs recruiting, replacement, relocation and training, and the more soft costs of decreased employee morale, experience base, over-burden and burnout of remaining employees (Noble, 2008). Additionally, profit maximization through cost cutting measures often result in layoffs. The remaining workforce are expected and needed to do the work of the positions that have been vacated, either at will or through forced reductions. Organizational stability is compromised when heightened job insecurities about potential job loss affect job performance.

The challenges facing organizations and managers today to keep their workforce motivated and productive consist of multi-faceted internal and external environmental contributors. Understanding how the external economic environments impact the organizations internal decisions and managing how those decisions are perceived by employees is daunting enough without adding customer perception and the ultimate effects to the bottom line. The Pew Research Center recently reported that American workers experience higher levels of stress working longer hours for less pay and job satisfaction down by 19% on average from two decades ago (Stringer, 2009). Armed with countless research studies and employee survey results managements ultimate responsibility is the financial well being of the organization, which in large part includes employee satisfaction.

Communication is a basic, yet crucial, skill that all managers should be required to possess and use well. Good communication skills require an advanced command of language and rapt listening capabilities. Silence is not always golden, although it can be when listening intently. Communication demonstrates management’s concern for and interest in the workforce, both professionally and personally. Lastly, communication builds trust, especially in uncertain times (Sora, Caballer, Peiro, & de Witte, 2008).

Motivating the workforce through their engagement of shared responsibility, vision, commitment, contributions and support will assist in mobilizing them to execute the organization’s objectives. Being an effective coach is a key competency required of an organizational leader. The manner in which a coach motivates the workforce can contribute to job satisfaction more than all other factors combined. In the role of a coach, management can direct decisions and choices toward those most beneficial to the organization and its employees (Onyemah, 2009).

The organizational culture embodies traits and characteristics which are carried on throughout time. The culture is the unwritten guidelines in which employees and management operate as they carry out their daily activities and encounter new situations. It establishes the baseline for decision making and acceptable activity (Adame, 2009). Strong cultures provide well defined guidance to making the most appropriate choices in a given situation. Weak cultures are reflective of inconsistent actions and decisions that are disconnected from the goals of the organization. If inappropriate choices are made it can create tension, dissatisfaction, lost productivity, lost sales, revenue and profits. Employee and customer defection are likely to result when the organizations culture is in flux.

Premier organizations are challenged to retain their edge in today’s economic environment. No single formula for job satisfaction exists. It may require something new and different. It may require a new level of personal responsibility. To achieve and maintain any level of job satisfaction employees have to be agile with the ability to adapt to the ever changing business environments of an uncertain global economy (Mulki, Lassk, & Jaramillo, 2008). Organizations whose leaders are flexible and adaptable to constant change with the ability to successfully manage the transitions will provide greater resources for employees to achieve higher levels of personal responsibility and satisfaction for their jobs and lives.

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