ATTITUDES & JOB SATISFACTION

Our challenge, as frontline managers, is to improve job satisfaction among the employees working for the American SteelCo. Job dissatisfaction is a major problem in the workplace today. Job dissatisfaction can hinder achieving a set organization as it can lead to several negative consequences like low job engagement, low work motivation, reduced productivity, and poor team spirit. Varying levels of job satisfaction can create conflict among the employees, which is the case with American SteelCo. Angela [sales/project manager] has high job satisfaction, and she has an issue with Sandra [steel detailer] and Jerry [estimating manager] because of their undesirable behaviors. In challenge 2, we sought to give practical solutions to resolve the conflict facing Angela, Sandra, and Jerry. We will use the theory of job satisfaction to resolve this conflict.

Job satisfaction is an all-encompassing theory to improve employee experience and the employer. All parties involved in a workplace are affected by the employee's job satisfaction, which includes managers, the employees themselves, and even customers. The components to this theory are:

This theory involves management focusing on providing job satisfaction for employees, and as a result, the company receives many different benefits. The employees feel more valued and will work harder, and the company will improve. Putting this theory to practice can enhance the quality of work, job performance, employee behavior, creativity, etc.

One thing that Angela and the other employees can do is communicate with Jerry, their manager, about how they are frustrated. After Jerry gets this feedback from the team, something he can do, as the manager, to improve job satisfaction is to start recognizing good work. This can be done by holding monthly reviews with team members. In this meeting, they can talk about what they’re doing well, what they could improve on, and any other frustrations that are taking place in the workplace. By doing these monthly reviews, employees will begin to feel more valued, communication will improve immensely in the workplace, and job satisfaction will increase.

After holding reviews and individual interviews with each employee, the company can accurately assign employees to specific tasks that best suit their strengths. For example, if an employee is feeling discouraged in the workplace due to an overwhelming amount of social anxiety, giving said employee any leadership task would not match their strengths. Instead, assign said employee tasks they can complete on their own while still accomplishing company goals.

Lastly, making the workplace feel like a community is a great way to boost morale. Plan company luncheons, parties, and celebrations for improved performance. Employee interaction outside the workplace, can lead to them feeling more involved and cared about.

This situation presents a conflict that all current organizations are faced with. Behind every company there are employees that help power it. Keeping the individual needs and wants of these employees in mind is critical to an organizaiton's success. This theory is often refered to as "job satisfaction". When conflicts in the workplace do arise, the best way to resolve them are through monthly reviews with employees, careful and planned task designation, and creating a community within the workplace. For the best results, all three of these methods should be combined and used as a process. Maintaining high employee satisfaction plays a critical role in an organization's success.