Management Influences on Turnover Intention of Software Developers Essay

IntroductionThe Information engine room (IT) Age has bring forthd many opportunities for meshing in the IT and IT services industry. IT professionals atomic number 18 in demand solely over the world. Organizations intercontinental invest m one(a)y that go non only into salaries but for further training of IT professionals they hire.However, around the world, the demand, supply, selection, recruitment and particularly retention of IT professionals has threatened governing bodys that loving occasion, manage or deal in IT or IT services for the past few years (Par and Tremblay 2000 Ermel and Bohl 1997 Morello 1998 Guptill et al. 1999). This is why the departure of an IT professional from a company usu every(prenominal)y comes with disgraceful substances to the judicature. When an IT professional reverses, the organization suffers loss of business impact knowledge and acquired technical expertnesss (Dor 2004).Since late 1996, the disturbance rate for IT professionals ha s jumped from 15% to 20% annually, with only 8 of 10 IT positions being filled with qualified candidates (McNee et al. 1998). With the annual dollar volume rate estimated at 20% or more (Alexander 1999 Kosseff 1999), line-hopping of IT professionals has been one of the biggest problems among managers and human resources (HR) experts (Par and Tremblay 2000).IT professionals seem to bugger off a tendency to change their short letters faster than other employees when they feel dissatisfied with their stream employer (Hacker 2003). The estimated greet of replacing IT professionals range from 1.5 to 2.5 times of their annual salaries for the companies they resigned from (Kosseff 1999). On the other hand, the cost of losing a qualified IT professional is actually 3 to 6 times more expensive than the cost of losing a manager (Kochanski and Ledford 2001).IT professionals, as similarly mentioned antecedently in this get, also tend to change frolics more quickly than other employees when they feel dissatisfied with in their current employment (Hacker 2003). However, rational forges of voluntary plaitover cannot be used to explain the high-pitched perturbation rates for IT professionals (Rouse 2001) since many IT professionals remain dissatisfied with their business organisations even though they enjoy high financial rewards soon enough their creativity and expertise do not receive high respect from their peers, supervisors and companies as a whole (Fisher 2000).Furthermore, another explanation why IT professionals may resign more quickly when dissatisfied with their current employment is that much of IT extend is project oriented, the technical employees loyalty may be more to the project, and not necessarily to the employer (Hacker, 2003, p. 15). These trends tail end intense pressure on both IT executives and HR managers. high IT professional dollar volume translates to a threat not only to an organizations IT department but to the business as a whole.Most importantly, high IT turnover poses a threat to the growth, competitive positioning and strength of the global economy (Par and Tremblay 2000). A dissertation by Dr. Timothy Lee Dor (2004) studied the relationships mingled with hypothesize characteristics, barter contentment and turnover endeavor among software developers. These dickens factors job characteristics and job satisfaction are deemed to play crucial roles in understanding turnover objective not only among software developers but IT professionals as a whole.The current study aims to investigate the circumspection influences on employee retention of IT professionals, focusing on job characteristics and job satisfaction, and their impact on turnover and retention. 1.1.1 arena and Limitations of the StudyThis question get out study the impact of job characteristics and job satisfaction on the turnover intention of IT professionals. Although this paper intends to replicate some of Dors findings, the s tudy bequeath not be limited to software developers only as this sector only constitutes a small sample of IT professionals as a whole.Specifically, the explore study impart focus on the turnover intention of IT professionals in___________. In studying the relationships among job characteristics, job satisfaction and turnover intention, this study is limited to the use of the following theoretical models and theories to support its conclusionsFor the questionion on job characteristics, the look study will make use of the lead Characteristics imitate developed by JR Hackman and GR Oldham (1975/1980) and the synopsis on stumper Employers by Minda Zetlin (2001).For the discussion on job satisfaction, as hale as motivation, the paper will use the Motivator-Hygiene Theory by F. Herzberg (1968/2003) and the Synergistic Model by T.M. Amabile (1997).For the discussion on turnover, the study will use the Voluntary derangement Model by R.M. Steers and R.T. Mowday (1987) the sage Turnover Model by P.D. Rouse (2001) the Instinctual or Unfolding Model of Turnover by T.W. Lee, T.R. Mitchell, L. Wise and S. Fireman (1996) and the Conceptual Model for Investigating Turnover in IT, developed by J.B. Thatcher, L.P. pacena and R.J. Boyle (2002-03)These models will be discussed in detail later in this chapter, as well as in Chapter 2 on Review of Related Literature.Chapter 2Review of Related LiteratureThis chapter will analyze the various literary productions which are related to this research paper. It will discuss the go aways of other analysts and researchers on theories/models that will be used to support this study, as well as pertinent literature on IT professionals turnover intentions. The chapter begins with a ordinary discussion on motivational theories, cutlure, and leadership which are all critical factors that advert an employees intent to leave. The discussion them dovetails into a more special pre displaceation of the textile used in the current study. This chapter will also include a definition of terms incorporated into the discussion of related literature.2.1 Relationships between Job Characteristics, Job Satisfaction, and Turnover objectIn 2004, Timothy Lee Dor submitted a dissertation titled The Relationships Between Job Characteristics, Job Satisfaction, and Turnover intention Among Software Developers. According to Dor, the factors leading to the turnover intention of software developers relieve oneself been poorly understood. His study was designed to further understand the relationships between job characteristics, job satisfaction, and turnover intention among software developers. His study involved the use of 326 web surveys that contained questions relating to job characteristics, job satisfaction, turnover intention and demographic information.The results of Dors study showed that some(prenominal) factors can influence turnover intention, most significantly, job characteristics that may be influenced by man agement, such as training, autonomy, feedback, number of developers, task significance, and skill variety (Dor 2004). In his study, Dor made use of two research questions and sixteen hypotheses to understand the job characteristics variables which contribute to the various dimensions of job satisfaction, and which of these job satisfaction dimensions, in turn, contribute to turnover intention.Dor made use of indirect heart and soul tests, to determine if certain job characteristics could be linked to turnover intention through the job satisfaction scales he departd. The results of his study indicated that ten of the indirect takes were statistically significant. All ten of the statistically significant indirect effects were associated with only trinity of the seven job satisfaction scales intragroup add motivation, general job satisfaction, and satisfaction with pay.The largest indirect effect, according to Dor, was the effect of autonomy on turnover intention through general job satisfaction higher levels of autonomy lead to lower levels of turnover intention by increasing general job satisfaction. The next largest indirect effect was the effect of organizational training on turnover intention through general job satisfaction organizational training decreased turnover intention through an increase in general job satisfaction. The next three highest indirect effects in Dors findings were also between a job characteristic (feedback, skill, variety, and number of developers) and turnover intention through general job satisfaction (Dor, 2004, p. 130).2.2 Measuring Turnover Intentions Among IT ProfessionalsGuy Par and Michel Tremblay, in contrast to Dors study, completed a research covering the turnover intention of not just software developers but IT professionals as a whole. Their study, The Measurement and Antecedents of Turnover Intentions among IT Professionals (2000), submitted to Cirano research center, aimed to present and test an integrated model o f turnover intentions that address the unique nature of the IT profession (Par and Tremblay, 2000, p. 3). The authors identified a multidimensional set of HR practices that will most likely increase retention among IT employees. They emphasized citizenship behaviors as well as two distinct eccentric persons of organizational perpetration as key antecedents of turnover intentions.The study involved the sending of questionnaires to 394 Quebec members of the Canadian Information Processing Society. The study addressed four research questions1) What are the essential HR practices necessary to create an effective plan for retaining IT professionals?2) What is the impact of compensation and negotiation conditions on the turnover intentions of IT personnel?3) What is the effect of employee demographic characteristics on the turnover intentions of IT personnel?4) Do organizational committedness and citizenship behaviors mediate the effects of HR practices, compensation and negotiation co nditions as well as demographic characteristics on the turnover intentions of IT personnel? (Par and Tremblay, 2000, p. 4)Par and Tremblay provide that IT employees who are highly committed to their organization are less likely to leave than those who are relatively uncommitted. They attach three distinct dimensions to organizational commitment emotive, continuance and normative commitment (Meyer and Allen 1997).1) Affective commitment gist an employees personal attachment and identification to the organization. This results in a strong belief in an acceptance of the organizations goals and values. Employees with a strong affective commitment continue employment with the organization be work they want to do so (Par and Tremblay, 2000, p. 5)2) Continuance commitment is a tendency to engage in consistent lines of activity based on the individuals recognition of the costs associated with discontinuing the activity. Employees whose primary link to the organization is based on contin uance commitment remain because they need to do so. (Par and Tremblay, 2000, p. 5)3) Normative commitment provides that employees exhibit behaviors solely because they believe it is the right and moral occasion to do. Employees with a high level of normative commitment feel that they ought to remain with the organization. (Par and Tremblay, 2000, p. 5)In their findings, Par and Tremblay provide that affective commitment and continuance commitment are negatively related to turnover intentions (Par and Tremblay, 2000, p. 6). In addition to these two distinct types of commitment affecting turnover intention, their studies also points to the factor they call organizational Citizenship way or OCB.OCB is considered as a key element in organizational effectiveness. OCB is defined as an employees willingness to go supra and beyond the prescribed roles which they have been assigned (Par and Tremblay, 2000, p. 6, quoting from Organ 1990). Based on Par and Tremblays findings, the stronger the citizenship behavior of an IT employee, the more likely they are to stay in their company. The IT professionals affective commitment, or attachment to his or her organization, also decreases turnover intention.2.3 Job Characteristics ModelHackman and Oldhams Job Characteristics Model, as earlier introduced in Chapter 1 of this research study, predicts what aspects of jobs ruminate the level of job enrichment for employees, and how these relate to employees individual differences and to the work outcomes required. The model includes five core job characteristics that can be applied to any job skill variety, task indistinguishability, task significance, task autonomy and feedback.Skill variety is defined as the number of different skills required in the job (Hackman and Oldham 1980 Pilon 1998).Task identity means the completeness of the tasks done in the job (Hackman and Oldham 1980 Pilon 1998).Task significance on the other hand is defined as the importance of the job to the ser ved population. (Mohamed 2004).Autonomy means the vertical expansion of responsibility, the amount of decision-making and independence allowed for employees. (Mohamed 2004).And movely, feedback means the extent that the job itself provides information about employees instruction execution (Huber 2000).These characteristics skill variety, task identity, task significance, autonomy, and feedback are have into a single predictive index which is called the Motivating Potential Score (Hackman and Oldham 1980).Figure 1.Job Characteristics ModelSource A.H. Mohamed (2004) The five core job characteristics enumerated in the previous paragraph are in continuous interaction with individual differences that evoke three critical psychological states in an employee. These three states are 1) when the job is structured by skill variety, task identity and task significance this could lead employees to experience meaningfulness in their work. 2) The second state, task autonomy, which leads to feelings of responsibility for the outcomes of work. 3) The third and last state is feedback, which leads employees towards knowledge of the results of their work (Douthit 2000 Huber 2000). These three critical psychological states lead to a set of affective and personal outcomes high internal work motivation, high growth satisfaction, high general satisfaction, high work effectiveness, and low rate of absenteeism (Mohamed 2004 Donovan and Radosevich 1998). These affective and personal outcomes are the results of en employees job characteristics. They are defined as followsHigh internal work motivation this is the degree to which an employee is willing to work and to consider the organizational objectives as part of his or her own goals (Mohamed 2004).High growth satisfaction this is the achievement of the employee in overcoming challenges, succeeding and growing (Steers and Black 1994)High general satisfaction this the feeling derived from the overall satisfaction with the work itself. This type of satisfaction is reflected mainly in decreased rates of absenteeism among employees (Steers and Black 1994 Omachonu et al 1999).High work effectiveness this refers to both the quality and quantity aspects of work performance (Hackman and Oldham 1980).Low rate of absenteeism.The Job Characteristics Model, also includes three attributes that are identified as Moderators knowledge and skills, context job satisfaction, and employee growth-need strength. These attributes indicate which employee will respond positively to the Motivating Potential Score of their job and its outcomes (Hackman and Oldham 1980).An employees knowledge and skills are dependent on their educational qualifications which in turn will reflect their perceptions toward their work outcomes (Sabiston and Laschinger 1995). On the other hand, an employees perception of his or her context job satisfaction involves factors like pay, supervision, colleagues, and job security. All these affect the employ ees outcomes as well (Mohamed 2004). Lastly, growth-need strength is the degree in which an employee seeks opportunities in his or her job for self-direction, learning and personal accomplishment. These elements in turn affect the employees level of work internal motivation (Mohamed 2004).An example of a study which made effective use of Hackman and Oldhams Job Characteristics Model is the one conducted by A.H. Mohamed (2004) called Using the job characteristics model to compare patient care denomination methods of nurses for the Faculty of treat, University of Alexandria in Egypt. The population used were the nurses in the Alexandria Main University Hospital. Mohamed made use of a Job symptomatic Survey (also developed by Hackman and Oldham) to determine nurses perceptions towards the components of the Job Characteristics Model in relation to their performance in utilizing the case and functional methods of patient care assignment (Mohamed 2004).In his study, Mohamed concludes th at the jobs of intensive care unit nurses result in different expectations based also on the different categories of nurses, based on skills and challenges inherent in the work they perform (Mohamed 2004).Generally speaking thus, studies like Mohamed shows that an employees personal and affective outcomes are a result of the employees job characteristics.2.4 Model EmployersHowever, management also plays a crucial role in the retention and conversely turnover of IT professionals. Since IT professionals still enjoy a wide selection of employers to choose from, employers forever compete to attract the best IT professionals by becoming model employers. In her 2001 article for Computer sphere, called Model employers, Minda Zetlin outlines the strategies that make certain companies model employers.By compilation its eight annual list of 100 Best Places to cut back in IT, Computer World roughly sums up the model employers as offering not just top compensation, but also opportunities fo r rush growth, investment in training, diversity in the work place, work flexibility, and, ideally, a comfortable and fun place to spend their daytime hours (Zetlin 2001). Zetlin in her article outlines three common themes behind the success of these model IT employersIT is central to the best employers successAccording to Zetlin, excellence in IT is a top corporate strategy. Prioritizing IT should not be limited to companies that strictly provide IT or IT services. Companies such as Avon, for instance, which ranks 4th in Computer Worlds list of 100 best employers, may be perceived to operate on a relationship-based environment. Yet to process its more than 60 zillion custom orders every year, the company relies heavily on IT to process its complex supply chain. The fact that is it is actually a very transactional business, dependent on technology, makes IT one of its priorities (Zetlin 2001).Management takes an active interest in employers careers from the day they arriveThis inc ludes having phylogenesis plan for employees as soon as they join the organization. Employees meet with their managers on a periodic basis for a formal review to assess their development plan and to evaluate its progress. Orientation programs at the start of the employment are also part of this strategy. Apart from orientation, Harley-Davidson, Inc. (ranked as No. 11) also provides for a yearly self-assessment for its employees against the established competencies for their jobs, with their supervisors doing the same (Zetlin 2001). Such focus on career development per employee makes the employee feel that management takes an active interest in aligning its objectives with the employees personal goals.Model employers also provide for continuous interest on their employees careers throughout their employment with the company. Knowledge mentoring programs and career mentoring programs, used by the country Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Co. (ranked No. 13), for instance, allow emplo yees to learn more skills and career counselling from their more experience colleagues, and help management to identify employees to fill leaderships positions in the short and long term (Zetlin 2001). State Farms mentoring program is in fact so successful that it has extended the program to employees who havent even arrived yet such as assigning mentors to college students who plan to join State Farm after they graduate.There are no walls between business and ITUnlike other organizations, model employers ensure that IT people and business people work side by side. There is no division or competition. IT professionals are given a better understanding that what they do helps the business succeed. This understanding leads to career satisfaction for IT professionals. Technology people know exactly how they contribute to the revenues of their business and how important they are in the business plan. One advantage here is that a close relationship between IT and business allows people to switch between the two sphere of influences (Zetlin 2001). Another strategies such as cross-functional work teams gives career development not just to IT professionals but to business people in the organization as well. There are continuously different career tracks available. An IT professional may opt to advance by taking on management roles within technology, or they may shift to business management positions (Zetlin 2001).2.5 Voluntary Intention Model R.M. Steers and R.T. Mowday, in their study Employee turnover and post-decision accommodation processes (1981) analyzed turnover as rooted in voluntary intention. Steers and Mowday viewed the interaction of intention to leave, and alternative job opportunities (ease of movement) as direct antecedents to turnover (Steers and Mowday 1981 Rouse 2001). As earlier discussed in Chapter 1 of this study, the direction of the process in Steers and Mowdays Voluntary Intention Model starts with Job Expectations, then Affective Responses, then Turnover Intention, then finally, Actual Turnover (see Section 1.2.1.1 of this paper). However, these four elements were actually grouped together by Steers and Mowday under three steps. As can be seen in the Figure 3Each step in Figure 3 contains two constructs. The second construct (Job Attitudes) of shout 1 becomes the first construct of Step 2. The second construct (Intent To Leave) of Step 2 becomes the first construct of Step 3.Step 1 of the Voluntary Intention Model involves the manner in which job expectations influence an employees attitudes regarding his or her job. Attitudes are composed of job satisfaction, organizational commitment, and job involvement. Job expectations in turn are influenced by three stimuli.The first stimuli focuses on individual characteristics such as occupation, age, tenure, family concerns, and personality form (Steers and Mowday 1981 Rouse 2001).The second stimuli involves information obtained during the recruitment process and at various a ssessments points throughout the employees career (Steers and Mowday 1981 Rouse 2001).For instance, studies have shown that job expectation levels are often high when the employee first accepts a naked as a jaybird job (Porter and Steers 1973). At these particular periods, expectations are developed from both the employee and employers ends.In other words, a sort of unwritten social contract is deemed to be adopted by the two parties (Prouse 2001). Lastly, the third stimuli affecting job expectations are alternative job opportunities. Studies have shown that the more alternatives in that location are confronting an employee, then the more negative the employees attitudes becomes concerning his or her current job (Pfeffer and Lawler 1979).Step 2 in the Voluntary Intention Model involves the Affective Responses that are elicited from Step 1. These responses include the construct of job satisfaction, and how those responses influence the employees desire to leave the organization. Fa ctors that affect the employees decision to leave include non-work factors such as family, hobbies, worship and political influences (Cohen 1995).Steers and Mowday also identified the potential of employees to alter their actual job, in terms of pay, working hours, environment, etc., and thus change their attitudes regarding their jobs (Prouse 2001).Chapter 3MethodologyThe aim of the research is to examine the relationships between job characteristic, job satisfaction and turnover intention among IT professionals in ______________. The proposition is that job satisfaction and job characteristics as management influences have indirect impact to the levels of turnover intention among IT professionals. The literature review indicates that there are different factors affecting IT professionals turnover intention. This research is going to study the turnover intention of IT professionals in _____________.3.1 Research QuestionsThe study will answer the following two research questionsWhi ch job characteristic variable(s) causes the job satisfaction among IT professionals in ____________?What job satisfaction variable(s) cause the turnover intention among IT professionals in ____________? In answering these two primary questions, the thesis will make use of the following frameworkHypothesesResearch Question 1 Which job characteristic variable(s) causes the job satisfaction among IT professionals in _______________? The first research question will analyze the standardized effect of job characteristics to job satisfiers. The null hypotheses tried and true wereJob Characteristics Job SatisfactionsH1 The level of IT training does not affect the various measures of job satisfaction.H2 The level of user pass does not affect the various measures of job satisfaction. H3 The job-required skills do not affect the various measures of job satisfaction. H4 The level of task significance does not affect job satisfaction. H5 The amount of workload does not affect job satisfacti on. H6 The amount of feedback does not affect job satisfaction.Research Question 2 What job satisfaction variable(s) cause the turnover intention among IT professionals in ________________? The first research question will analyze the standardized effect of the job satisfaction scales to turnover intention. The null hypotheses tested were Job Satisfactions Turnover Intention H7 The level of internal work motivation does not affect turnover intention. H8 The level of job security satisfaction does not affect turnover intention. H9 The level of social job satisfaction does not affect turnover intention. H10 The level of job growth satisfaction does not affect turnover intention. H11 The level of satisfaction with pay does not affect turnover intention. H12 The level of satisfaction with supervision does not affect turnover intention.Research Procedures 3.3.1 selective information Collection Research is a process of studying and analyzing situational factors of a specific problem or i ssue in order to determine solutions of it (Cavana, Delahaye and Sekaran 2001). According to Cavana, Delahaye and Sekaran (2001), there are three research paradigms positivist, interpretivist and critical research. As the research hypotheses of this study try to explore the relationships between job characteristic, job satisfaction and turnover intention among the IT professionals in __________________, the positivist approach will be adopted and it will provide the framework upon which the methodology of this study can be used. In this study, the research problem requires primary info to specifically address the twelve hypotheses. An Internet questionnaire will be used as it is the most effective and appropriate data collection method. Questionnaire is defined as a pre-formulated written set of questions to which respondents recorded their answers within closely defined alternatives (Cavana, Delahaye and Sekaran, 2001). A well-designed questionnaire provides accurate and useable d ata for analysis in order to make a conclusion of accepting / rejecting a research hypothesis. A write of the questionnaire to be used is attached as appendix A of this study. After gathering the data from questionnaires, the analysis of the data (including frequency distribution, correlation analysis and regression analysis) will be performed by a vicenary data analysis tool called SPSS (Statistical Package for the Social Sciences). SPSS predictive analytics advances in usability and data access, drawing reliable conclusions from the collected quantitative data (SPSS, Inc. 2002). In enlightenment quantitative analysis of the data will be undertaken. Frequency Distribution, Correlation synopsis, and Regression Analysis will be used to analyze the collected data. The population of this research is the _________ professionals in the country. The research is expected to have a 10% response rate (i.e. ____ questionnaires). A reminder e-mail will be sent to the students to ensure r for for each one oneing the planned response rate. Participants are not inconvenienced or exposed unnecessarily to potential harm by recruiting more than is required. The research conducted by Dor in 2004 (which this paper intends to compare itself to) only received 326 responses which is less than 0.1% of the population. An invitation email will be sent to the administration managers of the participating institutions. Then the manager will forward the invitation email to all qualified IT professionals and invite them to fill in the Internet anonymous questionnaire within 10 business days. A reminder email will be sent by the manager on the 6th business day. The invitation email only contains a consent form and a universal resource locator to the Internet anonymous questionnaire. Participation is entirely voluntary. The participant can withdraw at any time and there will be no detriment if the participant decides not to complete the survey. At no time will any individual be identi fied in any reports resulting from this study. A copy of the consent form is attached with this application.Variables The variables which will used in this study can be categorized into two categories job characteristics and job satisfaction. The factors within each category are discussed as follows The following job characteristics for IT professionals were selected for this study, based also on previous usage in similar studies as indicated in the literature reviewIT TrainingUser ContactJob-required SkillsTask SignificanceWorkloadFeedback On the other hand, the job satisfaction scales include the followingInternal Work MotivationJob Security SatisfactionSocial Job SatisfactionJob Growth SatisfactionSatisfaction with PaySatisfaction with Supervision information Analysis The study will make use of descriptive and inferential analysis were used throughout the study. Descriptive statistics (percentages, means, standard deviations, frequencies, and item means) were computed using the S PSS (SPSS, Inc., 2002). This general analysis program will be used to characterize the sample in terms of demographic characteristics pertaining to gender, income, education, age, years as an IT professional, years in the current organization, and years in the current position. SPSS will likewise used to analyze the correlation among job characteristics, the correlation between job satisfaction scales, the correlation between job satisfaction and job characteristics, and the correlation between job characteristics, job satisfaction, and turnover intention. The primary inferential technique that will be used is bivariate correlation. SPSS will also be used to analyze the regression analysis for the data. A 0.01 level of significance was adopted for testing significance. The standardized effects of all the job characteristics for each job satisfier will also be computed. The same method will be used to analyze the standardized effect of all the job satisfaction scales to turnover int ention. From these standardized effect analyses, the prediction of turnover intention by job satisfaction scales will be computed. The job satisfaction scales which had a 0.60 level were considered significant to turnover intention. The reliability coefficients ranging between 0.60 and 0.70 are deemed adequate for research purposes (Aiken, 2000, p.88). For purposes of this study, the job satisfiers and job characteristics which have indirect effects of 0.60 above significance to turnover intention will be used. The standardized effect of the significant job characteristic will be multiplied to the standardized effect of the particular job satisfier. Each of the twelve hypotheses of this study will be tested in essentially six multiple regression analyses one for each job satisfier as the constant, independent variable and its relation to each dependent variable represented by the job characteristics. 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