The development and empirical testing of a revised performance index

Date
2019-12
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University
Abstract
ENGLISH SUMMARY : Human resource interventions have in the past concentrated their effort on measuring and improving the performance of the individual employee in the workplace, with relatively little attention given to the understanding, monitoring and improvement of the performance of organisational work units. It is argued that the gap in the understanding of the performance in the work unit is considered a major flaw in the discipline of industrial psychology. Organisations, in effect, are a conglomeration of work units that are guided by a single shared vision and mission. The level of performance that any organisational work unit achieves is, similarly to the performance of the individual employee, the result of the operation of a complex identifiable nomological network of latent variables characterising the unit and the wider organisational context in which it operates. Interventions conducted by human resource practitioners aimed at enhancing the performance of the work unit will only succeed if it is clear what constitutes work unit-performance, if the determinants of the work unit performance are established, if a valid understanding exists of the manner in which these determinants directly and indirectly regulate the level of work unit performance and if a valid, reliable and unbiased instrument has been developed to measure work unit performance. The primary objective of this research study was to revise the Performance Index (PI) of Spangenberg and Theron (2004). Firstly, all latent organisational unit competency potential variables were removed from the PI. Secondly additional latent organisational unit competencies and latent organisational unit outcome variables were suggested for inclusion in the work unit performance construct. This revision of the PI’s conceptualisation of organisational unit performance necessitated the development and validation of a new version of the Performance Index [Work Unit Performance Questionnaire (WUPQ)]. The WUPQ comprises of two subscales, namely the Work Unit Competency Questionnaire (WUCQ) and the Work Unit Outcome Questionnaire (WUOQ). This resulted in seven latent behavioural competencies variables being measured by the Work Unit Competency Questionnaire, namely innovation, effort, counterproductive workplace behaviour, organisational citizenship behaviour, employee green behaviour, and core people processes. Furthermore, there were six latent outcome variables being measured by the Work Unit Outcome Questionnaire, namely production and efficiency, work unit climate, employee satisfaction, market standing, high performance culture and future growth. The Work Unit Performance Questionnaire therefore measures work unit performance in terms of thirteen work unit performance dimensions. The WUCQ measurement model and the WUOQ measurement model both showed close fit. Two factor loadings in the WUCQ measurement model had to be constrained to obtain close fit. The initial work unit performance LISREL model did not converge. However, the problem was resolved by adding a path from high performance culture to satisfaction to the structural model. The close fit hypothesis was rejected (p<.05) but a reasonable model fit was found in the sample. Support was found for 15 of the original 21 path-specific substantive hypotheses and for an additional hypothesis. Practical implications are discussed and suggestions for future research are made.
AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING : Menslike hulpbronintervensies het in die verlede hul pogings gefokus op die meting en verbetering van die prestasie van individuele werknemers in organisasies, maar het relatief min aandag geskenk aan die verstaan, monitering en verbetering van die prestasie van organisatoriese werkeenhede. Daar word aangevoer dat die gaping in die verstaan van die prestasie van die werkeenheid ’n belangrike tekortkoming is in bedryfsielkunde as dissipline. Organisasies is, in effek, ‘n konglomoraat van werkeenhede gelei deur ‘n enkele gemeenskaplike visie en missie Die vlak van prestasie wat enige organisatoriese werkeenheid bereik is, soortgelyk aan die prestasie van die individuele werknemer, die resultaat van die werking van ‘n komplekse identifiseerbare nomologiese network van latent veranderlikes wat die werkeenheid kenmerk en wat die die wyer organisatoriese omgewing waarin die eenheid opereer kenmerk. Intervensies gerig op die verbetering van die prestasie van ‘n organisatoriese werkseenheid, wat deur menslike hulpbronpraktisyns onderneem word, sal slegs slaag indien dit duidelik is wat die wesensaard van werkeenheidprestasie is, indien die determinante van werkeenheidprestasie geïdentifiseer is, indien daar ‘n geldige verstaan is van die wyse waarop hierdie determinante, direk en indirek die vlak van werkeenheidprestasie reguleer en indien ’n geldige en betroubare instrument ontwikkel is om werkeenheidprestasie te meet. Die primêre oogmerk van hierdie studie was om die Performance Index (PI) van Spangenberg en Theron (2004) te hersien. Eerstens is alle latent organisatoriese werkeenheid-bevoegdheidspotensiaal latente veranderlikes uit die PI verwyder. Ten tweede is addisionele latente organisatoriese werkeenheidbevoegdhede en latente organisatoriese werkeenheiduitkomste voorgestel vir insluiting in die werkeenheidprestasiekonstruk. Hierdie hersiening van die PI se konseptualisering van organisatoriese werkeenheidprestasie het die ontwikkeling en validering van ‘n nuwe weergawe van die Performance Index [Work Unit Performance Questionnaire (WUPQ)] genoodsaak1. Die WUPQ bestaan uit twee subskale, naamlik die Work Unit Competency Questionnaire (WUCQ) en die Work Unit Outcome Questionnaire (WUOQ). Dit het daartoe gelei dat die Work Unit Competency Questionnaire, sewe latent werkeenheidbevoegdhede meet, naamlik innovasie, poging, teenproduktiewe werksgedrag, organisatoriese burgergedrag, werknemer groengedrag, kern-mensprosesse en taakprestasie. Voorts meet die Work Unit Outcome Questionnaire, ses latent werkeenheiduitkomste, naamlik produksie en doelmatigheid, wekeenheidklimaat, werknemer-tevredenheid, markreputasie, prestasiekultuur en toekomstige groei. Die Work Unit Performance Questionnaire meet gevolglik werkeenheidprestasie in terme van dertien werkeenheidprestasie-dimensies. The WUCQ metingsmodel en die WUOQ metingsmodel het beide benaderde passing getoon. Twee faktorladings moes in die WUCQ metingsmodel ingeperk word om benaderde passing te kry. Die aanvanklike werkeenheidprestasie-strukturele model het nie gekonvergeer nie. Die problem is egter opgelos deur ‘n baan vanaf prestasiekultuur na tevredenheid in die strukturele model by te voeg. Die benaderde passing nulhipotese is verwerp (p<.05) maar redelike pasgehalte is vir die model in die steekproef gevind. Steun is vir 15 van die oorspronklike 21 baanspesifieke substantiewe hipoteses gevind en vir die addisionele hipotese. Praktiese implikasies word bespreek en voorstelle vir verdere navorsing word gemaak.
Description
Thesis (MCom)--Stellenbosch University, 2019.
Keywords
Performance index, Performance -- Measurement, Teams in the workplace -- Performance -- Management, Organizational behavior, UCTD
Citation