Annotated Bibliography
Befus, E. (2004, August). Employee turnover: tips for attacking an enduring,
expensive property management problem. Multi–Housing News, 39, 22.
Elizabeth Befus, senior legislative analyst with the Washington, D.C.-based National
Multi Housing Council, discusses the problem of employee turnover among property
management professionals. She first explains the extent of the problem and goes on to
give methods by which employee retention rates can be lowered. This article does not
pertain to our industry exactly; however; it demonstrates the problem and means by
which it can be solved within an industry where employee retention is a serious problem.
Therefore, we believe it will be useful in our research.
Berta, D. (2002, September 30). Chains tap psychological profiling to trim hr turnover.
Nation’s Restaurant News, 36, 20. Retrieved October 12, 2004, from Business
Source Premier database.
A foodservice industry writer, Dina Berta, discusses the method of using psychological
profiling to match a person’s personality with a suitable job, which has dramatically
reduced management turnover. Testing, which large chains have used for years and is
becoming more common in smaller businesses, helps companies determine if a person
fits the organization well. Computer programs and the Internet have made the tests
cheaper and faster, expediting the hiring process. Berta refers to the screening program
CheckStart that can load to company computers and requires only 15 to 30 minutes to
complete. The computer configures the results and provides interview questions. The
article provides personal testimonies of business owners and operators who rely on
psychological profiling when hiring managers. These tests are based on necessary traits
and competencies that lead to success in a position. They also give the business a
professional appearance. This article is an excellent source for our project because it
proves the importance of matching employees with suitable positions and discusses a
successful way of doing so. By placing employees in positions that suit them well, they
are more likely to stay at that job, according to information provided in our other sources.
Brown, J.N., Buccini, L.D., Kremer, J.F., & Rings, S.L. (2004). I/O psychology:
psychology applied to the workplace. In, Introductory Psychology: Psychology
as a Social Science (265-281). Boston: Pearson Custom Publishing.
The authors of this chapter describe various psychological techniques used in the modern
workplace. First, they explain the human resource aspect pertaining to hiring and
retaining employees, which include questionnaires, job analysis, training, and
performance appraisals. In addition, they include studies of how motivation is important
in retaining employees. Furthermore, these studies are supported by various
psychological theories, which can be applied to motivating employees. The final part of
the chapter deals with employee satisfaction, where the authors describe ways to maintain
job satisfaction. Some important concepts include setting clear, defined goals and job
promotion. In addition, different types of leadership styles are introduced, which can
have a profound effect on the workplace. All of these concepts are important to our
project because they have been proven by psychologists and business managers to reduce
employee turnover.
Herman, R. (1997). Reducing costly employee turnover. HR Focus, 74, 15-16.
Retrieved October 12, 2004, from Business Source Premier database.
While addressing the importance of employee retention, management consultant and
speaker Roger Herman highlights employment trends, employer vulnerability, and
approaches that will prevent employee turnover. With the economy growing, Herman
states that there will be more jobs available, but quality people to fill them will be scarce.
Increasing technology raises training costs because public education does not teach
people enough to perform at satisfactory levels. The increasing trend of job-hopping,
encouraged by society, forces employers to re-establish workforce stability. Addressing
issues that employees care about, rather than offering them money, will encourage them
to stay at a job. Managers should thank employees for their efforts. They should also
regularly hold meetings to discuss actions to maintain a stable work environment and
communicate these efforts to the employees. Managers should openly communicate with
employees, asking their opinions and suggestions on policy and marketing decisions.
Also, compensating employees based on performance will encourage goal achievement.
All of these approaches will be useful in answering our research question. Herman
confirms that employee turnover is a problem for businesses other than AACOA, Inc.,
and provides approaches that correlate with ones suggested by our other sources.
Kaye, B. & Sreb, S. (2003). Quick quits stem the turnover tide. Executive Excellence, 17.
Retrieved October 12, 2004, from Business Source Premier database.
Re-recruiting employees after hiring them is critical, according to authors Beverly Kaye,
president of Career Systems, and Steven Sreb, a senior consultant with Career Systems.
Relationships between new hires and managers are important in retaining employees.
Kaye and Sreb provide six areas that managers should focus on when conversing with
new employees. First, they suggest forming a relationship of trust, making the employee
feel valued and cared for. Managers also need to find ways for employees to use their
skills and talents to work in areas that interest them. They should create a challenging
work environment, giving employees opportunities to learn and grow. Making
employees aware of the business’s mission or focus will also benefit the company and
employee by making the employees aware of how they can make contributions. The
managers should also consider the employees whole lives, including their families,
friends, health, and finances. Finally, managers need to help new employees see their
progress. By doing these things, the managers benefit the business by improving
retention rates and reducing recruiting costs. This information will be very useful in
discussing the importance of creating an employee centered work environment. We can
also use some of this information to discuss the benefits of matching employees to proper
positions.
McCabe, C. (2004). Motivating and retaining employees. Retrieved October 15, 2004,
from http://www.zeromillion.com/business/employee-motivate.html
Charles McCabe, a veteran of a 34-year tax industry executive career, teaches small
business management at Virginia University. He discusses what types of practices
businesses should use to help facilitate the retention of employees. He outlines several
goals managers should strive for when hiring and employing individuals. These areas
include: training, work atmosphere, compensation and benefits, and communication. He
focuses on employee retention from the managerial standpoint. This article will be
helpful because it provides methods that managers can use to retain employees, which
coincides with information presented in some of our other sources.
McCuan, J. (2004, April). Guard your exits. INC. Magazine, 44-46. Retrieved October
12, 2004 from Academic Search Elite database.
Jess McCuan discusses providing simple rewards at work and being involved in
employees’ home lives in order to create a better work environment stimulating employee
happiness. His ideas include sending congratulatory emails to employees who are
excelling, also holding informal gatherings to celebrate company accomplishments and
employee performances. Barry Goss, technology manager in San Francisco, offers
extensive benefit packages and encourages employee promotions within the company,
instead of hiring outsiders to fill the position. He refers to this as “internal mobility,” a
way to keep employees happy, challenged, and interested. McCuan also comments on a
New Jersey consulting firm that keeps their employees happy by making sure that the
employees’ home lives are satisfactory. The firm sends flowers to employees’ homes,
will sometimes send a cleaning service, or give the employees time off. Using the facts
and ideas presented in this article, we will be able to further develop strategies to help
AACOA, Inc. find ways to retain and motivate employees.
Phifer, C.B. (1978). How a small manufacturing plant dealt with a high employee
turnover rate. Industrial Management, 20, 25-29. Retrieved October 12, 2004
from Academic Search Elite database.
Carol Phifer, student in the Graduate School of Business, De Paul University, developed
a case study on employee turnover in a small manufacturing plant. She personally visits
this plant and studies the tactics used by the management to combat extremely high
turnover rates. First, she explains the first step the business used to deal with the
problem, which was having all the employees take a survey consisting of complaints
against the company. The most significant findings were lack of training, lack of
feedback from management, and aggressive management. To correct the things
employees were concerned about, the management decided to implement a five-step
process. This process included training programs, training positions, better methods of
measuring quality and quantity of production, organizing a system of feedback, and
consistent supervisor conferences. The main goal was to increase employee satisfaction,
which in turn would decrease employee turnover. This article is important to the project
because the business we are trying to help is faced with the same problem as the business
in this article. In addition, both of these businesses are manufacturing plants, which
means the solutions discussed in this article will be very helpful.
Ramlall, S. (2004). A Review of employee motivation theories and their
implications for employee retention within organizations. Journal of American
Academy of Business, 5, 52-63. Retrieved October 12, 2004 from Academic
Search Elite database.
Doctor Sunil Ramlall, with a Ph.D. in Human Resource Development, discusses
motivational theories in organizations. He states that regardless of a business’s size or
level of technology, employee retention is a major problem. To solve this problem,
Ramlall explains, businesses must retain efficient employees to aid the inexperienced
new hires. Moreover, efficient employees can be used to apply and critique various
motivational theories. However, the theories must be valid in practice and source.
Therefore, Ramlall suggests theories from well-known and respected psychologists.
Although some of the theories sound very complicated, they are actually quite simple and
apply to the most basic of human needs. For example, according to Maslow’s theory,
workers must have their biological needs met before psychological and esteem needs can
be assessed. There are a few others, which all deal with different aspects of the
workplace. These aspects, including equality, job design, and an employees’ assessment
of salary, are all factors that contribute to motivation. This article is important to the
project because it describes in depth motivational techniques. In addition, the article
contains psychological solutions to employee turnover that have not been used by
AACOA, Inc.
Roth, P. G. & Roth, P. L. (1995). Reduce turnover with realistic job previews. CPA
Journal, 65, 68-69. Retrieved October 12, 2004, from Business Source Premier
database.
Journal authors Patricia G. and Philip L. Roth offer realistic job previews as a technique
for reducing employee turnover. Realistic job previews (RPJ’s) inform potential
employees about perks and drawbacks of a job, providing them with a realistic job
description. They might realize the job is not for them, which will reduce turnover. The
RPJ can also give potential employees advance warning about job demands, which will
help them cope with them in the future. To develop and implement a RPJ, the business
needs to gather information from current employees through small interviews. They
must then decide what information to include in the RPJ, some descriptive and some
judgmental. The presentation form of the RPJ can be a brochure, videotape, or a face-toface discussion. Upon completion of the RPJ, the business should present it to potential
employees prior to the interview and job offer; therefore, there are no feelings of
commitment or obligation. This method, in conjunction with source information
suggesting implementing better training programs, will help us discuss the importance of
properly preparing employees for jobs, which will reduce the likelihood of them leaving
the position before the company is able to benefit from them.
Sexter, K. (2002, August) Retaining employees: a modern manager’s accountability.
Expert Magazine. Retrieved October 15, 2004, from
http://www.expertmagazine.com/artman/publish/article_167.shtml
Kristine Sexter, columnist, keynote speaker, and leadership performance coach, discusses
the importance of employee retention and states that managers are accountable for it in
the modern business world. She gives helpful statistics that give a clearer idea of why
individuals leave jobs. She then gives several sample survey questions to use as a
reference to help reduce employee turnover. As an article addressed directly to managers
in today’s world, it gives important insight, which will be helpful to our research project.
Workers turnover can be controlled (2004, April). USA Today Magazine, 122, 5.
Retrieved October 12, 2004, from Academic Search Elite database.
This USA Today article discusses how companies see turnover rates as staggering figures
that cannot be avoided, as they getting out of control. It suggests that companies adapt
certain behaviors to avoid high rates of turnover. Dan Dalton of Indiana University
suggests that companies should have fairly liberal attendance and sick policies so that
employees are not threatened by reprimands. These suggestions are based on the facts
that employees can still be productive when coping with problems outside of the work
area. Aside from more lenient attendance policies, the article also suggests that
companies allow employees to transfer easily from department to department or location
to location to create a happier employee who is more likely to stay with the company.
This article demonstrates a few methods to preventing employee turnover and will be a
vital source in explaining how rewarding and promoting employees positively affects the
company.