Diss

A Case Study of Transition in a Notfor-Profit Organisation and its Effects on Organisational Commitment.
Shivangi Sinha
MA Industrial Relations and Personnel Management Warwick Business School
2nd October 2006
Abstract
Abstract
This research case-study aims at explaining the nature and bases of organisational commitment during transition in a small not-for-profit sector organisation. It also aims at finding if deviance exists in such an organisation, the forms it can take and the causes of deviance. The research has been carried out at Osaba Family Centre, a small not-for-profit company in Coventry, U.K. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with staff from various departments and at different levels so as to answer the above questions and to examine the differences between when Osaba was a womens centre and the present situation when it is a family centre i.e. the effects of transition on organisational commitment and deviance. The relationship between commitment and its effect on transition were found to be very positive with only few exceptions of employees who were made redundant. Even though present literature on not-for-profit sector shows that employee commitment is related to the cause that their organisation supports, there are various other reasons for employee commitment. This was further investigated in this research with the help of bases of employee commitment including affective, normative and calculative approaches. Different individuals displayed different bases and types of commitment to the organisation and affective, normative and calculative commitment existed in the organisation in varying degrees. Together with looking at commitment this study looked at deviance in the organisation. There was significant evidence to suggest deviance from rules stated in the employee handbook, including taking long breaks, using the telephones for personal reasons, etc. but most of this was with the consent of the new management. 0551269: MAIRPM Dissertation ii
Abstract Some employees engaged in deviant activities because of the transition in the organisation from a strict management to a particularly lenient one. This is explored in detail taking the case of a small not-for-profit organisation undergoing transition.
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Acknowledgement
Acknowledgements
I would like to thank Sonia Liff, my supervisor, for her continuous support, guidance and helpful comments throughout the course of the project which were always constructive, informative and invaluable in completing my dissertation. I am extremely grateful to all the Osaba Family Centre officials, staff members and representatives who participated in the study and gave me time for interviews despite their busy schedule, particularly Cavelle Lynch, whose initial enthusiasm and assistance in securing access and providing information was greatly appreciated. Last but not the least, I would like to thank my parents and especially my grandmother who is not with me anymore, I owe her everything. Without these people, none of this would have been possible, and I appreciate their support enormously.
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Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Abstract.............................................................................................................................. ii Acknowledgements .......................................................................................................... iv Table of Contents .............................................................................................................. 5 Chapter 1- Introduction ................................................................................................... 7 1.1 1.2 1.3 Introduction........................................................................................................... 7 Organisational Context ........................................................................................ 8 Research Questions............................................................................................... 9
Chapter 2- Literature Review........................................................................................ 12 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 Not-For-Profit Sector.......................................................................................... 12 Commitment........................................................................................................ 14 Bases of Commitment ......................................................................................... 16 Transition and Commitment in Organisations ................................................ 20 Deviance in Organisations.................................................................................. 21
Chapter 3 - Research Methodology............................................................................... 25 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 Methodological approach................................................................................... 25 Research design Case Study............................................................................ 25 Research Methods............................................................................................... 27 Limitations of the Research ............................................................................... 35
Chapter 4 - Research Findings ...................................................................................... 37 4.1 4.2 4.3 Bases of Employee Commitment ....................................................................... 37 Effects of Organisational Transition on Employee Commitment .................. 42 Deviance, its Forms and Causes ........................................................................ 46 5
Table of Contents Chapter 5- Conclusion.................................................................................................... 51 Bibliography .................................................................................................................... 54 Appendix.......................................................................................................................... 65
Chapter 1
Chapter 1- Introduction
1.1 Introduction
The not-for-profit sector has been researched to a great extent over the past few years, yet employee relations in organisations in this sector are not well researched even though it employs one in five workers. According to a survey by the National Council for Voluntary Organisations there are now almost 570,000 paid staff working in the voluntary or not-for-profit sector likely to increase further in the coming years (NCVO, 2004; Cunningham, 2001a). Hence, there exists a strong case for further research focusing on employee relations in this sector. There are often problems when it comes to defining the not-for-profit sector or organisations that fall within this sector. This is because the results obtained from Workplace Employment Relations Surveys provide limited evidence on the not-forprofit sector as it is not discussed separately from other sectors. (Cully et al, 1999; Millward et al, 2000) The reason for using the term not-for-profit for this research is because the term voluntary is used in context of organisations that are simply based around doing voluntary work or those that are administered by an unpaid agency or working group (Paton, 1992) whereas the focus of this research is on organisations that run on funds and charities. Such organisations have a lot of common characteristics which may have an impact on employment relations and on the questions being researched here. An interesting fact may be that the organisations in this sector have monetary constraints for salaries, wages, etc. due to which the responsibility of distributing funds rationally among paid and unpaid work becomes a
Chapter 1 challenging task. However, the organisation being researched in this study has a large pool of volunteers to support organisational activities.
1.2 Organisational Context

Osaba Family Centre is a vibrant, small not-for-profit company limited by guarantee in Coventry, U.K. Osaba makes a significant contribution to service provision by offering a friendly, non-stigmatizing, caring and responsive service to its clients. The organisation was established 24 years ago and still continues to be one of the largest organisations of its kind in the UK. It consists of several departments including a Solace Service which deals with domestic violence for women and children, the Nursery which has thirty-five places for the children and a Community Development Section that includes facilities like training, computer courses, ESOL classes, etc. Osaba has been a womens centre for the past 24 years but entering in its 25th year, a collective decision of making it a family centre was taken by the Executive Committee Board and the management of the organisation. As a part of this transition, Osaba is undergoing a major transition from a womens centre to a family centre. Other than the change in its name (from Osaba Womens Centre to Osaba Family Centre) a large number of important changes are taking place in the organisation like allowing men into the centre and employing people from all cultures for the very first time. This was done as the significance of making men a part of their domestic violence discussions, decisions and the organisation as a whole was realised. Over the years, men have not been allowed to work in the centre but now men form a significant part of the organisation if not integral. Even though major positions are still occupied by women, continuous efforts are being made to employ 0551269: MAIRPM Dissertation 8
Chapter 1 more and more men for various jobs in the organisation including both temporary and permanent positions. Another important change has been to employ people from all backgrounds into important positions in the organisation, other than people only with an African and Caribbean background. With the help of the new employees Osaba is striving continuously towards organisational expansion by means of starting new facilities for its clients. Osaba is starting a new Refuge for accommodation of clients facing domestic violence. The nursery for children has been recently renovated and is functional again. It is also working on a starting a new confidential counseling service for its solace clients. This organisational expansion has been unprecedented and has lead towards a significant increase in its workforce over the past six months.
1.3 Research Questions

As mentioned before, the research study aims to understand and explain the nature and bases of organisational commitment during organisational transition in a small not-for-profit sector organisation. It also aims at finding if deviance exists in such an organisation and the forms it can take. The research questions addressed in this casestudy are as follows: 1. What are the bases of employee commitment in terms of affective, normative and calculative commitment? 2. What are the effects of organisational transition on employee commitment? 3. What are the forms and causes of deviance in the organisation? To answer the research questions, a case study was undertaken in Osaba Family Centre. Access was secured to the centre and clients could approach the solace 0551269: MAIRPM Dissertation 9
Chapter 1 service for emergency meetings with senior officials. The organisation was chosen because it is a small not-for-profit organisation and because a significant number of employees have had a long-term relationship with the organisation which displays high levels of commitment. The organisation was also chosen as the researcher had easy access into it, having worked there for the past eleven months, which would help collect ample data for this research study. Chapter two highlights the principle issues surrounding the not-for-profit sector. The bases of employee commitment are also discussed in this chapter together with recent debates on deviance in organisations. This chapter also discusses commitment and the effects of transition on commitment. This is done with the objective of identifying the lack of research in this area especially in identifying the bases of commitment in a small not-for-profit sector organisation. This chapter also emphasizes the lack of research in the deviance literature. The research methodology is described in Chapter three. This chapter explains how a case study was carried out in a small not-for-profit organisation, Osaba Family Centre. The case study took the form of both face-to-face and telephone interviews with present and former employees of the organisation. This was coupled with observations made during office hours, access to organisational documents and general discussions with employees. The Research Findings are presented in Chapter four. This chapter is divided into sections on the bases of commitment, effects of transition on employee commitment and instances and forms of deviant activities and possible causes for deviance.
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Chapter 1 The final chapter, Chapter five concludes the case study stating that the bases of employee commitment in the organisation are a combination of affective, normative and calculative commitment and the organisational transition has had a positive impact on organisational commitment to a great extent with some exceptions. Finally, instances of deviance were found in the organisation. The forms and causes of deviance were explored and uncovered and it was recognized that deviant activities are likely to increase further owing to organisational transition.
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Chapter 2
Chapter 2- Literature Review

2.1 Not-For-Profit Sector
As suggested earlier, there has been limited research in this sector, especially concentrating on employee commitment in small not-for-profit organisations, running solely on charities, funds, etc. and undergoing organisational transition. Most of the research in this area focuses on nature of organisational commitment and its implications on Human Resource Management, introduction of more organisations of this kind providing facilities like healthcare, etc. (Alatrista and Arrowsmith, 2004; Cunningham, 2001b; Cunningham and Newsome, 2004; Kellock Hay et al, 2001). Also, employment relations in not-for-profit organisations providing support and counseling services still remain unexplored. Even though earlier researches have focused on small and medium scale organisations, the aim of this research was to look at a small not-for-profit organisation in a state of transition and to see whether this transition would have an impact on employee commitment. This research raises the question whether a small not-for-profit organisation undergoing transition would bear resemblance to other not-for-profit organisations that have been researched over the years. Hence, there is considerable scope for the research questions in this case study research to contribute to existing knowledge as far as bases of commitment, transition and its effects on organisational commitment and deviance are concerned. The following sections, i.e. section 4.1, 4.2 and 4.3 deal with this in detail. The bases of employee commitment, including affective, normative and calculative commitment have been explored by many researches including Kanter, 1968, Peccei
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Chapter 2 and Rosenthal, 1997 and Etzioni, 1961. These researchers have formulated definitions of affective, normative and calculative commitment and studied them in context of various organisations. Also, the literature on commitment has concentrated on the specific nature of employment in not-for-profit organisations, (Cunningham, 2001b; Kellock Hay et al, 2001; Paton & Cornforth, 1992) including participative decisionmaking processes, the way in which things are done as well as what is done, commitment to organisational cause than to the organisation itself. (Paton and Cornforth, 1992). However, the bases of commitment in terms of affective, normative and calculative commitment in small not-for-profit organisations, especially those undergoing transition still remains unexplored to a significant extent. It has to be understood that for many employees in the not-for-profit sector there is no job security, limited career development opportunities, rewards and relatively low pay as compared to a job in the private sector. (Hems and Passey, 1998; Passey et al. 2000). Hence, it will not be wrong to say that there are other bases of employee commitment as it seems unlikely that employees would settle for the above mentioned limitations related with a job in the not-for-profit sector. For instance an employee may be emotionally attached to the organisation and find intrinsic satisfaction and enjoyment in serving its clients. Alternatively, an employee may also feel morally obligated to serve an organisation and its clients. They may also be simply committed to the organisation in a hope to receive inducements of any kind that match their contributions or efforts (Penley and Gould 1988). Factors motivating employees to remain committed to such organisations, the bases of employee commitment, etc. is not very well known as there has not been significant research in 0551269: MAIRPM Dissertation 13
Chapter 2 this area. Hence, this research aims to examine these issues with the help of Osaba Family Centre.
2.2 Commitment
Considerable literature exists on organisational commitment in the not-for-profit sector. (Cunningham, 2001b; Kellock Hay et al, 2001; Paton & Cornforth, 1992). It has been observed in the literature that commitment exists in the form of commitment to the cause of the organisation rather than to the organisation itself (Paton & Cornforth, 1992). Research also shows that employees in this sector are paid less than what they might receive in an occupation in the private sector for the same kind of work being performed by them. (Hems & Passey, 1998). As the literature states that commitment is connected with commitment to organisational causes and goals which is one of the reasons why employees choose to receive less pay, rewards, etc.(Alatrista & Arrowsmith, 2003) and yet be committed to the organisation. Another reason for commitment could be the fact that while applying for work employees choose organisations with values, atmosphere and location that is of interest to them. The fundamental reasons why people choose to work in these organisations remains largely unexplored. This means that the reasons that compel employees to work in this sector could be the cause that organisation works for or there might be other bases of employee commitment. Hence, the answers to these questions have been uncovered in terms of a small not-for-profit organisation undergoing transition with the help of Osaba. Organisational commitment is of utmost importance as with the help of committed employees an organisation can achieve its goals and aims more successfully. (Legge, 0551269: MAIRPM Dissertation 14
Chapter 2 1989) This holds true in the not-for-profit organisations as well, because they receive large sums of grants and funds from external sources which have to be justified by fulfilling the cause for which the grants have been provided, as grants have to be spent conscientiously and solely for serving the community hence high levels of commitment becomes extremely important. Studies have shown that employee commitment is not a one dimensional concept and is quite complex to define. (Alatrista and Arrowsmith, 2003) This means that the aspects that can influence an employees commitment can be manifold. Employees might be committed to one aspect of their job or other aspects, for example, some employees might be more committed to their immediate manager while some might be more committed towards their client or clients. Besides these internal factors there are some external factors (like unions, their profession, etc.) that have a positive impact on organisational commitment (Arnold et al 1998 & Baruch and WinkelmannGleed 2002). But, assuming that internal and external factors are the only ones responsible for employee commitment is not correct and hence this has been explored further in this research study. In Osaba Family Centre, commitment may vary between groups of employees due to the presence of different hierarchical levels (see Figure 1 in Research Findings) within the organisation. For example, the management of the organisation has the larger picture of the organisation in mind (future of the organisation, organisational expansion, etc.) unlike lower level workers who are concerned with their day-to-day tasks. Therefore, these factors may affect the focus of an employees commitment
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Chapter 2 making it important to understand the nature and bases of commitment throughout the organisation. Commitment is form of relationship meaning there are categorizations based on the nature of the relationship and ones based on what one is relating being committed to. Moreover, as mentioned before it is not one dimensional and a complex area, so we need to understand the bases of commitment in order to understand these categorizations. Allen and Meyer, 1990; Peccei and Rosenthal, 1997 and Etzioni, 1961 suggested the following approaches and bases of commitment: calculative, affective and normative.
2.3 Bases of Commitment

The earliest portrayal of calculative commitment was by Etzioni, (1961) and he was amongst the first academicians to say that calculative commitment of an employee is a give and take affair. An employee aims at providing excellent service to clients but only as a means to gain benefits in the form of rewards, promotion, recognition, etc. from the organisation. Individuals work hard on behalf of the clients, presenting their problem to their seniors/superiors, as a calculated move as employees are aware that pleasing clients would mean rewards, recognition and benefits. Thus, employees benefit themselves by this process of pleasing and serving clients. Penley and Gould (1988) describe calculative attachment as a commitment to an organisation which is based on the employees receiving inducements to match contributions (Penley and Gould 1988:46) This form of organisational commitment is based on mutual exchange. (eg., Wiener 1982; Randall and ODriscoll 1997; Oliver 1990) Here, employees develop commitment to an organisation because they foresee a bright 0551269: MAIRPM Dissertation 16
Chapter 2 future in the organisation in terms of promotions, recognition and other cost benefits. Generally, employees committed to an organisation in this way continue to work with the organisation because they need to do so for their benefit. Calculative commitment is relevant to a limited extent in the case of not-for-profit organisations, as in these organisations only a small number of employees may not show a give and take association with the organisation. Such employees are generally aware of the financial constraints of these organisations and hence may want to work for the organisation selflessly without expecting rewards and other benefits in return. Calculative commitment can be displayed at lower levels where individuals refuse to put in extra hours of work and expect suitable returns for any extra work done in the organisation. It may also be displayed by part-time workers in the organisation who work with the organisation for a limited period and would be willing to work more hours only if suitable remuneration is provided. In an organisation undergoing transition, it is important that the organisation provides suitable rewards and benefits to all employees (including lower levels and part-time employees) so as to maintain employee commitment and complete the transition successfully. This research aims to successfully uncover if employees in a small notfor-profit organisation in the state of transition display calculative commitment. The two bases of commitment that are generally relevant in case of a not-for-profit organisation are affective commitment and normative commitment. In case of affective commitment employees feel a sense of emotional attachment to the organisation, which can also be described as can be described as cathectic cohesion commitment. (eg., Allen and Meyer, 1990; Kanter, 1968; Buchanan II, 1974; Peccei 0551269: MAIRPM Dissertation 17
Chapter 2 and Rosenthal, 1997) In this case, the employee devotes himself/herself completely to serving the organisation better, forming an emotional attachment with the organisation. Providing high quality service to clients delivers a sense of innate contentedness to the employee. An employee develops emotional bonds with the organisation when he/she understands and identifies with the ethics, structure and the work the organisation does and is inclined to provide cooperation and support to the organisation. The individual truly believes in and acknowledges the work the organisation does is inclined to strive hard for its success (Mowday et al.1979) Therefore , in terms of a not-for-profit organisation , affective commitment may relate to an individual identifying with the organisations ethics, its structure or the work done by the organisation. However, in the case of normative commitment employees believe in performing their moral duty or doing the right thing due to their responsibility to the organisation. It can be said that this form of commitment is extremely practicable; as an individual does something because he has been brought up to do so and tries to give their best to please clients only because he/she believes it is his/her moral obligation to do so. An individual considers work as his/her moral duty and responsibility towards the organisation. (eg., Allen and Meyer, 1990; Wiener, 1982; Randall and Cote 1990; Schoorman and Mayer 1992). It can be said that in the case of not-for-profit organisations normative commitment may relate to the fact that an employee is aware of the causes the organisation supports, its limited finances and funds and hence conducts himself/herself in such a way that the organisation is benefited. Normative commitment could also mean the shared expectations and obligations that exist 0551269: MAIRPM Dissertation 18
Chapter 2 between an individual and the organisation, which contributes immensely towards a well functioning psychological contract. The concept of psychological contract holds significance in this research as this organisation is undergoing transition. As described by Guest 2004, the psychological contract goes beyond the regular rules and terms as described in the employment contract, and concentrates on the way in which employment relations function at an individual level between an employer and an employee. This helps employees to see the employment relationship as just, because they are aware of what they are meant to do and also what can be expected by them in return. In case of a not-for-profit organisation, where employees may work for more than rewards and benefits, the concept of psychological contract gains significant importance because these employees may feel entitled to an opinion in the running of the organisation in return for there commitment to the organisation (Paton, 1992). Legge (2002), states that when redundancies and other organisational changes occur in an organisation, it upsets the psychological contract and can have a negative impact on an individuals work and commitment. This is particularly relevant in the case of Osaba, as there have been a number of redundancies as part of the transition it is going through. Although there has been substantial literature describing the bases of commitment in general, there has been limited research regarding the bases of commitment in a notfor-profit environment. This research would contribute towards uncovering the different bases of commitment in the not-for-profit sector taking the case of Osaba Family Centre.
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Chapter 2
2.4 Transition and Commitment in Organisations

Organizational commitment has been at the centre of many researches (Reichers, 1985; Wright and Bonnett, 2002) due to its relationship to many important outcomes such as job performance, absenteeism, tardiness and turnover (e.g., Becker et al.1996; Maertz et al. 2002; Mowday et al. 1979; Randall et al. 1990). Hence, having committed employees can be positive for organizations, which helps explain why there have been efforts to more fully understand commitments source as well as its consequences (Meyer et al. 2002). Even though commitment is most often conceptualized in terms of factors like employees attachment to their entire organization, etc. this positive association can also have other logical reasons behind it, such as a change occurring within the organization (Becker, 1992; Becker et al., 1996; Brockner et al. 1992; Ford et al. 2003; Gregersen, 1992; Herscovitch and Meyer, 2002). Smither (1994) has cited the typical barriers to organisational transition associated with various sources like disruption of personal relationships, perceived threat to status etc. Similarly, it tries to discuss the techniques to overcome these barriers (like involving managers and employees in the transition process or create a new vision for the workplace). It can be seen that all these techniques rely on employee commitment to be successful, making the role of employee commitment central in the transition process. In any organisation, big or small the successful implementation of transition in the organisation requires employee support and acceptance. Employee commitment to transition can be described as their contribution and willingness to work towards the transition, and this would especially be beneficial if the organisation realizes the 0551269: MAIRPM Dissertation 20
Chapter 2 advantages of employee commitment in organizational transition. (Armenakis et al., 1993) There have been many researches, concentrating on reactions closely related with transition itself, such as employees openness to the change (e.g.,Wanberg and Banas, 2000), readiness for change (Armenakis et al 1993), resistance to change (e.g., Kotter and Schlesinger, 1979), or cynicism toward change (Wanous et al 2000). Others research studies have focused on broader workplace outcomes, such as organizational commitment and absenteeism (e.g., Hui and Lee, 2000; Judge at al 1999). However, only few researches have simultaneously investigated the relationship between transition and organisational commitment (eg., Hercovitch and Meyer 2002) and the effect of transition on commitment particularly in the not-for-profit sector. Hence, this research study attempts to look into the impact that organisational transition has on employee commitment within a not-for-profit organisation.
2.5 Deviance in Organisations

Deviance can simply be understood as accepting or not accepting rules in terms of implicit or explicit estimation of results or consequences of either conforming to or completely rejecting the norms or rules put forward by others, especially norms of those who have authority. It has to be understood that organisational functioning involves both the acceptance and rejection of set rules and norms and this can be referred to as deviance. Actions of deviance are expected from individuals having divergent ends and especially from individuals who find it difficult to comply with others or with those who have authority; these individuals sometimes adhere to their self-expectancies. (Bensman and Gerver, 1963) 0551269: MAIRPM Dissertation 21
Chapter 2 To a great extent, the literature on conflict, defiance etc. had seen downfall towards the beginning of 1990s, (Taylor and Bain, 2003; Thompson and Ackroyd, 1995) but, the current management thoughts and ideas, where the interests of employer and employees are collateral especially in the not-for-profit sector, (Fleming and Sewell, 2003) it becomes important that organisational deviance be understood. Research in this area, to a great extent has been concentrating on various sectors like call centers (Taylor and Bain, 2003), manufacturing sector (Bensman and Gerver, 1963; Burawoy, 1979) and areas like not-for-profit organisations are still largely unexplored. The research includes white-collar employees where deviance is present but not in obvious forms like strikes, union resistance, etc. Even though it might be said that white-collar employees are more committed (as they do not engage in obvious forms of deviant activities mentioned above), it can be seen that deviance does exist in one form or another. Waddington, 2003, Kondo 1990; Jermier et al 1994 and Ackroyd and Thompson 1999, have given a broader definition of deviance that cover a much wider range of activities corresponding to the modern workplace and in particular to the white-collar employees. Other than activities like reduced output leading to piling of work, fiddling (wasting time, stealing organisational material, etc.) their definition also includes deviant activities such as not working hard or day dreaming. (Ackroyd and Thompson 1999; Mars, 1982) According Paton (1992), employees in an organisation feel that they must have a say in the running of the organisation, this could be viewed as a part of the psychological contract. In the absence of freedom to have a voice in organisational activities, 0551269: MAIRPM Dissertation 22
Chapter 2 employees might experience low levels of commitment which may affect employee contribution to the organisation, as they might develop a feeling of resentment resulting in employees engaging in deviant activities. It should be realised that deviance can not simply be termed as a negative form of commitment. However, it has to be agreed that there does exists a link between deviance and commitment. This can be better understood by taking the example of an employee who may engage in deviant activities owing to the fact that he/she is feeling less committed to one of many aspects of his/her job. Therefore, acts of deviance could be seen as being against a particular aspect of the job or work environment, and not particularly towards the organisation. Even so, there is still room for other deviant activities which may not fit this view of deviant behaviour. Summarizing, this chapter started with exploring literature on not-for-profit organisations. Even though there has been limited research in this sector a notable fact is that even though the organisations in this sector have limited benefits and job security, yet it employs one in fifty of the working population making a compelling argument to investigate this sector deeply. The literature further tried to establish links between commitment and the not-for-profit sector. It could also be seen that because the commitment displayed by the employees ranging from management to lower-level workers varied in nature, hence it became necessary to understand the bases of their commitment in terms of three approaches: calculative, affective and normative. As the organisation being studied in this research was undergoing transition, hence it became important to identify the effect that transition had on employee commitment. 0551269: MAIRPM Dissertation 23
Chapter 2 Finally, this research tried to look into the possible causes of deviance in the not-forprofit sector where there has not been significant research as not a lot of consideration is given to the possibility of employees engaging in deviant activities. Hence, through the literature search many interesting directions have emerged that need further research. For instance, is deviance just evidence simply lack of commitment or something else? Do employees feel more committed to any one aspect of their job in particular? Therefore, this research has three clear objectives: First, to identify the bases of employee commitment in terms of affective, normative and calculative commitment; second, to understand the effects of organisational transition on employee commitment and third, to discover the causes of deviance and the ways in which employees engage in acts of deviance.
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Chapter 3
Chapter 3 - Research Methodology

3.1 Methodological approach
The nature of this research and topic has led to the adoption of a phenomenological approach to this research project. This normally translates into gathering 'deep' information and perceptions through inductive, qualitative methods such as interviews, discussions and participant observation, and representing it from the perspective of the research participant(s). Epistemologically, phenomenological approaches are based in a paradigm of personal knowledge and subjectivity, and emphasize the importance of personal perspective and interpretation. As such they are powerful for understanding subjective experience, gaining insights into people's motivations and actions, and cutting through the clutter of taken-for-granted assumptions and conventional wisdom. Arnold et al (1998) suggest that there is no particular reason as to why people are committed to particular aspects of their job and why they are not. Similarly, people resist different aspects of their work in various ways. In order to find the reasons for this, it is necessary that this research goes deeper into what people have to say and interpret what is found. As was suggested earlier, a phenomenological approach gains insight into peoples motivations and actions hence this approach has been adopted for this research.
3.2 Research design Case Study

This research project has used the case study framework to use in its research. Case study method has been used as it enables the researcher to gain an in-depth 0551269: MAIRPM Dissertation 25
Chapter 3 understanding of a given phenomena in its natural context (Cavaye 1996; Hakim 1992; Yin 1994). Yin (1994) has stated that some problems cannot be readily understood without also understanding something of the environment or the context in which the problem exists. Yin (1994) further adds that case studies are very useful methods to investigate complex real world problems and develop a better understanding of issues related to employment relations. Additionally, case studies provide the opportunity to perform in depth investigations and help the researcher to answer the deeper how and why questions that needs a lot more exploration to be done. This exploratory nature of a case study was the reason it was chosen for this research project as issues about commitment and deviance in the not for profit sector has not been very well investigated ruling out the use of historical research. However, case studies have some limitations associated with them. A significant limitation of a case study, particularly a single case study like in this research project, is that it cannot always be representative of an entire sector or industry (Yin 2003). Nonetheless, this in itself cannot invalidate the findings as the data collected can be used in future research (Thomas 2004). Also, as Yin (1994) says that a single case study should be used when the case represents a unique case. As this research is based in an ethnic minority organisation that is undergoing transition, it provides ample rationale to use the single case study method. As mentioned before a limitation of time was one of the reasons that only one organisation, in this case Osaba, was investigated. Furthermore, as the researcher was already working there for the past ten months, this lead to a better understanding of 0551269: MAIRPM Dissertation 26
Chapter 3 the issues surrounding the employees and the organisation. The research was conducted at all levels of the organisation so that the results accurately mirror the feelings of all employees and more valid conclusions could be drawn from it.
3.3 Research Methods

According to Bryman (2004), most case studies use exclusively qualitative methods of data collection but this need not be the case. Researchers including (Bell, 1999; Blaxter et al.1996), point out that a qualitative approach is much more context sensitive than a quantitative one and enables cases to be investigated in their natural environment. Qualitative analysis provides data rich in detail and closer to the respondent's perceived world. It is also, more flexible and subtle as compared to structured methodologies. Also, qualitative techniques are of an exploratory character and have a relative openness to develop data and findings that fall outside conventional thinking. (Whipp 1998). This kind of approach would be advantageous when trying to uncover the many hidden features of the employment relationship as informal or even illicit behaviour can be examined as a result of the trust that may develop in association with interviewing. The importance of this advantage in the case of a research on organisational commitment, defiance and deviance is selfevident. Hence, this research study used qualitative methods of data collection, which primarily included researcher observation, and semi-structured interviews (including face to face and telephone interviews) which are described below. The choice of a semi structured interview was due to the fact that they are conducted with a fairly open framework which allows for focused, conversational, two-way communication. Unlike the questionnaire framework, where detailed questions are 0551269: MAIRPM Dissertation 27
Chapter 3 formulated ahead of time, semi structured interviewing starts with more general questions or topics. Relevant topics are initially identified and the possible relationship between these topics and the issues such as availability, expense, effectiveness become the basis for more specific questions which do not need to be prepared in advance. The majority of questions are created during the interview, allowing both the interviewer and the person being interviewed the flexibility to probe for details or discuss issues. Another reason for using interviews was that it was hoped that by means of interviews individuals would share their experiences, events, etc. that would help the researcher in a better analysis for the research questions. The aim was to ask questions that would help in delving deeper into the broad research questions. This also meant that more individuals within the organisation can be conversed with and questioned; this is much less ethically complicated and encroaching than participant observation. (Bryman, 2004) The researcher spent a lot of time on the office premises which resulted in finding a lot of significant facts about the organisation with the help of observation in various departments. It was carefully noted what kind of relationship is shared between employees and management, how do various individuals across departments interact with each other, the atmosphere and office environment, day to day activities, etc. Due to limited time available for this research study, the observation was not ethnography but this still helps us to learn valuable lessons from this discipline including examining and investigating the situation and having a liberal and unbiased attitude towards what might be found, rather than only testing hypotheses (Thomas, 0551269: MAIRPM Dissertation 28
Chapter 3 2004; Fetterman, 1998). Only observation can not produce relevant data for the research, efforts were made to identify those issues with the help of observation that could be highlighted and considered during the interview process so as to get individual opinions on those issues. The researcher, who was a part of the organisation, identified the various departments and groups of employees to be interviewed. Employees were randomly selected from each group to be interviewed. Initially, it was hoped that that only face to face interviews will be conducted but owing to the busy schedule of most of the employees, especially former employees of the organisation, telephone interviews had to be conducted. Telephone interviews are usually structured in nature (Research Methodology Class Notes Week 3, 2006) but owing to limitations in availability of some interviewees, some semi-structured interviews were conducted over the phone. Conducting telephone interviews posed a few other problems like cost involved, recording and difficulty in transcribing interviews.
(P.T.O) 0551269: MAIRPM Dissertation 29
Chapter 3
(Source: Adapted from Osaba Employee Handbook, 2006)
Fig.1: Osaba Family Centre Organisation Chart The chart above shows the various departments in Osaba Family Centre and is explained as follows. Osaba consist of an Executive Committee Board consisting of ten executive board members including Osabas Chair, Vice-chair, Trustees and Treasurer. The Centre Manager is accountable to the Executive Board and a Deputy Centre Manager is accountable to the Centre Manager. Three assistants including Administrative, HR and Finance are responsible to the Deputy Centre Manager. The Community Development Section consists of the Agender for Women which have 30 group members. It also consists of two Community Development /Training Volunteer Coordinators and one Family Service Coordinator who have twelve employees working under them. The Solace/Domestic Violence Department Consists of a Support Services Coordinator (DVA) who has four Project workers under him/her.
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Chapter 3 The Solace Department also has about six work placements from various universities across the UK. The Nursery consists of a Nursery Manager and sixteen employees working under him/ her. The IT Department consists of the IT Manager and an IT Assistant. Osaba has a legal department consisting of two lawyers. As seen though the organisational chart Osaba is a varied organisation consisting of several departments hence face-to-face and telephone interviews were conducted in each of the departments to get a comprehensive overview of the entire organisation. In total 19 interviews were conducted across departments like Executive Board, Solace, Community Development, Nursery, IT, etc. 4 former employees of the organisation were also interviewed to get their opinion on the effects of transition on commitment, the bases of commitment and if they experienced deviance in any form. The choice was of former employees was important as they were affected most by the transition in the organisation. The former employees were committed to the original goals of the organisation e.g. helping women, working with people who share their ethnicity etc. and this commitment might have been threatened by the new goals so it could be assumed that people who have stayed in the organisation to be people who have successfully made that transition. Hence, one way of identifying people whose commitment might have been lost by the change in direction is to find ex-employees. This was also done with an intention to compare the present situation with how it used to be under the previous management on the onset of organisational transition. The interviewees consisted of full-time present and former employees, present and former part-time employees and present and former volunteers of the organisation. This was done with an intention to get opinions of every group of employees so as to 0551269: MAIRPM Dissertation 31
Chapter 3 make an informed analysis. Although it was recognized that volunteers are a specialized field in the organisation but they could not be ignored in this study as volunteers form an integral part of Osaba and they were found to be very involved in various activities of the organisation including client cases, training courses, etc. The questions during the interview were structured insofar that all the essential topics were covered by these questions. The interview began with easing individuals into answering questions specific to the research, this was done by asking them questions about the organisation in general, about the duration of their association with the organisation, working hours in the organisation, etc. Individuals were then asked questions about their job so as to establish a basis for employee commitment or deviance. The interviews then went deeper into understanding how an employee looks at a working day in the organisation, here, questions about unions, management control, breaks, using of organisations resources such as internet, phone, etc. were asked. Questions like if they made a conscious effort to work with this sector or the organisation in particular were also asked. The interview then moved on to asking question about organisational commitment, transition in the organisation. With the help of several short questions, including questions on employees experiencing emotional attachment or obligation to work in the organisation, the bases of commitment was tried to be uncovered. In the end, the interview was concluded by requesting additional comments from individuals and informing them that the interview was confidential. During the interviews, interviewees were given complete freedom to express their opinions, give instances based on personal experiences and comment on any situation that they thought might be important to the research. 0551269: MAIRPM Dissertation 32
Chapter 3 The telephone interviews were conducted at a time that would be best suitable to individuals. The interviews started by informing them that their name will not appear any where on the research study and hence they should be comfortable and open enough to express themselves freely. In case of certain telephone interviews that included evidence of organisational deviance and were very important to the research, permission was acquired from the interviewees to record the interviews. This was done by using a telephone with a speaker phone and writing down important points on a sheet of paper at the same time in order to make sure no details are missed due to connection problems. It was realised that the interviews have to be conducted in an environment where the employees feel comfortable enough to express themselves openly; therefore, face-toface interviews were conducted in a secluded training room, after hours. The employees talked freely about all issues and gave ample instance to support their arguments. The fact that the researcher was a part of the organisation made the employees more relaxed during the interview process. It was realised that owing to the fact that the research study is on deviance and defiance in the organisation, I realised that employees may find it difficult to express themselves openly when talking about instances of deviance. Hence, efforts were made to make them as comfortable as possible and assurance was provided to them saying that their name will appear nowhere on the research study. This made them speak feely about various issues that individuals might have though are not worth mentioning due to risk of lack of confidentiality of information revealed by them.
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Chapter 3 The questions asked in the interview are included in the Appendix. Even though the topics that were aimed to be covered with the interviews were more or less the same for all employees the questions had to be edited to suit the job profile of individuals. The appendix shows a basic outline of the questions asked in the interviews. The questions were formulated in such a way so as to deal with definitive aspects of the broad research questions, in order to get the interviewees to talk about specific instances and incidents in their job which would lead to answering the questions relevant to the research study. To get an overview of the differences between Osaba as a womens centre and Osaba as a family centre, individuals were asked questions like what effects has the transition had on you, your behaviour at work, how much control do you have over your job now and is there any difference between the present situation and how it used to be under the old management, etc. The interviewees responded directly to the questions asked but they were also asked to elaborate and add upon their experiences giving examples from the organisational environment. Any research method adopted can not be free of limitations and if these limitations are acknowledged the researcher can avoid making tall claims and then not fulfilling them, hence, making the research study fallible. Qualitative method of research is subjective and is open to interpretation, as a result of which it might be a problem to replicate this research and generalize the population as whole. (Bryman, 2004) These do not have much impact on the results but should be taken into consideration when any assertions are made about the research results.
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Chapter 3 Another important problem that was identified during conducting interviews was deriving useful results out of the interviews because since the interviewees were familiar with the researcher they elaborated too much on points insignificant to the research. Therefore, efforts were made to prompt them continuously about the relevant questions and bring them back on track to prevent wastage of time. This had to be given significant importance because the interviews were taken after hours and employees were in a hurry to go home. Hence, to make them comfortable enough to stay longer and complete the interviews they were provided tea, coffee and juices. A tiny microphone was attached to their attire with their permission to record the interview, this was done with a view to not distract them or make them conscious as a big recording device may have made them uncomfortable. The interview began with a general chat session about some contextual information about the organisation, the individual and his/her job. Only relevant portions of the data collected from face-to-face interviews was transcribed but the answers to the telephone interviews were taken down on sheets of paper, where considerable space was left after every question in order to record individual responses in full. After this the next step was linking the themes and data collected from interviews to the literature and other ideas, after which an interpretation was made out of the information collected.
3.4 Limitations of the Research

There are certain limitations in this research that are explained as follows. Firstly, the fact that this research is based in an organisation where the researcher has been for the past ten months, hence the researchers attitude might have an influence on the 0551269: MAIRPM Dissertation 35
Chapter 3 interpretation of the data collected. Therefore, it was tried to avoid and overcome any bias due to working in the organisation; the researcher was already familiar with the context of Osaba, which could have proven to be a hindrance to the collection of data, since the respondents might have had doubts about the confidentiality of the interview or its objectives. Being aware of this proved to be an advantage as it ensured that the data collected was carefully interpreted, and any bias of any kind was prevented. Due to the limited time available for this research, a few important employees of the organisation have not been interviewed, which another limitation as these employees could have given some more information is leading to a better analysis.
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Chapter 4
Chapter 4 - Research Findings

4.1 Bases of Employee Commitment
The first research question aimed to understand the nature and bases of commitment during transition in a small not-for-profit organisation. The available literature on bases of commitment discusses the different approaches of commitment mainly in sectors like manufacturing and some service sectors like call centers. However, in the not-for-profit sector, where individuals are assumed to be connected only to the cause of the organisation (Paton & Cornforth, 1992), this section of the research tries to find out if other forms of commitment exist and if they do what may be its basis. Osaba Family Centre provides a number of diverse services including a solace service, a childrens nursery, and a community development section, therefore, it would not be wrong to say that employees demonstrate different types of commitment within the organisation. So in order to find whether the employees showed calculative commitment questions were asked regarding the rewards and benefits they received in this organisation, if they worked for the organisation because of a necessity or desire, etc. (see Appendix) In response to these questions, the opinions of most of the employees suggested that working in a not-for-profit sector organisation is a matter of desire more than a necessity to them. Better job opportunities and good job locations were present in abundance for most employees but the reason why they choose to work for an organisation like Osaba is simply desire to help women and children.
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Chapter 4 The following comment exemplifies the statement above: I was an IT Engineer before I came to this sector, I had a bad marriage and I want to help women who have suffered like I have. (Community Training Volunteer Coordinator) This desire makes their commitment to the organisation strong enough to travel long distances to come to work, work long hours despite no extra rewards or overtime being awarded. I travel 50 minutes to an hour to get here, I could easily get a job in Birmingham, I think that shows enough commitment. (Project Worker Safe House) The Centre Manager commented My contracted hours are 37 hours a week but I end up working around 60 hours. The fact that despite no extra benefits are provided to employees in return for their service they still chose to stay in the organisation speaks about their commitment to the organisation. However, some new employees did suggest that eventually they would move on to another organisation paying a better salary than Osaba after gaining some experience of this sector. I wish to gain some specialized experience in this area and the money is good for an inexperienced employee like me, I will move on when I find a better job opportunity. (Project Worker Education) Another new employee said: Not right now, maybe over the years I might get emotionally attached, lets see how things work. (Project Worker Safe House) This demonstrates that while most employees in the organisation did not show calculative commitment to the organisation, some new employee did seem to show calculative commitment. It could also be that when employees enter an organisation 0551269: MAIRPM Dissertation 38
Chapter 4 they may simply feel that they are in the organisation for personal benefits (including money, experience, etc.) but as they continue to work for the organisation their bases of commitment might change to another form of commitments. In an effort to find out if employees at Osaba show affective commitment, individuals were asked questions like do they feel emotionally attached to the organisation, if they would be happy to spend the rest of their careers with the organisation, do they feel as if the organisations problems are their own, do they feel contented in providing high quality service to clients, do they believe in the cause the organisation works for, etc. Two sets of answers emerged from the interviews. On the one hand, interviews revealed similar answers from the executive board members and old employees many of whom were either founders of the organisation or had a long association with it. The statements below reveal the comments by the board members and old employees: I started as a Volunteer, then I got a job as an Administrative Assistant and then I was promoted to Centre Manager. I feel a strong sense of emotional attachment to Osaba. I really miss working there.(Former Centre Manager) I am one of the founders of Osaba, even though I might not be in the Executive Committee Board all my life, I will always come back to Osaba to see how she is doing. (Vice Chair) We planted a sapling 24 years ago and it has become a strong tree now. I am just as attached to Osaba now as I was when it started. I like being as involved as I can in most of the client counseling sessions, it gives me satisfaction. (Chair)
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Chapter 4 On the other hand, the employees who did not have a long term association with the organisation did not seem to show any emotional attachment or seem to identify with the ethics, structure and the work the organisation does. The following statements substantiate the above statement: No, I dont think Ive been here long enough to be emotionally attached. (Centre Manager) I dont feel emotionally attached now, its like I just got here. (Finance Assistant) According to the researcher, there is a difference between identifying with the ethics of an organisation, the work it does, etc. and simply performing a job as a part of a moral duty or obligation. For individuals to identify with the ethics, with the work an organisation does, etc. in short building an emotional attachment requires spending time in the organisation and having a long association with it. Hence, it is understandable when old employees exhibit a stronger sense of emotional attachment as compared to the relatively newer ones. With an effort to find out if employees at Osaba experience normative commitment, questions like do they feel morally obligated to serve the organisations clients, whether they are in the organisation due to the remuneration and facilities provided or because they believe it is the right or moral thing to do (Wiener,1982:471). Also, questions like when the organisation provides opportunities for career development including training, academic courses, etc. do the employees feel obligated to stay with the organisation, were asked. Some comments received in response to the above questions were as follows:
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Chapter 4 Yes, I do feel obligated to see this through and help young children suffering with problems as that is what Im here for in the Organisation. I would feel guilty if I had to leave Osaba as I would not just be letting down Osaba but I would also be letting down the many young children I can help by staying here. (Project Worker Children) I do not feel obligated to stay in the job, but I think by providing me training opportunities Osaba is simply providing me the tools I need to do my job. I am happy to stay in the job because there is scope for development. I might want to stay in the job to an extent due to the moral obligation towards clients. (Community Training Volunteer Coordinator) The above instances demonstrate that the employees presently working in the organisation feel morally obligated to serve clients in the organisation; however, the obligation is only towards clients. They also feel committed every time opportunities are provided for career development. On probing employees deeper it was found out that the reason why employees are in the organisation is definitely a matter of desire and they have better opportunities both in the not-for-profit sector and other sectors. The reason for their strong commitment for people is simply the fact that their being in the organisation may help people who really have no place else to go. The Centre Manager Commented, Knowing that there are women out there who need help and they come in the Centre and receive help, after they have settled down they come back and say Thank You, if I can do that to one woman a week, that is motivating enough. This statement clearly shows how people in the organisation are solely committed to what the organisation stands for. It might be easy to say that if career advancement 0551269: MAIRPM Dissertation 41
Chapter 4 opportunities were not provided employees would not feel obligated but in Osabas case, i.e. for a small not-for-profit organisation other than development opportunities resulting in employee commitment, clients requiring support become a reason for employee commitment. Thus, it can be said that though when opportunities are provided to employees, they feel committed but most of them consider the opportunities as an important tool that aids them to help the community. With the help of the research findings it would not be wrong to say that employees in a not-for-profit organisation are not solely committed to the cause of the organisation but there does exist other basis of commitment in the organisation. In this case it was evident that there were employees showing different bases of commitment but to a varying degree. While some new employees were found to have calculative commitment, the senior most members had a strong emotional bond with the organisation displaying affective commitment. However, normative commitment or a sense of moral obligation was the most common basis of commitment within the employees at Osaba.
4.2 Effects of Organisational Transition on Employee Commitment

The primary focus of this research is to find out what effects the recent organisational transition has had on employee commitment. This includes employees presently working with the organisation, including the new employees, employees who have been in Osaba through the transition and employees who were employed in Osaba before or in the beginning of the transition. The two issues to be concerned about are what impact organisational transition has had on employees in the organisation and how they have responded to transition itself together with the impact of their ongoing 0551269: MAIRPM Dissertation 42
Chapter 4 relationship with the organisation. (Fedor et al, 2006) In response to the question, what impact has the recent transition from a womens centre to a family centre had on them and their behaviour at work, the people who have been employed in the organisation before the transition began and are still with the organisation spoke very elaborately about it. Some comments received are shown below: The transition has made me more focused now; it has not changed my work behaviour but has had more impact on my work ethic. The transition makes a difference in the running of the organisation but my commitment is stronger now. (Centre Manager) It has probably increased my hours of work because Ive had to do additional work but just so that we get the service right as a family centre because it has not been an easy transition. (Lawyer) The transition has not affected my commitment to the organisation; if possible it has made me more committed to the organisation as the new management is a thousand times better than the old one, as are the new employees in the organisation-very friendly. (Finance Assistant) This transition is a very important move and it has made me more committed to stay on as now I have a full-package and not half help that I am giving to women and children when I help them. (Community Development Volunteer Coordinator) This demonstrates how employees who have been with the organisation from the onset of transition want to see the whole transition out. (Centre Manager) The transition has had a positive impact on the commitment of Osabas old employees making them more committed to get the organisation establish its position as a 0551269: MAIRPM Dissertation 43
Chapter 4 Family centre. The Administrative Assistant adds, I want the organisation to settle down as now there are a lot of ups and downs but I am determined to work hard and get the organisation through this. As mentioned earlier Osaba is undergoing transition from a womens to a family centre and men are continuously being involved in organisational activities. For an organisation that has always been for women and run by women, this signifies a major shift in direction. Employees might potentially feel threatened by this change, making the role of management extremely crucial in overseeing the smooth transition of the organisation without affecting employee commitment. Like one employee said in her interview: It should have been kept a womens centre as mens issues can be dealt with by any service across Coventry (Project Worker Safe House), This could either mean that the management has not been able to communicate the need for change throughout the organisation or the employees might not have understood the need for transition affecting the commitment of some of the employees. Together with the old employees, new employees who have been added to the team are working rapidly towards the building of the new Refuge for Osaba which is a major step in organisational expansion and transition showing commitment to accomplish this change. In the words of one employee, there is no stopping us now! (Support Services Coordinator DVA) Another question that was asked the employees was, how much control and authority do they feel they have over their job, do they feel there is a difference between the present situation as compared with how it used to be before the transition and if that has had an impact on their commitment. Employees commented that: 0551269: MAIRPM Dissertation 44
Chapter 4 Earlier I was not given as much freedom and flexibility as Im given now. My commitment has grown. (Deputy Centre Manager) I dont have to knock the managers door all the time now to ask if I can do this and that. The old management was rigid the new one is more open and understanding. (Nursery Assistant) The transition has resulted in change in management which is more flexible and understanding towards employee issues and realize that for the smooth functioning of any organisation its employees need to be satisfied and contented which results in organisational commitment. When employees are committed they take initiative and interest in organisational transition making it a much smoother process. It was also asked the employees if opportunities for advancement in their career development process are given to them and has the transition had an impact opportunities provided. They were also asked what impact has this had on their commitment to the organisation. Most employees said that Osaba has always been providing opportunities for career development including trainings, seminars, workshops, counseling sessions, management feedback, support in continuous learning, assistance for personal development, etc. and there has not been much change in that. However, the employees at administrative positions in the organisation added: In the past one month I have been on two training sessions. I feel like an important part of the organisation now. (IT Assistant) With other changes in it organisation, providing training to all employees in the organisation alike has resulted in making the transition less of a burden on the 0551269: MAIRPM Dissertation 45
Chapter 4 organisations employees. Providing development opportunities to employees results in making them more committed to the organisation because as mentioned earlier, training and development opportunities lead to the employees showing increased commitment (normative). Hence, any step taken towards employee development to support transition will be accepted by all employees in the same way as they feel a sense of belongingness to the organisation and feel responsible to get the organisation through the transition. The only negative impact of transition was highlighted in case of Osabas former employees as when they realised that the transition will lead to their redundancy their level of commitment to the organisation declined as they did not see themselves in the future of the organisation. However, it is obvious that there will be a decline in the level of commitment when an employee is made redundant. Through this section, it can be clearly seen that in Osaba overall the transition has had a positive impact on the level of commitment of the employees. Through efforts like providing more flexibility and training to its employees has created an environment so as to make the transition easier on its employees. This also confirms the literature findings in Section 2.4 which highlighted the role of employee commitment during transition as central to the change process.
4.3 Deviance, its Forms and Causes

In order to answer the research question on deviance (see Chapter 1) it is important to identify whether deviance exists in this organisation. As described by the literature in this area, when an employee feels less committed to one or many aspects about his/her job he/she may engage in deviant activities. The organisation has been 0551269: MAIRPM Dissertation 46
Chapter 4 undergoing significant transition over the past year; this has led to a major change in the direction, change in management, expansion, redundancies, etc. This has resulted in anxiety among employees, further resulting in employees engaging in deviant activities. The following section aims to investigate this further. Instances provided by employees revealed that deviance does exist in the organisation, but there are two forms of deviance. Some employees engage in activities that are unacceptable according to the Employee Handbook while other engage in mildly deviant activities. To analyze this question more deeply, the entire organisation was divided into groups and the activities of the group were studied individually. According to Osabas Employee Handbook, employees are not allowed to use the telephone, the fax, the franking machine, the copier and internet for personal purposes. However according to the Centre Manager, if its within reason its fine, till the time its not used as staffs personal machine, we have that flexibility at Osaba. This might be due to the fact that it could help the employees, particularly in high stress and repetitive jobs to perform better. As, if employees are not given any form of freedom or flexibility, their commitment might decline leading to their engaging in more severe forms of deviance or ultimately leaving their job. Hence, this also shows that deviance and commitment might exist together when deviance is mild and is beneficial to the employee performance in the workplace. Most employees realize that because they are a part of a not-for-profit organisation that runs on grants and funds, they should not be using any of the facilities for their personal use because this would lead to misusing community funds. Some comments 0551269: MAIRPM Dissertation 47
Chapter 4 from employees were, I would not use the phone or any service provided in the organisation for my personal use because I know it would be unfair to the people who really need it. (Deputy Centre Manager) Despite all the comments from the employees working in the organisation suggested an ideal situation where employees were allowed to make use of the facilities within a reasonable limit and the employees were considerate enough to take care that none of the resources are used out of reason; the former employee of the organisation had different comments on this: I dont know about the other facilities but the Manager uses the phone to talk to her boyfriend all day long. (Former Administrative/ Finance Assistant) Now that I dont work with the organisation I can tell you this, people at Osaba used the franking machine for their personal mail every time. (Former Part-Time Cleaner) To get an unbiased and honest opinion about deviance in the organisation, former employees were approached for interviews. However, the comments of these employees may have been unfair due to the fact that they were made redundant. Employees presently working in Osaba were probed to give instances where they might have seen deviance in the organisation but the employees said that they had not seen any. They also said that if they do find a need to use the phone, copier for a personal purpose they take the Managers permission for it. The new employees of the organisation who are working towards building the new Refuge for the organisation do not have any free time to spare in engaging in deviant activities. However, the administrative staff, together with cleaners and work 0551269: MAIRPM Dissertation 48
Chapter 4 placement students do find wasting a lot of their time in selling things on Ebay and posting items sold. Some of them say: The mornings are always busy but by the time its afternoon, I find myself on msn chatting with long lost friends. (Administrative Assistant) Though it is allowed to use the phone, photocopier, etc. for personal purposes within reason by the Manager, these activities according to the researcher are deviant to an Organisation like Osaba that runs solely on grants and funds. However, it seems that the Manager does realize the significance of providing flexibility to its employees as a part of easing employees through a smooth organisational transition. For employees to cope with change it is necessary to give them freedom, in the absence of which employees might engage in increased number of deviant activities without the knowledge of the management. Most employees at lower levels do realize that an office environment is not a place to engage in deviant activities but at the same time when they find themselves sitting idle they engage in the above mentioned activities. The employees at higher positions in the organisation find themselves more occupied in their jobs as compared to staff in lower positions in the organisation. Hence, they engage in lesser deviant activities. Another factor that has a significant impact on the level of deviance is the flexibility in working hours. Employees do realize that if they had a client just fifteen minutes before they were supposed to retire for the day it would not be fair on the client to get a fifteen minute service; hence flexibility is provided in a way that employees can come in late if they have stayed in longer the
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Chapter 4 previous day. This has resulted in a lot of employees skipping lunch, working long hours, etc, without any rewards or extra overtime pay. The research study was conducted at the time of organisational transition, but employees experience a lot of work load otherwise as well, levels of deviance were confined to minimum in case of higher levels employees barring a few exceptions. The administrative staff continue to be stressed with excessive work load during mornings but they show obvious acts of resistance when they have time to spare. This could be owing to the fact that employees at lower positions are inexperience and young and hence do not care a lot about the negative impact of their deviant activities on the smooth functioning of the organisation.
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Chapter 5
Chapter 5- Conclusion
In this chapter, the main arguments and themes from the research study is summarized together in order to discuss and conclude the findings of the research. This research has tried to investigate the bases of commitment in a small not for profit sector organisation. It has also aimed to understand the effect the transition has had on the commitment of the employees in the organisation. Finally, this research has tried to uncover the forms and causes of deviance within the organisation. The research has demonstrated that though the literature on commitment in the notfor-profit sector mainly gives importance to commitment due to the cause the organisation works for, other bases of commitment do exist in the organisation. It was seen that at Osaba, employees had different bases of commitment and these bases differed mainly according to the length of association with the organisation. It was seen that all three types of commitment (affective, calculative and normative) existed in the organisation though in varying degrees. The newer employees seemed to have calculative commitment whereby they wanted to stay in the organisation to gain valuable experience. Those employees who had been associated with Osaba for a number of years (mainly the Board members) displayed deep emotional attachment with the organisation and its values. This was unsurprising considering that these employees founded this organisation and had been associated with it ever since it was established 24 years ago. However, most employees tended to display normative commitment, which meant that more than anything else they felt a sense moral
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Chapter 5 obligation towards their clients or due to career development opportunities provided by the organisations. The second part of the research looked at the important aspect of transition in the organisation and its effect on commitment within the organisation. It could be seen that some present employees and those employees made redundant by the transition process, understandably, were the ones that reacted negatively to the entire transition process. The few employees that did not like this transition phase, was due to their fear of the extent of changes that might occur due to the transition. However, most employees seemed to have a positive attitude towards commitment and were found to be enthusiastic about the transition and more committed towards the organisation. The focus of Osaba on giving time, flexibility and training to its employees seemed to be the key to Osabas successful transition so far. Although, it must be noted that some of the employees said that the transition was more difficult than what they estimated it to be. For example, some employees seemed to be very excited about the expansion of the organisation showing high levels of commitment but as the limited finances of the organisation deferred the organisational expansion, their commitments levels waned. The third aspect of this research was to look into the various forms and causes of deviance in the organisation. Instances provided by employees revealed that deviance does exist in the organisation and there were two forms of deviance: activities that are unacceptable according to the rules in the Employee Handbook and milder forms of deviance. The different forms of deviance emerged due to the transition in the organisation and the shift from a strict management to a particularly lenient one. 0551269: MAIRPM Dissertation 52
Chapter 5 The new management tried to provide sufficient flexibility to the employees from the policies and procedures of the Employee Handbook so as to make the process of transition easier and ensure smooth functioning across departments. Also, it was found that the management realised that in jobs with high stress, excessive workload, high pressure to deal with new changes and limited rewards and benefits, especially in a not-for-profit organisation like Osaba, employees have to be given some amount of flexibility and freedom in the form of long breaks, etc. so as to enhance employee performance in the long-run as this would help in maintaining employee commitment to the organisation. This would reduce chances of employees engaging in serious forms of deviance. Overall it can be said that this research study demonstrated that while commitment to cause could be a basis of commitment that not-for-profit sector employees engage in, it is not the only one. Employees displayed other bases of commitment like affective, normative and even calculative commitment. Additionally, it could be seen that making employee central (by involving them, training them) in the transition process, Osaba has been conducting a fairly smooth transition into becoming a Family Centre. Also, commitment towards the organisation did not prevent the employees from engaging in deviance, ranging from mild to severe. It could also be argued that some of these deviant activities or actions could be to benefit the organisation in the long run.
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Appendix
Appendix
Part 1: Organisational Information 1. What is your position in the organization? 2. Can you briefly explain/ describe the work that you do in the organization? 3. How long have you been working for Osaba Family Centre? 4. Were you given promoted within Osaba Family Centre to this position? 5. On an average, how many hours do you work in a week? 6. What are your contracted hours? * Probe more if they work more than contracted hours: Would you say working long hours is typical of working at Osaba Family Centre? 7. Do you have flexible working hours? Part 2: Information about Job 1. What do you like/enjoy most about your job? 2. What do you dislike about your job? 3. What motivates you to stay in it? 4. If you could change anything about your job, what would it be? 5. What aspirations do you have for your future career? 6. Do you intend to stay with Osaba Family Centre? For how long? 7. How would you describe Osaba Family Centre as an employer? Part 3: Working day at Osaba Family Centre 1. Is there a Trade Union recognized by Osaba Family Centre? If not, do you ever feel the need of having a Trade Union for Osaba Family Centre?
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Appendix 2. Do you think there is a role for a Union to play in Osaba Family Centre or in not-for-profit organisations in general? 3. What aspects about the organization do you think could be changed with the recognition of a Trade Union? 4. How would you describe your own working day at Osaba Family Centre? * Clarification if needed: Would you say there is a high level of management control over the work environment or are you fairly autonomous / independent? How do you feel about that? 5. Are your breaks flexible? How about start and finish times? *Probe if they dont give enough info: What would happen if you left early/ or came in late? 6. In some organisations, its ok to make personal phone calls and use the internet for personal reasons. How do you see that kind of thing in Osaba? Do people do that in Osaba Family Centre? Is it acceptable? *Probe if not acceptable: What do you think would be the consequences if a manager/ colleagues found out? 7. Is there an internet use policy in the Osaba Family Centre? Are you aware of/ clear about its contents? Is it strictly enforced? Is it needed? 8. Do you feel more positive towards one specific aspect of job? *Clarification if needed: For example, your team and close colleagues, your work, the wider organisation, its cause? *If feel they havent got right idea of question: Do you feel committed? Are there times when you feel less committed? What causes that? How do you tend to react? *If they dont provide an example: Could you give me an example? 0551269: MAIRPM Dissertation 66
Appendix Part 4: Individual Focus 1. Did you make a conscious decision to work in the not-for-profit sector? If so, Why? 2. Did you choose to work for Osaba Family Centre (in particular)? If so, Why? *If they have worked in a commercial background previously: Have you noticed any differences between working here and your previous employer? How do you feel about the work Osaba Family Centre does? *If not answered previously: Is that what motivated you to work here? How do see your work fitting into the wider work of Osaba Family Centre? Is that important to you? *If a positive answer, and not already answered: Does that make you feel more committed? To your work? To Osaba Family Centre? Does this field of work interest you? Do you plan a career change later? 3. Do you believe your role is important and it contributes to the success of the organisation? 4. Do you realize the significance of your contribution/ efforts to the organisation? Does this have any impact on your level of commitment to the organisation? Or the reason why you contribute / work hard is due to the fact that you are committed to the cause of the organisation / the work the organisation does? Part 5: About Organisational Commitment 8. What effects has the recent transition from a Womens Centre to a Family Centre had on you? * Clarification if needed: Has it led you to feel differently about the Organisation? Does this have an impact on your level of 0551269: MAIRPM Dissertation 67
Appendix commitment? Explain. Does it affect your decision to stay in or leave the Organisation? 9. Has it changed your behaviour at work? * If yes in what ways has your behaviour changed? 10. How much control do you think you have over your job as compared to other jobs in your area? How much authority do you have over the decisions made in your Organisation? What is the difference between the present situation as compared to how it was before? (transition) Explain. *How does this difference make you feel about your Organisation? Does this have an impact on your level of commitment? (more or less) Explain. Does it affect your decision to stay in or leave the Organisation? Does this make you feel you ought to/ have to stay with the organisation? (Owe them something more or less) 11. Are you trusted to make decisions yourself? Over what kinds of things? Would you like more freedom or more direction over your work? Why or Why not? 12. Are opportunities provided by your organisation to progress in your career development process? Elaborate. (training, development, counseling,
feedback, support in continuous learning, self assessment, assistance in personal development) How according to you these opportunities will develop your career? (lateral movies, promotions, building experience in the sector) Who are these opportunities provided by? What is the difference between the present situation as compared to how it was before? (transition) 0551269: MAIRPM Dissertation 68
Appendix 13. How did you feel the last time they provided opportunities for advancement? (supported obliged, in control, have to stay) Have the opportunities provided by the organisation changed the way you feel about the organisation? Does this have an impact on your level of commitment? Explain. Does it affect your decision to stay in or leave the Organisation? Does this make you feel you ought to/ have to stay with the organisation? (owe them something more or less)
Part 6: Some Short Questions (you can elaborate if you wish to) 1. Do you feel emotionally attached to the Organisation? Affective Commitment 2. Would you be happy to spend the rest of your career with Osaba? 3. Do you feel as if this organisations problems are your own? 4. Do you feel like a part of the family at Osaba?
5. Does Osaba have a personal meaning for you? 6. Do you feel a sense of belongingness to your Organisation? 7. Do you feel any obligation to remain with your employer? 8. If it were to your advantage, would you leave the organisation? 9. Would you feel guilty if you had to leave your organisation? 10. Do you feel your organisation deserves your loyalty? 11. Do you feel a sense of obligation to the people in the organisation? (due to which you might want to stay in the organisation) 14. Do you think you owe anything to your organisation? 15. If you really wanted to, would you leave your organisation? 0551269: MAIRPM Dissertation 69
Appendix 16. Would there be any changes in your life if you decided to leave your organisation? 17. Why exactly do you think you still work in your organisation? Is it a matter of necessity or desire? 18. Do you have other options in case you decide to leave the organisation? 19. Do you receive any awards on serving clients better? or do you serve clients better because of the rewards or benefits provided to you on serving them better? Part 7: Concluding the Interview 1. Clarifying main points and understanding anything else you think is important that I havent mentioned? 2. Say thank you! Remind them its confidential. Ask whether it would be ok to contact them if you need to ask anything else. Additional: Probes as needed to clarify points made by interviewees and to explore ideas they raised. Usually, why and how type questions, as well as requests for examples. I found that they brought up many relevant issues themselves and tended to give examples, so taking these subjects further was unproblematic.
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A Case Study of Transition in a Notfor-Profit Organisation and its Effects on Organisational Commitment.

MA Industrial Relations and Personnel Management Warwick Business School

2nd October 2006

0551269: MAIRPM Dissertation

0551269: MAIRPM Dissertation

0551269: MAIRPM Dissertation

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1.2 Organisational Context

1.3 Research Questions

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Chapter 2- Literature Review

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2.3 Bases of Commitment

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2.4 Transition and Commitment in Organisations

2.5 Deviance in Organisations

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Chapter 3 - Research Methodology

3.2 Research design Case Study

3.3 Research Methods

(P.T.O) 0551269: MAIRPM Dissertation 29

(Source: Adapted from Osaba Employee Handbook, 2006)

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3.4 Limitations of the Research

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Chapter 4 - Research Findings

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4.2 Effects of Organisational Transition on Employee Commitment

4.3 Deviance, its Forms and Causes

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organizational from strategy commitment: Linking officers commitment to

0551269: MAIRPM Dissertation

0551269: MAIRPM Dissertation

0551269: MAIRPM Dissertation

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0551269: MAIRPM Dissertation

0551269: MAIRPM Dissertation

0551269: MAIRPM Dissertation

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