Researchmethods Finalreport December2021

Remote Employee Training and Job Satisfaction 1
Job Training for the Remote Workforce to Counter Work Intensification and
Promote Job Satisfaction
Jessie Lynn Gravatt
School of Education, Colorado State University
EDRM 600: Introduction to Research Methods
Dr. Kelly McKenna
December 12, 2021

Abstract
This quantitative study critically analyzes one significant aspect of working remotely, training
opportunities, which affects job satisfaction. Training for remote employees must be tailored differently
than for traditional, in-person working situations to positively impact job satisfaction and counteract
work intensification. The problem of work intensification happens when employees are expected to do
more in less time, which can occur with remote employees, even though this workforce generally has
higher job satisfaction. Looking at a specific group of remote knowledge workers, this study asks
whether two kinds of training opportunities—formal (paid and mandatory) and informal (unpaid and
optional)—helped to counter work intensification and promote job satisfaction. This study further
addresses a second question about the impact of training on employees who are parents of minor
children living at home by analyzing whether training opportunities affect them differently. While study
participants placed more value on formal training’s positive impact on lessening the intensity of their
work, they also value the combination of formal and informal training opportunities. Further research is
required to determine how many employees who are parents are reporting their working time and
therefore the intensity of their work accurately.

Table of Contents
Table of Contents...........................................................................................................................3
List of Tables...................................................................................................................................7
The Impact of Training on Work Intensification and Job Satisfaction.............................................8
Literature Review.........................................................................................................................10
Job Satisfaction.........................................................................................................................11
Workplace Training...................................................................................................................11
Remote Work............................................................................................................................12
Work Intensification.................................................................................................................13
Purpose Statement and Research Questions............................................................................14
Research Methods........................................................................................................................15
Quantitative Cross-Sectional Survey Research.........................................................................15
Study Population......................................................................................................................15
Permission to Conduct Study....................................................................................................16
Study Participation...................................................................................................................17
Data Collection Process............................................................................................................17
Data Analysis Method...............................................................................................................18
Results..........................................................................................................................................19
Demographics...........................................................................................................................20
Work Intensification Measures.................................................................................................21

Training Opportunities..............................................................................................................22
Parents and Non-Parents of Minors.........................................................................................26
Discussion.....................................................................................................................................27
Limitations....................................................................................................................................30
Future Research............................................................................................................................31
Conclusion....................................................................................................................................31
References....................................................................................................................................32
Appendix A...................................................................................................................................35
Email Correspondence to Gain Permission to Conduct Study......................................................35
Appendix B....................................................................................................................................36
Email Correspondence to Inform Training Manager of Study.......................................................36
Appendix C....................................................................................................................................37
Email Request for Participation....................................................................................................37
Appendix D...................................................................................................................................38
Informed Consent Language.........................................................................................................38
Appendix E....................................................................................................................................39
Data Collection Tool: Web-Based Survey......................................................................................39
Appendix F....................................................................................................................................42
Codebook for Survey Demographic Questions 1-6.......................................................................42

List of Tables
Table 1: Parents of Minors vs. Non-Parents.................................................................................19
Table 2: Logging of Non-Billable Time in Two Months Preceding Survey.....................................20
Table 3: Satisfaction with Informal and Formal Training by Role..................................................21
Table 4: Formal Training Attendance............................................................................................22
Table 5: Informal Training Attendance.........................................................................................22
Table 6: Training Impact on Job Satisfaction by Role....................................................................24
Table 7: Training Impact on Fathers’ and Mothers’ Abilities to Meet Productivity Guidelines.....25
The Impact of Training on Work Intensification and Job Satisfaction
Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, working remotely became a necessity for many people,
who were then exposed to the advantages and disadvantages of remote work. About 35% of Americans
(over 48 million people) who were already employed were working from home in May of 2020. In 2019,
that number was 6%, up from 4% in 2009. (Coate, 2021) This significant increase has put a spotlight on
the impact of and on remote workers, including how satisfied these employees are.
Most remote employees are satisfied with working remotely, and over half of those who
switched to working from home during the pandemic would like to stay remote workers (Parker et al.,
2020). However, not much research has been done on remote positions’ distinctive challenges such as
whether job training can decrease the intensity of work. The phenomenon of work intensification has
been defined in the online Oxford Reference as follows:
The process of raising the expected workload of an employee by increasing the amount of tasks
to be undertaken or shortening the time allowed to complete those tasks. Work intensification
can arise because businesses are under pressure to increase their return on assets or to balance
an increase in labour costs. (Oxford University Press, n.d., main paragraph)
This study looks at a related aspect of work intensification, which is the use of productivity
guidelines to dictate how much work is done in a set time. An example of a productivity guideline would
be a requirement to write two hundred fifty words of a first draft in one hour, even when the task
requires more than an hour. These guidelines may be required to ensure the profitability of a project
because of a previously contracted payment amount between the company requiring the employee to
follow productivity guidelines and the client of that company, which is in line with the Oxford Reference
definition of work intensification.

Because one significant aspect of working remotely that affects job satisfaction is employee
training, training opportunities for remote employees must be tailored differently than they are for
traditional, in-person working situations to positively impact job satisfaction and counteract work
intensification.
Job satisfaction plays an important role in the success of a company or organization. Satisfied
employees feel more loyalty to their employers (Shan et al., 2014). Satisfaction with training
opportunities and the ability to progress through promotion can be more important to employees than
their workloads or how much they are paid, according to a study of British nurses (Shields & Ward,
2001).
The term “job training satisfaction” was defined by Schmidt (2007) as “the extent to which
people like or dislike the set of planned activities organized to develop the knowledge, skills, and
attitudes required to effectively perform a given task or job” (p. 687). In the study, Schmidt identified
three variables that significantly impacted job training satisfaction: “time spent in training, training
methodology, and content” (p. 493).
When considering remote employees’ training opportunities, training methodology stands out
as the variable that is most likely to be different from training opportunities for office workers. Remote
employees need training options such as virtual instructor-led training (VILT) and eLearning. The success
of the latter “depends on how organizations support and train employees to use learning technologies”
(Ellis & Kuznia, 2014, p. 3).
For the remote workforce, job training satisfaction remains a vital part of overall job satisfaction,
but how the former contributes to the latter is not well understood. Companies focus on cost-
effectiveness of training solutions for both virtual workers and office workers, but a main challenge of
implementing eLearning is employees’ resistance to it. A study published in 2014 showed that most
employees experienced significant difficulty with eLearning, and only 38.1% of the surveyed employees
were more satisfied with their jobs because of the use of eLearning (Ellis & Kuznia).
Remote employees experience a problem known as work intensification that may or may not be
contributing to remote employees’ resistance to training. When work is intensified, remote workers are
expected to meet productivity guidelines that may require them to do more in less time than their office
worker counterparts (Felstead & Henseke, 2017). Both employees and employers can benefit from a
study of the intersection of job training and job satisfaction among a remote workforce, especially with a
focus on work intensification. While work intensification could be ameliorated by training that improves
an employee’s ability to counter intensification, remote employees may feel resistant to training that
does not decrease the intensification of their work.
Certain subgroups of remote employees who experience barriers as they attempt to balance
work and life may further benefit when training counteracts work intensification because they
experience one less obstacle to career progression. Regardless of the obstacles faced by the different
types of remote workers, when employees are satisfied with their jobs, the companies employing them
experience a greater return on their investment in training through reduced attrition. In other words,
companies that employ remote employees could leverage a newfound understanding of the role work
intensification plays in the overall job training satisfaction of their remote workforce to increase their
profitability by keeping employees satisfied.
Literature Review
This study looks at the impact of training opportunities for remote employees on those
employees’ sense of job satisfaction, specifically looking at whether or not the training can counteract
work intensification in the form of productivity guidelines. For the purposes of this study, I focused on
four areas (as well as where two or more areas overlap) in the existing literature: job satisfaction,
workplace training, remote work, and work intensification.
Job Satisfaction
The first of these, job satisfaction, has been widely researched for decades. Going as far back as
the 1950s, Herzberg theorized that employers could increase job satisfaction by influencing two factors:
decreasing the hygiene factor and increasing the motivating factor; this was the Two-Factor Theory
(1959).
Contemporary theory has greatly expanded on these two factors. The slightly more recent Job
Satisfaction Survey (JSS) has been used since the mid-1980s and assesses employees’ satisfaction in nine
areas, including “Pay, Promotion, Supervision, Fringe Benefits, Contingent Rewards (performance based
rewards), Operating Procedures (required rules and procedures), Coworkers, Nature of Work, and
Communication” (Spector, 2021, Job Satisfaction Survey section).
Workplace Training
Spector’s JSS does not cover job training, so Schmidt adapted Spector’s instrument to study
what he termed job training satisfaction. His research found that employees’ attitudes toward
workplace training are key factors in each employee’s overall satisfaction with both their role and their
place of employment. Schmidt also noted that not much research had been done at that point on job
training satisfaction. (2007, p. 484) One of the few studies Schmidt cited that mentioned workplace
training surveyed nurses employed by the British National Health Service, which was experiencing a
shortage of nurses who were qualified. In that study, the nurses who were dissatisfied with work were
65% more likely to quit but viewed job training as a positive influence on job satisfaction (Shields &
Ward, 2001).
Since Schmidt’s study of job training satisfaction, more research has been conducted on
workplace training. For example, a study in China included training as a critical factor in its assessment
of job satisfaction of information technology professionals (Shan et al., 2014). Likewise, studies of the
hotel industry in the United States (Costen & Salazar, 2011) and telecom employees in the Middle East
show that training positively impacts job satisfaction, decreasing attrition.
Remote Work
As remote options for learning have become more viable and moved away from using an
electronic source in place of a teacher, researchers have begun studying eLearning as a mode of delivery
for workplace training (Nyvall, 2014). Ellis and Kuznia (2014) used a broad definition of eLearning to
include any kind of learning with an electronic component. While 47.1% of the employees studied
reported higher productivity after using eLearning, only 38% of the study group were satisfied with
eLearning.
The job satisfaction of employees who work remotely or have flexible working arrangements
that include remote work has also been studied. Wheatley (2016) found that the latter helped male
employees in Great Britain, but flexible working arrangements could trap women into reduced hours.
However, Wheatley also found that both men and women benefitted from flex work in that both groups
had increased satisfaction with work and leisure time through greater control over when and where
they worked.
Sullivan (2016) tested the idea that remote work options could provide greater opportunities to
break up the gendered division of labor and found that flexibility can exacerbate overwork. However,
Breaugh and Farabee (2016) found that reducing the conflict between work and non-work
responsibilities via remote work or flex work could create work environments that were ethical,
benefitting both employers and employees.

Remote work on its own has also been studied more in recent years. A team of researchers
studied the increase in remote work in the United States during the COVID-19 pandemic and its
intersection with gender and parenting. They were surprised to find that employed parents experienced
gendering of tasks, where employed mothers more than employed fathers took on more of the
responsibilities left open by the closing of schools and daycares. (Dunatchik et al., 2021)
Work Intensification
Defined as “the process of raising the expected workload of an employee by increasing the
amount of tasks to be undertaken or shortening the time allowed to complete those tasks” (Oxford
University Press, n.d.), work intensification affects both in-office and remote employees. It has been
studied in the former setting, including during a study of nurses in Canada (Zeytinoglu et al., 2007), and
linked to job satisfaction. Specifically, as work is intensified, job satisfaction tends to go down.
One form of work intensification is role overload or having more work than can be completed in
the allotted time. Boxall and Macky (2014) studied this in New Zealand through a national population
survey and found that it contributed to fatigue, stress, and poor work-life balance. However, when
employees had more say in their work and working conditions (as in a high-involvement work system),
they felt more job satisfaction. Unfortunately, while occupation did not predict a negative outcome in
this study, women were found to have more work-life imbalance.
A key study of work intensification among remote employees separated job satisfaction among
remote employees and non-remote employees in the United Kingdom, finding that remote workers,
while enjoying greater job satisfaction, also expended more effort in their work (Felstead & Henseke,
2017). While Felstead and Henseke’s research covered job satisfaction, remote work, and work
intensification, there is a dearth of research available that also covers their intersection with job training
for only the remote workforce.

Purpose Statement and Research Questions
The purpose of this study is to understand job satisfaction quantitatively by relating the impact
of training on work intensification among remote employees at a virtual company, ###### (company
name redacted). To that end, the study will pose this overarching research question: How do training
opportunities affect work intensification for remote employees at ###### (company name redacted)?
The sub-questions for this study are as follows:
 What is the relationship between paid training opportunities and work intensification?
 What is the relationship between unpaid training opportunities and work
intensification?
 How do these relationships impact job satisfaction?
 How do remote employees who are not parents compare to those who are in terms of
these relationships?
 How do remote employees who are mothers compare to those who are fathers in terms
of these relationships?
Based on a review of the evolution of job satisfaction that has grown to include workplace
training, remote work, and work intensification among remote workers as outlined in the literature
review, I hypothesize that workplace training may have a positive, mitigating effect on work
intensification among remote employees. I further predict that the effect will be lessened among
parents and even more so among mothers.

Research Methods
Quantitative Cross-Sectional Survey Research
According to Cresswell and Guetterman (2019), cross-sectional survey design “has the
advantage of measuring current attitudes or practices” because researchers are gathering data at the
time of the survey only (p. 386). The use of quantitative cross-sectional research design for this study
allowed for a comparison of attitudes and opinions regarding workplace training opportunities as they
intersected at the time of the study with current policies on productivity guidelines.
When studying the potential of job training opportunities for remote employees to counteract
work intensification and impact job satisfaction, employees’ feeling regarding two kinds of training
opportunities, paid and unpaid, were compared. This comparison and other variables were gathered
with a web-based survey and data collection site (i.e., SurveyMonkey).
Because the population studied was a remote workforce, using an online survey to collect data
was necessary. The use of a survey also fulfilled the need for a research study for EDRM 600 while
respecting the time constraints of the course. As Cresswell and Guetterman (2019) further noted, this
design “provides information in a short amount of time, such as the time required for administering the
survey and collecting the information” (p. 386).
Study Population
The specific population studied was the workforce of ###### (company name redacted), a small
company based in ####, ## (redacted). All employees work remotely and are required to have a home
office setup that complements their work responsibilities. Since 2018, the company has maintained an
office at a coworking space in #### (redacted), so employees close to that office or visiting that area
have the option of working there. This hybrid model does not have significant bearing on the remote
aspect of employment at the time of the study because of social distancing; most employees cannot
take advantage of the coworking space, and those who can seldom use the space.
As the researcher conducting this study, I chose ###### (company name redacted throughout
report) as my study’s population for two reasons. First, ###### employees are part of, though not
perfectly representative of, the remote employee workforce at large. This workforce has also been
described as work-from-home (or WFH) or virtual.
Second, I have access to this group of employees because I am also #####. (However, I
abstained from participating in the survey.) According to Cresswell and Guetterman (2019), because it is
not always possible to collect a sample that is a true representation of the population being studied, the
researcher can select “individuals because they are available and convenient and represent some
characteristic the investigator seeks to study” (p. 143). This is called nonprobability sampling.
Because I chose this group of remote employees based on their availability and potential
willingness to participate, this study used the nonprobability sampling approach of convenience
sampling. This kind of nonprobability sampling can provide useful data despite its possible lack of exact
representation (Cresswell & Guetterman, 2019). However, at the time of the survey, ###### employed
only thirty-one people, a tiny fraction of the 48 million Americans working remotely in 2020 (Coate,
2021), the year before this study. This potentially decreases the broader representation of any data
collected.
Permission to Conduct Study
I gained permission to conduct the study from the president of the company. Our
correspondence is shown in Appendix A. After receiving permission via email from her, we met, and I
shared the survey questions with her. In that meeting, she asked that I apprise the training manager for
the company, so he would know he had the opportunity to use any data collected to glean insights into
training opportunities at ######. While I did not require permission from him, his response was positive
as shown in screen captures of our email correspondence in Appendix B.
Study Participation
All thirty-one employees of ###### in all three divisions were asked to participate in this study,
though not all thirty-one were expected to contribute as the study was optional.
Three groups of employees that work across all three divisions were identified: managers,
project leaders, and team members. Employees live throughout the United States, from Rhode Island to
Washington State. All employees are required to be able to work remotely, including interacting with
clients virtually, which makes them part of the country’s remote workforce.
I was verbally instructed by the company president to send an email from my business account
to the entire company with a link to the web-based survey that asked team members to participate in
the study. As shown in Appendix C, the email also previewed some of the language in the informed
consent, including asking that participants be sure to read the informed consent agreement provided at
the beginning of the survey. The language for the informed consent agreement, which appeared at the
beginning of the survey, is provided in Appendix D.
Data Collection Process
The web-based survey was sent only to employees of ######, all of whom have an above-
average grasp of the English language. The survey was only taken once by each participant, and all
surveys were completed within the same timeframe. After navigating to the survey with the emailed
link, employees had to select a button labelled “OK” after the informed consent page to show they
consented to participate. When they did, they were taken to the first of twenty-two questions that
comprised the survey. All questions and possible responses are provided in Appendix E.
Questions one through seven gathered demographic information: gender, primary work role,
length of employment, hours worked per work, parenting status, whether any minor child has special
needs or mental health issues, and how they divide their time among projects for clients in the
company’s three divisions and non-project time. Questions eight through twenty-one quantitatively
assessed their interaction with paid and unpaid training opportunities, how well they follow productivity
guidelines, and how they felt about the impact of training on their ability to follow productivity
guidelines. The final question allowed participants to share their identity and contact information; as
with all survey questions, it was optional.
It took about six minutes for each participant to complete and submit the survey. Because paid
training opportunities are called formal training and unpaid training opportunities are informal, that
language was used throughout the survey. Furthermore, possible answers regarding training
opportunities reflected their frequency in practice. Paid training is offered at ###### less often than
unpaid training. The latter is offered almost weekly (i.e., every Friday except one week per month). One
Friday per month is typically reserved for company-wide paid training, and role-based training (e.g., how
to create a design doc for instructional designers) is offered as needed.
Data Analysis Method
Descriptive statistics have been used to analyze data. The collected data have been saved in
SurveyMonkey, which also provides tools for analyzing trends and filtering responses. The answers to
the first six demographic survey questions will be coded to provide groupings (e.g., professional roles,
length of employment, part-time or full-time work status, or outside factors, specifically parenthood).
The codebook is provided in Appendix F. The seventh and final demographic question asks for how
respondents split their working hours in the company’s three divisions. This question has to be
answered numerically by respondents.

Thirteen of the next fourteen questions following the demographic questions were set up to
allow for easy numerical scoring (i.e., single-item scoring) of responses. One question asks for
participants to comment on whether variables not included in the survey impacted employees’ ability to
meet productivity guidelines. Responses to this question will be analyzed to find out if respondents
repeated their answers.
To answer the research questions regarding training opportunities and their impact on job
satisfaction, responses will be analyzed in two main ways. The minimal data collected to answer the
secondary research questions regarding the relationship between parenthood and work intensification
allowed the analysis to extend to those questions.
First, the responses will be filtered by the different demographic information collected. Second,
attitudes and opinions expressed quantitatively in the survey will be compared according to the
demographic groups. These comparisons will be used to determine if participants value paid training,
unpaid training, or both and whether trends are reflective of employees’ demographics.
Results
When examining the results of the survey, I started by answering my research question about
training opportunities’ effect on job satisfaction. I looked at the demographics, work intensification
measures, and training opportunities before turning to my second question about parenthood by
comparing the answers of employees who were parents of minors living at home and the employers
who did not have minor children living at home.
Demographics
The survey was sent by a link in an email to thirty-one recipients, including the researcher. Of
the thirty eligible recipients, eight (27%) were managers. Seventeen people completed the survey, and
of those seventeen, seven held management positions. For the non-managers, three were project
leaders, and the remaining seven were team members. The resulting split was 41% management and
59% non-management, so a higher percentage of managers completed the survey than non-managers.
All respondents had been employed more than six months, and only one had been with the
company less than a year. Most respondents (nine) had been employed by ###### between one and
five years, and seven had been employed more than five years. While most of the respondents (eleven)
reported working more than thirty-one hours per week, qualifying them for company benefits as three-
quarter or full-time employees, five reported working part-time.
Eleven respondents were female, and six were male. None of the respondents reported being
single parents of minor children. Those who were parents reported having a live-in parenting partner,
and the remaining twelve respondents (70.5%) were not parents. All five parents reported having a child
or children at home who had special needs or mental health issues. Table 1 breaks down what roles,
management or non-management (project leaders and team members), were held by parents with
minor children and non-parents of minor children.
Table 1
Parents of Minors vs. Non-Parents
14
12
10
0
Parents Non-Parents
Managers Project Leaders Team Members
Table 1: Parents of Minors vs. Non-Parents

For those respondents in non-management positions (i.e., project managers and team
members), their time was split similarly across the three divisions of ###### for client projects.
Respondents indicated working 41% of the time in Technical Writing, 29% in Sales & Business, and 35%
in Learning Solutions. These respondents also worked 10% of the time outside of client projects
compared to 73% for managers.
Work Intensification Measures
While two respondents indicated that non-billable time (e.g., time outside of an approved
project scope that cannot be billed to the client) did not apply to them in the first six months of
employment, nine respondents indicated they “never or rarely” logged non-billable time. Two
respondents chose “weekly,” and four chose “monthly” during their initial half-year with the company.
For the two months preceding the survey, twelve respondents indicated that they “never or
rarely” logged non-billable project time, an increase of three people or a 33% improvement. No
respondents logged non-billable time daily or weekly, and two logged it monthly. Table 2 visually
represents how employees in each position logged non-billable time.

Table 2
Logging of Non-Billable Time in Two Months
Preceding Survey
14
12
10
0
Not Applicable Never or Rarely Daily Weekly Monthly
Table 2: Logging of Non-Billable Time in Two Months Preceding Survey
Training Opportunities
Overall, respondents indicated being highly satisfied with the content of both formal (paid and
mandatory) and informal (unpaid and optional) training opportunities, rating their satisfaction of each at
89 out of 100. However, as Table 3 shows, the satisfaction seemed to decrease as level of responsibility
rose. Project leaders and managers ranked their satisfaction with informal training slightly lower than
did team members. However, non-managers (project leaders and team members) were highly satisfied
with formal training while managers rated formal training at 81 out of 100.
Table 3
Satisfaction with Informal and Formal Training by Role
Informal Training
Formal Training
70 75 80 85 90 95 100
Team Members Project Leaders Managers
Table 3: Satisfaction with Informal and Formal Training by Role
As mentioned previously, informal training opportunities are more frequent than formal training
opportunities. Informal training is typically held weekly, except for one week each month when a formal
training is held. Between January 1 and the opening of this survey on November 3, 2021, more than
three times as many company-wide informal training sessions (26) were held as formal training sessions
(8). In addition, two role-based, formal training opportunities were offered to select subgroups of team
members and project leaders.
All survey respondents indicated participating in at least one informal training session during
this period as well as at least three formal training session. Tables 4 and 5 break down the attendance
for each kind of training by role.

Table 4
Formal Training Attendance
Team Members
Project Leaders
Managers
0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100%
0 Sessions 1 to 2 3 to 4 5 or More
Table 4: Formal Training Attendance
Table 5
Informal Training Attendance
Team Members
Project Leaders
Managers
0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100%
0 Sessions 1 to 5 6 to 10 11 or more
Table 5: Informal Training Attendance
While project leaders are more likely to attend formal training sessions, managers are more
likely to attend informal training sessions, which correlates with employees’ feelings about how training
opportunities have impacted their ability to meet or be under productivity guidelines. While managers
rated this ability above neutral on a scale of 0 (strongly disagree) to 100 (strongly agree) for both formal
and informal training, non-managers’ feelings were mixed.
Project leaders preferred formal training. Though they indicated neutrality (50 out of 100) by
ranking formal training as neither helping nor hindering their ability to be under productivity guidelines,
they indicated that formal training was positively helping them meet productivity guidelines with a score
of 70. Project leaders’ rankings of informal training were the lowest of all roles. They ranked informal
training’s impact on their ability to meet or be under productivity guidelines at 33 and 38 out of 100,
respectively.
For team members, the scores overall were less than neutral. They scored both formal and
informal training opportunities at 46 out of 100 regarding team members’ ability to meet productivity
guidelines. Likewise, team members scored both formal and informal training opportunities at 41 out of
100 for their impact on team members’ ability to be under productivity guidelines.
When asked if formal and informal training opportunities helped them meet or be under
productivity guidelines, 52.94% of survey respondents agreed. About half of employees felt that both
formal and informal training helped them to help their coworkers meet productivity guidelines.
Likewise, having training opportunities available has positively impacted employees’ satisfaction
with their jobs at ######. They ranked both formal and informal trainings’ impact on job satisfaction at
76.47%. Respondents’ scores for training’s impact on job satisfaction in question 21 of the survey are
broken down by role in Table 6.

Table 6
Training Impact on Job Satisfaction by Role
90
80
70
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
ng ng al No
i ni i ni rm
tra tra fo
al al in
d
rm rm an
fo
in
fo al
tly rm
os tly fo
,m os h
s m ot
Ye s, s ,b
Ye Ye
Table 6: Training Impact on Job Satisfaction by Role
Parents and Non-Parents of Minors
Of the five respondents who indicated they were parents of minor children at the time of the
survey, two were managers. They scored their satisfaction with the content of formal training at 92 out
of 100 and informal training at 94 out of 100. These parents attended at least three formal training
sessions and at least six informal training sessions. While one indicated that logging non-billable time
during their first six months as an employee did not apply to them, two chose “never or rarely” and two
chose “monthly.” Logging non-billable time decreased for one parent; in the two months before the
survey, only one parent logged non-billable time monthly while “never or rarely” was chosen by three
parents.
For the three mothers who completed the survey, satisfaction with content dropped slightly to
89 and 92 out of 100 for informal and formal training, respectively. Both parents who logged non-
billable time monthly during their first six months of employment were mothers, and the parent who
logged non-billable time monthly during the two months preceding the survey was also a mother. Table
7 shows how mothers’ and fathers’ ability to meet productivity guidelines was impacted by formal and
informal training compared to employees who were not parents.
Table 7
Training Impact on Fathers' and Mothers' Abilities to Meet
Productivity Guidelines
Informal Training
Formal Training
0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70
Non-Parents Fathers Mothers
Table 7: Training Impact on Fathers’ and Mothers’ Abilities to Meet Productivity Guidelines
While the statistical differences for the impact on productivity guidelines were not significant
between mothers and fathers, those employees’ feelings regarding job satisfaction were split. The two
fathers who completed the survey indicated both formal and informal training helped them be satisfied
with their jobs, and each of the three mothers chose each of the “yes” options (mostly formal, mostly
informal, and both formal and informal training).
Discussion
This study attempted to understand job satisfaction quantitatively by relating the impact of
training on work intensification among remote employees at a specific virtual company. For the research
question of how training opportunities affect work intensification for this group, the survey asked about
two kinds of training opportunities and then about their impact on productivity guidelines.
Answering my first sub-question (What is the relationship between paid training opportunities
and work intensification?), ###### employees somewhat agreed that formal training positively impacted
the intensity of their work by helping them meet productivity guidelines. However, these employees
also disagreed that Informal training helped them meet or be under productivity guidelines.
Even though Ellis and Kuznia (2014) found resistance to eLearning in their study and other
indications to the contrary, informal training was more popular than formal training among the ######
employees in this study despite being optional, unpaid, and lacking a direct impact on work
intensification. Despite being less popular, formal training was well attended by ###### employees and
more valued in terms of decreasing the intensity of work.
Given that the project leader scoring for meeting productivity guidelines was less than that of
improving upon those guidelines, that subgroup of respondents may have misunderstood the questions.
However, the scores are close enough to determine that project leaders do not feel that the informal
classes are positively impacting the intensity of their work. Results show that, while informal training did
not ameliorate work intensification (the answer to my second sub-question), all participants valued the
combination of informal and formal training opportunities, indicating that the informal training
opportunities may be fulfilling a larger role than just training, such as creating a sense of community
among a physically disparate group of coworkers.
Overall job satisfaction through what Schmidt (2007) termed job training satisfaction was high
for both formal and informal training. A small number of respondents indicated a preference for formal
over informal training and vice versa. When comparing work intensification for parents and non-parents
(my third sub-question), the only change between the group at large and non-parents of minor children
was that the latter did not prefer informal training over formal training. Results for parents, both fathers
and mothers, were positive.

Even though the studied sample of ###### employees did not indicate a significant difference
between parents and non-parents of minors as well as mothers compared to fathers (my final sub-
question), further research may show otherwise. My hypothesis that workplace training may mitigate
work intensification seems to hold true with formal training. However, while informal training is not
mitigating, the combination of it with formal training is valued by employees across roles—if slightly less
for employees who are also mothers.
###### employees seemed to be faring well in terms of handling work intensification. However,
one commenter pointed out that the survey missed an important opportunity. While the questions
asked whether employees logged non-billable time for client projects, they did not ask whether an
employee went into non-billable time without logging it. This respondent, a mother who works 21-30
hours per week as a team member, left a comment in the field for question 19 about her struggles with
productivity:
I honextly (sic) have rarely been able to meet scope or productivity guidelines. I simply bill what
I'm told I can bill, regardless of how long it takes me. Particularly when my kids are home (as
during the crisis homeschooling of 2020-21), I am constantly having to respond to their needs
and am not able to focus to the extent that is assumed in the productivity guidelines.
Training at ###### may benefit from a focus on establishing an intentional link between
informal training opportunities and increasing employees’ efficiency in terms of meeting productivity
guidelines. For example, a poll of employees may reveal what topics would best help them in areas
where they are struggling. While formal training is already linked this way, ###### management could
address areas that would also boost employees’ ability to meet productivity guidelines, including those
employees who have caretaker responsibilities (e.g., parents, especially mothers) and may have
difficulty focusing when work and caretaker duties are in conflict.

In focusing on these areas, the survey results indicate the greatest gains would be made by
considering non-managers first because their survey results showed that they value current training
options least in terms of how training helps them counter the intensity of their work. The survey results
further indicate that separating the project leaders’ needs from the team members may also be
beneficial. Because their work’s intensity is different from that of team members in that they have
increased responsibilities, project leaders’ needs may not have been met at the time of this study.
However, determining how to best support employees who have conflicting responsibilities
outside their remote work may further boost training’s positive impact on countering work
intensification, thereby promoting job satisfaction.
Limitations
In addition to the missed opportunity of asking about project time that goes unpaid, other
limitations included convenience sampling and a higher ratio of managerial responses than non-
managerial participation.
Briefly touched upon earlier in this report was the use of convenience sampling at a small
company of just thirty-one employees. This small sample size creates difficulty in determining whether
results are useful for the remote workforce population as a whole.
Lastly in terms of limitations, a higher percentage of managers completed the survey than non-
managers, which may have skewed the results. Because managers work significantly less on client
projects, they do not have to track their productivity like project leaders and team members must. They
also may be more likely to maintain traditional working hours.
Future Research
Further study may reveal whether trends that seem out of sync with larger studies, such as the
lack of resistance to training, can be explained another way. The appeal of the training sessions at
###### may lie in how they connect coworkers who are physically separated, making them feel less
separated by creating community time.
This study focused on work intensification, and future research into the related phenomenon of
work-life balance may share clues about whether a trade-off exists between flexibility and stability of
work. This potential study could examine whether work intensification appears in other forms, such as
by causing workers to have longer workdays in order to conduct personal matters that might be taken
for granted in an office setting.
Further research is also needed to determine whether parents, especially mothers, experience
obstacles to holding management positions at ###### as they may have more personal commitments
during the traditional workday that keep them from working consecutive hours with recuperative
breaks.
Conclusion
Despite these limitations, this study provides evidence that formal and informal training
opportunities are valued and together promote job satisfaction more (76.74%) than the higher-rated
formal training does alone. Informal training has less impact on reducing the intensity of remote work
but offers other value, such as in creating a closer connection among physically separate coworkers.
Taken separately, informal and formal training have differing impacts on employees based on those
employees’ levels of responsibilities, so consideration of the distinctive needs of each role could further
promote job training satisfaction and overall job satisfaction.

References
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well-being. Work, Employment and Society, 28(6), 963–984.
https://doi.org/10.1177/0950017013512714
Breaugh, J. A., & Farabee, A. M. (2012). Telecommuting and flexible work hours: Alternative work
arrangements that can improve the quality of work life. In N. P. Reilly, M. J. Sirgy, & C. A.
Gorman (Eds.), Work and quality of life: Ethical practices in organizations (pp. 251–274).
Springer Netherlands.
Coate, P. (2021, January 25). Remote work before, during, and after the pandemic. Quarterly Economics
Briefing—Q4 2020.
https://www.ncci.com/SecureDocuments/QEB/QEB_Q4_2020_RemoteWork.html
Costen, W.M. and Salazar, J. (2011) The impact of training and development on employees’ job
satisfaction, loyalty and intent to stay in the lodging industry. Journal of Human Resource in
Hospitality and Tourism, 10, 273-284. https://doi.org/10.1080/15332845.2011.555734
Creswell, J. W., & Guetterman, T. C. (2019). Educational research: Planning, conducting and evaluating
quantitative and qualitative research (6th ed.). Pearson.
Dunatchik, A., Gerson, K., Glass, J., Jacobs, J. A., & Stritzel, H. (2021). Gender, parenting, and the rise of
remote work during the pandemic: Implications for domestic inequality in the United States.
Gender & Society, 35(2), 194–205. https://doi.org/10.1177/08912432211001301
Ellis, P. F., & Kuznia, K. D. (2014). Corporate eLearning impact on employees. Global Journal of Business
Research, 8(4), 1–15. http://www.theibfr2.com/RePEc/ibf/gjbres/gjbr-v8n4-2014/GJBR-V8N4-
2014-1.pdf
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effort, well-being and work-life balance. New Technology, Work and Employment, 32(3), 195–
212. https://doi-org.ezproxy2.library.colostate.edu/10.1111/ntwe.12097
Nyvall, N. R. (2014). E-learning and Organizational Value Creation [ Master’s dissertation, The College of
St. Scholastica]. ProQuest, Ann Arbor, MI.
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from https://www.oxfordreference.com/view/10.1093/oi/authority.20110803124750181
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hasn’t – changed the way Americans work. Pew Research Center's Social & Demographic Trends
Project. Retrieved October 3, 2021, from
https://www.pewresearch.org/social-trends/2020/12/09/how-the-coronavirus-outbreak-has-
and-hasnt-changed-the-way-americans-work/
Schmidt, S. W. (2007). The relationship between satisfaction with workplace training and overall job
satisfaction. Human Resource Development Quarterly, 18(4), 481–498.
https://doi.org/10.1002/hrdq.1216
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https://doi.org/10.1002/sres.2284
Shields, M. A., & Ward, M. (2001). Improving nurse retention in the national Health service in England:
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https://doi.org/10.1016/s0167-6296(01)00092-3
Spector, P. (2021, May 31). Job satisfaction survey. Retrieved October 3, 2021, from
https://paulspector.com/assessments/pauls-no-cost-assessments/job-satisfaction-survey-jss/
Sullivan, C. (2012). Remote working and work-life balance. In N. P. Reilly, M. J. Sirgy, & C. A. Gorman
(Eds.), Work and quality of life: Ethical practices in organizations (pp. 275–290). Springer
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Employment and Society, 31(4), 567-585. https://doi.org/10.1177/0950017016631447

Appendix A
Email Correspondence to Gain Permission to Conduct Study

Appendix B
Email Correspondence to Inform Training Manager of Study

Appendix C
Email Request for Participation

Appendix D
Informed Consent Language
The following information is provided to help you determine whether you should agree or
disagree to participate in the study named above. You should be aware that you are free to decide not
to participate or to withdraw at any point or skip any question without affecting your relationship with
######.
The purpose of this study is to understand job satisfaction quantitatively by relating the impact
of training on work intensification among remote employees at a virtual company, specifically ######.
Data will be collected using the following brief online survey only available to participants with a
###### email address. The survey data will be the only data collected in the study.
Do not hesitate to ask questions of the researcher, Jessie Gravatt, about the study before participating
or at any time during the study. You may request a copy of your answers and/or the findings of this
study after the research is completed via #######@colostate.edu. Your name will not be associated
with the research findings in any way, and from here (i.e., the survey phase of the study) on, your
identity will be unknown unless you choose to provide it with your survey answers.
No known risks and/or discomforts are associated with this study. The expected benefit
associated with participation is the insight into how training opportunities impact intensity of work
relative to employee satisfaction. This study will not be submitted for publication.
Choosing to proceed with this survey will indicate your consent to participate.
Appendix E
Data Collection Tool: Web-Based Survey
1. What is your gender?
Female/Male/Prefer to self-identify [text box provided]
2. What is your primary role at ######?
Manager or above/project leader/team member (please specify writer, editor, instructional
designer, or other role) [text box provided]
3. How long have you been employed at ######?
Less than 6 months/More than 6 months but less than a year/1 to 5 years/More than 5 years
4. On average, how many hours per week do you work for ###### at present?
0-10 hours/11-20 hours/21-30 hours/31-40+ hours
5. Are you a parent with a minor (i.e., younger than 18 years old) child or children at home?
Yes, and I have a live-in parenting partner/Yes, a single parent/No
6. If you are a parent with at least one minor child living at home, has your child (or at least one of your
children) been diagnosed with special needs (e.g., autism, ADHD) or mental health issues (e.g.,
anxiety, depression)?
Yes/No
7. Approximately what percentage of your time do you spend working in each ###### division and on
non-project time at present?
Learning Solutions [text box provided]/Sales & Business [text box provided]/Technical Writing [text
box provided]/Non-Project Time [text box provided]
[The value of all four entries for question seven had to equal 100%.]
8. How satisfied are you with the content of informal training opportunities?
[Sliding scale] 0 – Not at all/100 – Very much

9. How many informal training opportunities have you participated in during 2021?
0/1-5/6-10/11 or more
10. How satisfied are you with the content of formal training opportunities? These opportunities could
be mandatory for your role or for the entire company.
[Sliding scale] 0 – Not at all/100 – Very much
11. How many formal (i.e., paid) training opportunities have participated in during 2021?
0/1-2/3-4/5 or more
12. During your first 6 months of employment at ######, how often did you log project time as non-
billable because you went over scope or productivity guidelines? (If you have not been employed for
a full six months, answer according to how long you have been employed.)
Not applicable/Never or rarely/Daily/Weekly/Monthly
13. In the past two months, how often did you log project time as non-billable because you went over
scope or productivity guidelines?
Not applicable/Never or rarely/Daily/Weekly/Monthly
14. My participation in “brownbags” has improved my ability to meet productivity guidelines and/or
project scopes.
[Sliding scale] Strongly disagree – Neutral – Strongly agree
15. My participation in “brownbags” has improved my ability to be under productivity guidelines and/or
project scopes.
16. My participation in formal training has improved my ability to meet productivity guidelines and/or
project scopes.

17. My participation in formal training has improved my ability to be under productivity guidelines
and/or project scopes.
18. The combination of formal and informal training opportunities has been critical in improving my
ability to meet productivity guidelines and/or project scopes.
19. Besides training opportunities at ######, what other resources or activities have helped you
improve your ability to meet productivity guidelines and project scope expectations?
[Comment box provided]
20. Do you agree with the following statement? The combination of formal and informal training
opportunities has helped me help my co-workers meet or exceed productivity guidelines and/or
project scopes.
Yes, mostly formal training/Yes, mostly informal training/Yes, both formal and informal training/No
21. Do you agree with the following statement? Training opportunities have helped me feel satisfied
with my job.
Yes, mostly formal training/Yes, mostly informal training/Yes, both formal and informal training/No
22. If you would like to share your identity, please include your name and preferred contact information
here.
[Comment box provided]

Appendix F
Codebook for Survey Demographic Questions 1-6
Variable Name Response Assignments
0 ID Identification number assigned to each completed survey
1 Gender Female = 1, Male = 2, Self-identified = 3
2 Primary Role Manager or above = 1, Project leader = 2, Team member = 3*
3 Length of Employment Less than 6 months = 1,
More than six months but less than a year = 2,
1 to 5 years = 3,
More than 5 years = 4
4 Part- or Full-Time 0-10 hours = 1
11-20 hours = 2
21-30 hours = 3
31-40+ hours = 4
5 Parent Status Yes, and I have a live-in parenting partner = 1
Yes, a single parent = 2
No = 3
6 Child Needs Yes = 1
No = 2
*If enough team members identify their specific roles (e.g., writer or editor), the codebook will be
expanded as needed to include multiple team member roles.

EDRM 600
Conclusion, and Final Report
15/15
Limitations of the study are identified and suggestions for future research are shared. Clear conclusion
highlights the most important aspects to take away from the study and summarizes the
impact/importance of the study as a whole.
Great additions in this final section. You provided some great information and suggestions. 20/20
All previous assignments included are in a full, final research report. This includes all necessary
revisions, all assignments organized into one coherent report, a title page, a table of contents, full
references, and applicable appendices. Report is now written in past tense.
Jessie, this has been progressing along nicely so really only the intro needed work. It was updated nicely
and works well with your study! Nice job!
5/5
Coherent transitions, headings, and subheadings used throughout the final report.
Well done!
10/10
APA formatting used correctly throughout the report and reference page.
50/50
Total Points
You’ve created a great study in a short time! Impressive.

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Remote Employee Training and Job Satisfaction 1

Promote Job Satisfaction

Jessie Lynn Gravatt

School of Education, Colorado State University

EDRM 600: Introduction to Research Methods

Dr. Kelly McKenna

December 12, 2021

therefore the intensity of their work accurately.

The Impact of Training on Work Intensification and Job Satisfaction.............................................8

Purpose Statement and Research Questions............................................................................14

Quantitative Cross-Sectional Survey Research.........................................................................15

Permission to Conduct Study....................................................................................................16

Data Collection Process............................................................................................................17

Data Analysis Method...............................................................................................................18

Work Intensification Measures.................................................................................................21

Parents and Non-Parents of Minors.........................................................................................26

Email Correspondence to Gain Permission to Conduct Study......................................................35

Email Correspondence to Inform Training Manager of Study.......................................................36

Email Request for Participation....................................................................................................37

Informed Consent Language.........................................................................................................38

Data Collection Tool: Web-Based Survey......................................................................................39

Codebook for Survey Demographic Questions 1-6.......................................................................42

Table 1: Parents of Minors vs. Non-Parents.................................................................................19

Table 2: Logging of Non-Billable Time in Two Months Preceding Survey.....................................20

Table 3: Satisfaction with Informal and Formal Training by Role..................................................21

Table 4: Formal Training Attendance............................................................................................22

Table 5: Informal Training Attendance.........................................................................................22

Table 6: Training Impact on Job Satisfaction by Role....................................................................24

The Impact of Training on Work Intensification and Job Satisfaction

been defined in the online Oxford Reference as follows:

an increase in labour costs. (Oxford University Press, n.d., main paragraph)

definition of work intensification.

methodology, and content” (p. 493).

(Ellis & Kuznia, 2014, p. 3).

does not decrease the intensification of their work.

profitability by keeping employees satisfied.

workplace training, remote work, and work intensification.

Communication” (Spector, 2021, Job Satisfaction Survey section).

show that training positively impacts job satisfaction, decreasing attrition.

benefitting both employers and employees.

this study, women were found to have more work-life imbalance.

for only the remote workforce.

Purpose Statement and Research Questions

The sub-questions for this study are as follows:

 What is the relationship between unpaid training opportunities and work

 How do these relationships impact job satisfaction?

parents and even more so among mothers.

Quantitative Cross-Sectional Survey Research

with a web-based survey and data collection site (i.e., SurveyMonkey).

survey and collecting the information” (p. 386).

described as work-from-home (or WFH) or virtual.

Permission to Conduct Study

as shown in screen captures of our email correspondence in Appendix B.

beginning of the survey, is provided in Appendix D.

Data Collection Process

with all survey questions, it was optional.

to create a design doc for instructional designers) is offered as needed.

Data Analysis Method

answered numerically by respondents.

repeated their answers.

allowed the analysis to extend to those questions.

who did not have minor children living at home.

quarter or full-time employees, five reported working part-time.