Chapter 5 Conclusion and Discussion

5.1 Introduction The chapter five of the research study is about the recap of the chapter one where the researcher laid all the objectives required for the research study. The researcher clearly discusses the various objectives of the research study and the research questions and his finding in this chapter. Apart from this the researcher also suggests suitable recommendations and suggestions for future study in the area of employee retention in Malaysian call centres.

5.2 Discussions A large number of the respondents were working in the customer service department which contributed to almost 62% of the total respondents which was obvious as the respondents were from the call centre industry. The respondents were mainly in the age group of 17 20 and 21 -25 which is clear that many youngsters are involved and most of them had a bachelors degree almost 80% of the total respondents which clearly coincides with their age as well.

Most of the respondents preferred to work in the Morning shifts from 10.00Am to 8.00 Pm where there were many respondents. The interesting observation which is very close to this research was that 70% of the employees were having an intention to resign their job and the rest were happy with what they were doing. For the variable supervisor support a total of 6 items were considered for the study. Item no 6 where it states my supervisor makes me feel like an important team member had the highest mean value with 4.58 among the other items which clearly states that feeling a team member with the supervisor support is more important for the employees which was closely supported by Item no 3 which also is in regard to the supervisor support.

The variable work environment focussed on five items related to the work environment in the call centres. the item no 4 with is related with self respect had the highest value with regard to mean 4.58 which is absolutely true because everybody deserves respect in the working environment and that is what the respondents have also mentioned in the survey. The other item which was closely related was with regard to the fairness at work with a value of 4.57 which is also to do mostly with the employee self respect and the way he is being treated with in the organisation. A correlations test was performed to test the relationship of the independent variables employee career development , supervisor support , work environment and employee rewards with the dependent variable employee retention . The variable Work environment has the strongest relationship. In todays competitive environment companies are looking to hire quality people quickly and cost effectively. It is very important that Companies and their Human Resource Department understand the impact of a good recruiting strategy on their bottom line. We must know what the word recruiting mean before we can create a strategy to be deployed to support the Companys mission statement. Organizations with a clear recruiting and retention strategy should also have a great selection and exit process documented so they can attract and retain qualified employees and simultaneous screen the unqualified at no added cost to the organization. This will keep the Company competitive by lowering the cost associated with the hiring and recruiting process. 5.3 Conclusion Increasing staff retention is important for the Human Resource

Management. Chris Hendry believes that the HRM department should keep an eye on general matters, for example how many staff are leaving. These matters are likely to receive closer attention when there are specific plans to grow a business and there is a gap between requirements and existing skills and numbers of employees. Working out labour turnover e.g. dividing the number of leavers per period by the average number employed during that period and times it by a hundred, can give a business the idea of how many staff are leaving and staying. To increase staff retention a business can look at planning recruitment and training to renew skills and experience; the HRM can also develop policies and practices to minimise the loss of valuable staff and by motivation. As you can see motivation is an important factor when it comes to managing human resources. People need to be motivated and satisfied to be productive to a business.

According to Danny W. Avery in Recruiting for Retention stated the greatest need to every human being is to feel needed or appreciated. Recognizing and meeting that need within the retention programs for your workplace will go very far in satisfying retention goals (p.1).

A good retention strategy should include competitive wages and fringe benefits, flexible work schedule, employee respect, horizontal and vertical communication, training, bonuses, new hire referral bonuses, and longevity. Boeing retention strategy has met all the above except longevity. Boeing has a cyclical business with mass hiring and later mass layoffs. The best strategy they can use is communicate the business plan with emphasis on how employees fit into the plan. Implement plans that consist of employees engagement at all levels of the organization. This will create an environment where employees feel trusted, welcome, and where people know their work matters.

According to Dennis Travers in The Key To Successful Recruiting (2000) we must develop an organization in which people want to work and can take personal and professional pride in being a part of (i.e. Employer of Choice) (p.2). The employees are a corporations best recruiting and retention source.

Human Resource implemented the Performance Evaluation, Performance Development Plan, and Performance Evaluation Worksheet. It is mandatory that all employees meet four times a year with their managers to discuss all three plans. The process allows managers to engage their employees on their career path objectives by identifying developmental opportunities on their Performance Development Plan.

There are several opportunities available to be utilized by the employees and managers during a given year. Rotational programs (formal/informal), Skills development/Technical training, On-the Job Training, Cross Training, Special Projects, and Pre-Management Assessment Process are documented processes that are effective when used on a consistent

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The bottom line when done correctly will foster a culture that establishes a

management/employee partnership which identifies and provides the tools, knowledge, and opportunities to enhance current job responsibilities and career development and give the organization a strategy advantage.

5.4 Suggestions For future Research Training and developing staff is a very important aspect of human resource management. Training cannot be separated from other aspects of the human resource system. The researcher suggests exploring more variable in this area of Retention. Based on the result derived in this result employee rewards had a very good relationship and was suggested as the best model for the research with a value of R , so the researcher suggests to explore more variable along with employee compensation like fringe benefits the pay scale for and so on. 5.5 Limitations The research study was limited to only 151 employees in Malaysian call centres in the Klang valley largely due to the time constraint and the relentlessness from the respondents to participate in the research study. The research study was limited to a study only in private organisations.