Table of Contents
Abstract
Work performance may refer to the degree that a given employee carries to completion the chores in their job description for them to satisfactorily possess their rank in the given company. Employees’ work performance is one of the most imperative factors that determine the growth and productivity of an organization. For a top performing company, that becomes one of the fundamental issues to maintain the output and competitiveness of the organization. There is a tendency of excellent performance from the job satisfied employees as opposed to those dissatisfied. Job satisfaction is a motivating factor for the employees to exploit their potential fully in realizing the company’s goals. Employees whose job satisfaction levels are high tend to show very strong commitments at their workplaces (Castaneda and Scanlan, 2014).
Introduction
Employees’ work performance is one of the most imperative factors that determine the growth and productivity of an organization. For a top performing company, that becomes one of the fundamental issues to maintain the output and competitiveness of the organization (Ziegler et al., 2012). Work performance may refer to the degree that a given employee carries to completion the chores in their job description for them to satisfactorily possess their rank in the given company. There are several and diverse prevailing factors within and outside the workplace that may affect the job performance of employees. The following essay is a discussion highlighting some of the factors and how they affect the employee’s work performance.
Literature review
Rand in his theory of emotions discusses the concepts of value, emotion, satisfaction, dissatisfaction, appraisal and their interrelationships as key to this job satisfaction. Employee satisfaction is one very significant aspect of the growth of an organization. Employers should, therefore, keep satisfaction of their employees a top priority. It is a best practice in the management practices. Han, (2008) records that most people in search of employment have their focus on pay rather than satisfaction. Job satisfaction is a vital determinant for one to stay longer in an industry. It also affects the performance of employees. There is a tendency of excellent performance from the job satisfied employees as opposed to those dissatisfied. Job satisfaction is a motivating factor for the employees to exploit their potential fully in realizing the company’s goals. Employees whose job satisfaction levels are high tend to show very strong commitments at their workplaces (Castaneda and Scanlan, 2014). According to studies, the issue of daily marital satisfaction and the emotional states of employees was highly affected by their daily job satisfaction. The samples taken from university employees revealed that employees, whose jobs are satisfying, gave their best at the workplace hence realizing high performance levels.
The sense of well-being among employees and individual perception of high work-life balance has become imperative for any institution to ensure improved performance efficiency, especially in areas of the highly competitive business environment. Different work environments have varied effects on work performance for the employees. The work environment can contribute to improving one’s job performance. Researchers have in the past suggested that flexible work arrangements would help individuals to realize a good blend between work and other activities. It also helps the company to recruit, motivate and retain their employees. Ziegler, (2012) found out in his study that flexible time strategy improve employee’s productivity by reducing absenteeism, turnover, and family-work conflicts. In a research conducted on employees of IBM in the USA found out the significance of flexible work timings and location in the workplace to minimize employee’s failure to execute their roles. The study demonstrated that employees with the perceived job flexibility had an assurance of good work performance and had the capability to work for longer hours. Kalisch et al. (2010) investigation findings highlighted that organizations having ineffective work arrangements, poor working conditions, lower income and pressurized work environment had their employees perform poorly.
The pressure of an increasingly demanding work has become the biggest and most pressing challenge in Work-life balance over the past decade. Work pressure has extreme consequences of stress. According to Kalisch, et al. (2010) work stress is that individual’s perception towards their job environment as demanding. It is that discomfort experienced by an individual in the workplace. There are varied extents of job stress among employees linked to work-life balance. Theiler investigated the interrelationship between job stress, work-life balance and health among academicians in Australia. His results indicated that high job stress levels positively correlated with increased family conflict and negatively associated with work performance and individual’s wellbeing. Substantial research in the past few decades depicts that anxiety related work stress has a negative effect on wellbeing amongst academia. Rich et al., (2010) investigated the influence of work related stress on work output based on opinions of experts. The analyzed results identified a work-related stress that portrays a greater ability to strike a proper balance between family and work domains.
Scheduling long working hours for employees has negative consequences for both the individual’s life and organization. An individual who most often works long is unlikely to be much productive due to lack of equilibrium between their life and work. Research in the last decade shows that employees in Britain work for long hours in a day unlike in other nations. Sell and Cleal, (2011) suggested that limiting work hours has a benefit to the workers. It helps them increase their work-family balance levels since the few work hours help minimize the work-family conflicts. Flexible time schedules help workers manage their work and family responsibilities well. A compressed work week is beneficial to reduce work-life conflicts in any public sector thus enhancing a work-life balance. Most of Singapore’s professionals worked for longer hours than their contract agreements. Working hours’ survey by Jehangir et al., (2011) shows that around 82 % of the respondents confessed to being at work for extra hours. A great number of the informants felt that the longer working hours impacted their work-life balance negatively which consequently affected their job performance negatively.
Work support/ managerial support is an organizational factor that influences Work performance as well as work life balance. As shown by Staufenbiel et al. (2010) supervisors have a great and significant impact on the professional stress of female police officers. The supervisors, as Thompson observes, can not only contribute to a better work performance but also reduce moral exhaustion. There is a positive relationship existing between the organization and supervisor support for the reduction of family-to-work conflicts and work life issues. It is observed by Ziegler, (2012) on his study conducted in Canada about work-life issues amidst health workers. The organization has also shown great support for the reduction of work-to-family conflicts. As also illustrated by Han, (2008) in the case study on police officers and agents in Quebec, organizational support to work-life balance is important in any demanding work environment. In his methodology by use of a questionnaire, Tremblay found out from his in-depth interviews the significance of both formal and informal support to employees to balance their family and work aspects. The positive relationship between work resources and the work life balance facilitate job satisfaction and thus job performance.
Family support is a societal factor and includes spouse support. It was noted to have an impact on the performance of individuals at their workplace. Rich et al. (2010) observed physical and emotional support in society and family lowered the levels of work-family imbalance. An investigation by Chiang, (2012) on demands of balancing work with family duties by Filipina entrepreneurs found out that there were positive and negative effects of work-life relationships. Positive effects can result in the entrepreneurs’ high levels of life satisfaction while the negative effects provoke stress amid them. There was evidence of various strategies to balance work and life in the results. It included the level of spouse support for those married or the magnitude of support of the family members for non-business work duties and activities, and delegation of job routines to family members. Various family-related factors that affect the work-life balance of employees were identified by Chiang and Hsieh, (2012). These factors included improved involvement of women in the labor force, an improvement in the elder care/ child care burden and the growth of households with single persons. Another study, focusing on the relationship between family time obligation and parental responsibilities and work-family conflict was carried out by Simmers. In the findings, it was noted that there were varied conflict predictors in the family set up.
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