Factors Influencing Job Satisfaction in an Australian Public Sector Workplace During Periods of Significant Organisational Change: A Hierarchical Level Analysis

Abstract

<p>There is a significant body of literature relating to the impact of change upon an organisation, presented from the managers’ perspective. By comparison, there is only a relatively small body of work focused on how organisational change impacts non-managers, even though they are most often the largest group affected. To address this imbalance, this research explores the perspectives of both the managers and the non-managers in an Australian public sector organisation during a period of significant organisational change. Specifically, this study explored the influencers on job satisfaction, a positive outcome measure, related to job engagement, positive employees, and positive organisational change (Amiot, Terry et al., 2006; Avey, Wernsing, & Luthans, 2008; Nguyen, Teo, & Pick, 2017; Teo, Pick, & Xerri, 2016); rather than focusing upon negative outcomes such as change resistance. The study adopted a conceptual model considering the influence of organisational context, employees’ attitudes, organisational processes and hierarchical level. A concurrent mixed-methods approach was adopted for the research. Quantitative data were generated by means of a survey, which focused on personal factors that influenced job satisfaction, whereas qualitative data, collected through interviews, were generated by the respective interviewees’ change analysis frameworks. The quantitative data were statistically analysed, and relationships explored using Structured Equation Modelling (SEM), and the qualitative data were analysed according to the general principles of grounded theory. The quantitative data and SEM analyses found that both managers and non-managers reported relatively high levels of job satisfaction during this period of significant organisational change. It was also found that the associations between the context, personal attitude and attribution factors, and job satisfaction were strikingly similar for the different hierarchical levels. The qualitative phase of the study identified five organisational influencers upon job satisfaction for both managers and non-managers: communication, connectedness, standardisation, customer orientation, and leadership. There were, however, subtle differences between how these influencers impacted job satisfaction for each of the hierarchical levels. The identified hierarchical differences in job satisfaction influencers were seen to be linked to their respective job roles, and the hierarchical similarities to be associated with common organisation-wide roles. The research results suggest that acknowledging and working with these hierarchical differences and similarities has the potential to enhance the effectiveness of change initiatives.</p>