Does the front door match the backdoor?
A single case study on how employee turnover affects the level of
engagement & investment in EVP touchpoints: pre-,on-, and
off-boarding
DEDIC, IRMA
ZAVAHER, MOBINA
The School of Business, Society and Engineering
Course: Bachelor Thesis in Business Administration 15 credits Course Code: FOA214
Examination Date: 2020-09-02
Acknowledgments
We want to extend a heartfelt thank you to everyone that has been involved and contributed their puzzle pieces, enabling us to present a picture of reality.
Many thanks to our supervisor Ali Farashah, for every constructive comment and his unending support. Secondly, we would like to thank the co-assessor Lucia Crevani and the main opponents for their incredibly helpful comments. Last but not least, we would like to thank the case company and all the managers that took part in our interviews. By allowing us to gain insight into the three sites in Sweden, you have been elemental in the realization of the scope. Without your enthusiasm, openness, and flexibility, this would not have been possible.
Abstract
Date: 2020-09-02Level: Bachelor Thesis in Business Administration (15 credits)
Institution: School of Business, Society and Engineering, Malardalen University Authors: Irma Dedic (96/05/11) & Mobina Zavaher (96/02/13)
Title:
Does the front door match the backdoor?
● A single case study on how turnover affects the level of engagement in the EVP touchpoints: pre-,on-, and off-boarding
Tutor: Ali Farashah
Keywords: Employer Branding, EVP, Preboarding, Onboarding, Offboarding Employee
experience, Organizational Socialization, Turnover.
Research questions: In particular, how does employee turnover relate to the level of
engagement and investment during the EVP touchpoints: preboarding, onboarding, offboarding?
Purpose & Aim: The purpose is to explore the relationship between the level of employee
turnover and the level of engagement in the EVP: preboarding, onboarding, and offboarding.
Method: A qualitative approach was chosen for the thesis, which was conducted through
seven semi-structured interviews. The informants were different managers with personal responsibility for both white and blue-collar workers from a multinational company, operating mostly B2B in a matrix-like organization.
Conclusion: The engagement & investment in the three different EVP touchpoints was
shown to be affected by the turnover in different ways, thus affecting the organizational socialization. With a generally low turnover for many years, a sudden drop due to retirements and resignations, from very loyal employees in most departments, a sudden lack of
employees developed. This was followed by a strain on the resources that already were not considered superfluous, creating a negative spiral. A considerable difference was found in the engagement between the preboarding, onboarding, and offboarding. The entry points were increasingly more of a priority than the exit points, with a growing imminent need for employees. However, this also halted the efficiency of a “proper” onboarding in the most afflicted departments, as the knowledge transfer and socialization was not able to properly be induced into every employee. With a not fully integrated approach across the organization, the core values were not integrated nor consistent either. Conclusively, there needs to be a consistent proactive effort to manage these EVP touchpoints in order to create prerequisites for a sustainable EB, especially in today’s labour market.
Table Of Contents
1.Introduction 7 1.1 Background 7 1.2 Problem Definition 8 1.3 Purpose 9 1.4 Research Question 9 1.5 Delimitations 9 2. Literature Review 10 2.1 Employer Branding 10 2.2 Employee Loyalty 10 2.3 HR and Marketing 102.4 EVP - Employer Value Proposition 11
2.5 Delivering the promise of EB 11
2.6 Generational aspects & Top talents that affect loyalty 12 2.8 Difference Between Blue-Collar and White-Collar 12
2.9 EVP touchpoints 13
2.9.1 Preboarding & Onboarding 13
2.9.2 Offboarding 14
2.10 Socialization process 14
2.11 Conceptual Framework 14
3. Methodology 16
3.1 Research Design & Strategy 16
3.2 Collection of Theories 16 3.3 Data Collection 17 3.4 Operalization 18 3.5 Secondary data 19 3.6 Procedure 20 3.7 Company background 20 3.7.1 Sample of informants 21 3.8 Limitations 22 3.8.1 Trustworthiness 22 3.8.2 Ethics 22 4. Informants 23
4.1 Employee type of responsibility and experience 23
5. Results 24
5.2 Offboarding 26
5.3 Preboarding 30
5.4 Onboarding 31
5.5 Perceived Output In All Three Touchpoints 34
6. Analysis 38
6.1 The Employee Turnover 38
6.2 Offboarding 38 6.3 Preboarding 39 6.4 Onboarding 40 7. Discussion 41 8. Conclusion 43 9. Further Research 43 References 44
Appendix 1 - Interview Questions/Interview Guide 47
Model and table list
Figure 2.0 - Conceptual Framework Table 3.0 - Operalization
Table 4.1 - Informants
Term Definition
EVP touchpoints; A concept used to map out where the experience meets the expectations of
what the employer brands employer value proposition promises - meaning which aspects that an employer brand claims to offer an employee.
Preboarding; Represents the stage between where a candidate has accepted the offer for a
job to the official first day of work.
Onboarding; Represents the introductory stage of where a new employee officially starts at
a new job, by entering the front doors of the workplace, until they are officially accustomed to their workplace.
Offboarding; Represents the stage from when the decision of an employee leaving the
1.Introduction
1.1 Background
The pillars of the relationship between employers and their employees have changed. This relationship was firstly mentioned in research as a psychological contract that was purely transactional, to an updated definition by Ambler & Barrow (1996, p.187) which describes psychological benefits as both functional and economic within a package provided by the employer. The emergence of the term employer branding was born within the context of their research, which Backhaus & Tikoo (2004) later conceptualized further. They explained employer branding as a compound of assets, where the brand associations help to shape the organizations’ employer image. The image, in turn, can be seen as attractiveness for the potential employee (Backhaus & Tikoo 2004, p.504-505). Furthermore, Backhaus & Tikoo (2004, p.502) define EB with “the differentiation of firms’ characteristics as an employer from those of its competitors”, which brings up the identification of companies’ employer brand (Ambler & Barrow,1996, p.187). Employer loyalty is something Aaker (1991, as cited in Backhaus & Tikoo, 2004, p.509) described as being conceived by the employee’s
attachment to the company’s brand through their identification with the company’s identity. The management and creation of an employer brand provides a product called a “value proposition” Backhaus & Tikoo (2004, p.502) or employer value proposition, where the essential match of what an employer can offer is matched with the expectations of particular employees (Parment, 2009).
The competitiveness of the labour market is continually increasing, instigated by the
parallelly ongoing globalization. People are more aware of opportunities and are exposed to them more frequently. The growing importance of not only attracting and retaining
employees but the right ones as well is important because of these factors, which puts more focus on how the employer is viewed by potential employees (Parment & Dyhre, 2009). The transformation is ongoing and goes hand in hand with the generational shift that is happening. The reality that younger generations are incrementally taking over the market, is an inevitable fact. This means that perceptions about work-life are changing, and the sole
relationship between the employer and employee is affected. In turn, the preconceived notions of how the aspects; employer attractiveness, employer brand loyalty, and employer brand identity, within the concept of EB, are affected. (Parment & Dyhre, 2009)
This is illustrated by individuals from the younger generation Y, who are more inclined to change jobs, they also possess a higher brand awareness, which drives this motivation
(Parment & Dyhre, 2009). Learning and evolving in a crucial part that they connect with their identity as well (Parment & Dyhre, 2009). Similarly, this is something that is related to those categorized as higher-achieving professionals or “top talents” in general, and in regard to employees within key positions. Such professionals learn by doing and experiencing new ideas, places, and workplaces that are occupied by potential colleagues, who can provide them with new knowledge that helps them advance in this endeavor (Asplund, 2019, p. 68; Baruch, & Bozionelos, 2011, p.67-113;Lyons, Schweitzer, & Ng, 2015, p.363–383).
1.2 Problem Definition
Taking heed to the mentioned factors, it can be said that the flexibility of employers is growing all the more in importance. Larkan (2007, as cited in Parment 2009, p.123) stated that the focus on keeping employees is a good one with regards to replacing and recruiting costs. Companies may perhaps also not want to spend the money on employer branding if the economy is not strong enough, even though it has been shown that it is a good investment (Parment & Dyhre, 2009, p.20). However, Parment (2009, p.123) also lifts that another element is left out within the discourse of employer branding. It is that the top tier employees will always move more than the others. This demands that the focus on retention versus the acceptance of turnover is brought up. Another insight that is presented in relation to this, is that a generalized marker for personnel turnover is useless. The true driver is instead the alternative choice of attractive employers that an employee has, which differs greatly in smaller compared to bigger cities, for instance. An emerging trend of boomerang recruitment - relating to past employees being rehired, is proof of this (Parment 2009, p.126-127). With this in mind, the focus should be on creating a climate that nurtures and welcomes new employees, while not being too afraid to lose others, and managing it in a good way long-term. For this reason, it is interesting to research how these entry and exit points of employees’ employment are handled.
1.3 Purpose
The purpose is to explore the relationship between the level of employee turnover and the level of engagement in the EVP touchpoints: preboarding, onboarding, and offboarding.
1.4 Research Question
How does employee turnover feedback organizations change? In particular, how does employee turnover relate to the level of engagement and investment during the EVP touchpoints: preboarding, onboarding, offboarding?
1.5 Delimitations
Turnover: This study focused on the general perception of personnel turnover. It is naturally
linked to the specifically centered EVP touchpoints, being preboarding, onboarding and offboarding, as well as in the way that they are connected during the continuous cycle. It regards the scope of full-time employees primarily. As the study has a qualitative approach, the turnover was further used as a qualitative indicator by means of exploring its potential connection to the engagement and investment, rather than as a precise quantitative indication of measurement.
Preboarding, Onboarding, and Offboarding: The primary focus is on the connection
between the three as they are the “entry” and “exit” points of an employee’s employment. This way evaluations of the differences in engagement and investment can be explored and detected on a more general level. The turnover in these phases is also very prominent both from the general view of turnover. When employees leave after some time at a company, there is also the aspect of new hires that choose to resign early after their official acceptance of the employment.
2. Literature Review
2.1 Employer Branding
As stated, Ambler & Barrow (1996, p.187) describe the definition of employer branding as the compound of the benefits that an employer is providing their employees functionally, economically, and psychologically as a part of their employment. Backhaus & Tikoo (2004, p.502) defined EB with “The term employer branding suggests the differentiation of firms’ characteristics as an employer from those of its competitors”. Further, Ambler & Barrow (1996, p.188) see the connection within having the employees motivated which will lead to the employers having an improved relationship with the customers. This could lead to higher brand equity, which can be seen as a circle of goodness since it eventually will positively lead back to the company.
2.2 Employee Loyalty
According to Backhaus & Tikoo (2004, p.508-509), one way for the employers to feel more attracted to the organizations is when the employers’ values match the organization's value (Backhaus & Tikoo, 2004, p.508-509). Aaker (1991, as cited in Backhaus & Tikoo, 2004, p.509) defines loyalty as an employer's attachment to the brand. When the employee is loyal to the brand, the chance for the employee to change the brand is minimal, which also occurs during difficulties that the organization might face Aaker (1991, as cited in Backhaus & Tikoo, 2004, p.509). Sartain et al., (2006, p.13) explains the basis of loyalty as emerging. Loyalty arises from when a brand meets or surpasses the fulfillment of a need to the point that the consumer feels like an owner of the brand itself. It is essentially described as the emotional pull that influences the choices. Brand loyalty is in essence how a brand: attracts, stimulates, motivates, and connects (Sartain et al., 2006, p.14).
2.3 HR and Marketing
Dessler (2001, p.12) found that it is increasingly commonplace for HR to be included in a company’s strategic plan instead of having to react to it. In managing the EB, Ambler & Barrow (1996, p.197) stated that HR is the most suitable department for it. Martin,
Beaumont, Doig & Pate (2005, p.76-88) attributed this to the growing emphasis on employer branding as a strategic priority and driver. They further pressed on that the execution of putting the strategy in action requires the linkage of HR and marketing to be successful. Parment (2009, p.102) explained that these two functions have the necessary skills to implement such a strategy consistently.
2.4 EVP - Employer Value Proposition
Backhaus & Tikoo (2004, p.502) further describes a company’s “value proposition”, as the initial step during which the creation of a company’s employer brand was to be defined. An employer brand is based on the culture, management style, qualities of current employees, current employment image. As well as the perceived quality of the products that the firm offers.
In addition to this Parment (2009, p.70) brings forth that many organizations offer work that is similar. For the same reason, it is further important to establish a good understanding of how the existing employees view the organization. There are many factors that together represent the attractiveness of an EB. Still, the most fundamental aspect that needs to be integrated with these, is a good and positive work environment. (Parment, 2009, p.138) The work environment and work assignments are very important factors too that affect the decision- of leaving on the other hand (Sutherland & Canwell 2004; Ware 2008, as cited in Parment, 2009, p.117). A crucial factor to this mix is that the employee is more likely to be happy with the employment when the tasks assigned actually represent their experience and competence (Rose 1994, as cited in Parment, 2009, p.117). Something else that may also influence the decision to move on from the company, is the lack of feedback and
appreciation, which is directly governed by the managers responsible (Ware 2008, as cited in Parment, 2009, p.117).
2.5
Delivering the promise of EB
Something that is of utmost fundamental importance at the core of a brand according to Sartain et al., (2006, p.IX), is to create an experience that engages its current employees first. There should be a genuine spirit and essence, which should be holistically implemented.
Lastly, all of the mentioned elements should be co-created in a collaborative manner. Barrow & Mosley (2005, p.64) also emphasized that the actual brand experience is what matters in end. Sartain et al., (2006, p.7) further explained the aspect of touchpoints that in practice engulfs every type of contact that happens between a customer (or employee) and a business, where essentially the brand promises, and thus authenticity is tested respectively during each of these.
Parment (2009, p.139) explained that individuals belonging to the Y generation are more sensitive to their expectations not being met. One challenge within this scope is that knowing their expectations is tougher compared to the control that is by an organization keeping their promise on what to expect. Employers must focus on having policies and backing them up in practice. Policies that ensure that the brand experience is consistent is a prerequisite for a sustainable employer brand (Parment, 2009, p.145). According to Mosley (2007, p.123), a holistic approach through aligning every person’s management touch-point is necessary for this matter.
2.6 Generational aspects & Top talents that affect loyalty
With the generational shift that is happening, there is inevitably a change of priorities in the market. This affects the loyalty of the EB indirectly, as the younger changes jobs more frequently, it is partially due to its higher brand awareness (Parment & Dyhre, 2009). However, regardless of the generational change, there has been a generally established characteristic of the category of high achievers called “top talents”, which is such that they change jobs to maximize their potential and to gain as much experience as possible. This particular group also finds itself being more attracted to other higher achievers. (Asplund, 2019, p. 68; Baruch, & Bozionelos, 2011, p.67-113; Lyons et al.,, 2015, p.363–383).
2.8 Difference Between Blue-Collar and White-Collar
Parment (2009, p.121-122) stated that the ratio of blue-collar workers is constantly decreasing, while blue-collar jobs are increasing especially in developed countries. In addition to this fact the automated tasks that the first-mentioned constitutes of, is being outnumbered by immaterial tasks that require more individual decision-making. This relates
directly to the question of control, which is utilized to guide employees in their work. Even though many individuals may claim to want to lose control in this regard, the contradictory wish to know what is expected and how it is to be done is more similar to tight control. This means that the relationship between control has become more complicated, or more easily misunderstood.
2.9 EVP touchpoints
The employee life cycle naturally engulfs all of the contacts that an employee has with a company and thus also the employer brand from the initial start of onboarding to the ending part that is offboarding (Schooling, 2015). In the same way, the touchpoints can be
pinpointed across these phases of the intro and the exit of the employment to help deliver the EVP (The Higher Mix, 2020).
2.9.1 Preboarding & Onboarding
The stage between when a new employee is confirmed and when they officially enter the doors of the company and take their place is defined as the preboarding process. It is a very sensitive period with regards to the intangible connection between the company and the acquired new employee. (Ledare.se., 2019, February 6). Also, preboarding helps manage this uncertainty that a new hire experiences, by keeping them excited (Anderson., n.d.).
The importance of this stage has emerged from the evaluated “waste of time”. It intends to hand information to the new addition to the team, in which the new employee can dive into, before the actual first day arrives (Ahnlund, 2019, November 4). Onboarding on the other hand represents the official entry stage of a new employee, which should be seen as a strategic process since it is one of the most crucial factors that affect the new employee’s productivity (Maurer, 2019).
According to Kramer (2010, as cited by Sjö, 2017, January 18), the process can be described as anticipation, in the initial stage, followed by - meeting, and lastly - change. Anticipation is before someone is introduced to their new job. The meeting is plainly put in the introductory phase. The change represents the transformational perspective of the employees’
The anticipatory stage includes all the scenarios that someone paints around their new employer. To make sure that these expectations meet what reality will show, a clear path of communication needs to be established to manage possible negative perceptions created by the discrepancy that the lack of communication brings. (Sjö, 2017, January 18)
2.9.2 Offboarding
Offboarding is increasingly important from a lot of different perspectives because of the generally growing (voluntary) turnover levels, especially in innovation-driven businesses. It requires a clearly defined process that minimizes the chance of the employer neglecting any responsibilities to the employee. Another side is that saying “goodbye” does not necessarily mean saying goodbye forever. After a couple of years in the game, with newly acquired skills, the same person could find that a position sparks their interest, which potentially drives them back to the same company again. (Ödlund., 2018, November 19)
2.10 Socialization process
In accordance with these stages and transitions, The socialization theory (Bauer & Erdogan, 2011) describes the transition from an outsider of an organization becoming part of the same. More specifically it entails the transfer of knowledge, skills, and behaviors that effectively link the individual to the environment within the organization. It is a mutual composition of the newcomer’s attributes and behavior in conjunction with efforts on behalf of the
organization. This is covered all throughout the entry and even the exit point of a company's connection with an employee. Transfer of knowledge is an important consideration in the offboarding as well, as it is the basis of someone else is preboarding and onboarding, where there is a possibility to ensure that the same skills are transferred to the next new hire (Taylor, 2019, April 24).
2.11 Conceptual Framework
The conceptual framework was constructed to explain the lens through which the research/ single case study/ was to be conducted. Based on the already presented theories and in the previously presented literature review, figure 2.0 below represents the connection between these.
The independent variable of turnover was to be explored in relation to the level of investment and engagement during the EVP touchpoints; pre-, on- and off-boarding. As presented prior, the preboarding and onboarding together represent the entry of new employees. The
distinction between the two is the initial confirmation of the employment on behalf of the new employee, and the official entering into the workplace. The offboarding represents the previously explained exit of an employee in a company. The different phases are ordered accordingly in the framework as individual EVP touchpoints, during which the experiences of the employee’s socialization experience is assessed. This dissected the different barriers of the context within each phase to be explored. In other words, it prepared an understanding of the possible outcomes within the processes that were to be described, yet not leading in a way that would enable an objective analysis of the engagement and investment that was studied.
3. Methodology
3.1 Research Design & Strategy
The aim of this study was to research experiences, thus obviously focusing on words rather than on numbers, which is one of the primary distinctions of qualitative data (Bryman & Bell 2013, p.390). The focus to understand the social reality and the choices that the informants make based on that is further something distinctive for qualitative research (Bryman & Bell, p.391), which goes along with why it was employed as a basis of this study. Qualitative research also usually has an emphasis on viewing social reality in process and it is an evolution over time (Bryman & Bell 2013, p.412), which happened to be specifically linked to the scope of this study.
According to Bryman & Bell (2017, p.88) case studies are often preferred with a qualitative method. However, there are five different types of a case study and it is important to be aware that a case study cannot be representative and not give the same results in general (Bryman & Bell, 2017, p.88). This case study type is the representative or typical case, which is studying something that can be a common situation or something that often occurs in organizations (Bryman & Bell, 2017, p.88). More specifically, every company or employer is directly concerned with employee turnover. Thus they are also naturally concerned with the phases of newly hired employees and resigning ones as well. Since our case study is viewing one organization in general, it is therefore a level analysis for organizations (Bryman & Bell, 2017, p.94). This goes along with the focus of studying the different departments and their differences, which make up the company as a whole.
3.2 Collection of Theories
The chosen theoretical concepts have provided a base for the study's collection and analysis of empirical data. Further, they have provided the framework for the predetermined thematic coding of the EVP touchpoints that represent different phases of organizational socialization.
All of the utilized articles are peer-reviewed, with citations to other researchers within the subject. Their age was not a problem, as the subject is still relevant and reconfirmed with complimenting books by renowned professors within the field of employer branding and talent management for instance. Contributing to the quality of the research, this created a clear congruency in the way that the data was to be interpreted through a framework, which was important to fulfill the internal reliability (Bryman & Bell 2013, p.401).
The theory and articles were primarily collected from the databases provided by Malardalen University. And most of the books were also available at the university’s library. The databases were Springerlink, Emerald insight, APA PsycNet. Keywords that were used for the literary review were; Employer Branding, HRM, Modern Career, Organizational
Socialization.
A collection of concepts from reputed actors such as recruiting agencies were also a part of an external analysis which complemented the scope of the study. This helped frame the pre, on and off boarding as concepts.
3.3 Data Collection
Interviews were the natural choice for the collection of primary data, as is usually within qualitative research with regards to the flexibility it provides (Bryman & Bell, 2013, p.473). Specifically semi-structured interviews were conducted, which allowed us to base the
research on specific themes of questions through an interview guide (Bryman & Bell, 2013, p.475) presented in Appendix 1. These themes were conveniently structured according to the different phases of the presented EVP touchpoints, as can be seen in Table 3.0 below. As the phases are individually isolated as the themes of questions, the particular order of these could be deviated from during the interviews (Bryman & Bell, 2013 p.475). Sometimes the answers provided insight through their association with another touchpoint, which provided answers to other questions simultaneously. The informants were also open to reflect in a freer manner, which is something that is important. This enabled the conversation to be more fluent and more exhaustive.
The interviews were conducted through physical meetings with the informants. They were held as the respective informants’ workplaces, with consideration for the familiarity and comfort that provided them Bryman & Bell (2017, p. 419). The choice to conduct them in person was because it is recommended during longer interviews according to Bryman & Bell (2013, p.495). Bryman & Bell (2013, p.484) recommends using a suitable language during the interviews. We decided to do all of the interviews in the native language of the
informants, therefore the interviews were done in Swedish, in this way they could feel more comfortable with answering the questions and we could create a fluent conversation. The translation of the questions was made to Swedish during the interviews, which was not inhibited by any linguistic issues (2013, p.495).
Bryman & Bell (2013, p. 489-490) recommend recording interviews for qualitative methods instead of taking notes, in order for the full attention to be on the informant. This was employed for the same reason, with the informants’ approval to be transcribed. Afterward, the transcription of the interviews was immediately completed. According to Bryman & Bell (2017, p.465) transcription has several positive factors. One of them is that parts that did not get the attention during the interview can be discovered during the transcript that can have a value for the case. The recording also helped facilitate analysis of the data, since it is possible to repeat what the informants have told during the interview (Bryman & Bell, 2017, p.465).
3.4 Operalization
Theme of Questions Associated element in conceptual framework/theory Purpose 1- Introduction & Backgroundn/a Aims to investigate:
- Find out for how long the managers have worked at the company, and thus provide insight into how it might affect their perception of the turnover during their time.
- To provide transparency regarding gender and age contingent variables.
2- Turnover Turnover Aims to investigate:
- Find out the perception of the turnover through the experiences of the
department. This reveals their context and possible engagement.
3-
Preboarding EVP touchpoints
Employee Experience Socialization
Knowledge Transfer
Aims to investigate the engagement & investment by:
- How the managers engage with new hires depending on the window of time before they start and why.
- The turnover in this stage
- If and in what way the socialization may be connected to this stage.
- Consistency in routines and processes Theme 3: Onboarding EVP touchpoints Employee Experience Socialization Knowledge Transfer
Aims to investigate the engagement & investment by:
- Consistency - Integrated Values Theme 4:
Offboarding EVP touchpoints
Employee Experience Socialization theory Knowledge Transfer
Aims to investigate the engagement & investment by: - Consistency - Nurture of relationship - Communication - Integrated Values Theme 5: Perceived Output In All Three Touchpoints
turnover within these EVP touchpoints Employee Experience Socialization theory Knowledge Transfer
Aims to investigate:
- The overall perceived proactivity and awareness of EVP touchpoints through feedback and communication
- If there is a conscious continuous consistency in the processes.
- If what way they perceive the turnover to affect them
Table 3.0 - Operalization
3.5 Secondary data
As the data was collected through a single case study about one organization, the inclusion of secondary data was utilized to further provide transparency regarding the contextual
background of the company and the sample of informants. This included an overview of their organizational chart and the information about the company’s background. The mission
statement and values were also set as a basis for the study to provide more contextual insight into the company as a whole.
3.6 Procedure
The purpose of the study was to research how the level of employee turnover affects the level of engagement and investment in the EVP touchpoints: preboarding, onboarding, and
offboarding. All of these phases represented through the touchpoints are integrated into every individual company. For this reason, the best way to research this relationship was through the evaluation of a single organization. As there was already established contact with the chosen company, the choice was naturally made. Information regarding interview questions was given in advance. It was informally discussed during the initial stages of the study. Later, it was formally presented through email, which was formulated together with the site
manager of the Swedish Unit, where the aim was explained enough to inform the informants. This directly facilitated the access of the informants’ time, which is usually an indirect potential problem in studies (Fisher & Buglear 2010, p. 73), which was solved. Further email contact was conducted to conclude when the interviews were to be set according to their working schedule at the time. All of the seven interviews were held within two days and each interview was around 45-60 minutes. The Informants are presented in Ch.4 in Table 4.1.
3.7 Company background
A multinational company (MNC) with headquarters in the Nordics, served as the basis for the study. As a heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) supplier, the company has mostly operated B2B, with a growing presence in the B2C market. With more than a century-long history, the company has established itself in more than 30 countries, and the organization currently has a sales network covering more than 100 countries, with
approximately 4000 employees. With a matrix-like organizational structure, the different subunits in the respective countries have managers on multiple layers, both national and continental level. The particular country for this case study was Sweden. The focus was on three of their primary sub-units that are integrated as one, is the sales and marketing, production, and the distribution center, where the last two overlap with the supply for the Nordic markets as a whole to different degrees. With an in-depth case study on the
company’s different units engulfing a multitude of departments, there was a variation of personnel responsibility, both white-collar and blue-collar employees. For the time being, the corporation had no official departmental employer branding efforts. However, their officially communicated values on the overall corporate level are “Connect.Build.Inspire.”.
3.7.1 Sample of informants
The case company that was chosen for this study, has a matrix-like structure, with a total of seven overarching departments that engulfed both the Swedish and Nordic or European level operations and market. With considerable access to the informants, there was an inclusion
criterion made in order to maximize the data collected in a more specific way. For this
reason, we chose to frame the eligibility conditions based on the parts of the organization which represents a part of the Sweden operations were the first. The second were managers with subordinates within their division, where the same managers have gained experience of new hires and leaving employees. Thirdly, the sample was grounded on the largest ratio of coverage of the departments within the organization. All of these criteria were simultaneously chosen with the additional aspect of also including as many different departments/units as possible.
To maximize the sample further this meant that we chose all of the three site managers (which includes the site manager for the whole Swedish operations) as they happened to cover most of the company's employees. With regards to two of them being managers without subordinates, while one has subordinates that were acquired during an ongoing organizational change, we can conclude that a high validity was reached within the context of the case study (Bryman & Bell, 2017, p.94). This sample also provided the most balanced inclusion of white and blue collar workers, thus naturally utilizing the most efficient
informants for studying the overall organization as a case. The number of male managers was higher in this case. Out of seven respondents, two were women and four men. However, as a single case study, the focus could not be on the gender of the respondents due to the uneven dispersion of female managers.
3.8 Limitations
As the study was of a qualitative nature, the generalizability that contributes to the quality measures of validity and reliability could not be measured in the same way as it would during a quantitative study (Bryman & Bell, 2013). LeCompte & Goetz (1982 as cited in Bryman & Bell, 2017, p.379) agree that problems can occur with this since the social environment is impossible to freeze. However, as the social environment was to be studied itself, this provided more insight and was thus a legitimate approach.
3.8.1 Trustworthiness
Trustworthiness is something that has been at the forefront of this study. By ensuring that the collected material is relevant to the research question and that the analysis has been handled accordingly, this has been ensured (Trost, 2010, p.135). Being aware of and taking account of ethics throughout the process is equality, something that has contributed to this (Trost, 2010, p.135). Specifically, the anonymity also contributes to the reliability of qualitative research (Saunders et al., 2012, p.231), which has been adhered to in this study.
3.8.2 Ethics
The integrity of the participants should always be at the forefront while managing the data. This pertains to the shape of the questions, as to minimize the potentially harmful questions from the interviewee’s perspective, which also may result in an unwillingness to share their experiences or feel restricted. Being vary of their consent and providing anonymity is crucial in these cases according to Saunders et al., (2012, p.231-232). For these reasons, we
maintained the informant's anonymity, where their names and precise age were not revealed. The company’s values were also no giveaway to the company’s true identity. This was confirmed through a general search on Google, which did not reveal any connections. By providing overall information about the purpose of the study together with the Site Manager, the needed consent through the access could be confirmed (Trost, 2010, p.125). while not compromising their real perceived reality (Trost, 2010, p.125).
4. Informants
In table 4.1 below, the informants are presented. The site refers to the geographical location of their department and where they work. Their current position and for how long they have worked at the company are provided, along with the date of the conducted interviews. Further demographic characteristics are their gender as well as their approximate age, which
represents what decade of life they have entered. In the more specific table 4.2 below, a clarification of what employees the informants are responsible for is presented.
Site Current Position Gender Age
Personnel Responsibility At The Company
Date
1
Marketing Manager Female “40” 6 years 2019-12-19 Product Development Manager Male “40” 2,5 years 2019-12-19 Design & Quotation Manager Male “40” 3 years 2019-12-19 (Swedish) Site Manager Male “40” Almost 3 years 2019-12-19
2
HR Manager Male “50” 3 years and 3 months 2019-12-20 Production Manager
(Site Manager)
Male “50” 7,5 years 2019-12-20 3 Supply Chain Manager
(Site Manager)
Female “30” 5 years 2019-12-20 Table 4.1 - Informants
4.1 Employee type of responsibility and experience
Manager
Responsibility
ELC Stage Experience
Pre / Onboarding Offboarding
Product Development Manager
white-collar white-collar white-collar
Design & Quotation Manager
white-collar white-collar white-collar
(Swedish) Site Manager white- & blue-collar
white-collar white-collar
HR Manager white- & blue-collar
white- & blue-collar white- & blue-collar
Production Manager (Site Manager)
white- & blue-collar
white- & blue-collar white- & blue-collar
Supply Chain Manager (Site Manager)
white- & blue-collar
white- & blue collar blue-collar
Table 4.2 - Informants’ employee type responsibility and experience
5. Results
5.1 The Employee Turnover
Generally, all of the managers painted a picture of the turnover as going through a transitional phase. From a very long period of standstill in many departments, regarding both white and blue-collar roles, there has been a very sudden increase in a very short amount of time. The Site Manager illuminated his perspective by saying that there was practically no turnover until recently while contemplating the history of the company as a whole.
The HR Manager explained: “Many of the people quitting have been at the company for a very long time. Many who quit are very happy with the company as an employer...stating that there is good comradeship, good spirit. That is something that is very clear when interpreting the answers.“
In some instances, it has been instigated by the managers in their respective departments of responsibility. The Design & Quotation Manager explained that his department has had a larger transition the past year as a part of the organizational change he himself has initiated. He explained: “It is a way of renewing and bringing in new competence. What you have to have in mind is that some people have been here for 20 or 30 years, so you have to rejuvenate (competence). It has to be a strategy”. At the same time, he has experienced an employee that had not been at the company for nearly as long as that, that resigned on their own accord. The Supply Chain Manager emphasized that there has been a low turnover on the
white-collar side, with the sudden unexpected death of one employee, while the blue-collar side has had a more constant flow with both instigations and independent resignations. The Production Manager who has worked the longest in the company, elaborated on his experience in different time sequences: “The first period we had a way too low turnover, very little happened, in regards to the workforce, the production workers had an average age of 46-47 approximately...The age group of 55-65 tore that number up… The turnover has somewhat increased, but I would say that we have pretty low staff turnover. Both concerning the blue and the white-collar side. Albeit, it is somewhat more noticeable on the white-collar than on the blue-collar side”. He also added that they try to maintain a balanced treatment of staff, by neither encouraging nor trying to control the turnover. Still, he mentioned a
perspective to that is, that there is an advantage to going from a little older to a little younger workforce, with their natural inclination to technology.
The Product Development Manager has been working for the company the shortest of them all, with a smaller team. He described that he has experienced resignations from someone that had been working for almost 15 years at the company, as well as premature resignations from younger employees who were employed for a shorter notice.
The HR Manager explained that the white-collar employees have had a particularly high turnover within sales consistently, even if the level has been fluctuating a lot. Overall he remarked that the blue-collar has had a generally lower turnover in comparison to the previously mentioned segment, even though it is higher compared to other departments and roles of white-collar workers. In other cases it has been more of a decision on behalf of the
employees themselves, where a lot of experienced white-collar workers have left suddenly, eliminating a crucial key role within the organization and the specific department.
The Marketing Manager revealed that her team had gone from one with very low turnover, to being completely switched out in a very short amount of time. She further emphasized that the lastest former employee in question had built their own knowledge bank through the 27 years that he spent with the company.
Apart from resigning employees that leave the company completely, many of the managers have had employees that have changed roles within the company, which then excluded the process of complete termination. This is why some managers at the company have not gotten experience from completely offboarding either white or blue-collar employees that have left under their responsibility.
5.2 Offboarding
Many of the managers painted a picture of being aware of the somewhat imminent
resignations of certain employees. Their preparedness in this perception in combination with the transfer of knowledge was connected to this in different ways.
The Swedish Site Manager has only really had one prominent resignation that he had sole responsibility for, which was another manager for the sales team. It was a mutual decision, a dialogue between them that he described as the following: “His part of the organization (team) was going to go through a huge change which would require an effort that he realized he would not be able to put in”.
The need for knowledge transfer where the resigning employee is overlapping the new hires’ employment start is something that the Site Manager did not find as necessary in the cases of a resigning manager. Instead, he shared his contrasting views between managers in general and other white-collar workers: “If you are an incoming manager that is about to take over a team of people, I do not want you to be tainted by what the previous manager has done. The smaller processes within the job will be covered eventually. While all other white-collar
employees that work more strictly with processes and sub-processes, do benefit from the direct overlap in the knowledge transfer from the former employee”.
The Supply Chain Manager explained that there have been different reasons for the blue-collar resignations, to which she attributed “99,99%“ of the employee starting their studies or moving to another city. The latter being a reason due to higher commuting costs for the employee. Sometimes it has been more of a surprise and other times it has been due to the goals and the development plan not being fulfilled on behalf of the employees. She described that there is a continuous dialogue through which these particular endings of employment take place eventually.
The Supply Chain Manager described that there is not much knowledge transfer happening in regard to the blue collars, with even being flexible enough to shorten the ending of the employment from one month’s notice to two weeks for instance. While considering the white-collar employees she immediately hypothesized that there would need to be more prepared to manage the transfer of knowledge, and to make sure that it was handled in a proper way to the next person: “Usually you have at least five employees doing the same blue-collar job. In the white-collar case, you had to secure the knowledge and create manuals that they can lean on when they arrive”.
The Marketing Manager explained that it has mostly been very surprising resignations that she was not aware of beforehand in any way. She further described: “Having our (former employees name) quit after such a long time at the company, it is not something you expect”. The Marketing Manager’s approach was to immediately make sure that the resigning
employee starts documenting everything that was within his area of responsibility. By the end of his employment, she had attained a hard drive containing all of his details and processes. There were certain tasks of his that needed immediate attention as well. The solution, in that case, was to have that particular task transferred to another employee at the marketing team instead, for the time being. It would have been ideal if the new employee could overlap with the resigning employee which she revealed was the original plan in mind. However, she did
state that the process was facilitated through the actual employee managing these aspects on their own.
The Production Manager claimed that he had a pretty good feel for his staff, but that it still has held elements of surprise at times. According to him, the way to create a balance is through nurturing a dialogue, in order for the timing of their need to move along to be mutual. He elaborated quite a lot on his experience of the processes of knowledge transfer: “Mainly concerning the white-collar, they usually have a three months’ notice period before they leave us, pertaining to having reached the point where one has gained some experience within our organization. If one has reached that point, then we have more time to make sure to hand over (tasks). To recruit is usually impossible within three months. As you usually are recruiting someone else with the same three months’ notice they are required to stay at their job. So you can forget about that. Then you have to think alright, what tasks does someone else have to take over temporarily. If you happen to have 10 tasks and you are resigning, then you have to hand over them to approximately 7 up to 10 different people, that is usually how we work”. He also put in that they have to make sure if there is any task that can be left resting for the next person to pick up, in which case that is done. For instance, if something has to be completed, daily, weekly, or monthly. In other cases, where the blue collars were concerned, the similarity is in making sure that there is someone, a colleague that can
perform training of the new employee. Another advantage that they have had in that case, was that they annually have a number of summer workers, which they can either keep if needed or contact if an opening is of interest, by which he meant that they already have the competence the company can utilize.
The Design & Quotation Manager expressed that he was surprised in the cases where a talented and loyal colleague was leaving the team. Even so, he understood the motivations of wanting to try something new that the former employee expressed. When it came to the knowledge transfer in his case, he had a clear structure since the knowledge was, in essence, similar to the rest of the team. In practice, it meant that they had already continuously integrated all of the documentation that the leaving employee had done. Besides that, he brought up that the focus was more on nurturing the long relationships with the customers. His solution was to include the new employee in a handover of tasks through overlapping
with the prior employee before they left. “That way the handover is clear and connected”, he said.
The Product Innovation Manager had a different view from the other managers. He explained that since they work more in projects, it is a constant process of completing separate projects. The circumstances during which his former employees have left have therefore been highly important to manage in a way where the continuation of the workflow is managed. The resignations that he has experienced were expected in advance to some extent. However, he has not been able to transition the processes properly through these experiences so far, in regard to handing over a project. There was not much knowledge transfer to be done from his perspective. It was not as easy when it was a rolling project. In general, he also stated that he has not had employees whose competence he deemed more special than others. However, he highlighted that an experienced employee is a resource in itself that is lost.
The HR Manager brought up the ever-growing competition within the business industry as the underlying factors for the high turnover within the sales team. Constant offers being given by their competitors has been a growing trend that has fueled this, he explained.
The HR Manager described the knowledge transfer as complicated: “It is very hard, I would say. The knowledge transfer, how do you work with that?... I am also a boss. I am a boss for the HR assistant, and I am a boss for the payroll. Of course, it is something that needs to be thought about. What do we do when somebody quits? In that respect, we do have a global routine which is called talent management, through which we can make a succession plan where we review what competence we have. At the same time, there are different (sometimes limited) budgets”. He concluded that it is hard to pinpoint as a clear or standardized process, as the different potential new needs of the role at the time of resignations also affect how much they invest in it.
5.3 Preboarding
The usual length of the preboarding period, marking the official acceptance of the
employment until the first planned day, was different depending on what type of employees it had concerned. The white-collar workers’ period across the different departments collectively ranged between approximately two to three months, with a longer period not unusual. In the case of the blue-collar workers, the period was shorter and instead ranged between practically no time at all, to a week, a couple of weeks, and sometimes up to a month.
The general process in this phase was shown to be congruent across most departments in many respects. In the cases of white-collar employees, as soon as the employee had accepted the offer for the role, all managers mentioned that the practicalities of work tools were almost always ready within the timeframe of the preboarding. The Design & Quotation
Manager exemplified this in more detail from the employment contract being signed: “ It
triggers a lot of the processes, like creating an email, and attaining the necessary licenser (for work tools). HR manages this part, and we are very tied to it”. He, along with the Product
Development Manager also pressed that it is important to have foresight in this process, to
avoid having an employee start without the preparation already being resolved and in place. The HR Manager also stated that their ambition is to have it all ready, and also further described that they have an introduction folder. The folder which is both electronic and psychical, has all the generic information outside the regular field of the work, for example, information about sick leave (and other legal aspects of the employment). It also contains contacts and a picture of the Swedish Site Manager. While he continued his description of the process he demarcated the following steps: “Then it is about sitting down with the closest manager to actually review how the process should look in regards to the introduction. And of course, some managers are better at this than others. On the other hand, it is important for the employee to manage his own introduction so to speak. The person has to take their own responsibility, alongside the manager following through with the steps attentively. It is important to follow up on this process as well.”
Keeping in contact with the new hire is something managers have been doing to varying degrees. The Product Development Manager has only kept limited contact until the starting date is approaching. He explained that there is not much to do or discuss in this phase. The Marketing Manager said that she does follow up on the person, even if this is not something she has done very often. It mostly happens around a week or so before to make sure the new employee feels safe, and in her own words: “Knows where, when and how someone will be received and by whom”. The Supply chain manager similarly explained her commitment in this way, utilizing almost the exact same words in regards to the weeks before the employee has arrived. The Production manager described that he usually keeps consistent continuous contact once every month and a week or so before the employees are about to start. The Design & Quotation manager said that he keeps in contact and tries to encourage team building in this stage by starting the introduction and including the
employees immediately in meeting the colleagues as well. This is something he has done recently. He highlighted that making it official (to the other employees and the field of business) in this stage is a strategic point.
There was some pretty recent turnover in this stage within the last year, where one new hire was to be starting in a couple of months for a new role that needed to be filled as a part of the firm's expansion. It was a role primarily to be managed under the Swedish Site Manager’s responsibility. In combination with his own statement that he has kept in contact with the new hires throughout the preboarding regarding practical work tools - he also pressed on the actual scheduling of the introduction through meeting people, to keep the process going. In his own words: “ I realized it is important. When I recruited someone before the summer, he actually declined right before he was about to start.” He also added that the person wanted to wait to make his role officially known within the business industry, which he agreed to postpone. However, he later realized that it was a hint that he had a bad feeling about it.
5.4 Onboarding
The HR Manager explained that the framework for the introduction is like a checklist that everyone should follow. He further explained that there are more detailed instructions for the blue-collar workers than the white-collar workers. Something else he stated is that there is more responsibility on the employee to actually schedule in the meetings with colleagues that
the new employee will come into contact with besides only his immediate team. There are also increasing follow up meetings that should be tended to, from the first week, first month, three months, and beyond that. He elaborated that the knowledge transfer is not black or white. It depends on the person being completely inexperienced or already having their experience as a foundation. He explained that this process needs adjustments: “You need a continuous follow up with regards to there being a lot of question marks. It is perhaps not that defined per se”.
The general values that they have did not spark an immediate answer from the HR Manager either. He struggled with measuring their integration in these processes. In his own words, he pondered: “We all want it to work, in having clear communication, being nice towards each other, and treating each other with respect and providing feedback...but our values are not any different from any other workplace”. He concludes that he feels that it is really hard to say that the values are a part of the introduction process - that they are hard to grasp in relation to each other. Even while trying to imagine if they could be able to integrate them closer, he further could not see in what way that would be possible at this time.
Among all of the departments and sites, there seemed to be a general idea of “ the first two weeks” as a basis for the length of the onboarding, with a primary focus on activities and meeting colleagues. It is described and defined in different ways among the managers. The
Swedish Site Manager stated that his general perception of the introductory two weeks is
that they are too intense with meeting people before you start producing any work. This is a view that he based solely on his own opinion. However, in regard to a recent new
white-collar role, he mentioned that he wanted the new hires’ network to be even broader. On the other hand, he pressed on that it is very hard to get the activities and meetings booked in afterward. This is an opinion that the Production Manager shared: “After two weeks have gone by, the employee is already being put into work”.
The Supply Chain Manager was very clear with her priority of onboarding:“ I have a philosophy that the more prepared you are for an employee to start at the company, the better and quicker the person enters the organization and into their tasks”. She further described what that entailed in the case of the blue-collar workers, where there was always one person
responsible for the knowledge transfer: “We also created a pretty detailed introduction program, where we had broken down all the steps of the tasks...the time frame for when the new hire was to be introduced to each part, and who was to be responsible for the knowledge transfer. We also added in follow up meetings, to continuously make sure if everything had gone well and if we needed any revisions and so on”. Overall her team has had the two weeks with a lot of activities, and then two months with a detailed plan over what the employee needs to learn. She concluded the function of the process by: “It provides safety both for the coworker and for me as a manager...Also for the supervisor, to have a foundation to lean on. It is equally important to have followed up meetings. That is something we always do, whether blue-collar or white-collar, to get feedback from the supervisor and the coworker”.
The Design & Quotation Manager also pressed on sitting closely with the other colleagues as an elemental part of his both to encourage the feeling of a team and individual
relationships between the colleagues. He explained that he usually followed a schedule or checklist that represents two weeks of official introduction. However, in regards to new members seated in a remote city, he claimed that it could perhaps be up to two months if needed. This was only speculated about and not confirmed as a set plan.
The Marketing Manager expressed that her team of members has all been introduced in
indirect ways. One has been a trainee, having passed through a structured program stretching for two years before landing in her department by the end of that term. Another one started as a consultant that slowly took over tasks. It all happened in a spontaneous and rather
unplanned manner. She described that these employees had sneaked their way in and that the responsibility was not directly on her to create their introduction and to talk to them about it. When the newest addition came to the team recently, she admitted that she did not manage to have a proper introduction. Instead, the new employee was thrown into their tasks almost immediately. She expressed that she thought that other departments, exemplifying the sales team, we are a lot better than her at managing the introduction. She believed the reason has been that she is more operative than her other fellow managers: “I work a lot in production with my staff because we will not manage to keep up with the tasks otherwise. That is my reason for not prioritizing the introduction as much in comparison. Maybe it is wrong of me.
Still, it has no meaning for the company whether we do so in the long-run or not. However, for the new hire, it is very important in the short-term to have a proper introduction”. She claimed that the employee will eventually learn how everything fits together, even if it would help to have everything clear sooner. As the company is large and international, the strategies all the way from HQ and the communicational pathways that are not always clear enough. The Production Manager expressed that it would be good for the onboarding and the
knowledge transfer to be connected to the offboarding, but that it is not possible because. The reason was yet again the commonplace three months’ notice period that intermediates and often intervenes between the white-collars transitioning the resigning and new employees into onboarding. It was very rare in these cases that overlapping of the former employee and the new hire is actualized. There were different opinions regarding this potential overlap between the resigning employee and the new hire. Many managers considered it a vital part of an effective transition. In some cases, the overlap is not even a considered question of perceived necessity.
5.5 Perceived Output In All Three Touchpoints
On the question about their own perception of the turnovers’ potential influence on the engagement and investment in these processes, the Site Manager's concluded: “Lately it has brought the realization that we want to do a good onboarding and introduction”. He also elaborated on why they are working on the exit process more consistently and thinking about how to improve it further, as they do not want the company's future to be filled with
unenthusiastic people. Along with that, he indicates that the deregulations of the previously mandatory authorizations on the European level speed up the confirmation for recruitment. He concluded that this has linked the processes needed to work more fluently together. The Product Development Manager described his perception with him believing that HR should handle the most part of these processes, as it has worked for him currently. He
explained that he leans on the standard through the control documents but naturally manages the onboarding function on his own according to what he sees fit. He does not feel that the values affect them at all, that it is mostly common sense.
The Production Manager perceived it to be easier to be more engaged if the turnover is lower. He stated that: “Depending on the size of your team, you could manage these multiple processes parallel if there is high turnover. Still, a high turnover demands that you get better at a faster introduction of the new hire into their role and making it work. If we have a low turnover, then we usually invest more time – which might be better ultimately, while also lowering the turnover in the long run”.
While contemplating his experiences and the approach he has used in the onboarding, there were a few specific elements that he emphasized. Firstly he noted that at least a congruent foundation for the whole company would provide more structure. Secondly, he mentioned that aspects of the pre and onboarding can be adapted more with involvement from the manager. He explained it as “...Putting your own personality into it. For instance, adding a flower even if it is not the commonplace thing to do”. Another insight was: “The more experience you gain in introducing people, the more attentive you are towards what can be better of course”.
While reviewing the other processes he continued his contemplations in the same manner: “The more people that quit, the more you realize that it is important to keep the knowledge within the company. This applies in part when someone resigns, but also relates to a
continuous aim of trying to spread the knowledge under periods where no one resigns so that only one employee holds a certain knowledge. On the other hand, people become experts at doing what they do, but at least have a small knowledge transfer continuously.” He realized that it is a tedious and demanding task of course. Especially when there is a lot to do.
Everything can not be learned, but if the first steps have been taken, then a hand over is easier when it is needed”.
Regarding the storage of knowledge in general, the Production Manager admitted that there is inevitably a gap in the instructions and the routines that describe the processes. “Some parts are not very well described in full detail, but they are rather along general lines”. He states that it can always be done in a better way, and be more elaborate, which is also an unending task in itself. In practice, these instructions are updated sporadically, according to
