Factors Affecting Employee’s Perception on Job Satisfaction: Case of United States International University (USIU)

A Project Report Submitted to the Chandaria School of Business in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirement for the Degree of Executive Masters of Organizational Development (EMOD)Effectiveness in United States International University (USIU) in Nairobi campus – Kasarani is critical amidst the competing needs in the university sector. The growing numbers of private and public universities in Kenya and the shifting paradigm to regionalization have necessitated need for USIU to reposition themselves if their operations are to remain sustainable. In the past USIU has been slow in taking up initiatives of job satisfaction of employees. This is because there was a high turnover like three to five years back and the main reason of these employees were job dissatisfaction. This study sought to establish the factors that affect employee’s perception on job satisfaction in USIU. Specifically the study assessed the effect of employee’s perception of personal factors, social factors, and organizational factors on job satisfaction. The research design was descriptive in nature, across-sectional survey based on selection of elements regarding the population of interest and presented in frequency and percentage distributions. The dependent variable of the study was job satisfaction, while the independent variables of the study were personal factors, social factors, and organizational factors. The population in this study comprised 365 full time employees (both academic and administrative). A sample of 79 full time employees was targeted to represent the population of interest. The sampling technique used consisted of a non-probability sampling technique that was purposive sampling based on the population of interest. Questionnaires were through a pilot testing process and thereafter were distributed to 79 full time employees. The data was coded and entered in Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS), and analyzed via descriptive statistics then presented in tables for clarity and ease of understanding. About the effect of personal factors on job satisfaction, this study found that 68.6% of the respondents agreed that their perception on affective disposition determined their job satisfaction; 25.6% of the respondents agreed that their perception on the genetic disposition determined there job satisfaction; and 91.0% of the respondents agreed that their perception on core self-evaluation determined their job satisfaction. In regards to the effect of social factors on job satisfaction, the major findings of the study was that majority of the respondents, 86.5% agreed to the fact that their perception on supervisor and co-worker relationship determined job satisfaction; 57.7% agreed that their perception on the role variables determined job satisfaction; and 96.2% strongly agreed that their perception on the organizational justice determined job satisfaction. In the relation to the effect of organizational factors on job satisfaction, majority of the respondents, 93.6% agreed to the fact that their perception on money as an organizational reward determine job satisfaction; 80.8% agreed that their perception on recognition as an organizational reward determine job satisfaction; 38.5% agreed that their perception on benefit as an organizational reward determine job satisfaction; and 87.2% agreed that their perception on promotion as an organizational reward determine job satisfaction. With respect to personal factors and job satisfaction, this study concluded that employees with strategic management styles were more characterized by conscientiousness and openness to experience, while those with strong interpersonal management styles were most characterized by extraversion, agreeableness, and high emotional stability. Thus, all Big Five traits should be given attention in the study and application of organizational behavior. In addition, social factors and job satisfaction, the study concluded that job satisfaction is affected by the demographic similarity between supervisors and subordinates by the way in which supervisors assign tasks, the extent to which subordinates and supervisors like and respect each other, and the role of fairness in the workplace. And final, In regard to the organizational factors and its effect on job satisfaction, the research study concluded that organizational reward system must be as objective and as fair as possible and be administered contingently on the employee’s exhibiting critical performance behaviors. Thus, employees should be rewarded in accordance to their contribution in the achievement of organization goal and observation. The study made several recommendations among them that employer (USIU) ought to give attention to all Big Five traits in the study and application of organizational behavior. It also recommended that USIU human resource department should propose organizational restructuring that influences the natures of interactions at work which affect coworker relationships and which in turn affect job satisfaction. It further recommended that USIU should go through a trial-and-error approach before they settle into unique reward systems that works best for their full-time employees