Faculty Perceptions Of Alignment Ofadministrative Practices With A University Missionutilizing A Hospitality Model

The purpose of this study was to explore the perceptions of a university\u27s faculty as to how the strategies, staffing policies, and systems procedures were aligned with the mission statement. Differences in perceptions were examined by college affiliation, rank, primary teaching assignment and gender. Data were analyzed to determine if there were correlations between faculty members\u27 perceptions of alignment of the university\u27s mission statement with administration\u27s actions, policies, and procedures and their level of organizational commitment, job satisfaction, and overall satisfaction with their job and the organization The population for this study was comprised initially of 1363 teaching faculty members of the University of Central with more than one year of service and reduced to 1285 who were determined to meet the criteria for inclusion. The 67-item survey instrument used in this study was developed and copyrighted by Dr. Robert C. Ford (Ford et al, 2006), and was administered during January and February 2006 A total of 297 usable responses (23.1%) were returned. An analysis of all responses indicated that there was a wide disparity in perceptions and that respondents did not believe that there was a strong alignment of mission with administrative practices, policies, and procedures. This confirmed an earlier finding as to the importance of perception (Dickson, Ford, & Upchurch, 2006, Ford et al., 2006). Significant differences in faculty perceptions by college affiliation, university rank, and primary teaching assignment were identified. Significant differences based on gender were minimal. The correlations of items representing level of organizational commitment were highly correlated. Items representing job satisfaction and overall satisfaction with their job and the organization were moderately intercorrelated, and the interrelationship was not strong