The Impact of Employee Motivation on Service Quality. A case study on Tesco

Étude de cas , 2019 , 72 Pages , Note: A

Gestion des ressources humaines - Motivation des employés

The main objective of this paper is to investigate the impact of employee motivation on service quality in organisations. This study mainly focused on Britain’s leading retail organisation: Tesco. Researcher has used both primary and secondary sources of data. Data for this research was collected through questionnaire survey from staff members and potential customers of Tesco. The research data was analysed using statistical software so that the impact of employee motivation on service quality could be examined. In this study, the researcher has used two variables. Employee motivation is the independent variable, while service quality is the dependent variable. Researcher divided the questionnaire into two components, in which the first part was filled by 50 potential customers of Tesco, while the other half was filled by 50 staff members of Tesco.

The study has used frequency distribution as the statistical technique to determine the individual result of each question of the survey. The hypothesis of the study was tested by using linear regression statistical technique because the major aim of this research was to analyse the impact of employee motivation on service quality. The result of this study indicates that employee motivation positively impacts the service quality of the organisation. Similarly, employee motivation leads to customer satisfaction. This suggests that if employees are motivated, this will eventually increases the quality of services provided by the organisation and thus, it will enhances the overall performance of the firm.

Table of Contents

Abstract

CHAPTER 1 – INTRODUCTION
1.1. Background of Research
1.2. Problem Identification
1.3. Significance of the Study
1.4. Research Aims and Objectives
1.5. Research Question(s)
1.6. Definitions of Terms
1.6.1. Employee Motivation
1.6.2. Service Quality
1.7. Research Outline

CHAPTER 2 – LITERATURE REVIEW
2.1. Employee Motivation
2.2. Service Quality
2.3. Perceived Service Quality and Customer Satisfaction
2.4. Employee Motivation and Service Quality
2.5. Conceptual Framework

CHAPTER 3 – METHODOLOGY
3.1. Research Design
3.2. Research Philosophy
3.3. Research Approach
3.4. Data Collection
3.4.1. Primary Data
3.4.2. Secondary Data
3.5. Sample Size
3.6. Sampling Method
3.7. Data Analysis Method
3.8. Reliability and Validity
3.9. Ethical Considerations

CHAPTER 4 – THE DATA ANALYSIS SECTION
4.1. Analysing Results using Quantitative Data
4.1.1 Frequency Distribution
Section 1 – Perceived Service Quality
Section 2 – Perceived Employee Motivation
4.1.2. Regression Analysis
4.2. Analysis of Hypothesis

CHAPTER 5 – DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION
5.1. Discussion
5.2. Conclusion
5.3. Recommendations

References

Appendices
A- Questionnaire for Service Quality
B- Questionnaire for Employee Motivation

Abstract

The main objective of this paper is to investigate the impact of employee motivation on service quality in organisations. This study mainly focused on Britain’s leading retail organisation: Tesco. Researcher has used both primary and secondary sources of data. Data for this research was collected through questionnaire survey from staff members and potential customers of Tesco. The research data was analysed using statistical software so that the impact of employee motivation on service quality could be examined. In this study, the researcher has used two variables. Employee motivation is the independent variable, while service quality is the dependent variable. Researcher divided the questionnaire into two components, in which the first part was filled by 50 potential customers of Tesco, while the other half was filled by 50 staff members of Tesco. The study has used frequency distribution as the statistical technique to determine the individual result of each question of the survey. The hypothesis of the study was tested by using linear regression statistical technique because the major aim of this research was to analyse the impact of employee motivation on service quality. The result of this study indicates that employee motivation positively impacts the service quality of the organisation. Similarly, employee motivation leads to customer satisfaction. This suggests that if employees are motivated, this will eventually increases the quality of services provided by the organisation and thus, it will enhances the overall performance of the firm.

KEYWORDS: Motivation, Employee Motivation, Service Quality, Customer Satisfaction

List of Tables

Table 1-Technological Services

Table 2 – Commitment

Table 3- Right Services

Table 4 – Quick and Timely Response

Table 5- Up-to-date Material and Equipment

Table 6– Accuracy

Table 7- Ease in Communication

Table 8 – Consistency and Affordability

Table 9 – Salary Increment

Table 10 – Financial Incentives

Table 11– Creativity at Work

Table 12 – Recognition

Table 13 – Job Satisfaction

Table 14 – Advancement Opportunities

Table 15 – Relationship at Work

Table 16 – Support

Table 17 – Model Summary of Employee Motivation and Dependent Variable (Service Quality)

Table 18 – Coefficient of Employee Motivation and Dependent Variable (Service Quality)

List of Figures

Figure 1-Technological Services

Figure 2 – Commitment

Figure 3 - Right Services

Figure 4 – Quick and Timely Response

Figure 5– Up-to-date Material and Equipment

Figure 6 - Accuracy

Figure 7 – Ease in Communication

Figure 8 – Consistency and Affordability

Figure 9 – Salary Increment

Figure 10 – Financial Incentives

Figure 11 – Creativity at Work

Figure 12 – Recognition

Figure 13 – Job Satisfaction

Figure 14 – Advancement Opportunities

Figure 15 – Relationship at Work

Figure 16 – Support

CHAPTER 1 – INTRODUCTION

Employees are the most important factor in the success and failure of any organisation. it is the employee who plays a significant role in satisfying a customer’s need by providing quality services. As this research aims to critically investigate the research topic which is stated as ‘the impact of employee motivation on service quality’, the introductory chapter provides the overview of the study by highlighting the different aspects of this study. This chapter highlights the background of research, identification of problem, the aims and objectives as well as research questions and research methodology. The chapter also highlights the significance of the study, and provides definitions of all the key terms to build an appropriate understanding of the study.

1.1. Background of Research

According to Burke and Ng (2006), it is highly challenging for an organisation to manage a diversified workforce. There is a huge impact of globalisation on corporate business world. Due to globalisation, diverse and multi-cultural workforces are imposed in the organisations (p. 86-94). According to Banfield and Key (2008) human resource development is an essential part of any organisation because it contributes to growth and economic development of business enterprises (p. 125). It is the efficient and smart mix of human resource which satisfies the customers.

Over the years, it was considered that organisational goals and objectives are achieved by a mix of skilled and expert workforce members. Indeed, a skilled worker is a requirement of every organisation; however, motivation and satisfaction plays an important part in retaining an employee in the organisation. Similarly, it plays an important part of making an employee work passionately. According to Aziri (2011), it is the satisfied worker who shows the maximum effectiveness and efficiency in his/her work. Their satisfaction level represents a combination of positive and negative feelings of employees towards their job and it is closely linked with the behaviour of individual in the organisation (p. 78). Similarly, according to Hays and Hill (2001), employee motivation and service quality are directly proportional to each other. It means: higher the level of employee motivation, higher will be the service quality of the firm (p. 335). In addition to this, Hays and Hill (2001), stated that employees who are highly motivated are more likely to contribute a good contribute effort to achieve organisational goals and objectives as compared to those employees who are moderately motivated (p. 440). Moreover, Griffin and Moorhead (2011) has highlighted the importance of employee motivation in both production and service processes (p. 320).

Keeping in focus the importance of employee motivation and its relation with service quality; this research will investigate and analyse consequence of employee motivation on service quality at Brittan’s leading retail store: Tesco.

1.2. Problem Identification

The reason behind the success of any organisation is their workforce members. Employees only perform well when their confidence level and morale and highly increased. When a person feels highly motivated with their job, they take active part in contributing passionately to the success of organisation. Motivation is the force which drives an individual to work hard with full of passion in order to achieve the desired goal. Every organisation can attain its desired goal and objectives through its people, therefore, it is highly important to encourage the workforce members and appreciate their efforts. Similarly, service quality is an important aspect of any organisation. It is highly correlated with customer satisfaction. Since, customer is considered as the king; therefore, today, organisations make maximum efforts to satisfy the needs and wants of their customers.

In the year 2012, a survey was conducted at Tesco which showed that the behavioural issues of employees with the customers are negatively affecting the company’s performance. since, service quality is highly correlated with customer satisfaction, and maintaining and enhancing service quality is the essential aim of every organisation (Kang & James, 2004, p. 265); therefore, the management took the initiative and motivate the staff members especially who are associated with customer services and empowered the employees. These changes brought very fruitful results for the company as the quality of services increased and also the satisfaction level of the customers also increased. However, employee motivation and service quality is a vast context, therefore, this study conducted to critically analyse the impact of employee motivation on Tesco’s service quality and how the company can motivate their employees for better service qualities to the customers.

1.3. Significance of the Study

This study has special significance as it has aimed to investigate the impact of employee motivation on service quality. Efficient and effective employees are the requirement of every organisation. Similarly, satisfying customers by providing them quality services is another major essential requirement of any organisation. to satisfy the customers, organisations focuses on providing delivering them the best quality services. According to Manzoor (2012), employees play a vital role in delivering quality services to the customer, it is the employee who represents the organisation and delivers the service on the behalf of organisation (p. 3). there are so many factors associated with the service delivery process which affects the level service quality and customer satisfaction. Therefore, organisation’s today, keep a keen focus to ensure that the employee’s are working passionately to provide greater customer satisfaction. Similarly, to make an employee work passionately, it is important to motivate them. Motivation plays an important role in making an employee work in the most efficient manner. Therefore, this study has not only emphasised on the impact of employee motivation in the organisation, but has also focused on the importance of employee motivation to provide service quality and how employee motivation can help an organisation to maximise their service quality.

1.4. Research Aims and Objectives

The aims and objectives of a study provide researcher with a clear picture of what particular issue needs to be investigated in the research. As the purpose of this study revolves around the impact of employee motivation on organisation’s service quality, the major research aim of this study is to find the impact that motivation on employee’s performance and how it leads to provide enhanced quality services to customers at retail organisations. To achieve this aim, the researcher has also designed some research objectives for this study which are described as follows:

- To analyse the factors that influence employee motivation
- To analyse the critical factors which influence service quality
- To analyse the impact of employee motivation on service quality
- To provide recommendations to Tesco to improve employee motivation and the service quality

1.5. Research Question(s)

A research question provides researcher with an answerable inquiry into a particular issue or concern. It provides an initial framework in the study that guides what is going to be studied in the research. With respect to this study, the specific research question is ‘How employee motivation impacts the service quality in any organisation?’ On the other hand, some secondary research questions were also designed by researcher which is stated below:

- What are the strategic objectives of organisations to execute employee motivation?
- How employee motivation increases the quality of services?
- What are the different factors that will help to motivate people for better service qualities to the customers?
- What are the potential effects of employee motivation on customer satisfaction?
- What is the relationship between employee motivation and service quality?

1.6. Definitions of Terms

The essential foundation of this research was based on an understanding of the terms used by the researcher in presenting the information and drawing sound conclusions. The terms used throughout this exercise have unique purposes and help to give clarity to the ideas and findings that strengthen the understandings derived from the issues discussed before, during, and after the research was conducted. These terms served to give clarity to the ideas presented. Each definition helped to keep the reader connected to the different facets of the discussion on inclusion practices. For the purpose of this study, the following terms and definitions were used:

1.6.1. Employee Motivation

Motivation is the factor which persuades an employee to do their best work even in the strenuous circumstances. Employee motivation is one of the schemes of organisation’s to enhance the effectual job management amongst employees. Motivated employees are constantly looking for opportunities to perform (Manzoor, 2012, p. 5).; therefore, it is essential for organisations to persuade motivation of employees.

1.6.2. Service Quality

Service quality is a multi-dimensional phenomenon. According to Edvardsson (2005) activities, deeds, processes and interactions are associated with the service (p. 129). In contrast to this, Mosahab, Mahamad and Ramayah (2010) defines providing the most appropriate solution to the customer and satisfying their needs (p. 73). It can be concluded that service quality is linked to activities, interactions and customer problems and satisfaction.

1.7. Research Outline

This research has been organised in six key chapters. The route map and significance of each chapter is discussed below:

- Chapter 1 - Introduction: This part offers an in-depth overview of the study. In this chapter, the background of the research ha sbeen discussed which is followed by the research problem statement. The aims and objectives are also disucssed in this chapter, which are followed by the research questions.
- Chapter 2 - Literature Review: in this chapter, researcher has discused, examined and evaluated the past work of the researchers to build a conceptual framework. Researcher has done an indepth analysis on the key variables and situation of the study. Researcher has developed a theoretical framework of the study by focusing on already published literature of researchers. Through the use of secondary data, major concepts and frameworks are discussed in this part that gives foundation to conduct this research.
- Chapter 3 - Methodology: This chapter gives thorough understanding of the research methods that the study employed to gather data. This part describes research design, methods of data collection, sample size, method of data analysis that this study has used. Conclusively, this part overviews different research methods that researcher have utilised to conduct study
- Chapter 4 – Data Analysis: This chapter analyses the collected data and presents it in the form of tables and figures. Researcher transforms the raw data into final product to determine the outcome of the study. This is the most important of the research. In this chapter, the researcher provides understanding of the overall research by giving deep analysis of the study. The analysis follows the results of this study.
- Chapter 5 – Discussion and Conclusion: This is the fifth and the last part of dissertation. In this chapter, the researcher discusses the results that have been analysed in chapter 4. The researcher also provides his opinions and ideas after the results have been analysed. Researcher also offers conclusion of study findings that were analysed in previous chapter. The conclusion part is followed byappropriate recommendations to future researcher.

CHAPTER 2 – LITERATURE REVIEW

This chapter presents the critical and in-depth evaluation of previous researches which will include. The chapter highlights the synopsis and summary of the research area that has provided the reason to conduct this study. This chapter thoroughly includes current knowledge using substantial findings in addition to the methodological and theoretical contributions to the research topic by reviewing secondary sources.

2.1. Employee Motivation

Motivation is the inner drive that pushes an individual to perform. Researchers have identified various factors influencing motivation (Mawoli & Babandako, 2011, p. 1). It means there are so many factors which can motivate an employee to work passionately. According to Harder (2008), employee motivation is the psychological process which causes the arousal, direction, intensity and persistence in an individual’s behaviour (p. 5). In contrast to this, Rainlall (2004) defined employee motivation as the degree to exert high levels of effort toward achieving organisational goals and objectives, conditioned by the individual’s satisfaction level (p. 22). Similarly, it can be said that employee motivation is the force that pushes an individual to put in the right efforts that are required to achieve organisational goals and objectives.

Usually a reward is considered as a mean to motivate employees in an organisation. Rewards are particularly intended to encourage workers to perform their tasks and attain their goals efficiently and effectively. The employee rewards systems consist of arrangements in the forms of practices, processes, procedures and structures that will provide as well as uphold suitable pay levels and pay types, benefits and further types of rewards. In an organisation, the reward system consisted of financial rewards such as variable and fixed pay, and benefits for workers that comprise total compensation together (Chiang & Birtch, 2012, p. 538-540). Similarly, increment in salary is also the best motivator for employees. for example: there are policies are organisations that if a employees achieve 100% of their target every month, there will be a five percent increment in their salary in the next six months (Rynes, Gerhart & Minette, 2004, p. 381-385). Additionally, the reward systems also consist of non-financial rewards such as praise, recognition, personal growth and achievement, and also include the processes of performance management (Armstrong, 2002, p. 211).

According to Griffin and Moorhead (2011), motivation is a complex phenomenon because there are so many factors and forces which influence the level of satisfaction in employees and which makes them to work passionately in an organisation (p. 340). Similarly, according to Devadass (2011) the idea of motivation is associated with something which puts an individual to action, as well as continues him in the course of action that has been already initiated (p. 5). In contrast to this, Dörnyei and Ushioda (2013), argue that motivated employees are likely to utilise much effort to perform a job other than those who are not enough motivated (p. 21). Moreover, Nuttin (2014) stated that tradtionally, motivation thought only to be in terms of monetary concept; however, during the 20th century that, management recongnises more drivers to consider other than just money to motivate employees (n.d.). According to his point-of-view, employee satisfaction is a significant indicator for an effective employee performance at work. Research also suggests that motivation is one of the psychological factors and is influenced by the health and mental attitude of workers. Therefore, with the purpose of being motivated, an individual requires to fulfil his certain basic needs. If those needs are missing, the self-esteem and self-actialisation of a person cannot be developed (Petri & Govern, 2012; Schunk & Zimmerman, 2012). A survey was conducted by CIPD on the wellbeing of employees, the outcome rveals that HR manager fails to propose and implement effective reward strategies in the organisation(CIPD, 2005). In contrast to this, researchers has analysed the survey conducted by CIPD, and according to them, supervisor who fails to increase and stimulate individuals' performance whom they administer (Khan, Farooq and Ullah, 2010, p. 40).

According to Viorel, Aurel, Virgil and Stefania (2009) content theories of motivation depends of the needs of an employee (p. 325). It has been described in a research how and why the needs of an individual changes with the passage of time and what factors motivates them the best (Martha & Herbert, 2013, p. 3931). Similarly, with regards to motivation, Abraham Maslow was the first one who has identified and categorised the motivational needs and factors in an individual. According to Maslow, the hierarchy of needs consisted of five needs which are physiological needs, safety needs, social needs, self-esteem needs and self-actualisation needs (Viorel et al, 2009, p. 324). However, according to Fredrick Herzberg’s two-factor theory, there exist various factors in the organisation that tend to cause job satisfaction and also there are some factors that cause job dissatisfaction. A survey was conducted related to motivation to work. The researchers have interviewed almost 200 engineers as well as accountants working in the same industry. The result stated that besides motivators, hygiene factors are critical for the employee to experience but do not merely encourage them to work (Dartey-Baah & Amoako, 2011, pp. 1-4). Therefore, it can be said that, employee motivation depends on internal as well as external factors and organisations must focus on all these factors to make the employees work passionately.

2.2. Service Quality

Service conceptualisation is one of the most controversial and debated topics in service and marketing literature. Service quality is associated with the factors linked while delivering a service to the customer. According to Voss, Roth, Rosenzweig, Blackmon and Chase (2004) service quality is the comparison between the expected with the actual. Every service provider aims to deliver the best quality in all their services, because it gives a competitive edge to the company (p. 205-106). It means quality service helps an organisation to achieve competitive advantage over other firms. Similarly, Mosahab et al (2010) stated that quality services have the potential to increase economic competitiveness of a firm. Service quality mainly focuses on the operational process of the organisation (p. 75-76).

Moreover, Kang and James (2004) argue it is the attribute of a firm to quickly identify the problem and systematically make efforts to overcome the situation (p. 268). In contrast to this, Oh (1999) stated that service quality is highly associated with the potential of a service, processes include in the service and the outcome of a service (p. 69). It may include the pre and post behaviour of the service. For example: quick delivery time and customer satisfaction is one of the major attribute of a quality service. Today, almost every industry focuses on service quality because of the increase in competition in the business environment and corporate world. Research suggests that customer’s expectation is rarely concerned with a single aspect of the service. It means there are so many factors and determinants associated to meet the expectation level of customer. There is a concept of Total Quality Management in service industry. It is a system to make sure that quality is never compromised at any stage of business process. It manages all the customs throughout the business to ensure that the firm is meeting or exceeding the needs and demands of customers (Eker & Pala, 2008, p. 43-44).

A study has provided a list of ten major drivers of quality services which includes: communication, competency, understanding, courtesy, credibility, responsiveness, security, reliability, accuracy and accessibility (Johnston, 1995, p. 54). According to their research these are the main drivers of service quality to achieve the maximum level of customer’s expectation. In contrast to this, Sureshchandar, Rajendran and Kamalanabhan (2001) suggested that attitude, tangibility, knowledge and skills of organisation’s staff are the core elements of a good service (p. 112). Similarly, Kang & James (2004) stated that service quality is strongly linked with the perception of customer. According to them, customer’s perception of the service is divided into two segments: technical quality and functional quality (p. 268) . The technical quality is the main essence of the service; however the functional quality is related with the whole process through which service is delivered. Overall, service quality is a term which mean to provide efficiency in the delivering the best service.

2.3. Perceived Service Quality and Customer Satisfaction

In the past few years, the relationships between service quality and customer satisfaction has received a considerable amount of academic attention; however, the nature of these two concepts is still shrouded with uncertainty (Sureshchandar, Rajendran & Anantharaman, 2002, p. 364). Since service quality is the comparison between the expected and the actual, it is linked with expected and actual perceived service quality from a customer’s point-of-view. Oh (1999) has proposed a model framework which interlinks service quality with customer value and customer satisfaction. He conducted a study using a sample from luxury hotel industry, the results revealed that a customer’s buying behaviour and satisfaction level totally holistically depends upon the quality of a service (p. 67-69). Similarly, according to the research conducted by Sureshchandar et al (2002), it was revealed that that these two constructs are independent but are closely related to each other. Similarly, they are directly proportional to each other (p. 364) it means if there is an increase in service quality, customer satisfaction is also likely to increase and vice versa.

According to Yap and Kew (2007) customer satisfaction and quality are the global issues that affect all the business operations of a firm. Satisfying the needs and demands of a customer is highly important, because it is the customer who by which a business generates profits and revenues (p. 59-60). Similarly, it is the customer who spreads a positive word-of-mouth about the firm. Since there is a huge amount of fierce competition in the industry, every modern organisation focuses on maintaining their service quality in order to provide customer satisfaction. According to Voss et al (2004), delivering excellent service quality is widely recognised as a critical business requirement (p. 213). Similarly, Rosen, Karwan and Scribner (2003) stated that providing quality service is not just a corporate offering, but it helps an organisation to achieve competitive advantage in the industry (p. 5). It can be said that excellent service acts as a competitive weapon for a firm.

In contrast to this phenomenon, customer satisfaction has been examined by many researchers in different industries, and it has been revealed that service quality is most likely to influence the satisfaction level of a customer. Since, customer satisfaction is defined as an individual’s feeling of pleasure or disappointment resulting from comparing a product/service’s perceived outcome in relation to their expectations (Lovelock, Patterson & Walker, 2001, n.d.). Therefore, it can be said that service quality is highly correlated with customer satisfaction. As discussed above, there are so many dimensions of service quality (Johnston, 1995, p. 54; Sureshchandar et al, 2001, p. 112); however, according to Yap and Kew (2007), customer satisfaction can be achieved from any dimension of service quality (p. 62). Similar studies have also reported a positive relationship between these two constructs (Kang, Okamoto & Donovan, 2004, p. 198). Similarly, it has been stated by Mohammad and Alhamadani (2011) that service quality is an antecedent of the broader concept of customer satisfaction (p. 65). Therefore, it can be said that customer satisfaction is the overall evaluation to services.

2.4. Employee Motivation and Service Quality

As it has been discussed, motivation is the development of a desire within an employee to outperform a task. The process of motivation commences the needs of an employee with scarcity. According to Harder (2008), motivational factors play an important part in satisfying a employee. Similarly, motivated employees tend to work with passion (p. 9). However, employee motivation is not as easy as it looks. It is a complex and a very challenging process. There are various theories of motivation. Today, organisations are constantly trying to find the most appropriate way to motivate their employees in order to enhance the productivity of the firm. Employee motivation leads to satisfaction. It enhances the job satisfaction level in employees. Employees are the key actors in any organisation. it is the employee who acts as a vehicle and drive the company towards success. Therefore, they are regarded as the unsurpassed vital resource of the organisation. Additionally, Devadass (2011) stated that it is the degree of motivation which makes the employee to stay with a particular job. The concept of motivation is referred to the way a person is enthusiased at work so as to strenghthen his willingness and desire to utilise for power for the attainment of goals of organisation (p. 5). It is something that shifts an employee into an act and maintains him in the course of action devotedly. The phenomenon of motivation is complex that is affected by individuals, ethnic, cultural as well as some chronological factors. In contrast to this statement, research shows that motivation is a series of energising factors which tend to originate both beyond and within a person’s self. Those forces develops the behaviour of an employee and thus effects their productivity (Pinder, 2008, p. 6). Experts suggest that those employees who are satisfied with their jobs have a clear vision o the importance of service quality and thus they work passionately to deliver great quality. Similarly, satisfaction also makes an employee loyal towards their organisation. According to Dawal and Taha (2006), loyal employees work hard to achieve organisational goals and objectives (p. 268). According to Rainlall (2004) motivation is an essential management element because it shapes the behavioural pattern and attitude of an individual (p. 25).

Similarly, Nuttin (2014) stated that motivation has the power to involve employees in the business processes (n.d.). When employees are allowed to take active part in the business operation, they feel engage. It increases their level of involvement and dedication towards work. It provides them support and makes them feel valuable, and thus they make full efforts to contribute their best effort to provide best quality services to the customers (Dawal & Taha, 2006, p. 220-225). Quality services are actually the contrast and judgment made by customers on the basis of actual and expected. Therefore, when customers are treated with high and detailed attention, it will automatically satisfy them, and it will repeatedly maximise and exceeds their expectation level. Therefore, there is significance between employee motivation and service quality.

2.5. Conceptual Framework

By conducting an in-depth analysis of the extensive literature, it has been derived that service quality and employee motivation are two important phenomenons for an organisation to achieve success in the industry. a firm usually generates high amount of revenues by satisfying the needs of their customers and customer satisfaction is highly co-related with service quality. It means delivering the best quality service is the strategic aim of every modern organisation. Similarly, employees have a direct link with the customers. For a retail organisation like Tesco, it is the employee who acts as a representative of a firm and entertains customers; therefore, in order to provide quality services, organisations must ensure that their employees are not only skilled and qualified but are highly passionate towards their job. A passionate employee makes full effort to satisfy customers by addressing their concerns, guiding them and quickly giving response to their queries. Employee satisfaction comes from motivation and motivation itself is composed of various factors. As it has been discussed that employee motivation is the degree to exert high levels of effort toward achieving organisational goals and objectives, conditioned by the individual’s satisfaction level; therefore, it is recommended to motivate employees in an organisation. a motivated employee will hard thrice as harder as other and this will significantly effect the quality of organisation’s service activities. Thus, it can be said that might be significant impact of employee motivation on organisation’s service quality.

illustration not visible in this excerpt

(Independent variable) (Dependent variable)

By analysing the literature, the above model has been developed by the researcher for this study which shows that employee motivation affects service quality in an organisation. The above frame-work shows the relationship between the dependent and independent variable. Here, employee motivation is the independent variable, which are also known as the predictors or controlled variables. They are used to predict the effect of anything on the dependent variable. In contrast to this, service quality is the dependent variable. It is also known as a response variable which changes with the variation in the independent variables. This framework is made to develop the concept of dependent and independent variable of this research and in which direction they are affecting each other. In this way researcher can identify the impact of employee motivation on service quality of Tesco.

Keeping in focus the research model, the research hypothesis of this study is as follows:

- H1: Employee motivation positively impacts service quality
- Ho: Employee motive does not positively impact service quality

CHAPTER 3 – METHODOLOGY

This chapter explains the methodology used to conduct this research. It includes critical determination of the flow of research in terms of techniques and structures. According to Creswell (2013), methodology is considered as the blueprint of any study (p. 15). This chapter explains the research methodology that was employed for the study which includes: how the research work is conducted, and what is the research strategy, research design and research methods. It will also highlight the method of data collection, sampling size and the method to analyse the collected data. Lastly, it will discuss the potential sources of error which can also be termed as the importance of reliability, validity and ethical considerations throughout the research.

3.1. Research Design

Research design is a major part of research methodology; it is often referred as research technique. It indicates, how the data will be collected and analysed to identify the possible outcomes According to Yin (2014), research design demonstrates the detailed route map of the research methodology keeping in focus how the research will be conducted (p. 3). In particular, it includes all the instruments that will be used by the researcher through the study to investigate the topic. It will also include the process for how data will be collected, what will be instrument to collect data. Research design also provide the significance of data collection method, data instrument and how the instruments for the research would be used to better analyse the collected data (Myers, Well & Lorch, 2010, p. 8). Particularly, there are two major types of research designs: qualitative and quantitative design (Mitchell & Jolley, 2012, p. 142). Qualitative research design is the type of approach in which data is collected through different tools in the non-numeric form (Johnson, Onwuegbuzie & Turner, 2007, p. 114). Where as, a quantitative research design is the method that is best suitable when the data consistency is required and calculable results are to be produced (Mujis, 2010, p. 107). According to Yin (2014), qualitative research technique is based on subjectivity; whereas, quantitative research design uses is based on objectivity (p. 6). According Neuman (2011) quantitative research is more generalised; whereas, qualitative research reflects contextualisation (p. 553). Since, this research is based on the objectivity and requires a generalised outcome; therefore, quantitative research design approach will be used to determine the significant impact of employee motivation on service quality at Tesco.

3.1.2. Quantitative Research Design

Qualitative research design is used when a data can be analysed through calculations. It allows using various tools that can be quantified. It can include: structured interviews, structured questionnaires, laboratory tests and analysis of statistical data. However, besides a number of advantages of the quantitative design, there are few drawbacks of the approach too such as the limited flexibility of the design and the numeric relation among the concepts and outcomes. This requires extensive efforts of interpretation. The same is indicated by Bryman and Bell (2011, p. 18) that the quantitative research design is not as revealing as the qualitative one. However, Neuman (2011) still preferred the quantitative research approach mainly because it is less time consuming and is also cost saving approach. (p. 554). Quantitative research is aimed to measure data and used some form of statistical analysis. The quantitative research design was used for assessing the opinions and views of managers working in governmental agencies through quantitative means where numbers were assigned to the responses of the participants (Barrett & Bolt, 2007, p. 19). Therefore, according to the researcher, quantitative research design was the suitable to conduct this study. Using this design, researchers has gathered data using different tools and transformed into numeric context to determine the best outcome.

3.2. Research Philosophy

The major stage in research methodology is to identify the philosophy of the research. In simple words, research philosophy can be referred as the belief of the study. According to Creswell (2013), there are three major research beliefs, which are positivism, interpretivism and realism (p. 34). Positivism is the research paradigm, which is based on scientific practices and aims to present measurable and generalisable facts. In contrast to this, interpretivism is the research belief, which is based on the understanding of the opinions and behaviour of individuals. Lastly, realism is the research belief aimed to focus on the reality of different things and believes that human beings are not objects of the study and have major reactions in the real-life environment (Crossan 2003, p. 53). Therefore, in this study, the researcher has selected the positivism philosophy to conduct the research. Subjective aspects were assessed in the study to generate credible research findings. In this study, the positivism research philosophy aimed to determine whether there exist any lessons needed to be learned that identify how employee motivation significantly impacts service quality at Tesco and what are the critical factors that affects both the variables.

3.3. Research Approach

According to Fabozzi, Focardi and Jonas (2007, p. 117), there are two different approaches that are used to conduct any research. They are: deductive and inductive. The inductive approach attempts to sort observation trying to draw universal conclusions from particular data accumulation; whereas the deductive approach tests the already existing theory and draw conclusion by analysing the facts and figures (Gill & Johnson 2010, p. 63). Similarly, a deductive approach is usually followed by a quantitative research design; whereas, the inductive approach is followed by an inductive research design. According to the situation, the best and the most feasible research approach for this study is: deductive approach because this approach is most feasible when the theoretical foundation for the study can be set (Gray, 2013, p. 32). Therefore, this research has used a deductive approach to investigate the topic because it works from more general to more specific.

3.4. Data Collection

Data collection is also one of the major stages of research methodology. In this stage, researcher made attempts to gather information to conduct the desired research. Data collection is a process to gather and measure information based on the identified research issue. It defines the source from where the researcher collects the information. Inaccurate collection of data can results in invalid results of the study. According to Onwuegbuzie and Leech (2006) the data can be collected from two sources: secondary and primary. Similarly, these two ways include collection of data through current literature and collection of data from hand sources. Both the methods of data collection possess great importance. The study has used both the methods to collect data.

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• Université: Coventry University
• Cours: MGT 301
• Note: A
• Auteur: Nashra Rafiq (Auteur)
• Année de publication: 2019
• Pages: 72
• N° de catalogue: V1358591
• ISBN (PDF): 9783346878854
• ISBN (Livre): 9783346878861
• Langue: anglais
• mots-clé: employee motivation, service quality, Tesco, impact, critical analysis, case study., maslow theory of motivation, organizational behavior of coca cola, motivation theory, customer services, motivation theory in management, maslow's hierarchy of needs, competitive environment business studies, the competitive environment, competitive environment gcse, business competition, competitive environment business