Business case incident
Answer these questions:
8-14. What would be the most effective option to increase employee motivation to stay and reduce the driver turnover rate? Why do you believe this option will be effective?
8-15. What other solutions could you see be effective at improving employee motivation and reducing the turnover rate? Why do you believe these solutions would be useful?
8-16. This chapter discusses the use of job redesign to reduce turnover. Do you think this is feasible in this case? Why or why not? If so, how should the job be redesigned?
From this case incident:
JP Transport
Kendall Smith, the CEO of the large trucking company JP Transport, is faced with a persistent problem. Year after year, the company has seen the driver turnover rate continue to increase. High driver turnover is characteristic of the entire trucking industry. Still, Smith is determined to find a long-term solution to this problem. In total, turnover costs the trucking industry roughly $8 billion annually. Smith attributes the primary reason for high turnover to long hours and requiring employees to be away from home for long periods. Smith is concerned that the lost productivity is a significant cost for the company.
Smith concludes that these lifestyle factors are simply part of the job, and as such, this job might not be the best fit for everyone. Unfortunately, these lifestyle factors are essential to the job, and truckers can do little to mitigate these effects. Instead, Smith proposes that the company institute an increase in driver pay. This pay increase would offset the job’s less desirable qualities and hopefully attract new drivers looking for a high salary. Smith believes the additional personnel costs will be less than the cost of unmotivated and thus unproductive drivers. Ultimately, Smith thinks a pay increase will lower the turnover rate.
One year later, Kendall Smith is dismayed to find that the turnover rate only decreased moderately despite the substantial increase in drivers’ salary. Kendall Smith, along with other executives at JP Transport, decides to gather feedback from current drivers. This feedback will enable them to understand the challenges better, including which challenges are most likely to lead drivers to leave the job. Following are a few examples of the feedback received from current drivers surveyed.
Luis (Driving for Seven Years)
“I love my job! I know many people might be surprised by that from the outside, but I think JP does a good job of making people feel a part of a community. You get to know the other drivers, even if you do not see them that often. The company also makes you feel like what you’re doing matters. Even though it is hard to see because we’re sort of behind the scenes, truckers play a big role in helping keep the country running with all of the supplies we deliver.”
Cameron (Driving for Fifteen Years)
“I have been in this job for a while, so there are some things that I like about it. It is pretty decent pay for not having a college education. I never liked the idea of working a desk job, so the fact that I get to see different parts of the country and I am not stuck in an office is a pretty decent perk of the job. Over the years, though, I’ve seen there’s more and more regulation. When I started, it was nice because I didn’t have some manager hovering over my shoulder, telling me what to do. Now there are these ELDs [electronic logging devices] that keep track of driving hours. I mean, I know there’s not much the company can do about that because the government mandated it. Still, it means less flexibility and pay for me. I can only work fourteen hours a day. I spend three of those hours at the shipping dock, and I do not get paid unless I’m driving. I know they’re trying to make it safer and prevent accidents, but it’d be nice if I could get paid for those hours or at least not have them counted toward my hours.”
Shelby (Driving for Five Years)
“So, obviously, there are not a whole lot of women driving trucks, but I like it pretty much. I like driving and having the freedom ‘to be my own boss.’ I always want to try to do the job better and faster than before. As far as challenges, I will say I’ve had to deal with my fair share of rude comments and gross behavior. First off, the men are rather skeptical of a female driver, so it’s not the most welcoming for women, and it’s like I have to prove myself all the time. Truck stops are just not a place you want to be because there are a lot of sketchy things that go on there.”
Terrell (Driving for Three Years)
“Wow, I cannot believe it has only been three years. It feels like twenty! Probably no surprise, but this job is incredibly boring and monotonous. If I have to hear some of these talk shows and music again, I will lose it. After a while, even listening to the radio, podcasts, and audiobooks can’t make it interesting. I want to find a job where variety is a good thing, unlike the trucking industry. Anything out of the ordinary, like a roadblock, for example, almost always ends up being a headache.”
Kendall came up with several options to decrease driver turnover long-term after reviewing the drivers’ feedback, driver turnover data (Exhibit A), and driver turnover costs (Exhibit B). Kendall plans to present these to the other executives to reach a consensus on which option to implement.
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