Introduction
Management is considered the most important aspect of operation in the organization. There are several factors that opt to be effectively managed and coordinated to ensure that the organization effectively and efficiently operates or function. There are several resources that an organization or company require to effectively and efficiently operate.
However, human resources are considered the most important resources in an organization. This is because human resources are directly in charge of execution of duties and achievement of results in an organization. Basically, human resources are in charge of formulation and implementation of policies in an organization.
Organizations require effective and realistic policies to efficiently operate. Furthermore, the human resources or employees must be competent to ensure that the formulated policies are effectively implemented. This is a report paper discussing or debating the relationship between employees’ competency and organizational efficiency.
Employees’ competency and efficiency in an organization
Today, there are four major impediments that may affect the level of productivity in any given organization. These challenges include call to satisfy clients, need for innovation, call for a speedy response to the ever-shifting market requirements, and augmented levels of competition.
Consequently, both managers and workers ought to be committed to the attainment of a company’s objectives in order to overcome these impediments. It is therefore necessary for management to come up with effective strategies to deal with the issue at hand, for instance, management should ensure that all aspects of a company’s operations are supportive and encouraging to employees.
They can achieve this by first ensuring that the organization’s basic requirements are put in place. Such requirements may include high quality of goods and services that employees can easily advocate for. Generally, such requirements require competent employees to ensure that they are met.
Employee competency ought to begin with the top management and enforced among the junior employees too. Furthermore, an excellent system of delivery that guarantees that pledges and promises made to the customers are met, effective practices which are sincere, clear-cut and executed with honesty. Most importantly, management should consider the manner in which it should provide thrust to motivate workers as this influences their level of commitment to the company (Ferguson 36).
There are several factors that are considered while evaluating efficiency of an organization. These factors should be effectively coordinated and implemented to enhance efficiency of the respective organization.
Basically, an organization requires competent staff or employees to achieve its goals and objectives, and effectively and adequately respond to market changes, produce quality goods and services and create or enhance good relation between the company and the public and enhance consumers’ satisfaction.
Generally, efficiency of an organization is derived from the quality of goods and services it produces or offers in the market, its response to technological changes and market changes, consumers’ satisfaction and relation the company has with the general public among others. Therefore, an organization requires competent employees to enhance efficiency in operation. Furthermore, efficiency in organization is enhanced by competency of employees of the respective organization (Gowdy 28).
Even though technology is known to dominate the current corporate section throughout the world, a lot of focus has recently been put on employees as well as the manner in which they are handled by their seniors. Basically, relationship between the junior and senior employees is determined by competency of both the junior and senior employees.
It has been proved that competent employees professionally relate irrespective of their position in the respective organization leading to efficiency in the organizational operations. It is often said that the best managers produce the best results from their employees. As a matter of fact, throughout history, managers have devised several approaches and strategies which have been aimed at enhancing performance of employees.
In addition, a lot of research has been carried out with regards to employee engagement. For this reason, there is need to critically examine employee engagement and competency as well as roles played by managers and relationship between employees’ self-efficacy and managers’ effectiveness.
This will help to explain the impacts as well as benefits of enhancing employee competency through engagement. Moreover, it will help to illuminate on various ways that may be used to enhance employee competency through engagement in the respective organization (Bret 37).
Organizational objectives, organizational efficiency and employees’ competency
Businesses or organizations are formed with objectives or goals. However, there are different types of organizations, for instance, profit oriented and non profit organizations. Though non profit organizations are not after maximization of profits, they require competent employees to meet their goals or objectives.
Objectives and goals are set by both profit oriented and non profit organizations. This is because objectives and goals govern operations of individual organizations in the respective industries and market where they operate. Basically, organizations require competent employees so that they can outline or set realistic goals or objectives that can be achieved within the stated deadline (Uche 35).
Objectives and goals set or outlined by an organization may lead to efficient operation of the respective organization or company. Achievement of the respective goals and objectives within the stated deadlines also reflects efficiency of not only the organization, but competency of the employees of the respective organization.
Therefore, an organization requires a competent staff or management team to set or establish realistic objectives. Furthermore, organizations also require competent employees or staff to achieve the respective goals and objectives within the stated deadlines. This is because achievement of goals and objectives requires competent employees who understand the nature of each objective and time required during the implementation period to achieve the respective goals and objectives (McCarthy 42).
Objectives and goals of an organization may also determine the efficiency of the respective organization. However, this can only be realized in case the respective organization employees competent employees to enhance realization or achievement of the respective goals or objectives.
An organization may establish effective goals and objectives, but the respective goals or objectives may not lead to efficiency of the respective organization. This can happen in case the organization lacks competent employees who can effectively implement the respective goals and objectives, and ensure their achievements within the stated deadlines by the respective organization.
Generally, an organization requires a competent human resource team that can formulate realistic goals and objectives, which can lead to efficiency of the respective organization. However, formulation of effective goals and objectives may not be useful to an organization in case it lacks a competent human resource team to implement the respective goals and objectives.
Therefore, an organization should develop and maintain competent employees who can effectively work towards achievement of the goals and objectives, and enhance efficiency of the organization by ensuring that the goals and objectives are achieved within the deadlines stated by the management team during formulation of the respective goals and objectives (Singleton and Singleton 52).
Employees’ competency, organizational efficiency and technological changes
In operation of businesses, management has to consider both internal and external business environment factors. Organizations have direct influence over internal factors, but not the external factors though both affect operations of an organization, for instance, technological changes.
There are several uncertainties in the business environment that organizations ought to effective respond to enhance efficiency in operation in the respective market and industry where they operate. Failure to adequately and effectively respond to these uncertainties may lead to losses or even closure of operation of the respective organization.
Technology is dynamic and frequently changes and this also affects operations of organizations irrespective of their line of business or nature of businesses they transact. Generally, technological changes affect delivery of services and production of goods by organizations and companies in the market or globally (Silverstone and Sheetz 48).
Organizations must effectively and adequately respond to changes in technology that directly affect their nature of business. Failure to respond to these changes may affect income levels of the respective organization. Furthermore, it may also affect operation of the respective organization.
Efficiency of an organization is determined by the response the organization has towards changes that affect their operation. Basically, failure to respond to technological changes may lead to production of goods using outdated technologies, and delivery of low quality services in the market.
Technology frequently changes due to developments and frequent research on technology. Furthermore, developments in technology influence production processes and delivery of services. Moreover, effective and adequate response of an organization to technological changes enhances efficiency of the respective organization.
However, an organization requires a competent human resource team to effectively and adequately respond to these technological changes. Generally, effective response to technological changes may enhance efficiency of an organization because it may lead to adoption of better production methods and delivery of quality services, which meet the market requirements and demands of the respective consumer in the market (Bret 44).
Effective response to technological changes is determined by competency of employees responsible for technological department in the respective organization. Employees need to frequently and regularly review technological changes and adopt or adjust to changes that directly affect their operation in the respective market or industry.
Effective review of technological changes requires a competent human resource team that can effectively and adequately review technological changes and effectively advise the organization on how to adopt the new changes and enhance efficiency in operation by meeting market demands and requirements.
Therefore, organizations require competent employees to effectively and adequately respond to technological changes that directly affect their operation in the respective market and industry. This can also enable an organization to meet demands of consumers by producing quality goods and offering quality services (Gowdy 55).
Ensuring that Employees’ competency facilitates the Achievement of an Organization’s Goals
Managers should ensure that they connect the employee competency strategies with the realization of the company’s objectives. As a matter of fact, employee competency should be seen as a means to an end but not an end in itself.
Consequently, managers should ensure that they first establish the company’s main objective as it is pointless to have employee competency without linking it to the organization’s goals. Effective linking of the organizational objectives and employees’ competency may lead to increased efficiency in an organization.
This is because it can lead to achievement of the outlined goals and objectives by the management team within the stated deadline. An organization should ensure that competency of its employees facilitates achievements of goals and objectives leading to increased efficiency in the organization (Mouse 72).
In addition managers should ensure that they show their commitment to the ideas of competent employees, for instance, they should always make sure that they respond and act on employees’ propositions for improvement of the organization’s performance. It is indeed very exasperating to employees when they are asked for suggestions and their responses disregarded.
Competent employees may positively contribute to increased efficiency in an organization through suggestions of ideas that can lead to improved operations within the organization. Generally, competent employees may suggest effective strategies that can lead to efficiency in operation in the respective organization, if the suggested ideas are effectively implemented (Silverstone and Sheetz 82).
Moreover, supervisors should always volunteer to teach employees more about the business or organization itself. Employees can only contribute positive suggestions that can enhance efficiency in the organization if they are well versed with the organization where they work.
This is because lack of enough knowledge on how a company runs may influence employees to give unsuitable suggestions. Basically, employees’ suggestions in an organization may be used to enhance efficiency. Ideally, knowledgeable and empowered employees are likely to produce best outcomes from employee competency programs.
Employees are only empowered to give productive suggestions if they are competent and are well versed with their roles in the respective organization and how the organization operates too. Generally, employees’ competency can only contribute to the achievement of organizational goals and objectives if they understand the objectives and goals of the respective organization.
Therefore, for an organization to reap from its employees’ competency, management has to enlighten its employees on the goals and objectives of the respective organization, and how the organization operates (Hopwood, Young and Leiner 73).
Drivers of Employee competency
Even though we can determine the level of employee competencies through employee surveys, we may not be in a position to identify necessary areas that need to be improved within an organization through surveys. It is therefore important for managers to consider a variety of factors, which are also referred to as drivers, which are said to improve general employee competency and enhance efficiency in the respective organization.
In case these drivers are effectively handled, a company can successfully deal with increasing employees’ degree of competency. These drivers include effective communication, performance intelligibility and response, organizational values, incentives as well as appreciation, excellent relationships between employees and managers, professional advancement prospects and familiarity of a company’s objectives are some of the major aspects that enhance employee competency hence enhancing efficiency in the respective organization (Hopwood, Young and Leiner 86).
Employee perceptions of his/her job and company
According to a recent study, a worker’s attitude towards his/her work in a particular organization has a major influence on his/her on loyalty to the organization which has a tremendous impact on customer satisfaction. Generally, it is believed that competent employees have positive attitude towards their work in respective organization and effectively undertake their duties.
This may lead to improved services to customers and production of quality goods leading to increased customer satisfaction. Additionally, this may enhance efficiency in operation because individual employees understand and value their job in the respective organization.
An organization requires competent employees because competent employees understand their job leading to positive perception about their job and the respective organization where they work in case they understand the values and culture of the respective organization too. Therefore, positive perception about a company or job by an employee may enhance his/her competency leading to increased efficiency in the respective organization (Manning 75).
The clarity of job expectations in the employees
In case the management’s expectations are not clearly outlined to employees, and the entire fundamental resources are not adequately provided, unenthusiastic feelings such as boredom or bitterness may crop within employees and they are therefore likely to shift their attention from the organization’s general wellbeing to survival mechanisms.
Employees should be well informed on the job expectation. This makes the employees prepared to carry out their respective duties. Better understanding of an organizational job expectation may also enable an employee to utilize his or competency in carry out respective duties in the organization.
Generally, employees may not be able to effectively utilize their competency if they are not aware of job expectation in the respective organization. However, if employees are well informed on the job expectations in the respective organization, they may easily utilize their competency towards improvement of the organizational efficiency.
Moreover, though an organization may hire competent employees, benefits of their competency might not be realized in case the organization does not effectively and adequately inform the respective employees on the job expectations. An organization’s management should enlighten employees on job expectations in the respective organization.
In return, this can enhance competency of the respective employees because they adequately understand their job leading to increased organizational efficiency. Therefore, clarity of job expectations may enhance employees’ competency leading to increased efficiency in the respective organization (McCarthy 63).
Professional development opportunities
Research has shown that career improvement opportunities often have a positive impact on workers attitudes as it contributes to employee motivation. As a matter of fact, in many organizations, this is often suggested by employees and made effective through management. In most cases, career improvement has a positive impact on an organizations general performance.
Generally, professional development opportunities are meant to enhance employees’ competency in respective organizations. Employees enhance their performance by undergoing different trainings related to their area of profession. Organizational efficiency greatly relies on employees’ competency.
Since professional development opportunities leads to increased employees competency; therefore, it also contributes to efficiency of respective organizations that have established employee professional development plans or programs. An organization requires competent employees to enhance efficiency. However, employing and maintaining competent employees or staff may be difficult.
Organizations need to establish a professional development plan or program so as to enhance competency of the respective employees to enhance efficiency. Professional development plans or programs are essential in boosting employees’ competency leading to increased efficiency in the respective organization. Therefore, professional development plans or programs may enhance employee competency leading to increased efficiency in the respective organization (Lenox 45).
Regular and effective communication between employees and managers
Management should always strive to present an opportunity for dialogue where employees air their views, are appreciated and reminded of management’s expectations. This way, employees are likely to develop a feeling of belonging and hence likely to influence their productivity positively.
Communication is an essential management tool that positively contributes to efficiency in organizations. Employees and managers should frequently and constantly communicate to enhance efficiency in the respective organization. This is because effective communication between managers and employees enables both the managers and employees to understand the organization better.
It may also enable the employees to understand changes in the organization and how to adjust to such changes without affecting operations within the respective organization.
Furthermore, regular and effective communication between and among employees may enable employees to decide on the necessary changes that the respective organization require leading to increased efficiency. Basically, regular and effective communication between managers and employees may enhance employees’ competency leading to increased efficiency in the respective organization.
Therefore, an organization requires regular and effective communication between junior and senior employees to enhance their competency leading to increased efficiency in the respective organization (Silverstone and Sheetz 74).
An effective relationship among workers and with superiors
An effective relationship among employees and with their superiors is a vital ingredient ‘ in an organizations general performance. In case employees do not relate with their fellow employees as well as managers in a cordial manner, then they are not likely to perform at their best. As a matter of fact, employee adequate incorporation of their competency is a direct manifestation of workers feeling towards their relationship with their colleagues and superiors.
In addition, such a relationship moves management closer to workers and they are thus in a better position to understand workers grievances and respond to them appropriately. In such instances, management is able to depict when performance is not at its best in good time and thus act promptly.
In return, this may lead to increased efficiency in the respective organization. Efficiency in an organization can only be enhanced by performance of employees in the respective organization. Furthermore, competent employees are most likely to enhance efficiency in the organization because competent employees effectively perform their duties.
Generally, efficiency in an organization may only increase if employees effectively and professionally relate with their supervisors. This is because it leads to good working relation and enhancement of competency. In the long run, this may enhance efficiency in the respective organization (Mouse 94).
Perceptions of an organization’s culture and values
An organization’s culture and values postulates a vital inspirational factor of employee engagement and competency. Absence of the two is likely to affect a company’s performance negatively. Organizational values and culture stipulates on the expected codes of conduct among employees in the respective organization.
This might enhance efficiency of the respective organization if employees adhere by the culture and values of the respective organization. An organization need to enhance employees understanding of their culture and values to enhance their operation in the respective organization.
This might also increase competency of employees in the respective organization leading to increased efficiency in operation. Therefore, organizations need to enlighten employees on their cultures and values so as to increase their competency in operation leading to enhanced efficiency (Uche 62).
Reward for competency
In any organization, it is important for managers to reflect on the benefits that an organization stands to gain if they offer incentives to employees. This is an important way of improving employees’ drive and thus improves their engagement and competency.
In order to achieve this, it is important for supervisors to set sensible goals for employees, pick the most appropriate rewards for the incentive program, constantly address reward issues, come up with several and different winners and different rewards, support constant effort, present awards in a transparent manner and assess incentive programs on a regular basis.
Rewards to competent employees or best performing employees greatly motivate employees to work hard to be recognized by the organization’s management.
In return, this enhances employees’ competency because individual employees will have to work towards achievements of respective goals within the stated deadlines to be appreciated and rewarded accordingly. This increases employees’ competency hence enhancing efficiency of the respective organization (Singleton and Singleton 86).
Conclusion
Organizations operate to enhance efficiency hence increase their market share and profit level. Basically, organizational efficiency relies on employees’ competency. There are several factors that an organization has to effectively respond to so as to enhance efficiency, for instance, technological change, market demands and requirements, service delivery and production of products among others.
Furthermore, there are drivers that may increase employees’ competency leading to increased efficiency in respective organizations, for instance, professional development plans or programs, competency reward system and regular and effective communication among employees among others. Considering relationship between employees’ competency and organizational efficiency, organizations need to promote employees’ competency so as to enhance efficiency in the respective organization.
Works Cited
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