Vidrine, Jennifer
(2023)
ACTION RESEARCH CYCLES: A PRAGMATIC EXPLORATION OF MANAGEMENT PERCEPTIONS OF EMPLOYEES.
Doctor of Business Administration thesis, University of Liverpool.
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Abstract
This thesis uses a pragmatic action research paradigm to investigate themes relating to manager perceptions of employee entitlement in an Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP) company in rural Texas in the United States of America. Addressing management’s concerns about employee entitlement created a research opportunity for consultancy. The action research framework is as much a predominant character of this thesis as the narratives and data derived from it. This thesis employed varying investigative methods in each action cycle to identify and examine various theoretical lenses used to conceptualise management’s concerns. This study pragmatically employs various methods for data collection to inform the analysis for this thesis. By using survey questionnaires, observations, interviews, and focus groups, this thesis provides a scaffolding of data that enhances clarity and reduces researcher error. The three action research cycles used initial scoping survey with employees (n=53) in the first cycle, a semi-structured focus group with management (n=6) in the second cycle, and more detailed interviews with management (n=4) in the third and final cycle. Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP) companies are rare and unique in that employees are part-owners in the organisation for which they work. This paradigm creates a context whereby employee entitlement might appear justified. It is a reasonable assumption that owners might feel entitled to certain perks. The abundance of entitlement research in business is focused primarily on first-level organisational support roles and how management might address employee entitlement to form a more harmonious workplace (Harvey and Dasborough, 2015; Joplin et al., 2021). Additionally, the rarity of ESOPs, or employee-owned organisations, makes the power dynamic between management and employee-owners a distinguishable research concept. After initial scoping of employee entitlement concerns, the focus of this research turned away from employee entitlement to a focus on management perceptions and identity. This thesis adds to the body of action research, first, through the investigation of manager identity and its influence on the dyadic manager-employee workplace relationship. Second, this thesis creates a directional theme of research for both scholars and management to further identify the potential conflicts arising from the titles of ‘owner’ and ‘manager’ within an ESOP context. Finally, this thesis informs our understanding of self-narratives in shaping manager identity. Reflexive practice of one’s own narratives should enhance managerial effectivity. Management’s narratives inform the relationships and culture of their organisation, and by this intentionality of reflection, a manager can mitigate their own bias and support the manager-employee dyad.
| Item Type: | Thesis (Doctor of Business Administration) |
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| Uncontrolled Keywords: | Action Research, Action Research, Manager Identity, Narrative Inquiry, Employee Entitlement, Manager Entitlement, ESOP, False Perceptions, Employee Entitlement, ESOP, False Perceptions, Manager Entitlement, Manager Identity, Narrative Inquiry |
| Divisions: | Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences > School of Management |
| Depositing User: | Symplectic Admin |
| Date Deposited: | 30 Aug 2023 09:18 |
| Last Modified: | 30 Aug 2023 09:18 |
| DOI: | 10.17638/03172168 |
| Supervisors: |
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| URI: | https://livrepository.liverpool.ac.uk/id/eprint/3172168 |
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