Impact of Higher Education of the Top Management on the Success of Organisations (Dissertation Sample)

Impact of Higher Education of the Top Management on the Success of OrganisationsBy: NameCourse Instructor InstitutionLocationDate
Table of Contents
TOC \o "1-3" \h \z \u Abstract PAGEREF _Toc437986017 \h iiChapter One: Introduction PAGEREF _Toc437986018 \h 1Background PAGEREF _Toc437986019 \h 1Introduction to the Industry PAGEREF _Toc437986020 \h 3Problem Statement PAGEREF _Toc437986021 \h 3Justification of the Study PAGEREF _Toc437986022 \h 4Significance of the Study PAGEREF _Toc437986023 \h 5Research Objectives PAGEREF _Toc437986024 \h 5Research Questions PAGEREF _Toc437986025 \h 6Chapter Two: Literature Review PAGEREF _Toc437986026 \h 7Introduction PAGEREF _Toc437986027 \h 7Education and Job Performance PAGEREF _Toc437986028 \h 7Education and Organisational Performance PAGEREF _Toc437986029 \h 13Education and Career Success PAGEREF _Toc437986030 \h 19Summary of chapter PAGEREF _Toc437986031 \h 22Chapter Three: Research Methodology PAGEREF _Toc437986032 \h 23Research Design PAGEREF _Toc437986033 \h 23Conceptual Framework PAGEREF _Toc437986034 \h 24Sample and Sampling Technique PAGEREF _Toc437986035 \h 24Instrumentation PAGEREF _Toc437986036 \h 25Credibility PAGEREF _Toc437986037 \h 26Data collection and management PAGEREF _Toc437986038 \h 26Data analysis procedures PAGEREF _Toc437986039 \h 27Ethical consideration PAGEREF _Toc437986040 \h 27Limitations and delimitations PAGEREF _Toc437986041 \h 28Summary PAGEREF _Toc437986042 \h 29Chapter Four: Results, Analysis and Discussion PAGEREF _Toc437986043 \h 30Introduction PAGEREF _Toc437986044 \h 30Education Level of Top Managers PAGEREF _Toc437986045 \h 30Influence of Education on Manager Performance PAGEREF _Toc437986046 \h 31Relevance of Education in Organisational Management PAGEREF _Toc437986047 \h 35Impact of Higher Education on Organisational Performance PAGEREF _Toc437986048 \h 36Impact of education on career success PAGEREF _Toc437986049 \h 38Discussions PAGEREF _Toc437986050 \h 39Chapter Five: Conclusion, Implications, and Recommendations PAGEREF _Toc437986051 \h 42Conclusion PAGEREF _Toc437986052 \h 42Implications of the study PAGEREF _Toc437986053 \h 43Recommendations PAGEREF _Toc437986054 \h 45Reference PAGEREF _Toc437986055 \h 47
Abstract
Successful organisations are managed by individuals who can identify organisational objectives, develop strategies to achieve those objectives, gather resources, as well as control, organise, and direct activities to drive the organisation towards success. While there are researches conducted on the association between organisation performance and managers' academic level, there was a salient dearth of studies in the Sri Lankan context. This study therefore aimed to: (i) to assess the association between higher education and performance of top managers; (ii) to determine the impact of top managers' level of education on organizations' performance; and (iii) to establish the extent to which higher education contributes to top managers’ career success. To investigate these research objectives, the study employed in-depth interviews for data collection among 30 (n=30) top managers. Results suggested that most top managers thought that their level of education had a significant impact on organisational performance. However, there were a few participants who thought hard work and work experience were more important factors in the making of a successful top manager. Organisations can therefore benefit from these findings, especially when it comes to developing training programs and nurturing future top managers. One way to do so is through the creation of a supportive background that promotes training and education among top employees.
Chapter One: Introduction
Background
The success of an organisation, oftentimes, largely depends on the performance of its top management. Management, in general terms, involves rationally evaluating situations as well as systematically identifying purposes and goals; developing strategies in a logical manner to accomplish the identified goals; assembling necessary resources; designing, organising, directing and controlling activities which serve to ensure that the organisation attains the identified purposes in a wise manner; and lastly, motivating and rewarding of employees (Samson and Daft, 2012). Managers can be regarded as problem-solvers in the sense that they are always trying to identify problems to be solved as well as the most suitable ways that can be used to achieve the desired results (Matzler, Bailom and Tschemernjak, 2007). Skilful top managers, as Furusten (1999) points out, are omnipotent and can, owing to their capability to establish the firm’s situation, generate overall goals as well as values which can guide the firm to success.
For many jobs, it is common that applicants must have a minimum level of education or training to be considered. That is, organisations might require managerial applicants to have bachelor’s degree to pass initial applicant screening process. Ng and Fieldman (2009) found out that better educated employees had higher performance, were more likely to engage in organisational citizenship behaviours, less likely to be absent, and less likely to engage in on-the-job substance abuse than were employees with lower levels of education. Rampling (2011) notes that firms are operating in a business environment that is ever-changing. Additionally, performance of firms is progressively becoming a function of intellectual capital. Members of top management with higher levels of education such as PhD are considered as the most valuable strategic resource of companies (Westhal and Milton, 2000). This is because such members are believed to have high levels of intellectual capabilities and can therefore make sound judgements and maintain a high degree of integrity (Hilmer, 1998).
According to Clegg and Cooper (2008), an audit of literature suggests the higher level of education inspires top management’s receptivity to creative innovations and solutions. A person’s formal educational background may yield rich but complex information. The level of formal education as well as the type of education provides us with some measure of an individual’s knowledge and skill base. However, owing to the fact that being a manager is an eye-catching role, applicability and practicality in education is of paramount importance. Moreover, level of education has been linked to firm performance, degree of firm innovation and change in corporate strategy (Clegg and Cooper, 2008). It is anticipated that managers with higher levels of education and business degrees should be capable of coming up with a variety of resourceful solutions when faced with complex problems.
Highly and well educated staff boosts growth of firms. As di Gropello, Tandon and Yusuf (2011) point out, skilled labour can achieve high levels of productivity, deploy in a flexible manner, harness available technologies and employ innovation as a way to enhance firms’ growth as well as competitiveness. Furthermore, the authors highlight that growth intensifies with aspiration but it is more rapid for those with higher levels of education. This implies that higher education denotes an essential facet of human capital. That is, one that prepares business managers to realize their goals. Nonetheless, growth, for those with higher education appears to be more of an individual’s choice i.e. education makes growth possible for those who intend to grow their firms (Davidson and Wiklund, 2013).
Introduction to the Industry
According to the World Bank (2015) Sri Lanka’s economy is growing at a faster rate compared to other South Asian countries. One of the factors that has attributed to this growth is the expansion of the private sector. Prior to the 1980s economic reforms, the economy of Sri Lanka was dominated by state-owned corporations but as of 1999, the number of private companies registered in Sri Lanka had reached 36,000 (Perera, 2011). Continued development of the private sector as well as investment is central to increased growth of this country’s economy. In addition, the World Bank (2015) emphasises the importance of bettering the quality of the Country’s human capital through provision of effective education as well as development of skills. Doing so would enhance the Country’s competitiveness and see its economy grow simultaneously.
Problem Statement
Business owners are increasingly becoming concerned about the ways in which management contributes to the success of business organisations. It is widely acknowledged that the more top management is involved in organisation’s activities the higher the level of success. However, entry into top management jobs is increasingly restricted to individuals who have attained higher levels of education, in most cases professional or graduate degrees. Ordinarily, for individuals to pursue higher education they must meet certain particular measures of academic performance or aptitude. Nonetheless, there is a paucity of studies which have investigated the association between higher education and performance of organisations’ top management. Moreover, there is inadequate research worldwide and mainly in Sri Lanka that contribute to a more contextual as well as situational perspective of how higher education impacts on top management and consequently firm performance.
The level of formal education attained by managers and their educational background has been put forward as factors influencing the process of strategy development (Karami, 2007; Hambrick and Mason, 1984). Perhaps this is attributed to the belief that companies whose senior managers have higher educational backgrounds are more inclined to develop strategic plans than managers who have not had such an educational background. Some scholars have hypothesised that better educated decision m...