Impact of Employee Motivation on Customer Service: Research Proposal

This research proposal investigates the impact of employee motivation on customer service within multinational firms. It begins by highlighting the importance of employee motivation in shaping customer perception and organizational success, emphasizing that motivated employees lead to enhanced customer satisfaction. The project aims to measure the dependency of customer service on employee motivation, focusing on the relationship between these two variables. The literature review discusses intrinsic and extrinsic factors affecting motivation. The research employs a mixed-methods approach, combining quantitative and qualitative data collection through surveys, interviews, and literature review. The research questions address the level of employee motivation, its relationship to customer satisfaction, and the effects of enhanced employee motivation on customer satisfaction levels. The study includes a hypothesis, research design, data collection methods, target participants, sample size, and data analysis techniques, along with identified limitations and a time schedule. The conclusion highlights the direct relationship between employee motivation and customer satisfaction, emphasizing the importance of fostering employee motivation to improve customer service and satisfaction.

Running head: BUSINESS RESEARCH METHOD RESEARCH PROPOSAL
Business Research Method Research Proposal
Impact of Employee Motivation in order to improve in the customer service
Name of Student
Name of the University
Author Note

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Table of Contents
Introduction......................................................................................................................................2
Project Objective.............................................................................................................................2
Project Scope...................................................................................................................................2
Literature Review............................................................................................................................3
Research Questions..........................................................................................................................3
Research Design and Methodology.................................................................................................4
Data Collection Method...............................................................................................................4
Target participant.........................................................................................................................4
Sample Size.................................................................................................................................4
Data Analysis...................................................................................................................................5
Research Limitations.......................................................................................................................5
Time Schedule.................................................................................................................................5
Conclusion.......................................................................................................................................6
References........................................................................................................................................7

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Introduction
The employee motivation can play an important role in modifying the aspect of customer
service (Dobre 2013). The employees form an important role in adjusting the perception of the
customers. The companies are considering the aspect of improving the motivation level of their
employees so that there is an increase of financial as well as non-financial gains of the company
(Lazaroiu 2015). The human resources of a firm are considered to be an asset to the company
and they are the ones who have a direct interaction with the customers. The dedicated and
competent employees are the vital parameters that lead to an enhanced customer satisfaction.
The earlier assignment’s literature review focused on the different strategies used by the
firms to improve employee motivation. However, the literature review failed to address the exact
inter relationship of employee motivation and customer service.
Project Objective
This project aims to measure the dependency of customer service on employee
motivation. The employees interact with the customers on a regular basis and hence it is
important to understand the nature of their inter-relationships.
Project Scope
The project strives to analyze the nature of relationship of two variables- customer
relationship and employee motivation. The attitude of the employees has great impact on the
satisfaction level of the customers. The various methods of employee motivation or customer
relationship is outside the scope of this research.

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Literature Review
As discussed by Lazaroiu (2015), the employee motivation can be defined as the level of
commitment, creativity and energy which the employees contribute to the organization through
their job duties. The employee motivation is strongly supported by the fulfillment of the needs of
the employees. There are several intrinsic and extrinsic factors to motivation. Devito et al.
(2016) argued that the intrinsic factors can be found within an employee and these can be related
to the feelings of fulfillment, satisfaction and enjoyment. The employees are said to be more
content as well as satisfied with their work if they have more autonomy and control over their
job domains. This can be done by designing the job role in such a way that the intrinsic
motivational factors are fulfilled. The organizations can empower the employees by including
them in their decision-making process. Cunningham (2016) opposed this idea by saying that the
extrinsic factors are external influences of the employee that are caused by the fulfillment of the
goal. These factors are often the rewards or the punishments that are imposed on the employees.
The rewards cause an increase in employee motivation while the vice-versa is caused by
punishments. A punishment can be in the form of termination, salary cut, demotion to a lower
job role, insult, humiliation or others (Schaufeli and Salanova 2014). Such incidents cause a
significant lowering of the employee motivation levels.
Research Questions
The research question is important for the establishment of validity of the topic for this
research. The research questions would be-
 What is the level of employee motivation level in organizations?
 How is employee motivation related to customer satisfaction?

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 What are the effects of enhanced employee motivation on customer satisfaction
levels?
Research Hypothesis
The research hypothesis for the research would be-
R0- Employee motivation does not have an effect on customer service
R1- Employee motivation affects the level of customer service in a positive way
Research Design and Methodology
The research would comprise of both the quantitative research and qualitative research.
A mixed research approach would be undertaken for this research (Frels and Onwuegbuzie
2013). This would ensure an enhanced quality of data collection that would help in better
deduction of suitable conclusions.
Data Collection Method
The various sources of data for the qualitative research are inclusive of literature study,
online sources, company websites, online journals, IT associations and IT publications (Merriam
and Tisdell 2015). The sources of quantitative data would include the employee surveys and the
face to face interviews.
Target participant
The employees of five multinational firms would be selected randomly for this research.
The participants age group would be between 24 to 47 years of age. The various operations
manager and the Head of Departments would be interviewed from the selected multinational
firms.

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Sample Size
The sample size of the research would be 100 and the sampling method would be random
stratified sampling. A random group of 20 managers would be selected from the five
multinational companies. The selection would be done across the length and breadth of the
organization and it would be done on a random basis.
Data Analysis
The primary mode of data analysis would be Microsoft Excel (Anderson Sweeney and
Williams 2014). This would be done through the use of several charts, pie-charts, illustrations,
scatter diagrams and others. The qualitative data would be analyzed through the process of
different analytical techniques and critical observation methods.
Research Limitations
This research would have certain limitations which would be described. There may be
instances when there would be issues with reliable data collection and this may hamper the
process of quantitative research. This may make the process ineffective. There may be issues
with the coordination of the managers of the multinational companies since they may be
apprehensive about the sharing of data. There may be unnecessary delay in project completion.
Time Schedule
WEEK 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11
1
2
PROJECT
ACTIVITIES
Identificatio
n research
rationale

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Aim and
Objectives
of research
Research
Questions
Justification
of research
question
Expected
outcomes of
research
project
Research
Techniques
Sample Size
Sample
approach
Research
Location
Data
Collection
Data
analysis
Limitations
of project
Conclusion
It has been found out that the employee motivation has a direct relationship on the degree
of customer satisfaction. This implies that if the organization is successful in fostering the

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employee motivation, then there would be a subsequent enhancement of the level of customer
service, which in turn would affect the rate of consumer satisfaction. This throws the light on the
fact that if an organization tries to build good rapport with the customers, then it is important to
give attention to the aspect of employee motivation.

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References
Anderson, D., Sweeney, D. and Williams, T. (2014). Modern business statistics with Microsoft
Excel. Nelson Education.
Cunningham, A., 2016. What are the Key Drivers Used to Promote Employee Motivation and
Engagement in a Manufacturing Environment?.
Devito, L., Brown, A., Bannister, B., Cianci, M. and Mujtaba, B., 2016. Employee Motivation
based on the Hierarchy of Needs, Expectancy and the Two-Factor Theories Applied with Higher
Education Employees. International Journal of Advances in Management, Economics and
Entrepreneurship, 3(1), p.20.
Dobre, O.I., 2013. Employee motivation and organizational performance. Review of Applied
Socio-Economic Research, 5(1), pp.53-60.
Frels, R.K. and Onwuegbuzie, A.J., 2013. Administering quantitative instruments with
qualitative interviews: A mixed research approach. Journal of Counseling &
Development, 91(2), pp.184-194.
Haider, M., Aamir, A., Hamid, A.A. and Hashim, M., 2015. A literature Analysis on the
Importance of Non-Financial Rewards for Employees' Job Satisfaction. Abasyn Journal of Social
Sciences, 8(2), pp.341-354.
Lazaroiu, G., 2015. Employee Motivation and Job Performance. Linguistic and Philosophical
Investigations, 14, p.97.
Merriam, S.B. and Tisdell, E.J., 2015. Qualitative research: A guide to design and
implementation. John Wiley & Sons.

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Schaufeli, W. and Salanova, M.A.R.I.S.A., 2014. Burnout, boredom and engagement at the
workplace.