Numeracy & ICT Skills: Research on Workplace Productivity at Sainsbury

This report explores the impact of an effective workplace environment on employee productivity, focusing on a study conducted at Sainsbury. It utilizes information and communication technology (ICT) to search for and analyze secondary data, applying numerical techniques such as mean, median, mode, and standard deviation to interpret the research findings. The report includes an analysis of questionnaire responses regarding the working culture, employee respect, motivation levels, communication effectiveness, and the impact of negative aspects on productivity. The findings suggest areas for improvement within Sainsbury's workplace environment, with recommendations aimed at enhancing employee morale, communication, and overall productivity through both financial and non-financial strategies.

Using Numeracy
and ICT Skills in
Research

Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................1
MAIN BODY...................................................................................................................................1
Using ICT techniques to search for secondary data of the topic.................................................1
Application of numerical techniques to analyse the secondary data...........................................2
Interpreting and recommending the results of the data. .............................................................4
CONCLUSION................................................................................................................................7
Recommendation.............................................................................................................................7
REFERENCES ...............................................................................................................................9

INTRODUCTION
Information and communication technology enables to process, store and exchange data
with the help of technology. The major role of the ICT is to process data. There are two forms of
data which is primary data and secondary data (Schneider, ECON, Iand Chi,, 2019). This report
includes the literature review on the topic impact of effective workplace environment in
improving the productivity of employees: A study on Sainsbury. It also includes applying
relevant numerical techniques to analyse the secondary research for finding solutions to the
research questions. The numerical techniques used to assess the results are measures of central
tendency such as mean, median, mode and standard deviation. It also encompasses interpreting
the results by giving recommendations and solution for research questions (Schmidt,. and
Williamson-Kefu, 2020).
MAIN BODY
Using ICT techniques to search for secondary data of the topic.
According to Pamella Carrasquel, the positive workplace plays a vital role in the
improving the level of productivity of the organisation. A healthy environment assists in
boosting the confidence of the employees which eventually improves the retention rate of
employees. The greatest asset for any organisation is its employees because production can be
possible with the help of personnel. Employees feel motivated when their opinions are
considered in decision making process (3 Crucial factors which influence employee productivity.
2019). In an organisation, the democratic level of decision making in which all the employee's
thoughts are taken into account. The top level managers and higher supervisory bodies must
focus on improving the level of communication and it is necessary to show the gratitude and
respect towards the hard work of the employees. There are several positive reinforcements such
as providing positive feedback for their performance, engaging employees in decision making
and providing compensatory benefits to its employees.
According to Courtney Morrison, the working environment of an organisation consist its
workforce, employees and management. For creating a healthy environment in the organisation,
it is necessary to provide training and development sessions. The training sessions provided to
the employees helps in their career development and provide a path to set higher targets for
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future performance. There are several components of the working environment, namely physical
layout and psychological features. The physical layout of the organisation includes blueprint of
the office and organisational structure which defines the reporting relationships among
employees and high level managers(The impact of employee engagement on your
business.2021.) A physical environment which is flexible, comfortable and aesthetic motivate
employee to perform better. On the other hand, the psychological features include the
motivation level of employees, retention rate of the employees and compensatory benefits to the
employees. An effective communication channel in the organisation helps to clearly define the
task performed which reduces the wastage of time, efforts and materials required to produce a
particular commodity. In every enterprise, it is crucial to attain economies of scale. It is a
condition when an enterprise is able to lower its per unit cost of production. When a firm starts
enjoying economies of scale, it continues its production on a large scale because it is able to earn
good amount of profitability. Another factor which creates disturbance in productivity level is
noise, it deteriorates the quality of the communication takes place between the employer and
employee.
According to Chika Ebenezer Duru and Dominic Shimawua, the productivity of the
employees is directly influenced by several factors which directly or indirectly impact the level
of profitability of the organisation(The effect of work environment on employee productivity.
2020.) In modern times, the employees are aware of the dynamic requirements rather than just
monetary requirements. Employees require appraisal in terms of monetary and non-monetary
aspects of the organisation.
Application of numerical techniques to analyse the secondary data
In stastics, there are various numerical techniques which are used in assessing the result of the
research question. The description of the quantitative tools can be explained as given below-
1. Mean – It is a measure of central tendency which represent the complete population by
using a single value. It is an average value which can be computed by using the formula
of sum of all the observation and number of observations. It is used in further algebraic
treatment and also affected by the extreme values (Tout, 2020).
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2. Median – It is a mid-value which represent the complete data. In case of odd
observations, the mid value will be the median and in case of even observation there is a
different method to calculate. By using the formula n+1/2, the median can be calculated.
3. Mode – It is the value which is occurring most frequently in the data. It is affected by the
extreme value of the data.
4. Standard deviation – It is a measure of standard deviation, which is used to know the
dispersion of the values from the actual mean (Smith, .,and et.al., 2019).
Impact of effective workplace environment in improving the productivity of employees: A study
on Sainsbury.
Questionnaire
1. How do you find the working culture of the organisation?
 Extremely appropriate
 Appropriate
 Inappropriate
 Extremely Inappropriate
2. Do you feel respected by your subordinates and team members?
 Yes
 No
3. Do the current workplace environment in the organisation helps in increasing your motivation
factor?
 Yes
 No
 Neutral
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4. The level of impact that workplace environment has on deriving productivity in your work?
Answer on a scale of 1 to 3, where one being the lowest and three being the highest
 One
 Two
 Three
5. How often your colleagues have an effective communication with you?
a. Very Often
b. Often
c. Rarely
d. Very rarely
6. Level of decrease in your productivity due to negative aspects of working environment.
Answer on a scale of 1 to 3, where one being the lowest and three being the highest.
a. One
b. Two
c. Three
Interpreting and recommending the results of the data.
. How do you find the working culture of the organisation
Frequency Percent Valid Percent Cumulative
Percent
Valid
Extremely appropriate 5 26.3 26.3 26.3
Appropriate 7 36.8 36.8 63.2
Inappropriate 4 21.1 21.1 84.2
Extremely Inappropriate 3 15.8 15.8 100.0
Total 19 100.0 100.0
Interpretation – In the above given table, from the 19 respondents most of the people says that
working culture of the organization is appropriate which constitutes 36.8% of the population.
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The mode for the above given question is 7 because most of the people select for the option of
appropriate.
Do you feel respected by your subordinates and team members?
Frequency Percent Valid Percent Cumulative
Percent
Valid
YES 8 42.1 42.1 42.1
NO 11 57.9 57.9 100.0
Total 19 100.0 100.0
Interpretation – The above table shows the data regarding employees level of satisfaction in
terms of respect provided by the Sainsbury. From the above data, it can be analyzed that most of
the people are not satisfied with the level of respect given by the employer of Sainsbury. From
the 19 respondents, 11 people opted for the negative option. Therefore, it can be concluded that
organization should work on improving the level of respect for subordinates.
Do the current workplace environment in the organisation helps in increasing
your motivation factor?
Frequency Percent Valid Percent Cumulative
Percent
Valid
YES 5 26.3 26.3 26.3
NO 7 36.8 36.8 63.2
NEUTRAL 7 36.8 36.8 100.0
Total 19 100.0 100.0
Interpretation – The above table shows the role of working environment in increasing the
motivation factor. Here, the multimodal value exists which suggest that there are two modes in
the series. Equal number of people select for the option of no and neutral which signifies that
majority of the people does not believe that current working environment of the Sainsbury helps
in increasing the motivation factor.
How often your colleagues have an effective communication with you?
Frequency Percent Valid Percent Cumulative
Percent
Valid VERY OFTEN 4 21.1 21.1 21.1
OFTEN 9 47.4 47.4 68.4
RARELY 2 10.5 10.5 78.9
VERY RARELY 4 21.1 21.1 100.0
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Total 19 100.0 100.0
Interpretation – The above table shows the information about level of communication between
top level managers and subordinates of the organization. The table shows the response of 19
candidates in which most of the people select the option of often. Thus, the organization is not
taking the advice of the employees into consideration because they are not interacting on a
regular basis.
Level of decrease in your productivity due to negative aspects of working
environment. Answer on a scale of 1 to 3, where one being the lowest and
three being the highest.
Frequency Percent Valid Percent Cumulative
Percent
Valid
1.00 5 26.3 26.3 26.3
2.00 8 42.1 42.1 68.4
3.00 6 31.6 31.6 100.0
Total 19 100.0 100.0
Interpretation – The above table shows the level of decrease in terms of productivity of the
employees. The scale ranges from one to three, most of the employees mark two as their
response. It constitutes 42.1% of the total population. Hence, the mode for the output are two.
Statistics
. How do you
find the
working culture
of the
organisation
Do you feel
respected by
your
subordinates
and team
members?
Do the current
workplace
environment in
the
organisation
helps in
increasing your
motivation
factor?
. The level of
impact that
workplace
environment
has on deriving
productivity in
your work?
Answer on a
scale of 1 to 3,
where one
being the
lowest and
three being the
highest
How often your
colleagues
have an
effective
communication
with you?
Level of
decrease in
your productivity
due to negative
aspects of
working
environment.
Answer on a
scale of 1 to 3,
where one
being the lowest
and three being
the highest.
N Valid 19 19 19 0 19 19
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Missing 0 0 0 19 0 0
Mean 2.26 1.5789 2.1053 2.3158 2.0526
Median 2.00 2.0000 2.0000 2.0000 2.0000
Mode 2 2.00 2.00a 2.00 2.00
Std. Deviation 1.046 .50726 .80930 1.05686 .77986
a. Multiple modes exist. The smallest value is shown
Interpretation – The above shows the mean, median, mode and standard deviation of the above
questions. In context of Sainsbury, most of the respondents select the option “appropriate”
and it is the mean for the given values. Another aspect of respect for the subordinates shows
that majority of the people give “no” as their answer. The median for all the above asked
questions are two.
CONCLUSION
From the above report, it can be concluded that primary research helps in finding the
solution to the research questions. There are several numerical techniques such as mean,
mode, median and standard deviation helps to find out the average and mid values of the
given responses of the different candidates. Sainsbury is the UK’s second largest chain of
supermarket which deals in electrical and household appliances. The recommendations must
be followed by the organisation to improve the level of productivity in the organisation.
Recommendation
For improving the level of productivity in the Sainsbury, the organisation must focus on
various non-financial factors which integrates in making working environment of the
organisation. Top level managers should improve the working culture of the organisation by
framing liberal policies and the enterprise should consider the decisions of the organisations.
In this way, employees will feel motivated and morale can be improved. There should be
open communication between employers and employees of the organisation. It will
contribute in achieving the economies of scale. Reframing of the plans should include
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reinforcement policies such as positive feedback and compensatory benefits to the
employees.
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REFERENCES
Books and Journals
Online
3 Crucial factors which influence employee productivity. 2019. [Online] Available through:
<https://www.sunlight.is/post/3-crucial-factors-which-influence-employee-productivity./>
Online
The impact of employee engagement on your business.2021.[Online]Available through :
<https://everyonesocial.com/blog/impact-of-employee-engagement/#:~:text=Engaged
%20workers%20are%20often%20the,to%20those%20with%20lower%20engagement./>
Online
The effect of work environment on employee productivity. 2020
<https://www.eajournals.org/wp-content/uploads/The-Effect-of-Work-Environment-on-
Employee-Productivity-A-Case-Study-of-Edo-City-Transport-Services-Benin-City-Edo-State-
Nigeria.pdf./>
Tout, D., 2020. Evolution of adult numeracy from quantitative literacy to numeracy: Lessons
learned from international assessments. International Review of Education, 66(2).
pp.183-209.
Smith, M.C.,and et.al., 2019. Readiness to learn among adults with low skills. The Wiley
handbook of adult literacy, pp.171-191.
Schneider, M., ECON, I.E. and Chi, M., 2019. Impact of ICT Skills on Women’s Earnings in
the United States.
Schmidt, A. and Williamson-Kefu, M., 2020. Using digital technology to support mathematical
learning outcomes in a primary classroom. Australian Primary Mathematics Classroom,
25(3). pp.23-28.
Coldwell-Neilson, J., 2017, January. Assumed digital literacy knowledge by Australian
universities: Are students informed?. In Proceedings of the Nineteenth Australasian
Computing Education Conference (pp. 75-80).
Sgobbi, F., 2018. The Skills of European ICT Specialists. In Encyclopedia of Information
Science and Technology, Fourth Edition (pp. 4785-4796). IGI Global.
Owens, P.A.U.L.A., 2018. A chameleon subject with a rigorous heart. Primary Geography, 97,
pp.30-32.
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