Saudi Arabia Case Study Example

Saudi Arabia is one of the most economically competitive countries across the world. There is a rapid economic growth in the Middle East with Saudi Arabia being one of the best regions for business (Ali, 1985). Seeing the value for workers is one of the critical facets of a successful business in Saudi Arabia. Organizational trust has a more strategic importance in managing human capital than in the past centuries. Organizations that see their employees value has a culture of trust between the Managers and employees. Such organizations are considered high-performance organizations. The trust placed on employees by managers enable them to finish their tasks efficiently and sustain employee talents to achieve business competitiveness. A culture of trust enables managers and employees to use one another as resources, to surface their feelings and ideas and learn together (Baek, 2015). Most workers often wish to work in a place of respect and trust and show their employer that they can accomplish a given task through teamwork. Based on the Saudi Arabian labor office, most employees have the opportunity of making informed decisions, which affects the product or service they offer (Ali, 1985) (Baek & Jung, 2015) (Brower, Lester, Korsgaard & Dineen, 2009). Through teamwork and information sharing, the implication is employee commitment and job satisfaction lead to customer satisfaction. A high performing company shares information on the company with their employees. This sharing provides trust and commitment in performing a task well. Trust results into organizational and individual learning. However, most managers often ignore, misunderstand and take it for granted. Trust between managers and their employees is an essential ingredient in enhancing competitive advantage and organizational effectiveness. A company seeing the value of their workers create mutual trust culture between the managers and workers. Trust is critical in a company that competes in a global marketplace.

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Background of the Study

Most researchers comprehensively address organizational trust as a common phenomenon because of its organizational importance. Trust among the top management and the subordinate staff is correlated to the performance of an organization, it involves their job satisfaction, employees aggression, counterproductive behavior and loyalty. Trust among middle managers and lower employees is the key to better performance because workers are willing to work extra time and promote the organization they are working for. As a result, most researchers are in a bid to investigate the antecedents of trust among middle managers and lower level staff and its implications. The focus of this proposal is on trust between middle managers and lower level staff making it the most factors that are prevalent in influencing the attitude and behaviors of workers. Managers have diverse styles as leaders in an organization. Some use, relationship or people-centred approach or autocratic production centered method in achieving similar goals. Managers as organizational leaders have to possess the ability to diagnose the organization environment.

Problem Statement

The major concept is that there are factors that are correlated to trust in a business environment; these are individual and organizational relationships. In Arab countries like Saudi Arabia, there is a lack of human resource management. Besides, by looking into the business history in Saudi Arabia, based on the development and formation of trust and good working relationships in the Cement industry, there is potential of a long term businesses in these Saudi companies. Trust is not only a critical element of a social capital and the social system but also an essential factor in BRD (business relationship development). Because of the lack of research and theory in this area, there is need of developing knowledge on the subject, making it a valid research topic. Baek and Jung, (2015) suggest the importance of trust in improving integrity and trust at the individual level in an organization. Ali and Swiercz, (1985) show the importance of business relationship development based on the loyalty of customers and demonstrate the importance of elements like cooperation, communication, commitment, and trust. Trust between the managers and their employees is critical to the cement industry in Saudi Arabia. The strength of any business is founded upon the level at which the managers connects to their employees. The cement companies in Saudi Arabia has little experience with business relationship development, and it is essential to fill an existing gap in this knowledge. This research will be critical in gaining an insight trust levels among managers and the subordinates in cement industry in Saudi Arabia.

Aims, Objectives and Research Questions

AIM 1: To find out the level of trust between managers and their subordinates/employees?

Objectives

- The level of trust between mangers and their employees.

- The causes of trust between mangers and their employees.

- The result of trust between mangers and their employees.

Research questions

- What is the level of trust between mangers and their employees?

- What are the causes of trust between mangers and their employees?

- What are the result of trust between mangers and their employees?

AIM 2: To investigate the influence that organizational trust has on the efficiency of employees and the overall performance of organizations?

Objectives

- The influence of trust in efficiency of employees.

- The influence of trust in the overall performance of organizations.

- The relationship between trust and the performance of employees and organizations.

Research Questions

- What is the relationship between trust among managers and employees and organizational performance?

- What is the relationship between trust among managers and employees and efficiency of employees?

- What is the relationship between trust among managers and employees and organizational success?

Justification of the Study

Employees want to work in companies with mutual trust between themselves and their managers. Trust has essential benefits for employees, managers, and the entire organization. Past studies indicate that organizations having high trust levels are more innovative, adaptive and successful than companies with low trust levels among employees. By looking into the trust relationship between managers and employees and its implications, organizations can analyze their culture and grow their employees through high trust levels. This research will provide a broad picture on different variables that affect organizational trust and contribute to existing knowledge on the topic under study.

Literature Review

Most organizational theories view the development of trust as an essential force in an organization (Butler, 1999). Deluga, (1994) describes that trust between employees and managers is the miracle ingredient in the life of an organization. Theorists have written on organizational trust for years. McGregor (1967) cited in Kopelman et al. (2008), have supported the issue on mutual trust in organizations. McGregor uses two theories in explaining why managers use specific strategies of management. The theories are Theory Y and Theory X. Theory x provides that distrust in workers by the management be due to the belief that workers dislike their job, and they can only cooperate with heightened control and precise management. Theory Y describes that managers practicing it believe in employees, empower employees and trust their employees to achieve organizational goals and success (Kopelman et al, 2008). Trust among corporate members assists in facilitating theory Y based on the development of an efficient organization.

Dirks & Ferrin, (2000) believe that companies need to see the growth of employees as essential. They believe that whenever organizational mistrust increases, employees may not work together but instead look out for themselves. The implication is organization failure and lack of conformity, information flow, and ineffective decision making. Companies must increase trust and openness for a success of an organization. According to Dirks and Ferrin, (2002) trusting relationship between managers and their employees is the best tool for management that has ever been invented. No device of the Directorate promotes and saves time for effectiveness and success of an organization.

Over the past several decades, researchers have emphasized trust as an essential element of improving employees' work attitude and overall organizational performance. Most employees seek to work in organizations where they are respected and trusted and where they are appreciated in making organizational success (Butler, 1999). Most research looks to focus more on job satisfaction. Mutual trust between managers and employees is an essential characteristic of most companies. Job satisfaction is, therefore, a critical factor in a company (Martinez-Tur et al., 2016).

According to Tlaiss and Elamin, (2015) trust is essential because it supports many external and internal activities and processes which provide a company with competitive advantage. Organizations having a culture of trust perform better than other organizations with low trust levels. Without trust, employees assume defensive postures and assume self-protective, which inhibits learning (Tlaiss & Elamin, 2015).

Xiong, Lin, Li, and Wang (2016) also describe that low trust level results into greater monitoring and surveillance levels while working. Employees interpret this as distrust that may cause employees to double cross their managers. In high performing companies, employees are trusted and provided with more responsibilities in achieving the goals essential for the success of business, however, the company will succeed together with their employees who are considered valuable assets that motivate them to succeed (Xiong, Lin, Li, & Wang, 2016). Employees in high-performing organizations have a look to have a good relationship with their managers, making everyone accountable (Xiong, Lin, Li, & Wang, 2016). Moreover, the level of trust between people contributes to their willingness to take the risk without any fear of punishment and this trust also leads to information sharing which promotes a healthy working environment necessary to improve individual as well as organizational performance. When people in an organization have trust for each other, they hold positive attitudes and expectancies towards others (Butler, 1999. Therefore, interpersonal trust between managers and their team members in a group is crucial to organizational effectiveness under such conditions (Dirks & Ferrin, 2002).

Research Approach and Method

The research seeks to bring into attention how the analysis of the link between trust relationship between middle managers and their subordinates and the influence it has on employees and the overall performance of organizations. The study will employ a mixed approach to ensure that the desired aims are based on facts. The mixed approach will allow the researcher to analyze the secondary sources related to the topic of the study and affirm the preliminary findings with primary data analysis to build a succinct correlation. A qualitative approach will provide perceptions and reasons regarding the subject from the participants (Maxwell, 2012). On the other hand, a quantitative technique to the study topic will assist in establishing the basis for conclusion formation. The research depends on statistical data to table an argument, make conclusions, and o...