Research Study with Wharton Business School

[shimul]

I am a doctoral student of Management at the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania. I am writing to ask for your organization’s participation in a research study.
The objective of this study is to evaluate the effects of first impressions of new employees on their performance and career outcomes. I expect that the findings from this study will have many relevant implications.

• It will provide you with an objective and in-depth view of the workings of your performance management system and aid you in your continuous efforts to enhance your performance management systems, especially with regard to
• organizational fairness and and also,
• social context of performance management
• provide you with an understanding emotional and psychological mechanisms for turnover.
.
Basic Details of the Study:
Your organization’s involvement and time commitment will be minimal
The study will be funded by the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania.

Background and Rationale

Research Design and Time Frame
The study is designed around your recruitment and performance management cycles and will thus, be tailored to your organization’s systems and processes. Based on the study requirements, managers will be asked to complete surveys about their employees at three different points in time:
i. On the day that the managers make first contact with their new team members or subordinates. This varies between organizations; in some cases managers are responsible for interviewing new employees, whereas in others, managers meet employees on their first day at work. This step is extremely important for the study to succeed..
ii. The managers will complete survey 2, at the end of the new employees’ probation period (if there is a probation period). If not, the second survey will be administered 4-6 weeks into the job. At this point, I will also need access to objective performance measures for the employees under consideration.
iii. The managers will take survey 3, at the time of the new employees’ half-yearly or yearly performance review. At this point, I will also require access to objective performance measures for the employees under consideration.


Data and Confidentiality
The study will be conducted in a manner that ensures confidentiality and data integrity for your organization, managers and employees. Access to the data will be restricted to the study’s principal investigator, namely, me. I am bound by the data confidentiality requirements of the University of Pennsylvania, published findings will only include statistical summaries and will not allow the identification of individuals or organizations.

Please contact me is you are interested through this forum or at shimul@wharton.upenn.edu