chapter 1 introduction and design of the...
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CHAPTER 1
INTRODUCTION AND DESIGN OF THE STUDY
1.1 INTRODUCTION
In today’s global economy, organisations face various Human Resource
(HR) challenges as in recent times there is increasing importance given to human
resources. HR departments pay considerable attention to the aspiration of every
employee and evolve strategies constantly to discover their true potential. One of the
core objectives of the organisation is to increase efficiency by getting maximised
productivity at the minimum cost. Thus job performance is typically determined by
the motivation to work hard and high motivation means greater commitment and
higher job performance.
HR departments are involved with efforts to improve productivity
through systematic attempts to develop an empowered work environment. Such
workplaces may create inestimable feelings of belonging, esteem, satisfaction and
commitment. Organisational commitment is being considered as one of the foremost
outcomes of the human resources strategies and it is seen as the key factor in
achieving competitive performance.
Much attention has been given to the explosion in IT operation in India.
Little concern, however, has been paid to the performance of Indian service sector
workers in the fast paced and, sometimes turbulent, environments. Information
processing and call center activities of manufacturing, financial and service
organisations have moved offshore to Asian countries in record numbers. India, with
its ready source of English-speaking, highly educated and technologically trained
workers, has become the location of choice for IT functions of multinational clients.
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As Indian employees become more entrenched and connected to foreign
organisations, it is important for Indian IT organisations to identify applicable
Human Resource Development and High Performance Management practices.1
From a Human Resource Management perspective, it is important to
determine factors that have high potential to influence the productivity of Indian IT
employees involved in the expanding, high-flux outsourcing sector. So far, studies
related to examine the effective HR Practices enabling better Organisational
commitment and effectively boost Job performance, had been overlooked. The
present research is an attempt to examine the integrated effects of Work Life
Balance (WLB), Organisational Role Stress (ORS) and Career paths. To be effective,
it is important to align positive components of work environment which are reflected
in the form of commitment among women employees to sustain high level
performance.
Many studies have highlighted racial and gender abuse, difficult work
targets, widespread workplace monitoring, insufficient control, bounded work
structures, less breaks, less work life balance as those that create a pressurised and
stressful environment for employees, which often results in negative workplace
outcomes. 2, 3 This has created high attrition rates among employees in IT sector.
Employee retention, commitment, attrition and burnout are tremendous performance
and productivity issues for IT firms. A research with the objective of examining the
impact of WLB on ORS and influence of both on career paths is a breakthrough as
IT firms are plagued with high levels of employee attrition.
The present research which examines the relationship between WLB and
ORS could be beneficial in addressing the issues of women employee retention and
attrition which are highly linked to the IT sector. The research conducted with the
women employees of IT in Chennai assesses the WLB and ORS. The research
suggests creating high hope IT employees who can engage and act on the work
environment to increase Job satisfaction, High commitment, Reduce attrition and
Job related stress.
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The industry is already under stress on account of persistent problems
like attrition, confidentiality and loyalty. Managing HR in the knowledge based
industry is not a cakewalk for HR managers as it involves a multitask responsibility.
Now, the role of managers has shifted from the traditional role confined to
administrative functions to a strategic role. The attitude is different for those who
take up responsibilities at a younger age and lower level of experience. In this
scenario, managing the pool of people, talent is essential for the growth of
knowledge based sector like IT.
The research seeks the attention of the employers since the research is
taken up in the IT Sector with women employees in Chennai. An understanding of
the industry would help further to justify the necessity for research at this juncture.
The IT industry has achieved phenomenal growth after liberalisation. The industry
has performed exceedingly well amidst tough global competition. Being knowledge
based industry; India has been able to leverage global markets, due to the huge pool
of engineering talent available and the proficiency in English language among the
middle class. This growth in IT sector has gradually added Information Technology
Enabled Services (ITES) which has reported impressive growth and made India as a
global leader catering to the projects of international clients. An overview of the IT
sector is presented in the forthcoming section.
IT Industry in India
The IT industry in India has gained a brand identity as a knowledge
economy due to its IT and ITES sector. IT–ITES industry has two major
components: IT Services and Business Process Outsourcing (BPO). The growth in
the service sector in India has been led by the IT–ITES sector, making a substantial
contribution to Gross Domestic Product (GDP), employment, and exports. The
sector has increased its contribution to India's GDP from 6.1% in 2009-10 to 6.4% in
2010-11. According to National Association of Software and Services Companies
(NASSCOM), the IT–BPO sector in India aggregated revenues of US$109 billion in
the financial year 2013. The top nine cities that account for about 90% of exports of
these sectors are Bangalore, Chennai, Hyderabad, Mumbai, Pune, Delhi, Kolkata,
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Coimbatore and Kochi. Export dominates the IT–ITES industry, and constitutes
about 77% of the total industry revenue. Though the IT–ITES sector is export driven,
the domestic market is also significant with a robust revenue growth.
This sector has also led to considerable employment generation. Direct
employment in the IT services and BPO/ITES segment was 2.9 million in 2012-13
and is estimated to reach nearly 3.1 million of which nearly 1 million are women by
the end of financial year 2013-14 according to industry body NASSCOM. Indirect
employment of over 10 million job opportunities is also expected to be generated
due to the growth of this sector in 2013-14. Despite being a generally dominant
player in the global outsourcing sector, the sector continues to face challenges of
competitiveness in the globalized world, particularly from countries like China and
Philippines.
India's growing stature in the Information Age has enabled it to form
close ties with both the United States of America and the European Union. However,
the recent global financial crisis has deeply impacted global organisations not
leaving out Indian ones. As a result, hiring has dropped sharply, and employees are
looking at different sectors like the financial service, telecommunications, and
manufacturing industries, which have been growing phenomenally over the last few
years.
India's IT Services industry was born in Mumbai in 1967 with the
establishment of Tata Group in partnership with Burroughs. The first software
export zone Santacruz Electronics Export Processing Zone (SEEPZ) was set up way
back in 1973, the old avatar of the modern day IT park. More than 80 percent of the
country's software exports emerged from SEEPZ, Mumbai in 80s.
History of Indian IT Industry
The Indian Government acquired the EVS EM computers from the
Soviet Union, which were used in large companies and research laboratories. In
1968 Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) established in SEEPZ, Mumbai by the Tata
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Group were the country's largest software producers during the 1960s. As an
outcome of the various policies of Jawaharlal Nehru (office: 15 August 1947 – 27
May 1964) the economically beleaguered country was able to build a large scientific
workforce, third in numbers only to that of the United States of America and the
Soviet Union. On 18 August 1951, the Minister of Education Maulana Abul Kalam
Azad, inaugurated the Indian Institute of Technology at Kharagpur in West Bengal.
Possibly modeled after the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, these institutions
were conceived by a 22 member committee of scholars and entrepreneurs under the
chairmanship of Shri. N. R. Sarkar.
Relaxed immigration laws in the United States of America (1965)
attracted a number of skilled Indian professionals aiming for research. By 1960 an
estimated 10,000 Indians had settled in the US. By the 1980s a number of engineers
from India were seeking employment in other countries. In response, the Indian
companies realigned wages to retain their experienced staff.
The National Informatics Centre was established in March 1975. The
inception of The Computer Maintenance Company (CMC) followed in October
1976. During 1977-1980 the country's IT companies Tata Infotech, Patni Computer
System and Wipro had come on the scene. The 'microchip revolution' of the 1980s
had convinced both Indira Gandhi and her successor Rajiv Gandhi that electronics
and telecommunications were vital for India's growth and development. Mahanagar
Telephone Nigam Limited (MTNL) underwent technological improvements. During
1986-1987, the Indian government embarked upon the creation of three wide-area
computer networking schemes: INDONET (intended to serve the IBM mainframes
in India), NICNET (the network for India's National Informatics Centre), and the
academic research oriented Education and Research Network (ERNET).
Post Liberalization
Videsh Sanchar Nigam Limited (VSNL) introduced Gateway Electronic
Mail Service in 1991, the 64 kbit/s leased line service in 1992, and commercial
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Internet access on a visible scale in 1992. Election results were displayed via
National Informatics Centre's NICNET.
The Indian economy underwent economic reforms in 1991, leading to a
new era of globalization and international economic integration. Economic growth
of over 6% annually was seen during 1993-2002. The economic reforms were driven
in part by the significant internet usage in the country. The new administration under
Atal Bihari Vajpayee which placed the development of IT among its top five
priorities— formed the Indian National Task Force on Information Technology and
Software Development.
The New Telecommunications Policy, 1999 (NTP 1999) helped further
liberalize India's telecommunications sector. The IT Act 2000 created legal
procedures for electronic transactions and e-commerce.
Throughout the 1990s, another wave of Indian professionals entered the
United States. The number of Indian Americans reached 1.7 million by 2000. This
immigration consisted largely of highly educated technologically proficient workers.
Within the United States, Indians fared well in science, engineering, and
management. Graduates from the Indian Institutes of Technology (IIT) and Indian
Institute of Information Technology-Allahabad (IIIT-A) became known for their
technical skills. Thus Government of India planned to establish new Institutes
especially for Information Technology to enhance this field. In 1998 India got the
first IT institute named Indian Institute of Information Technology at Allahabad.
The success of IT in India had not only economic repercussions but also far-reaching
political consequences. India's reputation both as a source and a destination for
skilled workforce helped it improve its relations with a number of world economies.
The high premium placed on the relationship between economy and
technology in the western world facilitated the growth of an entrepreneurial class of
immigrant Indians, which further helped in promoting technology-driven growth.
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Recent Development
The economic effect of the technologically inclined services sector in
India accounts for 40 per cent of the country's GDP and 30 per cent of export
earnings as of 2006. Today, Bangalore is known as the Silicon Valley of India and
contributes 33% to Indian IT Exports. India's second and third largest software
companies are head-quartered in Bangalore.
Mumbai too has its share of IT companies that are India's first and largest,
like TCS and the well-established ones like Reliance, Patni, L&T Infotech, i-Flex,
WNS, Shine, Naukri, Jobspert etc. are head-quartered in Mumbai. These IT and dot
com companies are ruling the roost of Mumbai's relatively high octane industry of
IT. The number of women employees at TCS has crossed the one lakh mark, making
it India’s biggest employer of women in private sector. Women now comprise one
third (1,00,100) of the IT major’s 3.13 lakh workforce. This makes TCS, also the
most valued company in India, one of the top employers of women in the technology
sector globally. Within TCS, a major chunk over 40% of its women employees are
either new recruits or at junior levels, while about 11% are in the senior management.
The top slot is held by IBM, which has an estimated 1.3 lakh women out of a work
force of 4.31 lakh. In terms of market cap, the next two players in the domestic IT
market are Infosys (Total employees 1,61,284 and women employees 54,537) and
Wipro (Total employees 1,47,452 and women employees 45,276); but the female
workforce of TCS is more than the two combined.4 The IT and BPO sectors
collectively employ about 3.1 million, of which nearly 1 million are women,
according to Industry body NASSCOM. In India, across companies and sectors, the
gender ratio is undeniably skewed towards male employees. However, Indian Inc
has stepped up efforts to bridge the gap by implementing progressive policies and
creating innovative solutions to hire, retain and encourage women talent. Diversity
challenges homogeneity in thinking, which is good thing. There have been several
research reports which indicate that women think differently than men, and bring
more empathy and intuition to leadership.
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Such is the growth in investment and outsourcing; it was revealed that
Cap Gemini will soon have more staff in India (21,000) than it does in its home
market of France. On 25 June 2002 India and the European Union agreed to have
bilateral cooperation in the field of science and technology. A joint EU-India group
of scholars was formed on 23 November 2001 to further promote joint research and
development. India holds observer status at CERN while a joint India-EU Software
Education and Development Center is due at Bangalore.
Major IT Hubs in India
The following cities are the major IT hubs in India (NASSCOM),
Bangalore: Popularly known as the capital of the Silicon Valley of India is currently
leading in Information Technology Industries in India.
Chennai: It is the second largest exporter of Software next to Bangalore. It has the
largest operations for India's top software company TCS, Infosys (has world's largest
development center with 25,000 employers in Mahindra world city at Baranur near
Chengalpattu, and many centers in IT corridor), and other software companies like
Wipro, CTS, Patni, L&T infotech and many companies have major operations in IT
corridor, Ambattur and other places in Chennai.
Hyderabad: Hyderabad called as Cyberabad, which has good Infrastructure and
good government support is also a good technology base in India. The Government
of Andhra Pradesh has built a separate township for IT Industry called the HITEC
City.
Pune: Pune, a major industrial point in India.
Coimbatore: It is the Manchester of South India, the second largest city in the state
of Tamil Nadu, India and one of the largest industrial city in India. (Bangalore
showed the slowest rate of annual growth at 4 percent driven by reduced demand in
the BPO/ITES sector). It become an upcoming Major IT hub of India.
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New Delhi: The National Capital Region of India comprising Delhi, Gurgaon,
Faridabad, Noida, Greater Noida and Ghaziabad has ambitious projects and are
trying to do every possible thing for this purpose.
Mumbai: Popularly known as the commercial, entertainment, financial capital of
India, has seen a phenomenal growth in IT and BPO industry. TCS, Patni, L&T
Infotech, I-Flex WNS and other companies are headquartered here.
Kolkata: Kolkata is a major IT hub in Eastern India. All major IT companies are
present here. The city has tremendous potential for growth in this sector with
upcoming areas like Rajarhat.
Trivandrum: Trivandrum is the capital of Kerala. Government of Kerala provides a
good platform for IT development in the city with India's largest IT park
Technopark and dedicated Technocity SEZs.
Kochi: Kochi is the commercial capital of Kerala and is well connected by train,
bus, sea and air. Infopark and smartcity are the two SEZ IT parks with more than
100 companies.
IT Industry in Chennai
In the diversified economic foundation, software service has gained a
major ground in the Chennai's economy. The late 1990s, witnessed the birth of
business process outsourcing and software development and within a few years there
was a prominent spent of outgrowth in the number and magnitude of the software
industries in the city.
This in turn created a great impact on the city's economy. Chennai is now
one of the important software centers of India. Availability of not so expensive IT
labor is one of the main factors that has attracted a multitude of multi-billion-rupee
foreign software companies such as Microsoft to establish their business in the city
as well as in other software centers of India like Bangalore, Hyderabad, Kolkata, and
Delhi making the country a booming software exporter worldwide.
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Major software companies present in Chennai are CTS, Accenture, CSC,
Satyam, EDS, HP, HCL, Infosys, IBM, Sun Microsystems, Symantec, Verizon, TCS
and Wipro. At present Chennai is the second largest exporter of IT and IT enabled
Services in India next to Bangalore. The city is a hub of a number of technological
parks and has an employment potential of 3,00,000.
Women in Chennai IT industry
The emergence of IT sector in mid 1990s has unveiled a potential
employment opportunity for women in this organized sector congenially befitting
their job environment and offering, in principle, least gender discrimination. The
most traditional metropolis Chennai is witnessing a sea change in its values and
beliefs. This city is currently booming with employment opportunities mostly in the
service sectors, more particularly in the IT, offering jobs equally to men and
women.5 The IT industry in Tamilnadu is one of the largest sectors attracting women
employees, according to NASSCOM. About 1.4 lakh women work in the IT and
ITES sector, making up 40% of the workforce, with a bulk of them in the Chennai
city. According to the Monster salary Index report 2014 released in July, women are
paid up to 20% less than men in both supervisory and non-supervisory roles. While
many women in Chennai IT companies say there is no pay disparity, they note that
there are far fewer women than men in senior level positions. They get paid the
same at the entry level, with a lot of women being hired, sometimes more than men.
At the senior level though, the ratio of women to men is quite low.6 Whilst labor
market participation has increased for women of all ages, women continue to
shoulder main responsibility and undertaking unpaid caring work. The life of
working people is very demanding and challenging. There are ups and downs,
sometimes like a puzzle, or a long and winding road or a cobweb of numerous roles
and relationships. For working people, work-life linkages always seem to be
complicated, and demands from both sides can be extreme and people may need to
be prepared to make tradeoffs. Many firms require professionals to render longer
working hours, perform more intense workload, and learn more skills to keep their
jobs.7 The intense demand of workplace responsibilities creates exhaustion, fatigue,
and lack of sleep which lead to physical and emotional stress.8 In order to live a
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healthy and happy life, people who work should be able to face responsibilities and
balance work, personal and family needs.
1.2 REVIEW OF LITERATURE
The literature review references on WLB and ORS among women
employees have been framed up in view of its gained popularity with the major aim
to attain prosperity of the society. It also aims at the realization of ensuring balanced
lives for the women employees by supporting the growth of every woman employee
and the further development of the IT industry. In this section, an attempt has been
made to provide an overview of various surveys on WLB and ORS through the
review of existing literature after 2000. A categorical analysis is conducted with
reference to India on surveys relating WLB among employees, WLB among Women
employees and WLB among Women IT employees followed by ORS among IT
employees and ORS among Women IT employees.
1.2.1 International Studies
Vehvilainen9 (1999) examines the cultures and professional practices of
Finnish computing from the late 1950s to the early 1970s by using autobiographies
of computing pioneers as well as the archive material of the Finnish IT association.
The legacy of the pioneer culture is embedded in the gender processes that both give
room to women experts and consist of exclusive worlds without women. Finnish
women’s major entrance to computing in the 1970s and 1980s could not remove the
exclusive spheres. Equal opportunity in IT presumes a full acknowledgement of the
gender processes in the culture, identity and social orders of IT.
O Neill and Walker10 (2001) have conducted exploratory study of aspects
of women’s status in the IT industry in Western Australia. What is apparent from
their initial study is that the shortage of skilled personnel in Western Australia
mirrors the declining trend in the representation of women in the IT industry. This
industry once thought of as a gender neutral profession is still dominated by men.
Their preliminary study suggests that even though the IT industry does not exclude
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women, it does little to promote or employ them and the old corporate 'boys club'
syndrome continues to perpetuate.
Eileen, Jeria and Haiyan Huang11 (2008) have studied the cultural factors
influencing the career choices of women in the IT workforce. They have employed
the individual differences theory of gender and IT as a theoretical lens to analyse a
qualitative data set of interviews with 200 women from different countries. The
themes that emerged from their work seem to influence of cultural attitudes about
maternity, childcare, parental care and working outside the home on a women’s
choice of an IT career.
Lynette Kvasny et al12 (2008) have examined gendered perspectives on
the digital divide, motivations for engaging in IT education, and expectations
regarding IT workforce participation in Kenya. They interviewed 32 women and 31
men matriculating in an undergraduate IT focused program at a Kenyan university.
Interviewees reported that IT careers demand technical expertise, and a string
educational background in technology and business. However, their ability to meet
these demands was hindered by significant national challenges such as restrictive IT
policies, and a limited number of local firms that demonstrate the ability to manage
advanced technology and IT workers. Women were particularly concerned about
gender discrimination in the workplace.
Ghapanchi and Aurum13 (2011) have undertaken a systematic review of
72 studies from 1980 to 2008 to gain insight into existing studies on the turnover of
IT personnel. The study examines the background and trend of research into IT
personnel’s intentions to leave their workplaces. They observed a huge growth in the
number of academic papers on the topic since 1998. Moreover, most of the research
on IT turnover has been undertaken in North America followed by Asia.
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1.2.2 National Studies
WLB among Employees in India
Solamalai14 (2008) indicates that WLB does not mean equal balance,
what works today will not work tomorrow, there is no perfect one size that fits all,
individuals should strive for WLB and achieve.
Ujvala Rajadhyaksha and Swati Smita15 (2004) have examined four time
phases beginning with the period after independence up to mid-2000 in order to
trace a timeline for work and family research in the Indian context.
Rincy and Panchanatham16 (2010) have developed a 42 item four factor
instrument considering societal and familial concepts existing in the Indian society
for measuring the WLB of employees working in service sector. The instrument
possesses acceptable validity and reliability.
Niharika Doble and Supriya5 (2010) address WLB across genders by
using variables in the questionnaire based on studies published by Hyman et al 2003
and Hayman 2005. They use convenience sampling of 110 IT employees for their
study. Their study reveals that with the increase in number of dual career couples,
Flex time, working from home, child care facilities and the option to work part time
are the facilities that need to be introduced. Building a supportive work environment
is yet another important initiative to be addressed.
Susi and Jawaharrani17 (2011) have examined some of the literature on
employee engagement, explore work-place culture and WLB policies and practices
followed in industries in order to promote employee engagement, to increase their
productivity and retain them. WLB is key driver of employee satisfaction.
Ajai Pratap Singh and Avinash Kumar18 (2011) have investigated the
impact of level, tenure and marital status on WLB, health, job involvement and
conflict management style of the employees. Based on a sample size of 90 results
depicted that all three: marital status, tenure and managerial level significantly affect
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the WLB, health and its dimensions, job involvement and conflict management
style. The findings have implications for managing and implementing WLB policies
and programs.
Baral and Bhargava19 (2011) suggest efforts to understand if employees
perceive their organisations providing the WLB policies to be family friendly rather
than employee friendly and whether the culture of the company is supportive
towards using such programs.
Meenakshisundaram and Panchanatham20 (2012) have studied WLB of
70 full time employees working in garment industry, Tiruppur, Tamilnadu.
Convenience sampling has been used for their study. The study reveals keen interest
shown by the organization in careers of the employees and work load has been kept
reasonable by sharing the duties and responsibilities among the employees. The
employees are giving an equal quantum of importance to both family and work.
Most of the employees are able to balance their work life and personal life.
Lalita Kumari21 (2012) has studied the employee perception of WLB
policies and practices in the public sector banks in Malwa region of Punjab. The
findings of the study from 350 respondents emphasize that each of the WLB factors
on its own is a salient predictor of job satisfaction and there is a siginificant gap
among the female and male respondents with job satisfaction with respect to various
factors of WLB.
Priyanka22 (2013) discusses the concept of the WLB as a means of
tackling the problem of increasing amounts of stress in the work place. The author
also discussed some of the major issues of work life imbalance and solutions to
overcome the same.
Arun Raj23 (2013) has studied the WLB of 100 employees from Kerala
engaged in pharmaceutical marketing. The study concludes that there was an
increased case of WLB issues in the pharmaceutical marketing employees.
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Satinder Singh24 (2013) has made an endeavor to provide an overview of
various aspects of WLB through review of existing literature.
Kumar Viswanathan and Jeyakumar25 (2013) have developed a
comprehensive instrument to study the impact of IT employees WLB in India.
WLB among Women Employees in India
Sanghamitra Buddhapriya26 (2009) has conducted a study with 121
women professionals working in government services, public sector, private sector,
and in Non-Government Organisations across different levels to capture the
perception of women professionals regarding the barriers against their career
advancement. The Senior and middle level professionals believe more strongly than
junior level women professionals on commitment to family responsibility and lack
of gender sensitive policies by the employer as important barriers for career
advancement.
Supriti Dubey et al27 (2010) has attempted identification of the impact of
various personal factors like family support, proper health, diet and age on WLB of
working women. They have collected primary data from 80 randomly selected
women respondents in Bhopal city working in public and private organisations. The
study suggests that success in achievement of WLB depends not only on
organisations but also relationship in the family.
Vijayshri Rameshkumar Mehtha28 (2012) has studied WLB among 263
women employees in service sector (Banking, financial services, hospitals, IT and
education) with special reference to Pune city. The study reveals that most often the
break in women careers arises out of motherhood and family responsibilities.
Jyothi Sree and Jyothi29 (2012) has focused on the relationship between
role efficacy and emotional intelligence relating to WLB of career women. The
sample consists of 63 career women working in Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh in
government organisations and private companies of service sector. The results show
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that there is a significant impact of factors affecting role efficacy on emotional
intelligence.
Ramanithilagam and Ramanigopal30 (2012) have examined the utilization
of emotional intelligence by female workers on competency in life styles.
Vijaya Mani31 (2013) has attempted to gain insight into the role of 500
first generation women employees in different occupations (Banks, Colleges and
schools) on WLB in Tamil Nadu. The findings revealed that role conflict, lack of
recognition, organizational politics, gender discrimination, elderly and child care
issues, quality in health, problems in time management and lack of proper social
support are the major factors influencing the WLB of women professionals in Tamil
Nadu.
WLB among Women employees in IT Sector
Reimara Valk and Vasanthi Srinivasan32 (2011) have studied how work
and family related factors influence the work-family balance of 13 Bangalore based
Indian women IT professionals. The narratives reveal six major themes: familial
influences on life choices, multi-role responsibilities and attempts to negotiate them,
self and professional identity, work-life challenges and coping strategies,
organisational policies and practices and social support.
Subrat Kumar Parida33 (2012) has studied the opportunity for individuals
to balance their home and work effectively through a primary study by collecting
data from 162 employees of IT organisations in India (Bhubaneswar, Pune and
Bangalore) and USA. The author concluded with few suggestions to organisations
for their employees’ WLB.
Santhi and Sundar34 (2012) have explored the aspects to measure the
level of satisfaction, major factors that influence WLB, and overall WLB of 350
women employees in Chennai based IT industry. The study reveals overall
satisfaction of the respondents across the various WLB parameters, that 55% are
highly satisfied with current initiatives. They suggested that the management of
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surveyed IT industries has to find out the reasons for moderate and dissatisfaction
prevailing among the rest of the 45% and seek to address the issues.
Chandrasekar et al35 (2013) have studied WLB of employees of IT
organisations in Technopark, Trivandrum. The sample size (305) made up of 172
men and 133 women have been taken employing convenience sampling. The major
findings of the study were that there were some factors of work demand that
interferes with the personal life which leads to an imbalance state; WLB is different
based on gender and nature of jobs and WLB has a positive relationship with job
satisfaction.
Chitra Devi and Sheela Rani36 (2013) have studied the correlation
between the two directions of conflict, namely, work-life conflict and life-work
conflict and WLB. They conducted a survey among 711 women employees working
in BPO organisations located in Chennai and assessed their level of WLB based on
their marital and parental status. The authors suggest creation of family-friendly
organizational culture that facilitates creative solutions to work life issues. The
work-life issues are not only problems of the individual and employer but also of the
society.
Lakshmi Narayanan and Savarimuthu37 (2013) have explored the impact
of the dependent child’s age on the work family conflict experienced by the working
mothers in the IT industry in Bangalore. The research findings as revealed by 176
respondents having children confirm that work family conflict of the working
mother differs depending upon the age of their children.
ORS among Indian IT Employees
Sunetra Bhattacharya and Jayanti Basu38 (2007) have studied distress,
wellness and ORS of 101 (60 men and 41 women) IT professionals of Kolkata. The
results of the study reveal that women experienced greater wellness and less ORS
than men. The older personnel experienced more distress than younger age group.
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The study also reveals that IT profession in Kolkata follow usual stress-diathesis
model applicable in all other professions.
Beulah Viji Christiana and Mahalakshmi39 (2010) have studied among
205 IT professionals the reasons for stress. Fear of obsolescence contributes more
towards stress followed by client interaction and technical constraints among 10
factors considered.
Anurag Singh and Mishra40 (2011) have studied the impact of
organizational climate in the experiencing of occupational stress among the
executives of Indian IT organisations. Organisational climate questionnaire and
occupational stress index were used to collect data from 402 executives working in
eight reputed IT organisations in Gurgaon, Haryana. The regression analysis of the
study confirms strong influence of seven dimensions (Orientation, quality of work,
problem solving and decision making, communication, customer satisfaction, goal
setting, appraisal and counseling, and training) of organizational climate in
experiencing occupational stress.
A study by Sivakumar and Mohammed Siddique41 (2011) to measure
Occupational stress among IT professionals in various companies in Chennai city,
has been done on the basis of data from 104 IT professionals. The occupational
stress index tool developed by Srivastava Sing (1983) was used. The findings reveal
middle level professionals experience more stress than higher and lower level
professionals.
Jawahar Rani and Muzhumathi42 (2012) have investigated the intensity of
work family conflict creating ORS and the relationship between life satisfaction and
ORS. The result of the research among 491 women professionals’ reveals that stress
among women greatly depends on work family conflict. Doctors were more stressed
than other professionals. There was no significant relationship between ORS among
various women professionals. There was also no significant difference between
stress and life satisfaction.
19
Balaji and Shenbagaraman43 (2013) have studied the relationship
between self-esteem and stress and the impact of job stress on personal health
among 228 software employees in Chennai City. They used a self-esteem scale
developed by Eagly and they have also adapted from Robinshion and Shaver,
Measures of social Psychological attitudes and Personal health questionnaire
developed by Debra Allocock (1995). The study reveals that organizational role
stress contributes high stress among IT professionals. Employees meet with the
problems of stress and strain in everyday life because of high pressure environment
of working and living and they easily fall victims to disease and illness.
ORS among Indian Women IT Employees
Mohsin Aziz44 (2004) has investigated the ORS on a sample of 264
women IT professionals in India to explore the level of role stress. Resource
inadequacy has emerged as the most potent role stressor, followed by role overload
and personal inadequacy. The study also brings out differences in the level of stress
between married and unmarried respondents on inter role distance. However, level
of education does not emerge as a significant differentiator on stressors.
Vimala and Madhavi45 (2009) have explored the influence of age and
experience on stress and depression and the relationship between stress and
depression among women IT professionals in Chennai. The study reveals that
women IT professionals experience a moderate level of overall stress and stress
dimensions. The study also shows a likelihood of a strong relationship between
overall stress and depression. Madhavi and Vimala46 (2011) have observed from 485
women IT professionals in Chennai that the work family issues significantly
influence all the dimensions of role stress except role erosion, personal inadequacy,
self-role distance and resource inadequacy.
Kavitha, Kavitha and Arulmurugan47 (2012) have used ORS scale on a
sample of 264 women IT professionals in Tamil Nadu to explore the level of role
stress. Resource inadequacy and role overload have emerged as potent role stressors
tag on by personal inadequacy.
20
Kumudha and Jancy Rani48 (2012) have studied problems faced by
women employees in IT industry in Coimbatore. The study on 120 employees
reveals that most of the respondents are facing physical and psychological problems
due to their nature of work.
Asmita Bhattacharayya and Bhola Nath Ghosh49 (2012) have carried out
a detailed sociological analysis on the issues of opportunities and constraints,
women employees face in the Indian IT sector from different literatures.
Ranjit and Mahespriya50 (2012) have studied the job stress and its impact
on quality of life of 201 women software professionals in Bangalore. The study
concludes that job stress influences the quality of life and demographic variables
influence level of job stress and quality of life.
Monica Agarwal and Santhi Narayanan51 (2013) have investigated the
organizational factors influencing stress formation with reference to the random
sample of 100 working women in IT sector of Greater Noida region of New Delhi.
The study reveals that high workload, long continuous working hours, office
politics, lack of clarity in organizational roles, attitude of superiors and inflexible
organizational policies are emerging as major organizational factors influencing
stress formation.
Saundarya Rajesh and Karthik Ekambaram52 (2013) have studied the
circumstances under which an Indian woman professional decides to take a break.
The respondent’s sample of 235 (14% Male) was spread across all major cities in
India. The study covered both employee and employer perspectives.
A study of the surveys indicates that very little of research activities
carried out to study the WLB and ORS among Women employees in IT Industry in
Chennai. An attempt has been made to bring out the WLB and ORS among Women
IT employees through a detailed analysis. The primary objective is to assess the
WLB and ORS among Women IT employees in Chennai City. The other objective is
to identify the reasons for career break.
21
1.3 RESEARCH GAP
The literature on WLB and ORS among women IT employees has been
reviewed. It indicates a growing interest in the WLB and ORS studies. It is
observed, that there are many studies undertaken in various states in India with
respect to WLB and ORS. The WLB and ORS among Women IT employees in
Chennai city have not been reported in any open literature till date, even-though
Chennai has the maximum number of IT concerns in India next to Bangalore.
An attempt has been made to find out the issues of WLB and ORS
among women IT employees with the current scenario from Chennai City. A
systematic methodology to identify the level, components of WLB and to measure
ORS experienced by Women IT employees is proposed.
1.4 STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM
A career in IT is increasingly marked by struggles against deadlines,
rapid mobility in projects and frequently differing reporting relationships, collapsing
inter-personal relationship at work, and the shack style of conflict management,
temporal dissociation, the night here morning there syndrome, free time misuse than
use and growing infections cynicism that lead to despair, distress, pressure and
stress. Stress is the latest killer, the causes rather than the effect of several physical,
mental, and emotional problems. In fact, a whole range of psychosomatic ailments
are linked with stress which seems to be steadily degenerating mankind.
IT, the new age desire and envy of most people, seems to be coming
down heavily on its people like a cascading, catastrophic nightmare. Signs of the
continuing boom should have led to a raise in the cut throat competition, the drive to
excel and retire with the safety chips stashed away for security. Others view it as the
challenge, the passion to possess the globe as the world’s masters in IT that leads to
paranoia which is ignored and denied from the beginning. The early warning signals
like pressure, burnout, and fatigue are played down until stress and its depression set
in.
22
Changes in metabolism and appetite, tension, headaches, dizzy
spelallergies, blocked sinuses, aches and pains and stiffness are viewed as mere
physical discomforts as things that can be therapeutically dealt with. Concomitantly,
one is forced to play out a work life drama of irritability, anxiety, attacks, obsessive
worry, confusion, apathy and a sense of powerlessness leading to increased
cynicism.
When such situation prevails in IT sector, a woman working in IT has to
face all these situations. Added to that she has to take care of the kith and kin, elders
and other responsibilities in the family. Maintaining the balance between work and
life becomes a tough task here. All these cause stress due to work life conflict.
Added to the stress due to work family issue, techno-stress also affects
women. The women in IT have to undergo continuous upgradation of skills and
techniques. Constant learning of technologies and implementing in the competitive
work situation ultimately leads to techno-stress.
A woman in IT do homely duties unconsciously, but fails to enjoy life
with the family even if she is able to avail leisure time because she is always
worrying about the time stipulated projects backed up by lucrative perks and
promotions. This leads to a chase after money and the values of human relations are
not considered which at times results in divorces and separations. Unfortunately,
some other virtually exits each other’s lives, which ultimately results in divorces and
separations. Many children have sold their soul to the net and nestle more in the
laptop rather than their parent’s laps.
Is there a cure for this malady? Seeking the solution for this question is
the base or need of the hour and also forms the base for this research.
1.5 OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY
Based on the statement of the problem the researcher has framed the
following objectives for the study:
23
i) To explore the conceptual framework of WLB, ORS and Career
paths of Women IT employees.
ii) To measure the WLB and ORS among women IT employees in
Chennai
iii) To find out the impact of the personal, organizational and
conveyance factors on the WLB and ORS.
iv) To study the impact of various WLB components and role stressors
on overall, ORS and WLB respectively.
v) To assess the career paths of women employees in Chennai IT
industry.
1.6 SCOPE OF THE STUDY
The scope of this study is confined to WLB, ORS and career paths of
women employees working in IT industry in Chennai. Since it was intended to make
a wide and in depth study on WLB, ORS and career paths, the area has been limited
to Chennai city alone. Since various types of IT operations exist in Chennai, the
opinion of the women employees in Chennai may be taken to represent the entire
population. The study has been undertaken from the point of view of women
employees in Chennai city only.
1.7 METHODOLOGY OF THE STUDY
For this study a survey of WLB and ORS among women in Chennai IT
industry was conducted by means of a questionnaire that reached 500 active
employees in the industry. 423 filled in questionnaires were received. These
collected data were analysed by standard statistical techniques. The consolidated
research methodology of this present work is brought out in Figure 1.1.
24
Figure 1.1 Overview of the Research Methodology
Survey instrument
The study uses a descriptive research design. A survey was conducted
among the women IT employees with the help of a questionnaire. The study was
conducted in Chennai, India. Chennai has the maximum number of software
concerns in India next to Bangalore. The software industry in Chennai has extended
its business in all verticals. Chennai is the most suitable place to conduct this
research in India.
In this study, a stratified random sampling technique is used for selecting
sample. Stratified random sampling was the best sampling method available for this
WLB 1. Social Needs 2. Personal Needs 3. Time Management 4. Team Work 5. Compensation &
Benefits 6. Work
A survey was carried out to study the WLB, ORS and career paths among Women IT employees in Chennai. Self-administered questionnaire was
used as the tool for the survey
Career Paths 1. Career Satisfaction 2. Cultural Factors 3. Social Factors 4. Structural Factors 5. Personal Factors 6. Job Role Specific
Factors 7. Career Break 8. Duration of Career
Break
Analysis of the survey and identification of key issues
Conclusion
ORS 1. Inter Role Distance 2. Role Stagnation 3. Role Expectation Conflict 4. Role Erosion 5. Role Overload 6. Role Isolation 7. Personal Inadequacy 8. Self-Role Distance 9. Role Ambiguity 10. Resource Inadequacy
Results and Discussion
25
study.41 The study on WLB and ORS was conducted among 423 women IT
employees in Chennai city.
Outline of the survey approach
Since the survey required information from individuals, a questionnaire
was constructed. The questionnaire was divided into four sections comprising 113
questions. The objective of each section is as follows:
Section 1: General information about the respondents, their organizations and
some demographic factors.
The outcome of this section helps to understand the respondents’
background, in terms of the personal, organizational and conveyance factors.
Section 2: To identify the level and components of WLB
This section is intended to diagnose the level and components (personal
needs, social needs, time management, team work, compensation and benefits and
work) of WLB among women IT employees as perceived by the respondents.
Section 3: To measure ORS experienced by Women
This section is used to measure role stress (Self role distance, inter role
distance, role stagnation, role isolation, role ambiguity, role expectation conflict,
role overload, role erosion, resource inadequacy and personal inadequacy). ORS is a
5 point scale (0-4), containing 5 items for each role stress and a total of 50
statements.
Section 4: Career paths of women employees in IT industry
This section captures the circumstances (Cultural, Social, Structural,
personal and job role specific) under which an Indian woman employee decides to
take a career break.
26
Steps followed in constructing the questionnaire
After constructing individual questions, they were combined into a
questionnaire with care and effort by following the three guidelines for structuring
the questionnaire viz., i) to be self-administered, to facilitate answers, ii) to facilitate
the efficient transfer of answers to a form that is amenable to analysis and iii)
sequential order in questions to eliminate chances of bias. An improperly structured
questionnaire, containing properly constructed questions will most likely produce
information of doubtful nature.
Despite the precautions and care taken in structuring a questionnaire, the
final questionnaire must still be evaluated. All aspects of a questionnaire's structure,
from question sequencing to appearance, as well as individual question format and
wording, were assessed for potential problems.
Questionnaire evaluation
The first version of the questionnaire was evaluated and fine-tuned by
pre-testing as reported by Peterson53 (2000). There are numerous approaches to pre-
testing the questionnaire. Since the questionnaire was long, and at the same time
targets different knowledgeable levels of study participants, it needed extensive pre-
testing.
First, a convenient sample, the most common approach to questionnaire
pre-testing was used. This sample was composed of spouse, friends, and co-workers.
Next, a fast, often relatively inexpensive approach to pre-testing, involves a panel of
experts. An expert panel consisting of individuals from academic institutions and
Women employees from IT industry was utilized in identifying certain types of
questionnaire errors at a minimal cost. Ten women employees from IT industry were
also asked to respond to the questionnaire and provide answers to the questions. The
27
feedbacks from these pre-tests were used to improve the questionnaire on aspects of
validity, reliability and practical application.
WLB Scale
The instrument used for collecting data is “WLB Scale”. The WLB scale
is intended to diagnose the level and components of WLB as perceived by the
respondents. The WLB is a generally used instrument to measure six WLB
components namely Social Needs (SN), Personal Needs (PN), Time Management
(TM), Team Work (TW), Compensation and Benefits (C&B) and Work (W). The
scale contains six items for each component of WLB with a total of 36 statements
and uses a five point scale from 0-4. The ratings are totaled for six items after
reversing the scale only for negative statements and multiplied by 4.17 to get the
WLB index (WLB-I) for each area of WLB. It will range from 0 to 100. Total of all
six WLB index totals leads to get the overall WLB index.
Even though many scales are available to measure WLB, they do not
exactly fit into the societal and familial concepts existing in the Indian society. The
WLB scale used, was developed by Udai Pareek and Surabhi Purohit54 (2010) and
has high reliability and validity with reference to Indian context. It can be used to
generate data about various components of WLB experienced by a respondent.
Analysis of data collected can help in identifying weak aspects, as indicated by low
scores in an occupational group and strategies can be suggested to deal with the
issues.54
ORS Scale
The instrument used for collecting data is “ORS Scale”. The ORS scale is
a comprehensive tool to elicit data about different role stressors afflicting a
respondent. It covers a range of stressors that may be experienced by an
occupational group. The ORS is a widely used instrument to measure ten role
28
stressors namely Inter Role Distance (IRD), Role Stagnation (RS), Role Expectation
Conflict (REC), Role Erosion (RE), Role Overload (RO), Role Isolation (RI),
Personal Inadequacy (PI), Self-Role Distance (SRD), Role Ambiguity (RA) and
Resource Inadequacy (RIn). The scale contains five items for each role stress with a
total of 50 statements and uses a five point scale from 0-4. Thus, the total score on
each role stress ranges from 0 to 20 and the total ORS score from 0 to 200. The
ratings are totaled for five items to get the total score for each role stressor. Score up
to 5 is categorized as low stress, 6-10 as moderate, 11-15 as high and 16-20 as very
high.44, 47
The ORS scale was developed by Udai Pareek and Surabhi Purohit54
(2010) and has high reliability and validity. It can be used to generate data about
varied stresses experienced by a respondent. Analysis of data collected can help in
identifying potent stressors in an occupational group. Strategies can be suggested to
manage and reduce stress.55
1.8 SAMPLE SIZE
Chennai city was selected for the study as it is second largest exporter of
IT and IT enabled services in India next to Bangalore. According to survey
conducted by NASSCOM in 2012-2013 based on financial and other information
collected from its member companies the top 20 players in IT services in India are
given in Table 1.1. Among them, top ten companies engaging women employees
and functioning from Chennai have been selected to analyse the WLB, ORS and
Career paths.
29
Table 1.1
Top 20 IT Services Companies
Rank Company
1 Tata Consultancy Services Ltd
2 Infosys Ltd
3 Cognizant Technology Solutions Ltd
4 Wipro Ltd
5 International Business Machine
6 Accenture Services Pvt Ltd
7 HCL Technologies Ltd
8 Tech Mahindra Ltd
9 iGate
10 Mphasis Ltd
11 L&T Infotech Ltd
12 Syntel Ltd
13 CSC, India
14 Genpact India Pvt Ltd
15 MindTree Ltd
16 Robert BOSCH Engineering and Business Solutions Ltd
17 KPIT Technologies Ltd
18 Polaris Technology Ltd
19 Hexaware Technologies Ltd
20 Infotech Enterprise Ltd
Source: NASSCOM
There are more than 500 IT service providers functioning in Chennai
city. Ten among them are major companies engaged in IT services with women IT
employees. Those were taken for the study as in Table 1.2.
30
The following equation has been used to estimate the minimum sample size.
Minimum sample size, n = t2 p (1-p)/m2
n = 1.962 x0.5x (1-0.5)/0.052
= 384
Where,
n is required minimum sample size
t is confidence level at 95% (standard value of 1.96)
p is estimated fractional population of subgroup, expressed as decimal
(0.5 used for sample size needed)
m is margin of error at 5% (standard value of 0.05)
Correction for finite population
New SS = SS/1+((SS-1)/Pop) = 384/(1+((384-1)/51671) = 381
Where,
Pop = Population
SS = Sample Size
As per the above computation the required total sample size is 381,
which constitutes 0.74 percent of the total population. Therefore, 0.74 percent from
each category is drawn on the basis of stratified random sampling method. Thus this
study satisfies with more than the required number of respondents, namely, 423 at
0.82 percent.
31
Table 1.2
Selected Companies in Chennai with Sample Size
Sl.No Company No. of Women
Employees (Approximate)
Required Sample (0.74%)
Actual Sample
1 Tata Consultancy Services Ltd 16814 124 129
2 Infosys Ltd 5750 42 47
3 Cognizant Technology Solutions Ltd 5843 43 53
4 Wipro Ltd 4203 31 32
5 International Business Machine 3986 29 32
6 Accenture Services Pvt Ltd 3478 26 28
7 HCL Technologies Ltd 3701 27 28
8 L&T Infotech Ltd 3396 25 27
9 Polaris Technology Ltd 2800 21 22
10 Hexaware Technologies Ltd 1700 13 25
Total 51671 381 423 Source: Dataquest
1.9 PERIOD OF THE STUDY
The primary data were collected from Women IT employees through the
questionnaire from September 2013 to February 2014. Thus the researcher has taken
six months for data collection.
1.10 DEVELOPMENT OF HYPOTHESES
For the purpose of analysis, it is assumed that WLB will have a negative
impact on the ORS identified in this study. Hypotheses have been developed
considering the change in overall ORS. Traditionally, a lot of effort is directed
towards improving the factors affecting WLB and ORS. The following hypotheses
have been developed for all the measures of WLB and ORS.
32
1. There is a significant relationship between personal, organisational
and conveyance factors and overall WLB as well as its six
components.
2. There is a significant relationship between personal, organisational
and conveyance factors and overall ORS as well as its ten stressors.
It is expected that if the WLB index of the women employees increase,
the level of ORS will be decreased. This overall WLB is expected to have a negative
correlation with the measures of ORS and vice versa. This observation has lead to
the following hypothesis.
3. The change in overall WLB correlates with the change in ORS
stressors of Women employees in Chennai IT industry.
4. The change in overall ORS correlates with the change in WLB
components of Women employees in Chennai IT industry.
1.11 TESTING OF HYPOTHESES
The Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) has been used for data
analysis. Two-sample t-test, ANOVA, Pearson’s correlation technique and multiple
regression analysis are applied to test the hypotheses developed. General descriptive
statistics, using mean and standard deviations have been used to identify WLB and
ORS. The descriptions of these techniques are briefly discussed below.
Two Sample t-test
Two-sample t-test is employed to know whether the parameters of two
population groups are alike or different. The null hypotheses for testing of difference
between means is as in Equation 1.1,
HO: µ1 = µ2 (1.1)
33
where µ1 and µ2 are population mean values of population 1 and 2 respectively
assuming that both the populations groups are normal groups. Alternatively
hypotheses may be of not equal to (less than or greater than type) and accordingly
the acceptance or rejection regions for testing the hypotheses can be determined. The
computations involved in obtaining t value are carried out using the SPSS package
and the results are interpreted.
Analysis of Variance
The ANOVA technique is important in the context of all those situations
where more than two population groups are compared. The basic principle of
ANOVA is to test for difference among the mean values of the population groups by
examining the amount of variation within each of these samples relative to the
amount of variation between the samples. While using ANOVA, it is assumed that
each of the samples is drawn from a normal population and that each of these
population groups has the same variance. To estimate the F-statistic, we have to
make two estimates of population variance, viz., one based on variance between
samples and the other on variance within samples. Then the two said estimated of
population variance are compared with F-test, where in we work out
F = Variance between samples/Variance within samples (1.2)
This value of F is to be compared with the F-limit for given degrees of
freedom. If the F value we work out is equal or exceeds the F-limit value (table
value), we may say that there are significant differences between the samples mean
values. However, for simplicity, SPSS package has been used to find the one way
ANOVA F-values.
Pearson’s correlation
Bivariate distribution is used to find out the presence of any correlation
between two variables under study. The variables considered are the overall WLB
and various stressors, Overall ORS and components of WLB. If the change in one
variable affects the change in the other variable, the variables are said to be
34
correlated. If the two variables change in the same direction, correlation is said to be
positive and if it is in the opposite direction, correlation is said to be negative.
The Pearson’s coefficient of correlation (r) for the variables X and Y are
denoted as in Equation 1.3:56, 57
r =
N
i 1 {(Xi – X ) (Yi – Y )}/(N-1) x y (1.3)
where,
Xi is ith value of X variable
X is mean of X
Yi is ith value of Y variable
Y is mean of Y
N is the number of pairs of observations made in X and Y
x and y are the standard deviations of X and Y respectively.
If r = +1, the correlation is perfect and positive and if r = -1, the
correlation is perfect and negative and the value of r lies between –1 and +1.
For testing the correlation coefficient, the value of ‘t’ is calculated as
in Equation 1.4
t = r {(N-2)/(1-r2)} (1.4)
with N-2 degrees of freedom, ‘r’ being coefficient of simple correlation between X
and Y. The calculated value of ‘t’ is compared with the table value ‘t’ and if the
value is more than the table value, the hypothesis is accepted
(i.e. there is significant correlation) at the given level of confidence. For this also
SPSS package has been used for the measures of WLB, ORS and their significance.
35
Multiple regression analysis
Multiple regression is a powerful and versatile method applicable to
situations in which the research goal is to explain or predict a single dependent
variable on the basis of multiple independent variables. The model can be expressed
as in Equation 1.5.
Y = o+ 1X1+ 2X2+ 3X3+ 4X4+……..+ nXn + ei (1.5)
where, Y indicates dependent variable
X indicates independent variables
o intercept
terms are unknown parameters (standardized regression coefficient)
ei error or disturbance
n number of independent variables
The stepwise method is useful when a relatively large number of
independent variables are included in the function. By sequentially determining the
next best discriminating variable at each step, insignificant variables are eliminated.
The reduced set is almost as good as the complete set of variables.
1.12 ORGANIZATION OF THESIS
The entire research work is organized and presented in the following
chapters.
Chapter 1 deals with the Introduction and Design of the Study.
It contains introduction, review of literature, research gap,
statement of the problem, objectives of the study, scope of the
study, methodology of the study, development of hypotheses, and
chapter scheme.
36
Chapter 2 is devoted for Conceptual Framework of WLB, ORS
and Career Paths of women employees.
Chapter 3 depicts Analysis of WLB of women employees in IT
industry.
Chapter 4 brings out Analysis of ORS among women employees
in IT industry.
Chapter 5 presents the Evaluation of WLB-ORS and Career
Paths.
Chapter 6 is Conclusions which summarizes the work done
together with findings and suggestions.
37
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