University of Southern California Dissertations and Theses

Developing and retaining employees: exploring talent management initiatives for enlisted women

(USC Thesis Other)

Developing and retaining employees: exploring talent management initiatives for enlisted women

PDF

Download a page range

Download transcript

Copy asset link

Request this asset

Transcript (if available)

Content Running head: DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 1

DEVELOPING AND RETAINING EMPLOYEES: EXPLORING TALENT MANAGEMENT
INITIATIVES FOR ENLISTED WOMEN

by
Andre J. Stridiron III

A Dissertation Presented to the
FACULTY OF THE USC ROSSIER SCHOOL OF EDUCATION
UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA
In Partial Fulfillment of the
Requirements for the Degree
DOCTOR OF EDUCATION

December 2018

Copyright 2018 Andre J. Stridiron III
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 2

Table of Contents
Introduction to the Problem of Practice .......................................................................................... 4
Organizational Context and Mission .............................................................................................. 4
Importance of Addressing the Problem .......................................................................................... 5
Purpose of the Project and Questions ............................................................................................. 6
Organizational Performance Goal ................................................................................................... 7
Stakeholder Group of Focus ........................................................................................................... 8
Methodological Approach .............................................................................................................. 9
Review of the Literature ............................................................................................................... 12
Female Enlistees’ Knowledge, Motivation, and Organizational Influences ................................. 18
Interactive Conceptual Framework: The Interaction between the Knowledge and Motivation of
Enlisted Women and the Organizational Policies and Culture of Service X ................................ 30
Data Collection and Instrumentation ............................................................................................ 32
Data Analysis ................................................................................................................................ 36
Results and Findings ..................................................................................................................... 38
Recommendations for Practice to Address KMO Influences ....................................................... 56
Integrated Implementation and Evaluation Plan ........................................................................... 56
Conclusion .................................................................................................................................... 72
References ..................................................................................................................................... 74
Appendix A: Topic Sentence Outline ........................................................................................... 83
Appendix B: Participating Stakeholders: Sampling and Recruitment .......................................... 94
Appendix C: Protocols .................................................................................................................. 99
Appendix D: Survey Analysis Plan Map .................................................................................... 107
Appendix E: Credibility and Trustworthiness ............................................................................ 112
Appendix F: Validity and Reliability .......................................................................................... 113
Appendix G: Ethics ..................................................................................................................... 115
Appendix H: Limitations and Delimitations ............................................................................... 118
Appendix I: Knowledge Influences Supporting Data ................................................................. 120
Appendix J: Motivation Influences Supporting Data ................................................................. 121
Appendix K: Organizational Influences Supporting Data .......................................................... 124
Appendix L: Independent Sample Test....................................................................................... 132
Appendix M: Knowledge, Motivation, and Organizational Recommendations......................... 136
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 3

Appendix N: Immediately Following Training Evaluation ........................................................ 149
Appendix O: Supervisor After Training Checklist ..................................................................... 150
Appendix P: Delayed Training Evaluation ................................................................................. 151
Appendix Q: Data Analysis and Reporting ................................................................................ 152

DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 4

Introduction to the Problem of Practice
Organizations put themselves at risk when they fail to invest in the career progression,
development, and job satisfaction of their employees. Such management oversights create
cultures and climates saturated with unsatisfied employees seeking improved conditions and
unmotivated to perform at their peak to meet organizational goals and objectives (Eckel &
Grossman, 2005; Heinen & O’Neill, 2004; Hughes & Rog, 2008; Lawton & De Aquino, 2015;
McCauley & Wakefield, 2006). Compounding this problem many organizations also fail to
capitalize on one of the fastest growing talent populations currently entering the workforce:
women. Representing approximately 51% of college graduates and 47% of the U.S. employees,
women are changing the dynamics of today’s workforce (US Bureau of Statistics, 2016).
Without specific action and initiatives that focus the organization on recruiting, developing, and
sustaining the best available talent, organizations often develop performance gaps that result in a
workforce incapable of accomplishing the organization’s goals and strategic plans, solve
complex problems, or adapt to organizational changes (Ashton & Morton, 2005; Heinen &
O’Neill, 2004, Hughes & Rog, 2008).
Organizational Context and Mission
The organization of focus, which will be referred to throughout this study as Service X, is
a U.S. military organization that employs volunteer men and women from the United States of
America, its territories, and green card holding citizens. According to organization’s webpage
they employ approximately 329,302 personnel, with a demographic breakdown of approximately
16% women and 84% men. Service X’s retention efforts for enlisted women rely heavily on
skill acquisition, career advancement, and the gaining of advanced qualifications required to
maintain and operate its equipment, resources, and weapons platforms. Women are asked to
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 5

volunteer their talents through active duty service contracts in increments of three, four, or five-
year terms depending on the level of expertise required of their employment skillset. Each
retention period is classified under five retention zones with the last zone comprised of service
members who have surpassed twenty years of service and are eligible for a retirement pension
and benefits. Enlisted women who have completed their initial service contract have a retention
rate of 38%, lower than their male counterparts at approximately 43%.
In 2015, according to the organization’s webpage, Service X implemented initiatives that
addressed its talent management and retention goals. A key focus of these initiatives was to
establish an environment and culture capable of competing and retaining America’s top talent.
Through several focused doctrines, namely the talent management initiative, the innovation
vision plan, the global transformation plan, and the leader development strategy, Service X
focused efforts towards attracting, developing, and retaining talented employees to create a
diverse force capable of addressing current and future national security challenges. A significant
part of this initiative was to improve the diversity of its workforce through plans, policies, and
doctrines developed specifically to address and improve the career, advancement, and leadership
opportunities for women.
Importance of Addressing the Problem
The succession of leadership across the U.S. Military enterprise relies on the growth and
development of service members from junior into senior positions. This succession strategy
increases the complexity and challenge of the organization’s retention and leadership
development efforts because of the continuous demand for high quality and capable talent to be
retained in the progression pool of active duty employees. Failing to maintain quality and
diverse talent through initiatives focused on recruiting, professional development, and retention,
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 6

might adversely affect the quality and diversity of talent available for advancement into senior
management positions. Such a failure may also adversely affect the organization’s ability to
accomplish the goal and mission, stated on it’s webpage, of maintaining a competitive combat
force.
Purpose of the Project and Questions
The purpose of this case study was to examine the degree to which Service X is achieving
its goal of increasing the retention of high-quality talent amongst the enlisted women workforce
by investigating factors that influence their attrition. The analysis focused on the knowledge,
motivation, and organizational influences obtained from interviews and surveys conducted with
enlisted men and women who are actively serving or have ended their contracts within the past
three years. As such, the questions that guided this study are as follows:
1) To what extent have Service X’s talent management and retention initiatives met the
organization’s goal of maintaining or increasing the percentage of active duty enlisted
women serving under their initial contract?
2) How does the information that enlisted women receive about Service X’s professional
development influence their career decision to reenlist?
3) What motivates the decisions of enlisted women to reenlist or not with Service X?
4) How does Service X’s organizational culture impact enlisted women when it comes to
deciding whether to reenlist or not?
5) What are the recommendations for organizational practices in the areas of knowledge,
motivation, and organizational influences?

DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 7

Organizational Performance Goal
The primary mission and goal of Service X, as outlined on the organizations’ webpage, is
to maintain a force capable of winning in a combat environment. To accomplish its goal, the
organization acknowledges that it must commit to successfully recruiting, training, and
ultimately retaining a talented, innovative, and capable pool of employees. Therefore, on
December 15, 2015, several senior officials and offices across the organization signed a
memorandum outlining the intentions of the new goals and its objectives to promote a gender-
neutral force, improve career development and retention effort, and establish a career-long
leadership development continuum.
This study examined the results of Service X’s 2015 initiatives by exploring retention and
professional development factors related to women and the increased demand for their talent
across the global workforce. With the current retention rate for Service X’s active duty enlisted
women approximately 5% lower than their male counterparts, the organization’s professional
development and retention goals appear to implicitly target this population. Failing to implement
a successful talent management and development initiative that specifically addresses its women
population increases the chances of the organization developing performance gaps between its
goals and capabilities. Amplifying the significance of the problem are the additional challenges
surrounding Service X’s leadership succession program and the considerable time involved with
developing leaders in lieu of the outsourcing or direct-hire options. Therefore, for Service X to
accomplish its organizational goals, it must attract, develop, promote, and retain top talent, to
include, the largest and most advancing group to enter today’s workforce: women. Table 1
identifies the organizational mission and organizational performance goals.

DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 8

Table 1
Organizational Mission and Performance Goal
Organizational Mission
To maintain, train and equip combat-ready force capable of winning wars, deterring aggression
and maintaining freedom of navigation across the globe.
Organizational Performance Goal
Service X established an implicit goal outlined in many of its strategies, directives, and plans
addressing talent development initiatives.

Stakeholder Group of Focus

Through its talent management initiatives, Service X has responded to its employment
talent demand by concentrating efforts on one of the most under-represented and under-utilized
resources of employment talent: women. Women currently represent 47% of the entire U.S.
workforce and are projected to represent 51% of the growth in the U.S. workforce by 2018 (U.S.
Department of Labor, 2017). Recognizing this, Service X’s policies, directives, and doctrines
which support the talent management initiatives concentrate the organization’s efforts on the
recruitment, development, and retention of women.
The female population employed by Service X are sub grouped into two workforce
categories. The smaller group, the officers, represent the white-collar management employees
and the larger enlisted population represent the blue-collar portion of the workforce. Public
records from Service X indicated several initiatives which were implemented specifically to
address women’s issues such as, removing job restrictions that previously prevented women
from specific assignment types, creating an environment that is intolerant of sexual
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 9

discrimination through the institution of extensive prevention programs, promoting career
progression programs that support co-location for couples serving on active duty, enhancing the
needs and services of child development centers, and extending maternity leave from six to
twelve weeks.
Although a complete analysis of the talent management program would include the entire
population of women employed by Service X, this study for practical purposes, focused only on
women serving in the enlisted ranks. This group was chosen based on the group’s population
size, diversity of experience, and the group having the lowest retention rate between the two.
Despite the organization not establishing specific and measurable retention goals for this
stakeholder group, the overall goal of retaining high quality talent at or above the current rate
was the focus for measuring the performance gap. Furthermore, due to the specific retention
terms described earlier, this study defines its stakeholder selection group as enlisted women,
serving in their first contracted term with Service X.
Methodological Approach
This study utilized an explanatory sequential mixed (qualitative and quantitative)
methods research framework to conduct systematic analysis for exploring and creating new
theories and explanations of performance problems (Maxwell, 2013; Merriam & Tisdell, 2016).
The first actions taken in the analysis was a quantitative survey conducted to develop a baseline
understanding of the causes and effects surrounding the study (Creswell, 2014). The quantitative
research data provided deductive methods for confirming theories with standardized instruments
used to identify patterns and themes (Rocco & Plakhotnik, 2009). The aim of the survey was to
produce generalizable knowledge and infer from a sample population to the broader one
(Stringer, 2014). The second action taken in the analysis were qualitative interviews which
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 10

provided the researcher with greater meaning, understanding, and context of the problems pf
practice (Creswell, 2014; Maxwell, 2013; Merriam & Tisdell, 2016). An additional benefit to
conducting the qualitative interviews was that they provided an opportunity for the researchers to
become an active instrument in the data collection and analysis process (Locke, Silverman, &
Spirduso, 2010). The qualitative interviews also provided a flexible and interactive venue with
opportunities for the researcher to make appropriate adjustments as new information was
identified (Maxwell, 2013; Merriam & Tisdell, 2016). The following paragraph outlines four
factors used in selecting a mixed-methods approach to enhance the quality of this study and the
analysis of Service X’s talent management and retention initiatives.
To first recap, the purpose and intent of this study was to analyze Service X’s efforts and
initiatives aimed at cultivating and retaining top quality talent for the succession of leadership
positions and successful sustainment its mission. The stakeholder group of interest were active
duty enlisted women serving in their first contracted term. A mixed-methods methodological
approach was implemented and utilized in this study’s data collection instruments, participant
use, and the analysis of the results. The quantitative data, collected through an online survey,
was used to increase the validity and reliability of the study’s finding while qualitative data,
collected through interviews, was used to increase the credibility and trustworthiness of the
findings. The researcher’s decision for choosing a mixed-methods’ approach was supported by
four factors. The first factor involved consideration of the study’s intent to assess and evaluate
the social phenomena that influences women’s decision to reenlist with Service X. This process
focused on the need for the data to best understand the influence of the knowledge, motivation,
and organizational influences. To support this and identify cause and effects, as well as
determine the best course of actions to resolve identified problems, the use of quantitative
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 11

analytical information was utilized. The second factor in choosing a mixed-methods approach
was the consideration of the value that qualitative approach provides through its flexible design
and implementation. This flexibility provided the researcher with opportunities to make critical
and necessary adjustments to assessment instruments as new details and information emerged.
Also, the added use of qualitative data supported the need for inductive and exploratory data
collection techniques for identifying new information and confirm existing theories. The third
factor in the consideration for choosing a mixed-methods approach was the intended use of the
tools and instruments. The quantitative survey instrument facilitated reaching out to a larger
pool of participants and associating their responses to a broader population. The qualitative
interview instrument facilitated data collection methods which were best suited for conducting
in-depth analysis through interactive conversations with the participants. This approach best
provided opportunities to establish and build rapport, assess responses in real time, interact with
participants, probe for greater understanding of their responses, and collect data specifically
focused on answering the research questions. The fourth and final consideration for using a
mixed-methods approach was the effective and efficient use of the researchers and participant’s
time. The qualitative interviews, which lasted approximately 45 minutes each, provided data
rich information using of a small sample population whereas the quantitative survey instruments,
requiring about 15-20 minutes to complete, provided an opportunity to pool and assess responses
from a much larger population of participants and include a perspective from male counterparts.
Consideration of time management allowed for the collection, assessment, and analysis of data to
occur in a most effective and efficient order. Utilizing a mixed-methods design, the goal was to
produce a credible, trustworthy, valid, and reliable study that is both rich in information and
supportive of the finding between the intent of the organization’s initiatives and the actual results
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 12

identified. Overall, the mixed-methods approach provided this study with well-balanced
combinations of inductive and deductive, exploratory and structured and a flexible and
systematic data collection process all bounded by a framework that focused on knowledge,
motivation and organizational influences on the problem of practice.
Review of the Literature
This section is a review of literature that identified contributing factors impacting Service
X’s efforts to develop and retain enlisted women. These factors are categorized into four
research topics: 1) the organization’s responsibilities for the employee’s professional growth, 2)
the development of the employee’s work-identity, 3) addressing the employee’s needs, and 4)
organizational diversity challenges. Appendix A provides a supporting topic sentence outline
which provides a summary of the related empirical references that support each factor and
subtopic.
Organizational Responsibilities for the Employee’s Professional Growth
The first factor identified as having a significant impact on the development and retention
of enlisted women is the role and responsibility that a human resources and training department
have on an employee’s professional growth and job satisfaction. Despite their often
unrecognized and unappreciated efforts human resources departments have a critical role in
identifying, maintaining, developing, and retaining talent and the impact of their contribution is
as significant to the success or failure of the organization as any other component or department
(Govaerts, Kyndt, Dochy, & Baert, 2011). The role and responsibilities of human resources
departments have evolved over the years and are now considered an integral part of an
organization’s success, especially with respect to talent development and retention (Hughes &
Rog, 2008; Lewis & Heckman, 2006; McCauley & Wakefield, 2006). A failure of an
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 13

organization’s human resources to contribute to the growth, development, and job satisfaction of
all employees can lead to a significant loss of human capital.
Unsuccessful human resources department efforts and policies, related to talent
management, can produce catastrophic results for an organization related to the motivation and
retention of talent (Hughes & Rog, 2008). The practices and models that an organization adopts
significantly impact how they interact and engage with employee development and more
importantly, employee performance and retention (Lewis & Heckman, 2006). Human resources
departments have a responsibility to ensure every employee is treated fairly and identified for
their potential talent. Human resources departments that fail to ensure all employees are treated
fairly, because they concentrated professional development efforts on specific employees who
are performing in the present, put themselves at risk because they fail to identify and take full
advantage of the talents of future performers (Walker & LaRocco, 2002). The implementation of
a fair professional development programs strengthens relationships between all employees and
increases the likelihood of positively retaining talented employees (Kyndt, Dochy, Michielsen, &
Moeyaert, 2009).
The Employee’s Work-Identity
The second factor identified as having a significant impact on the development and
retention of enlisted women addresses the importance of organizations understanding employee
work-identity and what is desired from organizations in the form of mentorship and professional
development programs. A person’s work identity is the image they have of themselves and
includes their values, beliefs, and goals and the relationship of their identity to a work
environment they perceive and recognize as being similar (Eckel & Grossman, 2005). Job
satisfaction, motivation, and retention can expect to see improvements when employees identify
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 14

themselves as being valued by the organization. It is also improved when organizations practice
and implement policies which focus on developing and aligning employee talent with the
organization’s mission and values.
When talented employees perceive that an organization cares about their professional
development, they tend to adopt its identity, align with its purpose and values, and maintain a
longer lasting commitment (Govaerts, Kyndt, Dochy, & Baert, 2011; Kyndt, Dochy, Michielsen,
& Moeyaert, 2009). Therefore, it is important for organizations seeking to recruit and maintain
quality talent to have successful professional development programs. A successful talent
development program is fair and focused on motivating and developing all talent (Walker &
LaRocco, 2002). Efforts that appear unfair and target only specific employees negatively impact
an organization’s productivity (Jenkins, 2009). Fair practices that focus on motivating and
developing all talent are likely to produce the most effective results for a talent management
program (Walker & LaRocco, 2002). Creating environments and opportunities for employees to
learn, grow, and be challenged is an essential retention factor and key to the sustainment of an
organizations success in today’s workforce (McCauley & Wakefield, 2006). The cost of
employee losses related to undervalued perceptions can be measured through the loss of
experience, time, and resources which may impact an organization’s production for years
(Jenkins, 2009).
Addressing the Employee’s Needs
The third factor identified as having a significant impact on the development and
retention of enlisted women is the importance of organizations maintaining and addressing
employee’s needs. Employee’s needs refer to the physical and environmental conditions and
policies that impact an employee’s production effort. These workspace conditions and policies
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 15

may lead to psychological, emotional, or physical health reactions that can cause employee
absenteeism, a change in production effort and, in worst cases, a desire for a new work
environment.
The impact of a healthy, caring, and supportive work environment and its contribution to
employee retention should not be underestimated (Deery, 2008; Gregory & Milner, 2009;
Govaerts, Kyndt, Dochy, & Baert, 2011; Kyndt, Dochy, Michielsen, & Moeyaert, 2009). A
rapidly developing factor that is negatively influencing employee retention is job burnout and
exhaustion associated with employee work-life interference (Gregory & Milner, 2009). Despite
the convenience of mobile technology and the impact it has had on revolutionizing how work
gets done, it is rapidly becoming a significant factor in the development of employee burnout and
overload due its intrusiveness with employee work-life balance (Bucher, Fieseler, & Suphan,
2013). Work-life balance, for many organizations, is often understood from two different
perspectives, one that perceives work-life as a continuous and coordinated balance of work and
personal environments and the other which perceives the two as isolated and non-interactive
(Gregory & Milner, 2009). How an organization interprets and implements work-life balance
policies can either support or intrude with employee needs. Another environmental factor that
impacts employee job satisfaction and retention is related to how much an organization values
learning and career growth enhancing opportunities (Govaerts, Kyndt, Dochy, & Baert, 2011).
Non-supportive environments that communicate to employees a message of individual
undervalue are likely to negatively impact employee commitment and retention desires (Kyndt,
Dochy, Michielsen, & Moeyaert, 2009). A final environmental factor that impacts employee job
satisfaction and retention involves the physical conditions of their work space, such as, the
lighting, furniture design, and noise (Anshel, 2007). Conditions such as these within the work
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 16

environment, if not designed to support the physical needs of employees, can have adverse
effects on their health and lead to low morale, high absenteeism, and losses (Anshel, 2007).
Diversity Challenges Existing in the Work Environment
The fourth factor identified as having a significant impact on the development and
retention of enlisted women addresses diversity challenges and how social and cognitive biases
impact organizations. Today’s workforce comprises of four generations, each with very different
values and expectations. Despite the many benefits of organizational diversity, gender
segregation and discrimination still dominate as the top of inequalities of workforce
environments.
Advancements in modern day health and sanitation processes have resulted in employees
living and working well into their senior years (Beechler & Woodward, 2009). As a result,
today’s workforce is a collective of talent from four generations. Organizations, therefore, need
to understand that with the coexistence of four generations there are also going to be differences
in values, communication styles, interest, and expectations that are likely to also create conflict
(Prieto, Phipps, & Osiri, 2011). If generationally diverse organizations are to succeed, they need
to understand and recognize the differences that exist in each generation’s perspectives and
value, as well as, the benefits that each generation contributes (Lawton & De Aquino, 2015).
Specifically, it is important to understand that despite generational differences, knowledge
transferred from one generation to the next is important to sustain success. Organizations can
capitalize and benefit from a diverse workforce, despite conflicting interest, if they implement
efforts that shape and focus differences towards productive efforts (Prieto, Phipps, & Osiri,
2011). In addition to generational challenges, there are also gender issues related to an increase
of women joining the global workforce. This shift in the workforce population is reshaping and
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 17

restructuring human resource efforts related to attracting and retaining this emerging talent
potential (Beechler & Woodward, 2009; Cohen, 2013). Despite an increase of women to nearly
50% of the U.S. workforce, gender inequality, segregation, and underrepresentation in leadership
positions remain significant diversity problems (Carli & Eagly, 2001; Cohen, 2013).
Conclusion
Empirical research suggests that organizational talent management and retention efforts
are influenced by and evolve into a dyadic relationship between the employee and their
organization’s culture and climate (Beechler & Woodward, 2009; Cohen, 2013; Deery, 2008;
Gregory & Milner, 2009; Govaerts, Kyndt, Dochy, & Baert, 2011; Hughes & Rog, 2008; Kyndt,
Dochy, Michielsen, & Moeyaert, 2009; Lewis & Heckman, 2006; McCauley & Wakefield,
2006). Organizations desiring talent satisfaction, engagement, and retention require efforts and
processes that focus on establishing and cultivating cultures that value and appreciate employee
efforts (Govaerts et al., 2011; Kyndt et al., 2009). Literature further suggests that organizational
practices that create productive and highly desired work environments comprise of strategies that
establish employee trust with transparent policies, goals, and processes which are understood,
implemented, and supported by the organization’s leadership (Govaerts et al., 2011; McCauley
& Wakefield, 2006). For these processes to be effective and minimize performance gaps
between desired job satisfaction and retention and their actual results, organizations need to
focus and concentrate their resources and efforts on their employee’s work-identity,
environmental needs, career development, and human resources support (Deery, 2008; Gregory
& Milner, 2009; Govaerts et al., 2011; Hughes & Rog, 2008; Kyndt et al., 2009; Lewis &
Heckman, 2006; McCauley & Wakefield, 2006). In the next section, I discuss the conceptual
framework for this study and explain the perceived relationship and dynamics that exist between
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 18

the stakeholder’s knowledge and motivational influences, along with the organization’s cultural
influences through an introduction of the Clark and Estes (2008) knowledge, motivation, and
organizational framework.
Female Enlistees’ Knowledge, Motivation, and Organizational Influences
The analytical framework of Clark and Estes (2008) is a systematic process used to
identify the quantifiable gaps between the organization’s desired goals and the results of their
current efforts. After identifying performance gaps, the framework next analyzes the stakeholder
knowledge, motivation, and organizational influences to better understand how each impacts the
organization’s performance problem. In the case of this dissertation, the performance gap being
analyzed is between the desired and actual retention rate of women who have completed their
first term of enlistment. The assumed knowledge influences provide an understanding of what
information is needed to accomplish the organization’s goal by examining the stakeholder
through the lens of conceptual, conceptual, procedural or metacognitive knowledge (Krathwohl,
2002; Rueda, 2011). The assumed motivational influences provide an understanding of what
encourages employees to act and exert effort by examining the active choice, persistence, and
mental effort related to the performance goal (Clark & Estes, 2008). Last, the assumed
organizational influences provide an explanation of the culture, environment, values, processes,
and material impact on employees (Clark & Estes, 2008).
This section focuses on the knowledge and skills-related influences specific to improving
job satisfaction and retention of enlisted women. Talent management initiative goals are most
likely to succeed when they articulate knowledge and skills that define who the talent is and how
managers are to engage and influence their development (Hughes, & Rog, 2008; Garavan,
Carbery, & Rock, 2012; Tansley, 2011; Vaiman, Scullion, & Collings, 2012). Adequately
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 19

identifying the specific knowledge and skill requirements that are necessary for employees to
achieve performance outcomes is essential for the accomplishment of organizational goals (Clark
& Estes, 2008). Conversely, organizations that fail to properly acknowledge and address skill
development can expect to experience employee performance deficiencies in areas such as
turnover, productivity, and morale (Grossman & Salas, 2011; Samuel & Chipunza, 2009).
Identifying and incorporating specific knowledge and skill training into a talent management
initiative focuses, defines, and provides the organizational context necessary for successful
employee engagement, improved job performance, and goal execution (Aguinis & Kraiger,
2009; Hughes & Rog, 2008; Tansley, 2011; Vaiman, Scullion & Collings, 2012).
Knowledge Influences
Knowledge influences help determine what factors an individual requires to accomplish
tasks and how they process that information to accomplish tasks and goals (Rueda, 2011). The
dimensions of knowledge are divided into four categories: factual, conceptual, procedural, and
metacognitive knowledge (Krathwohl, 2002; Rueda, 2011). Factual knowledge is the
fundamental and basic information necessary for individuals to be familiar with a subject or
discipline (Krathwohl, 2002). An example of factual knowledge, related to Service X’s talent
management efforts, would be employees’ familiarization with the understanding of the terms,
definitions, and details of the initiatives and policies related to maintaining a long-term career in
Service X.
The second category of the knowledge dimension is conceptual. Conceptual knowledge
is the understanding and ability to correlate and classify concepts, processes, and principles
(Krathwohl, 2002; Rueda, 2011). Conceptual knowledge provides individuals with meaning and
understanding by linking previously learned information with new knowledge. An example of
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 20

conceptual knowledge, related to talent management, is employee understanding of how
initiatives benefit both him or her and the organization in the performance and accomplishment
of the mission.
The third category of knowledge dimension is procedural. Procedural knowledge
provides individuals with the know-how information necessary to perform tasks (Aguinis &
Kraiger, 2009; Krathwohl, 2002). An example of procedural knowledge, related to talent
management, is the employee’s understanding of how and when to apply specific training skills
to one’s job.
The last category of the knowledge dimension is metacognitive. Metacognitive
knowledge is the understanding and awareness of one’s ability and control of their cognition
(Baker, 2006; Krathwohl, 2002). As individuals improve metacognition, their thinking and
information processing is enhanced. An example of metacognitive knowledge, related to talent
management, is an employee’s understanding of how talent development processes align with
their personal goals. Each of the four dimensions of knowledge enhances the cognitive
processes and practical implementation of information as it applies to an employee’s memory,
understanding, application, analysis, and evaluation (Krathwohl, 2002). This study examined the
influence of conceptual, procedural, and metacognitive knowledge of enlisted women on their
decision to reenlist.
Conceptual knowledge of enlisted women. For this study, the conceptual knowledge of
enlisted women corresponds to their awareness and understanding of organizational policies and
initiatives developed to assist them in the successful accomplishment of tasks and enhance in
their career development. Enlisted women who develop conceptual knowledge are better
prepared to connect and link information learned with experiences for greater understanding.
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 21

Enlisted women should therefore understand and be familiar with the organizations’ policies and
programs that are related to their career development.
Procedural knowledge of enlisted women. Procedural knowledge of enlisted women
corresponds to their knowledge of how to apply information learned and successfully accomplish
required responsibilities. The mastery of work responsibilities and tasks is what ultimately lays
the groundwork that provides enlisted women with the required experiences to become
competitive for career enhancing promotions. Enlisted women should therefore understand how
to best integrate skills learned through formal and informal training into their work efforts.
Metacognitive knowledge of enlisted women. The metacognitive knowledge of
enlisted women corresponds to their knowledge and understanding of the talent development and
employee engagement processes. Enlisted women should therefore understand how their skills
and talents contribute to their work environment. They should also understand the importance of
learning and implementing self-regulatory skills that help produce desired outcomes.
Motivation Influences
This section focuses on motivation-related influences pertinent to improving the job
satisfaction and retention of enlisted women. An employee’s motivation directly impacts the
organization’s health, effectiveness, and overall success through their performance and job
satisfaction (Lumley, Coetzee, Tladinyane, & Ferreira, 2011). Motivation supplements
knowledge and skills by encouraging individuals to act and exert effort to accomplish a task.
Motivational influences highlight three important aspects related to employee
performance: active choice, persistence, and mental effort (Clark & Estes, 2008). Active choice
is the implementation of action that follows intentions to perform a task. Persistence is the effort
to continue action in despite of obstacles. Mental effort is the amount of energy an individual
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 22

invests in completing a task. Organizations that focus on these aspects not only influence the
behaviors, goals, and motivation of employees, but also benefit by closing the performance gap
related to commitment and retention issues (Rueda, 2011).
According to Duffield, Roche, O’Brien-Pallas, Catling-Paull, and King (2009),
environmental variables that an organization can manage which will directly influence the
motivation and job satisfaction of employees include training, support, responsibilities, rewards,
and fair workload distribution. Conversely, the barriers that will hinder the process of enhancing
the motivation include an organization having vague mission and goals, dishonest leadership,
and poor feedback processes (Rueda, 2011). The four variables of motivation, explained in
greater detail below, that may influence the motivation of enlisted women are self-efficacy,
personal attributions, goals, and values (Lumley et al., 2011; Mayer, 2011; Rueda, 2011).
Self-efficacy theory. A critical component of social cognitive theory, self-efficacy is an
individual’s perception of their capacity to perform specific tasks and strongly influences their
day-to-day behaviors (Bandura, 2000; Pajares, 2006). A strong sense of self-efficacy motivates
and drives individuals to act and pursue goals regardless of the obstacles or barriers. Conversely,
a person with low self-efficacy will not be inspired and motivated to act, particularly when faced
with challenges. An individual’s self-efficacy therefore evolves from their beliefs and
expectations of their abilities to accomplish a specific task (Pajares, 2006; Rueda, 2011). Factors
that contribute to an individual’s self-efficacy are prior knowledge, experience, and feedback
(Rueda, 2011). An individual’s self-efficacy determines what tasks they choose, how much
effort the use, what results they expect, and why they choose to continue or stop efforts to
accomplish tasks and goals (Bandura, 2000). When individuals come together as a group, as in
the environment of an organization, they form a collective sense of self-efficacy. Therefore,
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 23

self-efficacy has both individual and social operative applications that both impact and shape an
employee’s motivation and commitment to mission, goals, and tasks (Bandura, 2000; Pajares,
2006).
The self-efficacy of enlisted women. An employee’s level of self-efficacy can have a
significant impact on their motivation and behavior (Allen, Bryant & Vardaman, 2010; Pajares,
2006). For enlisted women, self-efficacy is specific to the beliefs they have about their
capabilities and potential to perform and excel in a career with Service X. Their self-efficacy
can also be positively or negatively impacted by either their own self-assessment or feedback
received from their environment.
Attribution theory. Attribution theory focuses on individuals’ metacognitive
understanding of why they succeed or fail (Anderman & Anderman, 2006; Rueda, 2011) and
importantly, predicts future choice, persistence and mental effort. According to Rueda (2011),
there are three dimensions to this theory that impact interpretation of causes of events: stability,
locus, and control. Stability refers to the dimension that concentrates on the cause of events and
how are impacted by time and situational variables. Locus refers to the dimension that
concentrates on the source of the cause that affects events and whether they are internal to the
individual or external. The final dimension focuses on how much control an individual has over
events. Overall, attribution theory focuses on an individual’s drive to understand if they are the
cause of their success or failures and more specifically, the understanding of what influences
their motivation and subsequent actions or inactions (Anderman & Anderman, 2006; Rueda,
2011).
The attributions of enlisted women. Each dimension of the attribution theory contributes
positively or negatively to the self-efficacy of employees (Anderman & Anderman, 2006).
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 24

Therefore, when an enlisted woman experiences success, she may question whether the success
was the result of her own actions or the actions of others. If determined that the actions were
caused by her own behavior, then her self-efficacy is positively impacted. Conversely, if she
perceives the success was caused by factors external to her own efforts, such as policies designed
to provide advantages to women, group rather than individual success, or luck, then her self-
efficacy might be negatively impacted. Also related is the consideration of the impact of
controllability on employees. Enlisted women can also perceive successes and failures as being
controllable or uncontrollable. Controllable efforts are perceived as positive, regardless of the
outcome, because even with failures an individual can presume that increasing efforts will result
in subsequent success (Anderman & Anderman, 2006). Uncontrollable efforts, on the contrary,
are associated to not having the characteristics or control over one’s ability to improve results.
An example of an uncontrollable factor that may influence an enlisted woman’s self-efficacy
may be an organizational policy, program, or initiative that limits their ability and access to
career enhancing opportunities.
Expectancy value theory. Expectancy value theory and variables are influenced by
individuals’ perception of the utility and cost involved with their participation in tasks (Eccles,
2006; Rueda, 2011). Values, often referred to as task-values, are comprised of the following
four components: attainment value, intrinsic value, utility value, and cost value (Rueda, 2011).
Attainment value is the importance of the task. Intrinsic value is the enjoyment of the task.
Utility value is the usefulness of the task. Cost value is the perceived worth of the time and
effort to engage in a task. According to Eccles (2006), expectancy value motivation is
influenced by an individual inquiry regarding what they are capable of and their desire to
complete a task.
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 25

The values and beliefs of enlisted women. An individual’s values and beliefs are an
important motivational force behind their accomplishment of task and goals (Clark & Estes,
2008). Racial, ethical, gender and other forms of stereotypes can create environments where
individuals feel de-valued, de-motivated, and exhibit low achievement expectations (Eccles,
2006). Additionally, an individual’s intrinsic and extrinsic task values, along with their
expectations, are likely to inspire feelings from external stimuli, such as feedback (Eccles, 2006;
Perrachione, Petersen, & Rosser, 2008; Yough & Anderman, 2006). Enlisted women receiving
positive feedback, for example, may correlate with feelings of motivation and job satisfaction
and lead to a desire for more stimuli from the environment. Similarly, an individual’s attainment
and utility values correlate with tasks and goals that are fulfilling their psychological needs
(Eccles, 2006). It therefore becomes an important motivational factor to ensure that enlisted
women understand and appreciate their own individual value as it contributes to their
professional and career development. If such value does not conceptually outweigh the cost,
their motivation and self-efficacy are likely to suffer negative consequences (Eccles, 2006).
Therefore, this study explores the degree to which the values, beliefs, and expectations of
enlisted women impact their choices, persistence, and mental effort related to continuing their
enlistment contract with Service X.
Organizational Influences
Organizational processes and their supporting cultures are influenced by the people
within them. The culture of an organization therefore represents the interaction of the shared
beliefs and values of the employees with organizational policies and processes (Rueda, 2011;
Schein, 2004; Schneider, Brief, & Guzzo, 1996). An organization’s culture is even further
described and defined by the models and settings it exhibits. Cultural settings are represented in
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 26

the manifestations created from the collective and valued efforts of a group, such as the policies,
processes, plans, rewards and incentives that drive performance (Rueda, 2011; Gallimore &
Goldenberg, 2001). Cultural models, nested within a cultural setting, are represented by the
more implicit attitudes and beliefs reflected by a group, such as, unspoken rules and conflict
resolution policies (Gallimore & Goldenberg, 2001). A byproduct of an organization’s culture is
its climate, which is reflected and displayed through the interactions of the group and with other
groups (Schein, 2004).
The combined effect of an organization’s culture and climate influences and shapes what,
why, when, and how the daily efforts, practices, and goals are valued and executed. When the
culture of an organization is aligned and supported by its interacting policies and processes the
organization may reflect through indications of greater prosperity and successful achievement of
its goals and mission objectives (Clark & Estes, 2008). Specific to this study, I address two
organizational factors influencing the culture and climate supporting retention initiatives: the
organization’s encouragement of employee engagement and the organization’s role in
establishing a climate of trust. The following paragraphs explains how each of these factors
impacts and contributes to Service X’s ability to develop and retain enlisted women.
Employee engagement (the cultural model). Engaged enlisted women may go above
and beyond expectations of just being satisfied with doing their job. According to Berbarry and
Malinchak (2011), employees can be expected to have increased engagement when they feel
valued, supported, and provided with the resources to be successful. This also aligns with the
information identified and discussed in the literature review regarding the need for organizations
to ensure their human resources and training departments are active and engaging with
employee’s professional development. Employees who are engaged have a greater
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 27

understanding of organizational goals, increased feelings of appreciation positive work-identity,
and work harder at connecting and cooperating with coworkers (Berbarry & Malinchak, 2011).
An organization can positively influence the engagement effort of employees by leadership
exhibiting characteristics of honesty, fairness, transparency, cooperation, communication, as well
as ensuring opportunities exist for training and development and human resource support
(Abraham, 2012; Wang & Hseih, 2013). Also reflected in the literature review section,
organizational policies and practices that are supportive of gender and generational diversity and
respectful of an employee’s needs create employee perceptions that the organization cares about
their development, values, and personal welfare. Creating an environment where employees are
engaged increases the likeliness of them experiencing and communicating their job satisfaction
which in turn is likely to attract and motivate other similar talent (Abraham, 2012).
Employee trust (the cultural setting). Trust within any organization is a binding
element that connects and inspires employees with the goals, values, and processes of the
organization. An absence of trust, particularly with supervisors and managers, is found to
influence disengagement, dissatisfaction, and reduce cooperative effort amongst employees
(Bolman & Deal, 2017; Wang & Hseih, 2013). The development of employee trust may be
impacted by the influence of an organization’s career development plans and policies or the
rewards and incentive programs. An organization, therefore, can positively or negatively
influence the trust of employees though actions or inactions of efforts regarding conflict
resolution and efficacy, team building and cooperation, and self-management (Alper, Tjosvold &
Law, 2000; Korsgaard, Brodt, & Whitener, 2002). One of the most significant organizational
factors often influencing the trust of employees is the daily encounter they have with their
leaders and managers (Schneider, Brief, & Guzzo, 1996; Senge, 1990). Managers can positively
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 28

influence the trust of their employees through actions of integrity, continuity, transparency, and
exhibiting empathy traits (Korsgaard, Brodt, & Whitener, 2002; Rath & Conchie, 2009). Service
X’s leaders exhibiting the opposite of these traits might be contributing to the erosion of trust and
the development of a cultural setting of mistrust, dishonesty, hypocrisy, and unfairness amongst
enlisted women. Such counter-productive efforts ultimately create unstable work environments
saturated with employees exhibiting feelings of low confidence, anger and fear, and
dissatisfaction and apprehension about their future (Harvey, 1998). The retention of employees,
therefore, relies on the development of job satisfaction and trust through an organization’s ability
to create supporting cultures, climates, and environments (Rath & Conchie, 2009). Table 2
provides a summary of the knowledge, motivational, and organizational factors that influence the
organization’s ability to accomplish its goal. This section concluded the literature review by
exploring the degree to which organizational factors influence the job satisfaction and retention
of enlisted women employed by Service X. The next section of this study includes an interactive
conceptual framework which describes the interaction between the knowledge and motivation of
enlisted women and the organizational policies of Service X.
Table 2
Knowledge Influences, Types, and Assessments for Knowledge Gap Analysis
Knowledge Influence Knowledge Type
Conceptual Enlisted women should understand the policies and initiatives that
support their career development with Service X
Procedural Enlisted women should understand how to effectively integrate their
individual skills learned into their work environment.
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 29

Metacognitive Enlisted women should understand the importance of their talent as
they engage with their work environment
Metacognitive Enlisted women should understand engagement processes that better
assist them in actively contributing to desired outcomes and results
Motivational Influences
Attribution Theory To inspire their own efforts to reenlist and have a successful career in
Service X, enlisted women should perceive their successes as being
controlled by their individual efforts
Self-Efficacy Theory Enlisted women should have a high level of self-efficacy about their
own personal abilities if they are to be self-motivated and remain
employed for a successful career with Service X
Expectancy Value Theory Enlisted women aspiring to remain employed with Service X must
develop an understanding and appreciation of their own individual
value and how their efforts contribute to their professional and career
development
Organizational Influences
Cultural Model To inspire improvements in the retention of enlisted women, Service
X should engage, resource, and support gender and generational
diversity needs to encourage feelings of appreciation and positive
work-identity
Cultural Setting To increase retention desires of enlisted women, Service X should
encourage policies and practices that inspire trust through its leaders
reflecting the characteristics of honesty, fairness, transparency, and
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 30

cooperation

Interactive Conceptual Framework: The Interaction between the Knowledge and
Motivation of Enlisted Women and the Organizational Policies and Culture of Service X

The purpose of a conceptual framework, also commonly referred to as a theoretical
framework, is to provide a contextual structure and scaffolding of information supported by
theories, concepts, and literature related to the knowledge, motivation, and organizational
influences of the problem (Maxwell, 2013; Merriam & Tisdell, 2016). In short, the conceptual
framework provides a narrative and visual reference of the knowledge, motivation, and
organizational factors and how they influence the interaction between the organization, the
stakeholders, and their ability to meet the organization’s goal. In doing so, the conceptual
framework also provides an explanation of how the organization, the stakeholder group of
interest, and the organization’s goal all interact with each other affecting the desired performance
outcome.
Figure 1 is a visual depiction of the conceptual framework provided to help describe the
interaction between the organization, the stakeholder group, the organization’s goal, and the
theories and concepts used to explain their influence on the stakeholder’s decision to reenlist or
extend their contract. The employee’s knowledge and motivation are depicted by the two
smaller circles nested within the larger circle and represent the studies focus group population of
the organization. The larger circle represents Service X organization and specifically, the
executive decision makers and leadership responsible for establishing and implementing the
organization’s policies, goals, directives, and initiatives. The square, depicted outside of the
larger circle, represents the organization’s desired goal of maintaining or increasing the retention
rate of enlisted women at the completion of their first-term by 38%. By displaying the
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 31

nonconcentric circles, which represent the stakeholder’s knowledge and motivation, nested
inside the larger organizational circle the intention is to show how they interact and engage with
each other to accomplish the organization’s goal.

Figure 1. Conceptual Framework: Interaction between the organization, stakeholder group, and
the organization’s goal.
The knowledge, motivation, and organizational influences, indicated under the employee
and organization labels, work to either contribute to hinder their collective ability to accomplish
the organization’s goal. The efforts of the employee group are impacted by the knowledge,
motivation, and organizational influences described in the previous section and represented by

Service X’s Goal
Maintain or increase the
retention rate of first-term
enlisted women above 38%
Knowledge of Enlisted Women
-Understand the policies and initiatives
that support their career development
(Conceptual)
- Understand how to effectively integrate
their individual skills learned into their
work environment (Procedural)
-Understand one’s own abilities in the
work environment (Metacognitive)
-Understand how engagement processes
allow them to create desired results
(Metacognitive)
Service X’s
Support diversity needs to develop employee work-
identity (Cultural model)
Inspire employee trust (Cultural Setting)

Motivation of Enlisted Women
-Perceive their successes as being
controlled by their individual efforts
(Attribution)
-Have a high level of self-efficacy about
their own personal abilities (Expectancy
Value)
-Develop an understanding and
appreciation of their own individual
value (Self-Efficacy)
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 32

the small circle in Figure 1. The employees’ knowledge of the metacognitive influences
represents their awareness of their own abilities in the work environment and their understanding
of the organization’s engagement processes the degree to which they manage and control these
cognitions in their decision to leave organization (Baker, 2006; Krathwohl, 2002). The
employees’ motivational influences that impact their performance, behaviors, decisions, and
beliefs are represented by the three variables of self-efficacy, attributions, and values and their
associated theories (Lumley et al., 2011; Mayer, 2011; Rueda, 2011). The organizational
influence represents the degree to which they engage and build trust with employees and the
related theories on the interaction between the organization and its employees through cultural
settings and models. The context of the settings and models of the organizational culture reflect
and represent the implicit and explicit practices, beliefs, efforts, and values of the organization
(Gallimore & Goldenberg, 2001; Rueda, 2011). In summary, the conceptual framework
represents the roadmap used to theoretically examine how relationships, processes, knowledge,
culture, and motivation either support or prevent the successful accomplishment of the
organization’s goal of increasing job satisfaction and retaining high quality talent. This
conceptual framework was used to answer the specific research questions related to the
interactions between the organization and its stakeholders, and ultimately, to provide
theoretically sound recommendations for improving organizational practices.
Data Collection and Instrumentation
This study used a mixed-methods of both qualitative and quantitative data collection
methods to understand the social phenomena surrounding the meaning, context, and processes
that influence enlisted women to reenlist or not with Service. The initial method chosen for the
collection and analysis of data used in answering the research questions was through the
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 33

application of a qualitative survey. The survey instrument was developed as the primary data
collection instruments for the quantitative portion of this study. The use of quantitative data
allowed the study to gather information from a greater pool of participants which enabled the
study to present their beliefs and perceptions through numerical and statistical representations
(Creswell, 2014; Weiss, 1994). Using a standardized instrument, the study was able to reach
large population samples for data generation and statistical analysis. The secondary source of
data were collected through a qualitative interview protocol. Using a small sample group, with
person-to-person, semi-structured interviews provided the framework with purposeful
conversations to capture, interpret, and understand any problems of practice from a perspective
unique and specific to each participant (Merrian & Tisdell, 2016). The use of other qualitative
data collection methods was ideal for supporting and cross-referencing with the quantitative data.
By using mixed-method approach the study was provided was statistical data supported by in-
depth information that identified, measured, and explained the cause and effect relationships to
both individual and organizational variables (Creswell, 2014). These variables were either
independent, and used for predicting outcomes, or dependent and used to measure the outcome
or effect of the independent variable (Creswell, 2014). The following paragraphs explain the
rationale that supports the administrative design and incorporation of both interview protocols
and survey instruments into this study.
Interviews
Qualitative interview protocols were chosen as the primary instrument used for the
quantitative method of data collection during this study. The proper design and conduct of well-
planned interview questions provided data rich in information that is a unique perspective of
participants’ perceptions regarding how they interpret and communicate their environment,
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 34

experiences, thoughts and feelings (Patton, 2002; Weiss, 1994;). Though it would have been
desirable to conduct multiple interviews with each participant (Weiss, 1994), time limitation
restricted opportunities to a single forty-five minute session per participant. Nonetheless, the goal
was to ensure that the design of the interview protocol was done such that it focused on the
effective approach, thus alleviating the need for secondary interviews.
The three basic approaches to conducting qualitative open-ended interviews are informal
conversation, interview guides, and the standardized open-ended interview (Patton, 2002).
These approaches also align with the three interview types, often associated with qualitative
interviews of highly, semi, and informal structures (Merriam & Tisdell, 2016) as they offer very
different frameworks for the participant and interviewer to operate and explore within. The
informal conversation, also referred to as unstructured conversations, allows an interviewer to
freely ask questions as the interview is being conducted. The interview guide approach provided
a moderate semi-structure and framework to the interview process through a list of pre-written
questions to help guide the interviewer accomplish interview goals. This approach is best used
when the researcher is limited by or sensitive to participants’ time because it provides them with
a protocol to follow and prioritize as time becomes restrictive. The last approach, the
standardized open-ended interview, is the most structured of the three because it involves the
researcher designing protocol questions that are strictly adhered to. Because of limitations of the
researcher’s and participants’ time, this study used a semi-structured interview guide approach
with pre-designed open-ended questions that assist the researcher in exploring and probing
information pertinent to answering the guiding research questions while also providing some
flexibility to explore and probe for greater depth and understanding of their perceptions. To
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 35

better accomplish this goal, it was important to ensure that each interview question was
intentionally designed to elicit a specific type response from each participant.
According to Patton (2002), the six types of interview questions that can be asked of
people are experience and behavior, opinion and value, feelings, knowledge, sensory,
background and demographic. Experience and behavior questions are designed to probe
information about what the participant does or would have done if there were an observer
present. Opinion and values questions probe participants’ cognitive and interpretive processes
related to their opinions and values. Feeling questions probe the emotions of participants.
Knowledge questions inquire and probe participants for declarative and conceptual information.
Sensory questions probe and inquire participants for information related to the human five
senses. Background and demographic questions inquire about the identity characteristics of the
participant. Considering some of the key reasons for conducting qualitative interviews are
centered around developing detailed descriptions, integrating multiple perspectives, describing
processes, developing holistic descriptions, and learning how events are interpreted (Weiss,
1994), and the emphasis on the research questions for this study, the interview question chosen
to best solicit data rich responses focused on opinions and values, feeling, and knowledge types.
Surveys
The inclusion of a quantitative cross-sectional survey instrument as an additional data
collection method benefits this study because of its efficiency, ease of use, and reliability as
means for testing and examining relationships between variables (Creswell, 2014). Considering
this study’s intent to examine the degree to which Service X is achieving its goal of increasing
the retention of high-quality talent amongst the enlisted women, survey instruments provided a
commonly used design that were helpful in exploring participants’ levels of satisfaction with
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 36

products, programs, or services (Fink, 2013). The expectation of this survey was to quickly
access a broad spectrum of qualifying participants to answer closed-ended and multiple-choice
questions designed to quantify the knowledge, motivation, and organizational cultural influences
surrounding their decision to terminate their employment with Service X. The survey, listed in
Appendix B (Survey Instrument), was confidential and requested no personal identifiable
demographic items from participants. The survey took approximately 15-20 minutes to
complete. The survey consisted of 20 questions divided into four distinct sections specifically
designed to collect data specific to each of the three influence areas identified in this study’s
conceptual framework: knowledge, motivation and organizational culture. Each question was
written at a 6
th
to 8
th
grade reading level to ensure simplicity, comprehension and understanding
by participants (Fink, 2013). Additionally, all survey questions were approved by the University
of Southern California’s Institutional Review Board (IRB) prior to administration.
Online surveys, according to Fink (2013), allow the researcher to access large numbers of
people with ease. Therefore, the implementation intention was to distribute the survey through a
single internet link. The invite included an embedded link to the survey which was time
restricted, such that, if not completed within 72 hours, the option to participate passed.
Embedded within the survey were three open ended questions used to collect qualitative data for
analyzing and comparing with the other items within the survey. Finally, my contact information
was added to the end of the survey providing participants with an option to discuss the survey or
their responses in greater detail.
Data Analysis
Data analysis is the systematic process for organizing and sorting through information to
develop the research finding (Bogdan & Biklen, 2007). For qualitative studies, the efforts
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 37

associated with analysis and collection occur simultaneously and begin at the onset of the first
interview (Bogdan & Biklen, 2007; Creswell, 2014; Maxwell, 2013; Merriam & Tisdell, 2016).
The inquisitive and explorative nature of qualitative studies creates a cyclic process of collecting
data and using that information to refine, reform, and ultimately answer the research questions.
It is this process that develops into the rich and in-depth participant insight and experience that
are distinct to qualitative research. The use of quantitative survey instruments provided this
study with triangulated data used to compare and support the qualitative data collected for the
overall purpose of enhancing the validity and reliability of the research findings. Means and
standard deviations are used in the descriptive statistics analysis to explain the quantitative
results. To augment the quantitative data basic inferential statistics, via an independent sample t-
test using Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) software, was used to ascertain if
there were any differences between the responses of the male and female participants. To further
support the data analysis effort, an action map (Appendix B) was used to map survey items to the
construct and conceptual framework for this study. At the core of the efforts involved with the
development of this case study, nothing was more important than ensuring that each product
developed and implemented does what it claims to do and can be repeated. The design and
intended use of the survey instrument focused on increasing the validity and reliability of this
study for the overall purpose of establishing and maintaining the trust and credibility that is
demanded in all forms of research.
Important to the credibility and trustworthiness of a researcher’s data analysis is the effort
he or she puts into the management of their data (Merriam & Tisdell, 2016). Developing a
systematic process for organizing, managing, and analyzing data must be created early and
involve a means to code, categorize, and inventory information for future recall, tracking, and
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 38

alignment to the theoretical framework (Maxwell, 2013; Merriam & Tisdell, 2016). During data
analysis, it is important to ensure there is a clear division between the research data and the
researcher’s biases, which is generally done using memos and field notes (Merriam & Tisdell,
2016). These forms of data recording can also be used to capture and disclose details unique to
the researcher and important for the analytical process while exploring feelings, hunches,
reflections, past experiences, and present emotions working with participants (Maxwell, 2013).
Results and Findings
The purpose of this study was to examine the degree to which Service X is achieving its
goal of increasing the retention of enlisted women while also investigating factors that influence
their attrition. The study focused on identifying the knowledge, motivation, and organizational
factors that influence the organization’s ability to achieve that goal. Recognizing that a complete
evaluation would assess the factors for all female stakeholders within an organization, this study,
for limitations identified in Appendix H, focused its efforts on enlisted women serving in their
first contracted term. This section is a summary of the key results that were identified through
the application of the mixed-methods collection of data previously outlined in the Data
Collection and Instrumentation section of this study. The following subsections are an analysis
of the data collected from the initial survey responses of enlisted women and men. This
information was later compared to and analyzed with the results collected from interviews
conducted with seven enlisted women.
The following paragraphs provide a brief description of the participating stakeholders,
followed by an outline of quantitative and qualitative results and findings which are analyzed and
presented using the Clark and Estes (2008) knowledge, motivation, and organizational
framework. Each subsection also includes an affiliated Appendix, I, J or K, that provides
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 39

descriptive statistics in terms of means and standard deviations to illustrate the quantitative data
presented in figures and tables that provide example quotes from the qualitative data collected.
To investigate the relationships between variables of interest, basic inferential statistics via an
independent sample t-test was conducted and included as Appendix L to ascertain the differences
in the perceptions between male and female participants of the survey. This section concludes
with an overall summary of the results and findings from the data collected.
Participating Stakeholders
The data used in analyzing the results and findings of this study was voluntarily provided
thanks to the time and information provided by men and women who are currently honorably
serving or previously served in the enlisted ranks of Service X. The total number of survey
participants was 117. Figure 2 provides an illustration of the demographics of those who
participated in the survey which resulted in 82 males and 35 females. Significant of mentioning
is that the percentage of representation for each gender from the survey of 30% female and 70%
male closely mirrored the 2015 demographic percentage of enlisted ranks of 20% females and
80% males (2015 Demographic). Also, important to note, as seen in Figures 2 and 3, from the
demographic data collected is the difference between the male and female survey responses to
item #4 which asked if they expected to be separated from Service X under honorable conditions.
Of the 34 female responses, 100% responded “yes” while of the 79 male responses, 95%
answered “yes” and 5% answered “no.”
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 40

Figure 2. Number of Male and Female Survey Respondents (Survey Item #1).

35
82
Item # 1: I am:
Female
Male
34
0
I expect to be separated from Serice X under "honorable conditions.
Yes No
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 41

Figure 3. Number of Female Survey Responses (Survey Item #4).

Figure 4. Number of Male Survey Responses (Survey Item #4).
Results and Findings from Knowledge Influences
Of the three influences explored, knowledge and motivation factors were not the priority
because the focus of this study. The focus was on talent management initiatives, which are
primarily organizationally influenced, and assumed to impact retention to the most significant
degree. The goal of exploring knowledge factors was to discover whether enlisted women had
knowledge of policies and initiatives that support their career development, how to effectively
integrate skills learned into their work environment, and engagement processes that assist them
in actively contributing to desired outcomes and results. This section, therefore, focuses on six
questions from the interview protocol, located in Appendix C, designed to examine and explore
assets and performance gaps in the described knowledge influences. The questions were
designed to identify conceptual, procedural, metacognitive knowledge influences assets and
75
4
Item # 4 (Males): I expect to be separated from Service X under "honorable
conditions:
Yes No
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 42

performance gaps. The following paragraphs are a summary of identified knowledge influence
gaps.
Knowledge of career development policies and processes. One performance gap,
associated with knowledge influences, identified from the responses of the interview
participants, was that enlisted women had varying degrees of understanding and experiences
with organizational career development policies and processes. One participant commented
when questioned about their experiences and knowledge of career development processes and
policies that when undergoing initial processing into the organization, the recruiters and
supporting staff “did not explain anything about career options.” Another participant
commented that “Expectations set by recruiters were not fully disclosed, creating gaps”
[Referring to gaps in knowledge, understanding, and expectations].
Knowledge of training programs and job assignment policies. A second performance
gap, associated with knowledge influences, identified from the responses of the interview
participants, was that enlisted women lack understanding of the relationship between the
organization’s training programs and the policies related to job assignments. This lack of
understanding often leads to enlisted women to fail to negotiate for jobs that provide them with
opportunities to practice and master information learned in schools and other formal training
environments. One participant commented that, “Policies regarding job assignment should better
align and support mastery of skills.” A second participant commented was that “Training is not
always enough to help students feel they can be successful. JOB aids, OJT and other
opportunities to master skills are required.” A third participant commented, when referring to
job assignments and responsibilities that “you have like five different jobs, so they're teaching
you all these different things and it’s like we want you to be mediocre in all of these things.”
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 43

Knowledge Results and Findings Summary
Though knowledge influences were not hypothesized to emerge as gaps and therefore
were not the focus for the study, important data emerged. Interview data supported that many
women, early in their careers, were lacking in their understanding of the policies and initiatives
necessary for making important career decisions. For many, this lack of knowledge and
understanding between training programs and job assignment policies led to a failure in
understanding the importance of accepting positions and assignments that would inevitably
enhance their skills, experience, and ultimately competitiveness for senior leadership positions.
Additional data related to the knowledge results and findings can be found in Appendix I.
Results and Findings from Motivational Influences
The motivational influences of this study focused on predicting the choice, persistence,
and effort of enlisted women in relationship to retention desires. There were three questions
from the survey instrument and four questions from the interview protocol that were designed to
explore the motivation influences associated with the problem of practice. These questions were
designed to examine participants’ self-efficacy, attributions, and expectancy-value influences.
The following paragraphs provide a summary of the statistical data and themes identified for
each influence and conclude with a summary of the motivation influenced results and findings.
Motivation findings statistics. The results presented in Table 3 illustrate responses to
the motivation questions in the quantitative survey that sought to understand the self-efficacy,
attributions and expectancy-value of enlisted women. First, 32 out of 35 (91%) enlisted women
agreed or somewhat agreed with item #9 stating that “working for Service X has provided them
with a feeling of purpose.” These numbers also correlated with the responses from males with
72 out of 82 (88%) agreeing. Second, 33 out of 35 (94%) enlisted women agreed or somewhat
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 44

agreed with item #11 stating that “daily they are motivated to perform to the best of their
potential.” These numbers also correlated with the responses from the males with 67 out of 82
(82%) agreeing. Third, 29 out of 35 (83%) enlisted women agreed or somewhat agreed with
item #15 stating that “they have been personally responsible for the professional success and
failures.” These numbers also correlated with the responses from the males with 75 out of 82
(91%) agreeing. An independent-samples t-test was conducted to compare the motivation
influence responses from the males and females. There was not a significant difference between
males (M = 1.51, SD = .848) and females (M = 1.37, SD = .690) in the responses for item #9 that
probed for feelings of purpose, t(115) = .209, p = .835. Similarly, for item #11, there was not a
significant difference between males (M = 1.72, SD = .906) and females (M = 1.57, SD = .698)
in the responses that probed for feelings of motivation to perform, t(115) = .075, p = .390. For
item # 15, that probed for whether the respondents perceived personal control over success (or
failures) in their career, there was a significant difference between males (M = 1.33, SD = .668)
and females (M = 1.83, SD = .857), t(115) = -3.393, p = .001, indicating that females feel less
control over their success and failures than their male counterparts. Therefore, from a
quantitative assessment of motivational factors, both genders agree that working for Service X
provides enlisted women with a sense of purpose, however, enlisted women feel that they have
less control and personal responsibility for their career success and failures.
Table 3

Motivation Responses Measure of Central Tendency (1=Agree, 2= Somewhat Agree, 3=
Somewhat Disagree, 4=Disagree)
Item # Gender Mean Standard
Deviation
Agree Somewhat
Agree
Somewhat
Disagree
Disagree
Item 9: Working for
Service X has provided
me with a feeling of
purpose
Female

1.37 0.690 71% 23% 3% 3%
Male 1.40 0.751 73% 15% 10% 2%
Item 11: I have been
motivated to perform
Female

1.57 0.698 51% 43% 3% 3%
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 45

Confidence and belief in one’s own talents. The first finding identified from the
responses of the interview participants, identified as a motivational performance gap, was related
to the self-efficacy of enlisted women. Interview responses identified that without an active and
involved mentor enlisted, women believe that their talents and attributes were not enough to
navigate a successful career. Comments provided that support this theme were mentions that
“unless you have a mentor you're looking for information on your own.” Another participant
commented that “mentorship can be challenging and therefore can inhibit your experience in
Service X, your advancement, your opportunities, your ... being able to promote.”
Attributing career success and failures to own efforts. The second finding associated
with motivational influences from the responses of the interview participants, assessed as a
motivational asset, identified that enlisted women attributed their career success and failures to
their own efforts and persistence. Two supporting statements from participants include that
Service X “put me where they wanted me to be, and I made the best of it” and “Yes, I worked
just as hard as the men and got rewarded right along with them.” When asked specifically about
being accountable for one’s career development, one participant commented that she attributed
success to her research and desire to understand organization policies, skills and ability as a
forward thinker, and confidence communicating to leadership, and her commitment to be a
subject matter expert in her field of expertise through opportunities to better herself through
education and higher learning.
my job at my best
potential daily
Male 1.72 0.906 52% 29% 12% 6%
Item 15: I feel that I
have been personally
responsible for the
professional success
and failures I had while
in Service X
Female

1.83 0.857 40% 43% 44 6%
Male 1.33 0.668 77% 15% 7% 1%
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 46

False perceptions of women by male leaders. A third finding related to motivational
influence, assessed as a performance gap, was that enlisted women attributed limitations and
challenges in their ability to successfully navigate a career due to experiences with male leaders
having false perceptions and poor understandings of the psychological and biological differences
of women. One area of significance was the desire for male leaders to better understand and
sympathize with female challenges such as pregnancy. One statement made during an interview
was that “I think they're making some strides to realize that females are different than men, other
than our biological make-up.” Another participant, when speaking about the challenges
communicating and receiving career advice from male mentors commented that “A message
over to a male is not going translate the same way to a female, simply because we speak
differently.” A third related comment is that “Not being able to express myself at the job I felt
like I had to tone it down as far as what was acceptable, I couldn't necessarily speak my mind
because it didn't align with certain higher-ups” [referring to her male leadership].
Lack of specific career aspirations. The final motivational finding associated with
expectancy values from the responses of the interview participants, assessed as a motivational
performance gap, was that enlisted women initially joined Service X without specific career
aspirations and often did so for reasons, such as money, travel, education, family-tradition, or
seeking better career and lifestyle opportunities. Examples of statements made by participants
that support this theme were “I join the military because they offer traveling and college and
money” and “Seeking Montgomery GI Bill so that I could attend college and location.”
Motivation Results and Findings Summary
Quantitative data supports that enlisted women working for Service X agreed or strongly
agreed with having a sense of purpose and control over their career success and failures.
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 47

However, the data also indicated that enlisted women do feel less control over their own success
and failures than their male counterparts which highlights a difference in motivation being
attributed to individual efforts. Qualitative data suggest that many women do not join Service X
with specific career expectations and instead are often initially inspired by the organization’s
benefits such as education, travel, pay, medical, and dental. Nonetheless, through their
experiences serving on active duty, many have developed a sense of purpose and expectations
for success. This developed sense of purpose also appears to be coupled with the development
of adaptive attributions, self-efficacy, and expectancy-values that drives the motivation of
enlisted women to be successful in their careers and take personal responsibility for their own
success. Enlisted women also appear to develop increased confidence and a greater feeling
about their potential for success when they work with engaged mentors and leaders who value
information-sharing and career enhancement opportunities. Overall, despite feeling less control
over their personal success than their male counterparts, the data does support that enlisted
women are motivated and confident in knowing that their efforts and personal contributions are
valued by Service X and assured that opportunities do exist for them to pursue successful career
paths.
Results and Findings from Organizational Influences
At the core of this study, more so than the understanding of knowledge and motivational
influences, was an interest in exploring the impact of organizational influences on the talent
management initiatives. The increased focus on organizational factors is because of the
significant influence that cultural settings and models have on shaping what, why, when, and
how efforts, practices, and goals are valued and executed and thus are viewed as having a
significant influence on the retention of enlisted women. There were twelve questions from the
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 48

survey instrument and eleven questions from the interview protocol, as seen in Appendices C
and D, designed to explore the organizational influences related to the problem of practice.
These questions were designed to identify cultural model and setting influences. The following
paragraphs provide a summary of the statistical data and themes identified for each influence and
concludes with a summary of the motivation influenced results and findings.
Organizational factor statistics. The results presented in Table 4 illustrate responses to
the questions in the quantitative survey that sought to understand the influence of organizational
shared beliefs and values on retention decisions made by enlisted women. First, 29 out of 35
(83%) enlisted women agreed or somewhat agreed with item #6 that Service X’s policies support
advancing women into senior positions. These numbers also correlated with the responses from
the males of 77 out of 82 (94%) agreeing. Second, 29 out of 35 enlisted women (83%) agreed or
somewhat agreed with item #7 that communication with and feedback from leadership has
benefited their professional development. These numbers also correlated with the responses
from the males of 62 out of 82 (76%) agreeing. Third, 22 out of 35 (63%) enlisted women
agreed or somewhat agreed with item #8 that Service X has provided them with many
opportunities for career growth. Fourth, 21 out of 35 (60%) enlisted women agreed or somewhat
agreed with item #17 that Service X's recognition of their personal efforts has been fair and
reasonable. An independent-samples t-test was conducted to compare the organizational
influence responses from the males and females. There was not a significant difference between
males (M = 1.51, SD = .653) and females (M = 1.83, SD = .923) in the responses for item #6 that
probed to determine if policies support women, t(115) = -2.109, p = .037. Similarly, there was
not a significant difference between males (M = 1.95, SD = .901) and females (M = 1.77, SD
= .877) in the responses for item # 7 that probed to determine if communication and feedback
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 49

with leadership was beneficial, t(115) = .996, p = .321. Also, there was not a significant
difference between males (M = 1.71, SD = .882) and females (M = 1.80, SD = .933) in the
responses for item # 8 that probed to determine the adequacy of opportunities for career growth,
t(115) = .036, p = .971. Last, there was not significant difference between males (M = 1.94, SD
= .986) and females (M = 2.26, SD = 1.094) in the responses for item #17 that probed to
determine if the organization’s personal recognition efforts were fair, t(115) = -1.546, p = .125.
Therefore, from a quantitative assessment of organizational factors, both genders agree that
policies support advancing women into senior positions, communicating and feedback with
leadership benefits professional development, policies support the career development of enlisted
women, and recognition policies and processes are fair and reasonable.
Table 4

Organizational Responses Measure of Central Tendency (1=Agree, 2= Somewhat Agree, 3=
Somewhat Disagree, 4=Disagree)

Item # Gender Mean Standard
Deviation
Agree Somewhat
Agree
Somewhat
Disagree
Disagree
Item 6: Service X’'s
policies for men and
women are fair and
equal
Female

2.1 0.944 29% 37% 26% 9%
Male 2.01 0.949 37% 33% 23% 7%
Item 7:
Communication with
and feedback from
my leadership has
benefited my
professional
development
Female

2.11 0.877 46% 37% 11% 6%
Male 1.94 0.894 37% 39% 18% 6%
Item 8: Service X has
provided me with
many opportunities
for career growth
Female 1.51 0.742 60% 31% 6% 3%
Male 1.55 0.848 65% 20% 12% 4%
Item 10: Service X
policies support
advancing women
into senior positions
Female

1.83 0.923 43% 40% 9% 9%
Male 1.51 0.653 56% 38% 5% 1%
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 50

Required traits for organizational recruiters and leaders. The first of five
organizational qualitative factors assessed as having an influence on the retention decisions of
enlisted women identified that involvement, engagement, modeling, and information sharing
were required traits for organizational recruiters and leaders. This factor, assessed as an
organizational gap, influences the perception of the organization that enlisted women have upon
their initial entry introduction into the organizations’ culture. One comment made during an
Item # Gender Mean Standard
Deviation
Agree Somewhat
Agree
Somewhat
Disagree
Disagree
Item 12: My work
and daily efforts were
valued and
appreciated by my
leadership
Female

2.03 0.923 41% 30% 15% 15%
Male 1.95 1.005 41% 33% 15% 11%
Item 13: I have been
assigned to do the
right job for my
talents, skills,
education, and
training
Female

1.80 1.052 54% 23% 11% 11%
Male 1.65 0.961 61% 22% 9% 9%
Item 14: Service X
has provided me with
adequate amount of
professional growth
and development
opportunities
Female
1.80

0.933 46% 37% 9% 9%
Male 1.71 0.882 51% 33% 10% 6%
Item 16: I have been
satisfied with Service
X’s work-life balance
policies and practices
Female

2.40 1.218 31% 26% 14% 29%
Male 22.29 1.036 27% 33% 24% 16%
Item 17: The physical
environment
(example: desk,
chairs, windows,
lighting) at my last
assignment created
stress for me
Female

3.03 1.124 14% 17% 20% 49%
Male 2.93 1.120 16% 18% 23% 43%
Item 18: Service X’s
recognition of my
personal efforts has
been fair and
reasonable
Female

2.26 1.094 31% 29% 23% 17%
Male 1.94 .0986 43% 29% 20% 9%
Item 19:
Hypothetically, if I
could go back in time
and re-do my
enlistment, I would
Female

1.80 1.158 60% 17% 6% 17%
Male 1.48 0.868 70% 17% 6% 6%
Item 20: I feel
supported by my
organization _ % of
the time
1=0-25% 2=26-50% 3=51-75% 4= 76-100%)
Female

3.125 1.157 16% 13% 16% 56%
Male

3.121 1.074 14% 11% 26% 50%
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 51

interview with one participant mentioned that “Recruiter involvement, engagement, modeling
and information sharing can make all the difference in setting expectations.”
Honesty and openness were desired traits. Assessed as an organizational gap, there
was a desire from women interviewed to observe increased honesty and openness from the
organization’s recruiters and leaders. One participant’s comment supporting this theme was
“when I first joined the military, I was told that I could do whatever I wanted.” The participant
in this comment was referring to the false claims by her recruiter about the choices of job types
and locations that she would be able to make. Another participant mentioned, “if I was doing the
recruiting and I wanted to someone to actually know about the jobs and job opportunities, you
know telling them the truth about it.”
Standardize process and procedures. Processes and procedures pertaining to career
development were not standardized across the enterprise. Assessed as an organizational gap, one
participant commented that “Career development needs to be clearly outlined and defined in
order to set expectations.” Another participant mentioned, with regards to career development
programs that “they're not at a fingertips touch or the information is not shared open enough.”
Furthermore, through continued discussions about the organization’s standardized processes, it
was noted that training programs and processes overall were not designed in a manner that
consistently provided enlisted women with enough on-the-job experience to successfully
integrate skills learned and develop mastery.
Implementing organizational feedback policies. Despite the organization having
adequate policies for receiving and providing feedback, the practices and procedures for
implementing varied across the organization. This factor was assessed as an organizational gap
because of its failure to effectively communicate the intent of its policies and initiatives to all
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 52

stakeholders. One participant commented that the “[Service X] offers women symposiums but
does not seem to take action, therefore, women feel they are not being heard.” This indicated
that despite the organization incorporating desired programs by enlisted women, there were often
gaps in how these programs were implemented. Another participant commented that “policies
need to be implemented, not just present for show.” This indicated that despite the success of
developing policies that support their careers, enlisted women failed to see them successfully
implemented.
Gender representation on advancement boards. The final factor assessed as an
organizational gap having an influence on the decisions of enlisted women was a desire to see
promotion and advancement board members to have both genders represented to remove any
perception of bias influence. One participant stated that there were “perceptions of gender bias
(on promotion boards) need to be addressed to provide more confidence in the process.”
Another participant commented “if you have a board of predominantly males, you may not see a
female come out on top” [referring to receiving a promotion].
Organizational Results and Findings Summary
In summary, the quantitative and qualitative data suggest that both males and females
agreed and strongly agreed that Service X is fair and reasonable in recognizing the personal
efforts, providing feedback and career growth opportunities, and implementing policies that
support the career advancement of enlisted women. Qualitative data further suggest that to
increase enlisted women’s confidence in organizational fairness and remove any potential
perception of the influence of male biases on promotion and advancement boards, they should
include representation of both genders. The quantitative data also suggest that Service X’s
policies are supportive of providing communication and feedback opportunities. However,
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 53

qualitative data suggest a need to standardize leadership implementation methods across the
enterprise to ensure consistency and predictability of expectations. Finally, qualitative data also
suggest that to improve the career expectations of enlisted women, recruiters and leaders across
the enterprise should better model behaviors of honesty and transparency. This was particularly
noted when referring to the recruitment process and their techniques to tell potential candidates
whatever they want to hear to meet quotas. Overall, both quantitative and qualitative data does
support that enlisted women do believe their careers are being supported by the organization and
are overall satisfied with the continued efforts towards improvements. Additionally, despite
understanding the value of providing and receiving feedback and coupled with the knowledge
gap that identified the varying levels of understandings about processes and procedures, the
organization is creating a feeling amongst enlisted women of being short-changed and neglected
when information was not shared, opportunities were not presented, or feedback was not acted
on. Therefore, both quantitative and qualitative data suggest that enlisted women seem to have a
positive view of the organization’s opportunities to share feedback yet feel that these
opportunities are not consistent across the enterprise.
Summary of Results and Findings
To conclude the results and findings portion of this study, I offer the following responses
to four of the five research questions for this study.
To what extent has Service X’s talent management and retention initiatives met the
organization’s goal of maintaining or increasing the percentage of active duty enlisted
women serving under their initial contract? The quantitative and qualitative data from this
study does support the notion that women are satisfied with the organizational policies and effort
to ensure their career advancement. This suggest that Service X is likely meeting its
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 54

organizational goal with respect to maintaining or increasing the percentage of active duty
enlisted women. In 2017, Service X did conduct a retention study, however, that data has yet to
be released for verification. Nonetheless, this studies qualitative data and empirical research
does suggest five key areas where the organization can implement improvement processes and
increase the overall job satisfaction of enlisted women. First, training programs should provide
follow-on and on-the-job training opportunities to ensure mastery of skills such that enlisted
women are provided with opportunities and experiences to become subject matter experts,
leaders in their craft, and ultimately competitive for senior leadership positions. Second,
organizational feedback efforts should be standardized across the industry to ensure all enlisted
women are provided with the same opportunities to share and communicate career developing
and organizational improvement suggestions. Third, leaders and mentors assigned to enlisted
women should be provided training on how to maximize engagement opportunities. Fourth,
advancement board members should reflect all genders to remove perceptions of gender bias.
Finally, organizational leaders should model behavior traits that reflect honesty and transparency
about the organization’s policy and programs to improve upon the expectation management for
enlisted women.
How does the information that enlisted women receive about Service X’s
professional development influence their career decision to reenlist? Qualitative data
identified that as enlisted women become experienced serving on active duty, they become
influenced by feelings of purpose, expectations for success in their jobs, and confidence in career
advancement opportunities. These influences not only appear to enhance their need to be
successful but also their desire to take personal responsibility for their career success.
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 55

What motivates the decisions of enlisted women reenlist or not with Service X?
Quantitative and qualitative data identified that enlisted women, when deciding whether to
pursue a career with Service X, are initially influenced by benefits such as, education, travel,
pay, medical, and dental, often advertised by the organization’s recruiters. These reasons, as
their careers progress, are often overtaken by feelings of value, confidence, purpose, and an
expectation that they can advance into senior leadership positions. They are also inspired by a
confidence that the organization’s policies are fair and reasonable in recognizing their efforts and
creating the opportunities for their career growth.
How does Service X’s organizational culture impact enlisted women when it comes
to deciding whether to reenlist or not? The organizational culture, according to both
quantitative and qualitative data, has a significant influence on the career decisions of enlisted
women. The data suggest that the majority enlisted women believe that the organization’s
policies are fair and supportive of their career advancement opportunities. It is the interaction,
through organized feedback and engagement opportunities by leaders and recruiters who practice
information-sharing, honesty, and transparency, that most influences their career decisions.
When experiencing these leadership traits, enlisted women communicated that they experience
an increase in confidence and feelings about their potential for career advancements.
The next and final section of this study, titled Recommendations for Practice to Address
KMO Influences, provides a response to the study’s research question number five, which asks:
What are the recommendations for organizational practices in the areas of knowledge,
motivation, and organizational influences. The section provides knowledge, motivation, and
organizational recommendations for addressing the problem of practice. The section includes
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 56

supporting tables for each knowledge, management, and organization section and a supporting
Integrated Implementation and Evaluation Plan (Appendix M).
Recommendations for Practice to Address KMO Influences
This section provides an integrated implementation and evaluation plan that was
developed from theories and recommendations of the New World Kirkpatrick Model
(Kirkpatrick & Kirkpatrick, 2016). The plan addresses the knowledge, motivation, and
organizational recommendations that were identified in the results and finding section. To
further support and explain this plan Appendix M provides detailed information regarding the
knowledge, motivation, and organizational influences.
Integrated Implementation and Evaluation Plan
The New World Kirkpatrick Model was used to develop and support the integrated
implementation and evaluation plan for this study (Kirkpatrick & Kirkpatrick, 2016). The model
suggest four levels of evaluating and demonstrating the value of training: Level 1 (Reaction),
Level 2 (Learning), Level 3 (Behaviors), and Level 4 (Results) (Kirkpatrick & Kirkpatrick,
2016). Level, 1 Reaction, describes the degree of satisfaction, engagement, and relevance
experienced by the participant. Level 2, Learning, describes the degree to which the participant
has acquired the confidence and committed intended from the training experience. Level 3,
Behavior, describes the skills performed on the job after the training. Level 3 also require
organizational drivers to monitor, reinforce, encourage, and reward learned behaviors
(Kirkpatrick & Kirkpatrick, 2016). Level 4, Results, considered the most important training and
evaluation requirement, describes the degree to which desired outcomes were acquired. Until
specific organizational training has been implemented, the four levels are referred to in planning
considerations in reverse order, with Level 4 (Results) being the key focus and intent of training.
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 57

The benefits of using the New World Kirkpatrick Model to create the integrated implementation
and evaluation plan for this study is that is provides a framework for creating an effective
training program that validates the value of the plan while ensuring resources are focused on
achieving desired performance and results (Kirkpatrick & Kirkpatrick, 2016).
Organizational Purpose, Need, and Expectations
Service X’s mission is to maintain, train and equip combat-ready Naval forces capable of
winning wars, deterring aggression and maintaining freedom of the seas. Service X established
an implicit goal outlined in many of its strategies, directives, and plans addressing talent
development initiatives, that by the end of fiscal year 2016 it sought to improve job satisfaction
and retention opportunities for talented employees; including the efforts to maintain or improve
the retention of active duty enlisted women serving their initial term of service at or beyond the
current 38%. At approximately 16% women and 84% men (Statistic Brain Research Institute,
2016), the Service X’s retention efforts for enlisted women rely heavily on skill acquisition,
career advancement, and the attainment of advanced qualifications required to maintain and
operate its equipment, resources, and weapons platforms. This study examined the knowledge
and skills, motivational, and organizational influences that affect enlisted women's decisions to
remain employed by Service X and sustain successful career development path to obtain senior
leadership positions. The proposed solutions for internal outcomes will provide enlisted women
with: 1) increased feelings of value, morale, job satisfaction and positive work identity, 2)
improve effective integration of skills into the work environment, 3) increased understanding of
the need to engage between individual performance and career choices, 4) increased familiarity
with organizational initiatives, policies, and programs that support professional development, 5)
increased expectations for success through perceptions of self-confidence, 6) increased feelings
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 58

of contributing success and failures to personal efforts, 7) increased feelings of value and
appreciation for personal contributions, and 8) increased volume of valuable feedback provided
by enlisted women to the organization on change efforts. The proposed solutions for external
outcomes are for the organization to increases recruitment of talented women and improve the
organization’s branding and image to the public.
Level 4: Results and Leading Indicators
According to Kirkpatrick and Kirkpatrick (2016) leading indicators are used to identify
and connect desired behaviors with highly desired organizational results. The proposed leading
indicators for both external and internal outcomes, metrics, and methods shown in Table 5. The
internal outcomes indicate behaviors desired by enlisted women to achieve desired
organizational results. It is expected that through formal and informal training, mentoring, and
organizational support, the internal outcomes will be met. The listed external outcomes are the
desired results expected to be met upon the accomplishment of internal outcomes.
Table 5
Outcomes, Metrics, and Methods for External and Internal Outcomes
Outcome Metric(s) Method(s)
Internal Outcomes
1) Sustainment or increase in
the retention of enlisted
women.
Retention for first term enlisted women
sustained at or increasing above 38%.
Compare retention statistics annually.
2) Increased feelings of value,
morale, job satisfaction and
positive work identity by
enlisted women.
100% of enlisted women report feel
they are valued, have increased morale
and job satisfaction and a positive
work identity.
Compare feelings of value, morale, job
satisfaction and positive work identity
annually.
3) Improved integration of
skills into the work
environment by enlisted
women.
100% of enlisted women feel effective
integrating skills into the work
environment.
Compare feelings of effectiveness
integrating skills into the work
environment annually.
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 59

4) Increased understanding of
the need to engage between
individual performance and
career choices by enlisted
women.
100% of enlisted women feel their
individual performance and career
choices are engaged.
Compare feelings of engagement
between individual performance and
career choices annually.
5) Increased understanding of
organizational initiatives,
policies, and programs that
support professional
development by enlisted
women.
100% of enlisted women acknowledge
knowledge of organizations initiative,
policies, and programs.
Compare the knowledge of
organizational initiatives, policies, and
programs that support professional
development annually.
6) Increased expectations for
success through perceptions of
self-confidence by enlisted
women.
100% of enlisted women have
expectations for success due to self-
confidence.
Compare the responses expectations
for success to self-confidence
annually.
7) Increased feelings of control
associating success and failures
to personal efforts by enlisted
women
100% of enlisted women feel they are
personally contributing to their own
career success.
Compare feelings of their own
contribution to their career success
annually.
8) Increased feelings of value
and appreciation for personal
contributions by enlisted
women.
100% of enlisted women report feel
appreciated.
Compare feelings of appreciation
annually.
9) Increases in the volume of
valuable feedback provided by
enlisted women to the
organization on change efforts.
100% of enlisted women participate in
feedback opportunities.
Review feedback reports annually.
External Outcomes
1) Improvement in the
organization’s branding/image
to the public.
100% of enlisted women have positive
perceptions of the organization.
Assess the status of the organization’s
image annually.

Level 3: Behavior
Critical behaviors. This section outlines behaviors that need to be observed by enlisted
women to indicate positive results of the implemented training and evaluation program.
However, important to note is that the driving force responsible for producing these desired
behaviors need to be initiated at the organizational level. The critical drivers will be discussed in
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 60

the next section. The first critical behavior desired by enlisted women is that they will self-
reflect by journaling about the career development processes, mentors and leadership modeling,
and career information received from leaders and mentors. The second critical behavior is that
they will document and provide evaluation inputs regarding their feelings of value, morale, job
satisfaction and work identity. The third critical behavior is that they will participate in
workshops that offer opportunities to share and provide feedback on challenges specific to their
gender. The final critical behavior is that they will participate in climate surveys to assess their
knowledge and thoughts pertaining to Service X’s career development policies, programs, and
initiatives, their confidence in their potential for success, and their expectations about their
careers. The specific metrics, methods, and timing for each outcome behavior appears in Table
6.
Table 6
Critical Behaviors, Metrics, Methods, and Timing for Evaluation
Critical Behavior Metric(s) Method(s) Timing
1) Enlisted women will
self-reflect by journaling
about the career
development processes,
mentors and leadership
modeling, and career
information received from
leaders and mentors.
100% of enlisted women
report positive
participation in journaling
reflections.
Enlisted women will share
and discuss journal entries
with supervisors and mentors
during scheduled meetings.
Weekly for junior
enlisted ranks E1
through E4 and

Monthly for ranks E5
and E6.

Quarterly for E-7 and
Above
2) Enlisted women will
document and provide
evaluation inputs regarding
their feelings of value,
morale, job satisfaction and
work identity.
100% of enlisted women
report feelings of value,
morale, job satisfaction,
and positive work identity.
Supervisors and leaders will
review inputs provided by
enlisted women and address
concerns during evaluation
and counseling feedback
sessions.
Annually for both
periodic evaluations and
mid-year counseling
sessions.
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 61

3) Enlisted women will
participate in workshops
that offer opportunities to
share and provide feedback
on challenges specific to
their gender.
100% of enlisted women
participate in feedback
opportunities.
Workshop leads will
document key discussion
points and takeaways for
organization feedback and
awareness.
Annually for the base or
region.

Quarterly for individual
units.
4) Enlisted women will
participate in climate
surveys to assess their
knowledge of:
- Service X’s career
development policies,
programs, and initiatives.
- Confidence in their
potential for success.
- Expectations about their
careers.
100% of enlisted women
report knowledge of:
- Service X’s career
development policies,
programs, and initiatives.
- Confidence in their
potential for success.
- Expectations about their
careers.
The organization and units
will distribute and share
climate survey results with
enlisted women with
opportunities to discuss and
provide feedback to senior
leadership.
Annually for the entire
organizational
enterprise.

Annually for the unit
assigned to.

Required drivers. Service X’s enlisted women require support from their supervisors,
mentors, peers, and the organization to help reinforce, encourage, and monitor the performance
of critical on the job behaviors. Organizational reinforcement drivers are used to remind and
assist individuals of learned behaviors and, when necessary, provide follow-on training and
guidance. Organizational encouragement drivers can occur in a formal or informal setting and
can be used to support, instill confidence, and stimulate desired behaviors. Finally,
organizational monitoring drivers incorporate a system of accountability through a process of
monitoring and feedback that allows individuals to report on training implementation efforts.
Table 7 indicates the recommended drivers that support the critical behaviors required of enlisted
women.

DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 62

Table 7
Required Drivers to Support Critical Behaviors
Method(s) Timing
Critical Behaviors Supported
1, 2, 3 or 4.
REINFORCING
Provide enlisted women with a job
aid and supplemental career
development information about the
organization’s policies, programs,
and initiatives.
Ongoing 1, 2, 3, & 4
Provide opportunities for enlisted
women to complete relevant and
useful tasks that help reinforce
knowledge.
Ongoing 1, 2, 3, & 4
Provide formal training to enlisted
women on strategies for managing
their own performance.
Annually 1, 2, 3, & 4
Provide leaders of enlisted women
with training on the organization’s
diversity goals and program
policies.
Annually 1, 2, 3, & 4
ENCOURAGING
Supervisors, leaders, and mentors
will model behaviors, coach and
provide formal and informal training
that assist enlisted women in
mastering all information learned.
Ongoing 1, 2, 3, & 4
Supervisors and leaders provide
enlisted woman with opportunities
to experience success, and ensure
they receive timely feedback that
helps them recognize when results
are of their own actions.
Ongoing 1, 2, 3, & 4
Supervisors and leaders will provide
enlisted women with formal and
informal feedback regarding the
importance and value of task and the
value of their personal
contributions.

Ongoing

1, 2, 3, & 4
MONITORING
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 63

Mentors and leaders will provide
feedback from journal discussion
session discuss how career needs are
being met.
Weekly for ranks E1 through E4.

Monthly for ranks E5 and E6.
Quarterly for E-7 and Above.
1, 2, 3, & 4
Provide enlisted women with formal
(evaluation forms) and informal
(verbal counseling and mentorship)
feedback regarding the importance
and value of task and the value of
their personal contributions.
Annually 1, 2, 3, 4
Conduct culture and climate
assessments that provide an
opportunity for enlisted women to
share concerns.
Annually 1, 2, 3, 4
Conduct an informal audit of the
organization's policies, procedures,
and check for alignment with goals
Annually 1, 2, 3, 4

Organizational support. To ensure that the required drivers are implemented, the
organization will provide specific support. First, the organization will ensure that all enlisted
women are provided access to a job aid and supplemental career development information about
the organization’s policies, programs, and initiatives. Second, enlisted women will be provided
opportunities to complete relevant and useful tasks to help reinforce knowledge. Third, enlisted
women will be provided with training on strategies for managing their own performance. Fourth
leaders and supervisors will be provided training on diversity goals and program policies.
Fourth, leaders, supervisors, and mentors of enlisted women will be trained how to model
behaviors, coach and provide formal and informal training that best assist enlisted women in
mastering information learned and navigate a successful career path in Service X. Fifth, enlisted
woman will be provided opportunities to experience success, through the receipt of timely
feedback to help them recognize when results are of their own actions. Sixth, enlisted woman
with opportunities to experience success and receive timely feedback that helps them recognize
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 64

when results are of their own actions. Seventh, enlisted women will be provided with formal
(evaluation forms) and informal (verbal counseling and mentorship) feedback regarding the
importance and value of task and the value of their personal contributions. Eight, leaders and
mentors will provide enlisted women with feedback opportunities to discuss journal entries and
inquiries pertaining to career needs. Ninth, the organization will incorporate an annual climate
survey that assesses the health of programs and initiatives and provides an opportunity for
enlisted women to share concerns. Finally, the organization will conduct an annual audit of its
programs, policies, and procedures and verify that they are properly aligned with goals and
objectives.
Level 2: Learning
Learning goals. Upon participation and completion of the recommended training,
enlisted women will acquire the knowledge, skills, attitude, confidence, and commitment to be
able to:
1. List, understand, and apply appropriate organizational programs, policies, and initiatives
when making career decisions. (D-C)
2. Recognize, understand, and integrate skills and processes learned in training during
routine performance and deliverables. (P)
3. Identify and reflect on the application and use of self-regulatory strategies. (M)
Program. The primary goal for implementing this learning program is to provide
enlisted women with useful and relevant knowledge and skills, coupled with the motivation,
required to ensure they are equipped to successfully navigate a career with Service X.
Accomplishing this learning goal, the organization is expected to benefit by maintaining or
increasing the retention of enlisted women and observing increases in their advancements into
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 65

senior leadership positions. To develop knowledge and skills they will be provided with training
opportunities designed to provide scaffolding learning experiences focused on mastering
knowledge and information learned and developing self-managing motivation skills. This effort
will be supplemented using job aids and journals to record and document learning and
experiences for further reinforcement. This training will occur periodically throughout the career
of an enlisted woman and span the duration of their career. The details specific to the knowledge
and skills training are that the following. First, upon entry into the organization they will be
provided with information that details and outlines programs, policies, and initiatives related to
career development and advancement opportunities. Second, they will be provided with a
journal to record, reflect, and document information provided by supervisors and mentors that is
important to career and advancement efforts. Third, they will be presented with opportunities to
participate in workshops to discuss and share information specific to women’s needs and
programs. Finally, they will participate in training that is specific to teaching self-regulating
skills and how to integrate skills learned into their work environment.
Enlisted women will also receive training and participate in opportunities specific to
increasing their motivation to positively influences their learning and professional growth
experience. The motivation specific training will be designed to increase their self-efficacy,
attributions, and expectancy values. Details of the training to improve the motivation of enlisted
women include five specific steps. First, they will be assigned a mentor who will assist them
develop learning implementation strategies. The mentors will also provide formal and informal
feedback opportunities. Second, they will be provided opportunities to communicate and receive
useful and relative feedback from supervisors and mentors. Third, supervisors and leaders will
maximize opportunities to connect their interest with utility value. Finally, to assist in the
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 66

implementation of training and the evaluation of the knowledge, skills, and motivation learning
outcomes, the organization will utilize information obtained through counseling, evaluation, and
climate surveys as opportunities to assess enlisted women’s knowledge of programs, policies,
and initiatives; confidence in their own potential for success; expectations about career
opportunities; and their perspective of the health and status of the organization’s cultural model
and setting.
Evaluation of the components of learning. Learning programs are designed to produce
one thing: results. Therefore, to effectively evaluate the components of learning program
outcomes should be a priority. According to Kirkpatrick and Kirkpatrick (2016) the outcomes of
learning programs best reside with the learners and stakeholders the program was intended for.
This evaluation of learning addresses the degree to which enlisted women acquire the necessary
knowledge, skills, attitude, confidence, and commitment based on their participation and
involvement in the training. As such, Table 8 lists the evaluation methods and timing for these
learning components.
Table 8
Evaluation of the Components of Learning for the Program.
Method(s) or Activity(ies) Timing
DECLARATIVE KNOWLEDGE “I KNOW IT”
Knowledge checks by supervisor and mentor during
formal and informal discussions.
Periodically, during counseling and evaluation meetings.
Participation in organizational assessments. Periodically, during assessment periods.
PROCEDURAL SKILLS “I CAN DO IT RIGHT
NOW”

Feedback and engagement with supervisor and mentors. Periodically, during counseling and evaluation meetings.
Scenarios that demonstrate procedural knowledge Periodically, during mentorship session.
Attitude “I believe this is worthwhile.”
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 67

Participation and feedback during workshops. Periodically, during workshop sessions.
Participation and feedback during surveys. Periodically, during assessment periods.
Discussions on the value of efforts during counseling
and mentorship
Periodically, during counseling and evaluation meetings.
CONFIDENCE “I THINK I CAN DO IT ON THE
JOB.”

Feedback and engagement from supervisor during and
upon the completion of tasks
Routinely, during and after the learning period.
Encouragement and appreciation from supervisor during
and upon the completion of task
Routinely, during and after the learning period.
Feedback and engagement from mentors during and
upon completion of meetings.
Periodically, during and after mentorship session.
COMMITMENT “I WILL DO IT ON THE JOB”
Feedback and engagement with supervisor and mentors. Periodically, during counseling and evaluation meetings.
Participation and feedback during surveys. Periodically, during assessment periods.

Level 1: Reaction
It is important to assess the value by which participants find the training. Kirkpatrick and
Kirkpatrick suggest three components to be used in measuring participant reactions to training:
engagement, relevance, and customer satisfaction (Kirkpatrick & Kirkpatrick, 2016). As such,
Table 9 lists the reactions of participants to the training respective to each component.
Table 9
Components to Measure Reactions to the Program
Method(s) or Tool(s) Timing
ENGAGEMENT
Organizational Climate Survey Annually
Counseling and Mentoring Meetings Periodic
Workshop Assessments and Feedback Periodic
RELAVANCE
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 68

Organizational Climate Survey Annually
Counseling and Mentoring Meetings Periodic
Workshop Assessments and Feedback Periodic
CUSTOMER SATISFACTION
Organizational Climate Survey Annually
Counseling and Mentoring Meetings Periodic
Workshop Assessments and Feedback Periodic

Evaluation Tools
Immediately following the program implementation. The learning program
participants will be asked to complete a survey immediately following the program (Appendix
N). The survey is designed to measure and provide program feedback pertaining to all
dimensions of participants’ Level 1 Reaction to the training, to include their engagement,
relevance, and satisfaction. Additionally, within a few months of conducting the program, a
supplemental survey (Appendix O) will be provided to the immediate supervisors requesting
feedback related to participants’ Level 2 Learning and the on-the-job application of knowledge,
procedures, attitude, and confidence in the ability to apply the information presented.
The Level 1 Reaction survey, provided to participants immediately after training, uses
Likert type responses to rate various questions related to their personal reactions to the training
from strongly disagree to strongly agree. The Level 1 Reaction survey also includes one open-
ended question for the participant to provide any additional feedback for the evaluators. The
Level 2 Learning survey, provided to the supervisors of participants, request they rate multiple
questions measured on a three-part scale of effective, moderately effective, or ineffective
regarding participants’ on-the-job application of targeted behaviors learned during the training
program.
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 69

Delayed for a period after the program implementation. A few months after the
training program, the participant will be requested to participate in a second survey (Appendix P)
that uses a blended evaluation approach to measure the effectiveness of all four levels of the
training program. The Level 1 assessment of this survey will measure participants’
understanding and thoughts of the training program after having had time to observe and apply
training into their work environment. The Level 2 assessment portion of the survey will assess
participants’ knowledge, skills, confidence, attitude, commitment and value of the training
program related to their on-the-job application. The Level 3 survey questions will assess
participants’ observations of behavior changes related to the training. Level 4 survey questions
will assess participants’ understanding and observations pertaining to the impact and results that
the training has on their work environment.
Data Analysis and Reporting
The goal of this training program is to produce Level 4 Results and ultimately, improve
the retention and professional development of enlisted women. To accomplish this, enlisted
women must have the knowledge, motivation, and organizational support required to make
successful career decisions. The Kirkpatrick Evaluation Model used for this study starts with
intended goals and desired Level 4 Results. These desired results are the key measurable goals
used in exploring the effectiveness and overall success of this training program. Therefore,
annually, a dashboard report (Appendix Q) will be provided to the organization’s senior leaders
that reflects the measured health for each of the Level 4 Results as compared to their desired
goals. Additionally, after each training session, to monitor the program’s progress, training
program coordinators will utilize similar dashboards to evaluate, measure, and make needed
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 70

program adjustments to the desired training results for each of the additional Level 1, 2, and 3
desired objectives.
Summary
The New World Kirkpatrick Model and its four levels of evaluation were instrumental in
the development of this study’s implementation and evaluation plan (Kirkpatrick & Kirkpatrick,
2016). The goal, as expected of a training plan, is to ultimately produce what Kirkpatrick and
Kirkpatrick (2016) refer to as, level four results. Supported in reverse order by the remaining
three levels, behavior, learning, and reaction, the time-tested model and this plan provide this
study with an evaluation framework that is flexible and practical for addressing the knowledge,
motivation, and organizational influences that cause enlisted women in Service X not to remain
and compete for senior leadership positions. The training evaluation model and this plan start by
identifying, addressing, and measuring the degree to which participants react to the training
experience and perceive its relevance to their jobs. Next, the plan measures the training’s
effectiveness in transferring desired knowledge, skills, attitude, confidence, and commitment to
participants. The third level assesses the on-the-job behaviors to determine the degree to which
participants can apply what they have learned. Here the required drivers for reinforcing,
encouraging, and monitoring behaviors are also identified and implemented. Finally, and where
the true implementation starting point is, the plan identifies the desired internal and external
outcomes as well as the desired organizational support and accountability requirements of the
training. Through the implementation of this four-level training evaluation plan, Service X will
improve, maximize the benefits, and demonstrate the capability of its training program to
produce desired and expected results.
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 71

Providing a bit of expectation management, it is important to ask the question “Are we
meeting expectations, and if not, Why?” at the end of each of the four levels. When expectations
are not being met, the problems need to be identified and addressed, right away. The data
analysis conducted after each level helps to streamline that process and identify key factors and
inhibitors. When expectations are not being met for level one reactions, it is important to review
the data to determine if participant engagement, relevance, and satisfaction with the training are
factors (Kirkpatrick & Kirkpatrick, 2016). For all four levels of the training evaluation plan, the
implementation of post-training data analysis, such as survey instruments, help to identify,
capture, and monitor participant performances for acceptable and desired outcomes. Failing to
meet expectations for level two learning, the data analysis captured through a formal process
needs to focus its assessment on whether participants’ knowledge, skills, attitude, confidence and
commitment are factors (Kirkpatrick & Kirkpatrick, 2016). Factors contributing to level three
behaviors not meeting expectations are often assessed by observing on-the-job performance and
behaviors to identify what aspect of the training is not meeting participants’ expectations
(Kirkpatrick & Kirkpatrick, 2016). Finally, when level four results are not meeting expectations,
in addition to assessing a formal data analysis instrument, supervisors and peers should also be
questioned to determine what additional factors may also be affecting the desired results
(Kirkpatrick & Kirkpatrick, 2016). When expectations are being met, it is equally important to
determine why and what factor need to be leveraged for continued success. Also, to inspire
motivation and continued efforts towards accomplishing the desired results, it is important to
communicate success (Kirkpatrick and Kirkpatrick, 2016).
Communicating the results and sharing the training progress will be conducted with the use of a
dashboard. Integrated during routine meetings or agreed upon scheduled times, they provide the
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 72

necessary touchpoints for quickly reporting the status and progress of the program and its desired
outcomes (Kirkpatrick &Kirkpatrick, 2016). The dashboard provides a quick and easy progress
report and allowing managers, supervisors, and stakeholders to remain engaged in the process
and provide formal and informal consult (Kirkpatrick & Kirkpatrick, 2016). Ensuring
dashboards are effective and the touchpoints drive performance. Kirkpatrick and Kirkpatrick
(2016) recommend the training evaluation lead for each level assume the responsibility for
reporting and showcasing their own observations, findings, and status with respect to goal
progress.
Conclusion
This case study explored talent management initiatives for enlisted women employed
with Service X. The Clark and Estes (2008) analytical framework provided this study with a
systematic process for identifying the quantifiable gaps between the organization’s desired goals
and the results of their current efforts. Using a mixed-methods methodological research design,
this study analyzed the stakeholder’s knowledge, motivation, along with organizational
influences and identified factors that impact the performance and behavior of the organization
and its enlisted women stakeholder group. The results and findings of the data collection were
then assessed and utilized in the development of recommendations which addressed each
knowledge, motivation, and organizational influencing factor. An Integrated Implementation
and Evaluation Plan, based on the New World Kirkpatrick Model (Kirkpatrick & Kirkpatrick,
2016), completes this case study with a model that suggest a four-level evaluation and
implementation plan to assist Service X in achieving its performance goal of increasing the
retention of high-quality talent amongst the enlisted women workforce.
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 73

In summary, the implementation plan recommended by this study is designed to create an
environment that inspires, motivates, and encourages enlisted women to shift from having
limited career intentions to desires for the pursuit of senior leadership positions and long-term
professional careers with Service X. This goal will be accomplished by increasing the
organization’s responsibilities for developing employees, improving employees work-identity,
addressing employee needs, and recognizing diversity needs. Through the use of proven
theoretical practices, theories, and models, and the implementation of the recommendations
identified through empirical literature specific to the retention problem of practice, this plan
expects Service X to experience a successful increase in retention of first term enlisted women.

DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 74

References
Abraham, S. (2012). Job satisfaction as an antecedent to employee engagement. SIES Journal of
Management, 8(2), 27-36.
Aguinis, H., & Kraiger, K. (2009). Benefits of training and development for individuals and
teams, organizations, and society. Annual Review of Psychology, 60, 451–474.
Alper, S., Tjosvold, D., & Law, K. (2000). Conflict management, efficacy, and performance in
organizational teams. Personnel Psychology, 53(3), 625–642.
Allen, D. G., Bryant, P. C., & Vardaman, J. M. (2010). Retaining talent: Replacing
misconceptions with evidence-based strategies. The Academy of Management
Perspectives, 24(2), 48-64.
American Psychological Association, Coalition for Psychology in Schools and Education.
(2015). Center for Psychology in Schools and Education. Retrieved from
http://www.apa.org/ed/schools/cpse/
Anderman, E., & Anderman, L. (2006). Attributions. Retrieved from
http://www.education.com/reference/article/attribution-theory/
Anshel, J. R. (2007). Visual ergonomics in the workplace. AAOHN Journal, 55(10), 414-420.
Ashton, C. & Morton, L. (2005). Managing talent for competitive advantage: Taking a systemic
approach to talent management. Strategic HR Review, 4(5), 28-31.
Baker, L. (2006). Metacognition. Retrieved from
http://www.education.com/reference/article/metacognition/
Bandura, A. (1993). Perceived Self-Efficacy in Cognitive Development and Functioning.
Educational Psychologist, 28(2), 117-148.
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 75

Bandura, A. (2000). Exercise of human agency through collective efficacy. Current Directions in
Psychological Science, 9(3), 75–78.
Bandura, A. (2005). The evolution of social cognitive theory. In K. G. Smith & M. A. Hitt
(Eds.), Great minds in management (pp. 9–35). Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Beechler, S., & Woodward, I. C. (2009). The global “war for talent”. Journal of international
management, 15(3), 273-285.
Benight, C. C., & Bandura, A. (2004). Social cognitive theory of posttraumatic recovery: The
role of perceived self-efficacy. Behaviour Research and Therapy, 42(10), 1129-1148.
Bensimon, E. (Autumn, 2005). Closing the achievement gap in higher education: An
organizational learning perspective. New Directions for Higher Education, 131 (special
issue), 99–111.
Berbarry, D., & Malinchak, A. (2011). Connected and engaged: The value of government
learning. The Public Manager, Fall, 55–59.
Bolman, L. G., & Deal, T. E. (2017). Reframing organizations: Artistry, choice, and leadership.
John Wiley & Sons.
Bogdan, R. C., & Biklen, S. K. (2007). Qualitative data. In Qualitative research for
education: An introduction to theories and methods (5th ed.) (pp. 117-129). Boston, MA:
Allyn and Bacon.
Borgogni, L., Dello Russo, S., & Latham, G. (2011). The Relationship of Employee Perceptions
of the Immediate Supervisor and Top Management with Collective Efficacy. Journal of
Leadership & Organizational Studies, 18(1), 5-13.
Bucher, E., Fieseler, C., & Suphan, A. (2013). The stress potential of social media in the
workplace. Information, Communication & Society, 16(10), 1639-1667.
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 76

Buzzetta, M., Hayden, S., & Ledwith, K. (2017). Creating hope: Assisting Veterans with Job
Search Strategies using Cognitive Information Processing Theory. Journal of
Employment Counseling, 54(2), 63-74.
Carli, L. L., & Eagly, A. H. (2001). Gender, hierarchy, and leadership: An introduction. Journal
of Social issues, 57(4), 629-636.
Clark, R. E., & Estes, F. (2008). Turning research into results: A guide to selecting the right
performance solutions. Charlotte, NC: Information Age Publishing, Inc.
Cohen, P. N. (2013). The persistence of workplace gender segregation in the US. Sociology
Compass, 7(11), 889–899. Retrieved from
http://www.terpconnect.umd.edu/~pnc/SocComp2013.pdf
Creswell, J. W. (2014). Research design: Qualitative, quantitative, and mixed
methods approaches (pp. 151-161). Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE Publications.
Deery, M. (2008). Talent management, work-life balance and retention strategies. International
Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management, 20(7), 792-806.
Duffield, C., Roche, M., O’Brien-Pallas, L., Catling-Paull, C., & King, M. (2009). Staff
satisfaction and retention and the role of the nursing unit manager. Collegian, 16(1), 11-
17.
Dembo, M., & Eaton, M. J. (2000). Self-regulation of academic learning in middle-level schools.
The Elementary School Journal, 100(5), 473–490.
Denning, S. (2005). The leader's guide to storytelling: Mastering the art and discipline of
business narrative (Vol. 269). San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.
DiTomaso, N., Post, C., & Parks-Yancy, R. (2007). Workforce diversity and inequality:
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 77

Power, status, and numbers. Annual Review of Sociology, 33, 473–501. Retrieved from
http://www.uni-kassel.de/wz1/mahe/course/module5_4/02_ditomaso07.pdf
Eccles, J. (2006). Expectancy value motivational theory. Retrieved from
http://www.education.com/reference/article/expectancy-value-motivational-theory/
Eckel, C. C., & Grossman, P. J. (2005). Managing diversity by creating team identity. Journal of
Economic Behavior & Organization, 58, 371–392.
Gallimore, R., & Goldenberg, C. (2001). Analyzing cultural models and settings to connect
minority achievement and school improvement research. Educational
Psychologist, 36(1), 45-56.
Garavan, T. N., Carbery, R., & Rock, A. (2012). Mapping talent development: definition, scope
and architecture. European Journal of Training and Development, 36(1), 5-24.
Gilley, A., Gilley, J. W., & McMillan, H. S. (2009). Organizational change: Motivation,
communication, and leadership effectiveness. Performance Improvement Quarterly,
21(4), 75–94.
Glesne, C. (2011). But is it ethical? Considering what is “right.” In Becoming
qualitative researchers: An introduction (4th ed.) pp. 162-183. Boston, MA: Pearson.
Govaerts, N., Kyndt, E., Dochy, F., & Baert, H. (2011). Influence of learning and working
climate on the retention of talented employees. Journal of Workplace Learning, 23(1),
35-55.
Gregory, A., & Milner, S. (2009). Editorial: work–life balance: a matter of choice? Gender,
Work & Organization, 16(1), 1-13.
Grossman, R., & Salas, E. (2011). The transfer of training: What really matters. International
Journal of Training and Development, 15(2), 103–120.
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 78

Harvey, J. (1988, Summer). The Abilene paradox: The management of agreement.
Organizational Dynamics, 17–43.
Heinen, J. S., & O'Neill, C. (2004). Managing talent to maximize performance. Employment
Relations Today, 31(2), 67-69.
Hughes, C., & Rog, E. (2008). Talent management: A strategy for improving employee
recruitment, retention and engagement within hospitality organizations. International
Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management, 20(7), 743-757.
IBM. (2008). Unlocking the DNA of the Adaptable Workforce, the IBM Global Human Capital
Study (Milwaukee, WI: IBM).
Jenkins, A. J. (2009). Keeping the talent: Understanding the needs of engineers and scientists in
the defense acquisition workforce. Acquisition Review Journal, 16(1), 19-32.
Kirkpatrick, J. D., & Kirkpatrick, W. K. (2016). Kirkpatrick’s four levels of training evaluation.
Alexandria, VA: ATD Press.
Krathwohl, D. R. (2002). A revision of Bloom’s taxonomy: An overview. Theory into practice,
41(4), 212–218.
Korsgaard, M., Brodt, S., & Whitener, E. (2002). Trust in the face of conflict: The role of
managerial trustworthy behavior and organizational context. Journal of Applied
Psychology, 87(2), 312–319.
Krathwohl, D. R. (2002). A revision of Bloom’s taxonomy: An overview. Theory into practice,
41(4), 212–218.
Kyndt, E., Dochy, F., Michielsen, M., & Moeyaert, B. (2009). Employee retention:
Organisational and personal perspectives. Vocations and Learning, 2(3), 195-215.
Lawton, D. S., & De Aquino, C. T. E. (2015). Diversity in the workplace and the impact of
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 79

work values on the effectiveness of multi-generational teams. i-Manager's Journal on
Management, 10(3), 20-28.
Lewis, L. K. (2011). Organizational change: Creating change through strategic communication
(Vol. 4). New York, NY: John Wiley & Sons.
Lewis, R. E., & Heckman, R. J. (2006). Talent management: A critical review. Human Resource
Management Review, 16(2), 139-154.
Locke, L. F., Silverman, S. J., & Spirduso, W. W. (2010). Reading and understanding research
(3rd ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE. Chapter 12.
Lumley, E. J., Coetzee, M., Tladinyane, R., & Ferreira, N. (2011). Exploring the job satisfaction
and organisational commitment of employees in the information technology
environment. Southern African Business Review, 15(1), 100-118.
Luzipo, P., & Van Dyke, G. (2018). Organisation climate mediation of the relationship between
hardiness, self-efficacy, and job satisfaction among military followers. Journal of
Psychology in Africa, 28(3), 192-195.
Maxwell, J. A. (2013). Qualitative research design: An interactive approach (3rd ed.). Thousand
Oaks, CA: SAGE Publications.
Mayer, R. E. (2011). How learning works. In Applying the science of learning (pp. 13–37, 44–
49). Boston, MA: Pearson Education.
McCauley, C., & Wakefield, M. (2006). Talent management in the 21st century: Help your
company find, develop, and keep its strongest workers. The Journal for Quality and
Participation, 29(4), 4-7.
Merriam, S. B., & Tisdell, E. J. (2016). Qualitative research: A guide to design and
implementation (4th ed.). San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 80

Northouse, P. (2015). In Leadership: Theory and practice. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publishers.
Pajares, F. (2006). Self-efficacy theory. Retrieved from
http://www.education.com/reference/article/self-efficacy-theory/
Patton, M. Q. (2002). Qualitative interviewing. In Qualitative research and evaluation methods
(3rd ed.) (pp. 380-384, 391-396, 415). Thousand Oaks: SAGE Publications.
Perrachione, B. A., Petersen, G. J., & Rosser, V. J. (2008). Why do they stay? Elementary
teachers' perceptions of job satisfaction and retention. The Professional Educator, 32(2),
1.
Pintrich, P. R. (2003). A motivational science perspective on the role of student motivation in
learning and teaching contexts. Journal of Educational Psychology, 95(4), 667–686.
Prieto, L. C., Phipps, S. T., & Osiri, J. K. (2011). Linking workplace diversity to organizational
performance: A conceptual framework. Journal of Diversity Management (JDM), 4(4),
13–22.
Rath, T., & Conchie, B. (2009). Strengths-based leadership: Great leaders, teams, and why
people follow. New York: Gallup. pp. 79–91.
Rocco, T. S., & Plakhotnik, M. S. (2009). Literature reviews, conceptual frameworks, and
theoretical frameworks: Terms, functions, and distinctions. Human Resource
Development Review, 8(1), 120–130.
Rubin, H. J., & Rubin, I. S. (2012). Chapter 6: Conversational partnerships. In Qualitative
interviewing: The art of hearing data (3rd ed.) pp. 85-92. Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE
Publications.
Rueda, R. (2011). The 3 dimensions of improving student performance. New York: Teachers
College Press.
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 81

Samuel, M. O., & Chipunza, C. (2009). Employee retention and turnover: Using motivational
variables as a panacea. African journal of business management, 3(9), 410.
Schneider, B., Brief, A., & Guzzo, R. (1996). Creating a culture and climate for sustainable
organizational change. Organizational Dynamics, 24(4), 7–19.
Schein, E.H. (2004). Organizational culture and leadership. San Francisco: Jossey Bass.
Schraw, G., & McCrudden, M. (2006). Information processing theory. Retrieved from
http://www.education.com/reference/article/information-processing-theory/
Senge, P. (1990). The leader’s new work: Building learning organizations. Sloan Management
Review, 32(1), 7–23.
Social Cognitive Theory. (2009). In E. M. Anderman & L. H. Anderman (Eds.), Psychology of
Classroom Learning: An Encyclopedia (Vol. 2, pp. 833-839). Detroit: Macmillan
Reference USA. Retrieved from
http://link.galegroup.com.libproxy2.usc.edu/apps/doc/CX3027800237/GVRL?u=usocal_
main&sid=GVRL&xid=e0d6099c
Starnes, B. J., Truhon, SA & McCarthy, V. (2010). ‘A Primer on Organizational Trust’, Human
Development and Leadership Division, ASQ Quality Press.
Statistic Brain. (2016). Demographics of active duty U.S. military. Statistic brain research
institute, publishing as Statistic Brain. Retrieved from
http://www.statisticbrain.com/demographics-of-active-duty-u-s-military
Stringer, E. T. (2014). Action research (4th ed.). Los Angeles: SAGE.
Tansley, C. (2011). What do we mean by the term “talent” in talent management? Industrial and
commercial training, 43(5), 266-274.
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 82

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. (2016). Civilian labor force by age, gender, race and ethnicity.
Retrieved from http://www.bls.gov/emp/ep_table_301.htm
U.S. Department of Labor. (2017). Women in the labor force in 2010. Retrieved from
https://www.dol.gov/wb/factsheets/Qf-laborforce-10.htm
U.S. Office of diversity management and equal opportunity. (2016). Diversity strategic plan.
Retrieved from
http://search.usa.gov/search?affiliate=diversity&query=diversity%20strategic%20plan
Vaiman, V., Scullion, H., & Collings, D. (2012). Talent management decision
making. Management Decision, 50(5), 925-941.
Walker, J. W., & LaRocco, J. M. (2002). Talent pools: The best and the rest. (Perspectives).
Human Resource Planning, 25(3), 12-15.
Wang, D. S., & Hsieh, C. C. (2013). The effect of authentic leadership on employee trust and
employee engagement. Social Behavior and Personality: an international journal, 41(4),
613-624.
Weiss, R. S. (1994). Introduction. In Learning from strangers: The art and method of
qualitative interview studies (pp. 1-14). New York, NY: The Free Press.
Yough, M., & Anderman, E. (2006). Goal orientation theory. Retrieved from
http://www.education.com/reference/article/goal-orientation-theory/.

DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 83

Appendix A: Topic Sentence Outline
The following topic sentence outline supports the literature review section of this
dissertation study. The outline provides empirical information used to identify four factors that
impact Service X’s efforts to develop and retain enlisted women. The four supporting factors
are: organizational responsibilities for the employee’s professional growth, the employee’s work-
identity, addressing the employee’s needs, and diversity challenges existing in the work
environment. Each factor is supported with an introduction paragraph followed by sub-topics
which include summary statements of the empirical articles referenced in the literature review.
Factor One: Organizational Responsibilities for The Employee’s Professional Growth
The following topic outline of the literature was used in support of the first factor of
organizational responsibilities for the employee’s professional growth. This outline is divided
into two sub-topics: the role and influence of the organization’s human resources departments
and the employee’s training and learning opportunities. The second factor, the employee’s
work-identity, follows next.
The role and influence of an organization’s human resources departments. Human
resource departments, now more than ever in history, have a critical role in the success or failure
of an organization, particularly with respect to the recruitment, development, and sustainment of
talent.
• Lewis, R. E., & Heckman, R. J. (2006). Talent management: A critical review. Human
Resource Management Review, 16(2), 139-154.
o Talent management is defined as a collection of typical human resources department
practices, functions, activities or specialist areas such as recruiting, selection, development
and career and succession management.
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 84

o Practitioner-oriented literature describes talent management as a mindset, a key
component to effective succession planning.
o Recruiters often discuss talent management in terms of sourcing the best candidates
possible, while training and development advocates encourage growing talent through
training and leadership development programs.
• McCauley, C., & Wakefield, M. (2006). Talent management in the 21st century: Help your
company find, develop, and keep its strongest workers. The Journal for Quality and
Participation, 29(4), 4-7.
o Organizational human resources’ role and responsibility can set the stage for success by
hiring and training capable employees.
o Talent management processes include workforce planning, talent gap analysis, recruiting,
staffing, education and development, retention, talent reviews, succession planning, and
evaluation.
o The positive effects of integrating a talent management program are identifying the most
talented individuals, providing them with the necessary training and experiences, and
retaining valuable employees long term.
• Hughes, C., & Rog, E. (2008). Talent management: A strategy for improving employee
recruitment, retention and engagement within hospitality organizations. International Journal of
Contemporary Hospitality Management, 20(7), 743-757.
o Traditional human resource departments’ definition of talent management implies a level
of strategic integration, sophistication, and broad-based accountability that they traditionally
have not engendered.
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 85

o Talent management efforts contributing to an organization’s success include ensuring
organizations can successfully acquire and retain talent and engaging essential talent.
o The consequences of failing to implement an organizational talent management program
are constraints on organizational productivity and efficiency, constraints on innovation, and
constraints on the organization's ability to meet production requirements and customer
demands.
Employee training and learning opportunities. There is a substantial cost involved
with talent management, particularly when organizations lose employees due to failing to
identify, mismanaging, or failing to provide adequate training and support.
• Walker, J. W., & LaRocco, J. M. (2002). Talent pools: The best and the rest. (Perspectives).
Human Resource Planning, 25(3), 12-15.
o The dangers of unfairly misidentifying and mismanaging talent can discourage the
motivation, performance, and teamwork development for the rest of the workforce.
o Avoid losing future talent, already within an organization, by not assuming that top
performers are the top talent for the future and that potential is about future performance,
not past performance.
o Management should communicate openly about the talent management process, why it is
important, how it works, and what management expects to be the benefits for the company
and for participants.
• Kyndt, E., Dochy, F., Michielsen, M., & Moeyaert, B. (2009). Employee retention:
Organizational and personal perspectives. Vocations and Learning, 2(3), 195-215.
o Employees with a high organizational commitment are those who have a strong
identification with the organization, value the sense of membership within it, agree with its
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 86

objectives and values systems, are likely to remain in it and, finally, are prepared to work
hard on its behalf.
o When employees do not feel satisfied in their job, the turnover is high, and they are likely
to leave the company.
o The perception of the importance of learning to employees and the quality of work
climate is a strong predictor of the employee intentions to remain with their current
employer.
• Govaerts, N., Kyndt, E., Dochy, F., & Baert, H. (2011). Influence of learning and working
climate on the retention of talented employees. Journal of Workplace Learning, 23(1), 35-55.
o The increasing demands and efforts of human resources departments.
o Human resource efforts recognized throughout the organizations daily efforts.
o The loss of employee talent is a financial loss on an investment.
Factor two: The Employee’s Work-Identity
The following is a brief topic outline of the literature supporting the second factor of the
employee’s work-identity. This outline is divided into two sub-topics: understanding what
employees seek from organizations and the employee’s training and professional development
support. The third factor, addressing the employee’s needs, will follow next.
Understanding what employees seek from organizations. Organizations that fail to
support and understand that today’s employees want to work in environments perceived as
identifying with their needs, values, and beliefs are taking the risk of potentially losing employed
and future talent.
• Govaerts, N., Kyndt, E., Dochy, F., & Baert, H. (2011). Influence of learning and working
climate on the retention of talented employees. Journal of Workplace Learning, 23(1), 35-55.
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 87

o Employees remain with organizations that support their growth and development.
o Work environments that support learning and development are attractive to employees.
o Eager-to-learn employees and organizations that fosters training have a symbiotic
relationship.
• Kyndt, E., Dochy, F., Michielsen, M., & Moeyaert, B. (2009). Employee retention:
Organizational and personal perspectives. Vocations and Learning, 2(3), 195-215.
o Talented employees place high importance on their work-related identity.
o Talented employees commit to organizations with a strong sense of membership,
objectives, purpose, and shared values.
o Young employees are not seeking to remain committed to any one organization.
Professional development support. Organizations may minimize the cost of losing
current talent and increase employee job satisfaction and production through investing in a
professional development programs that are fair and involve assessing for the proper placement
of talent.
• Walker, J. W., & LaRocco, J. M. (2002). Talent pools: The best and the rest. (Perspectives).
Human Resource Planning, 25(3), 12-15.
o Talent development processes fail when implemented for the wrong reasons.
o All employees should be treated fairly with equal opportunities to develop, improve, and
contribute to the organization.
o Talent development processes should include a variety of ways to motivate, develop, and
retain employees.
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 88

• McCauley, C., & Wakefield, M. (2006). Talent management in the 21st century: Help your
company find, develop, and keep its strongest workers. The Journal for Quality and
Participation, 29(4), 4-7.
o Matching the right person for the job can develop talent and encourage job satisfaction.
o By assessing available talent and placing the right people in their best roles, organizations
can survive and thrive in today’s increasingly competitive markets.
o To drive performance, deal with an increasingly rapid pace of change and, implement
sustainable success, a company must integrate and align these processes with its business
strategies.
• Jenkins, A. J. (2009). Keeping the talent: Understanding the needs of engineers and scientists
in the defense acquisition workforce. Acquisition Review Journal, 16(1), 19-32.
o Losing talented employees often leads to a loss of production.
o The cost of losing talent can be measured with the expenses related to time and resources.
o Talent loss can impact the overall production of an organizations for weeks, months, or
even years.
o Aligning and syncing specific talents with the organization’s mission, goals, and
objectives increases job satisfaction.
Factor Three: Addressing the Employee’s Needs
The following is a brief topic outline of the literature supporting the third factor of
addressing the employee’s needs. This outline is divided into two sub-topics: work-life balance
and the work environment. The fourth and final factor, diversity challenges in the work
environment, follows next.
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 89

Work-life balance. Advancement in technology, despite the convenience created
regarding communicating with employees 24/7, also has the potential of having the adverse
effects of employee job burnout, exhaustion, and interference with quality of life.
• Deery, M. (2008). Talent management, work-life balance and retention strategies.
International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management, 20(7), 792-806.
o Job burnout and exhaustion can negatively impact employee retention and job
satisfaction.
o Interfering with employee’s family time can negatively impact employee retention and
motivation.
o Work-life balance is increasingly becoming a significant retention and motivation factor.
• Bucher, E., Fieseler, C., & Suphan, A. (2013). The stress potential of social media in the
workplace. Information, Communication & Society, 16(10), 1639-1667.
o Social media and mobile electronic devices are changing how work is done in and out of
the workplace by making it easier for employers to communicate with employees outside
of the work environment.
o Mobile devices are becoming an increasingly intrusive means for organizations to
communicate with employees.
o Failing to respect work-life boundaries may lead to employee exhaustion, burnout,
overload, anxiety, and other negative feelings.
• Gregory, A., & Milner, S. (2009). Editorial: work–life balance: a matter of choice? Gender,
Work & Organization, 16(1), 1-13.
o Organizational interpretations of work-life balance policies.
o Work-life balance policies are reshaping and redefining work processes.
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 90

o The impact and effect of how an organization interprets and implements work-life-
balance processes.
The work environment. Employees are likely to show increased job satisfaction and
have stronger feelings of committed when they perceive that they are valued, contributing,
growing, safe, and comfortable in their work environment.
• Govaerts, N., Kyndt, E., Dochy, F., & Baert, H. (2011). Influence of learning and working
climate on the retention of talented employees. Journal of Workplace Learning, 23(1), 35-55.
o Employees who feel like they are in a learning and growing environment are less likely to
leave.
o Organizations that practice learning and growth environments increase the likeness of
retaining and attracting talent.
o Employees who view themselves as underutilized are likely to leave in search of
environments that value them.
• Kyndt, E., Dochy, F., Michielsen, M., & Moeyaert, B. (2009). Employee retention:
Organizational and personal perspectives. Vocations and Learning, 2(3), 195-215.
o Employees feel that they are losing a competitive edge when they are no longer learning
and developing.
o Employees satisfied with the learning and growth opportunities tend to have stronger
feelings of commitment.
o Expressing appreciation for employees increases their desires to remain with the
organization.
• Anshel, J. R. (2007). Visual ergonomics in the workplace. AAOHN Journal, 55(10), 414-420.
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 91

o Improvements in the physical work environment, such as lighting, furniture design, and
reducing unnecessary noises may increase employee job satisfaction.
o Organizational policies should be written to promote conditions and environments that
promote employee job satisfaction.
Factor four: Diversity Challenges Existing in the Work Environment
The following is a brief topic outline of the literature supporting the final factor
pertaining to diversity challenges existing in the work environment. This outline is divided into
two sub-topics: generational differences and gender discrimination and biases. Following this
final topic outline is a literature review concluding paragraph which summarizes the impact of
the four factors on Service X’s efforts to develop and retain enlisted women.
Generational differences. Organizations, to maximize their production effort, need to
capitalize on the talent, experience, and perspectives that each generation contributes to the work
environment, while simultaneously implementing processes to ensure all understand and respect
the diversity of values, beliefs, and interest.
• Beechler, S., & Woodward, I. C. (2009). The global “war for talent.” Journal of International
Management, 15(3), 273-285.
o The current global workforce is comprised of four generations, each with very different
values and expectations.
o Generational differences often lead to misunderstandings, miscommunications, and
conflicts.
o Young female workers are changing the landscape and diversity of the workforce.
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 92

• Lawton, D. S., & De Aquino, C. T. E. (2015). Diversity in the workplace and the impact of
work values on the effectiveness of multi-generational teams. i-Manager's Journal on
Management, 10(3), 20-28.
o The impact of failing to understand generational differences and limit an otherwise
productive work team.
o Problems related to generational differences in the workplace can be identified in
different behaviors, compliance of rules and policies, willingness to work overtime, and
desires for the design of the work space.
o The transfer of knowledge from one generation to the other is fundamentally important to
the success of any organization.
• Prieto, L. C., Phipps, S. T., & Osiri, J. K. (2011). Linking workplace diversity to
organizational performance: A conceptual framework. Journal of Diversity Management (JDM),
4(4), 13–22.
o The diversity of an organization’s work force directly affects its communication, problem
solving, and performance processes.
o Evidence of diversity may affect certain organizational processes such as
communications, creativity and problem solving, which are closely related to performance.
o Having divergent perspectives can be helpful when groups are trying to come up with
creative ideas to solve complex problems.
Gender discrimination and biases. Despite current advancements and contribution to
the global workforce, women are still suffering from discrimination and inequalities.
• Beechler, S., & Woodward, I. C. (2009). The global “war for talent.” Journal of international
management, 15(3), 273-285.
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 93

o Women are currently inspiring more job creations than ever before in history.
o The increase of women in the global labor force is causing organization to reshape the
processes used to define, attract, and retain talented.
• Cohen, P. N. (2013). The persistence of workplace gender segregation in the US. Sociology
Compass, 7(11), 889–899. Retrieved from
http://www.terpconnect.umd.edu/~pnc/SocComp2013.pdf
o Gender segregation and discrimination still dominate as one of the top of inequalities of
the work force.
o Occupational gender devaluation occurs when occupations with higher concentrations of
women are paid less because women disproportionately fill them.
• Carli, L. L., & Eagly, A. H. (2001). Gender, hierarchy, and leadership: An introduction.
Journal of Social issues, 57(4), 629-636.
o Currently, women make up nearly 47% of the U.S. workforce.
o Despite the rise of women in the workforce, women are severely underrepresented in
leadership roles.
o When women are perceived to be competent as men, they are often seen as violating
prescriptive gender role norms that require women to be communal.

DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 94

Appendix B: Participating Stakeholders: Sampling and Recruitment
The participating stakeholders were selected utilizing purposeful and criterion-based
sampling for best alignment with the study’s mixed-methods research designs. The criteria used
for the selection of the qualitative interview sample selected were Service X’s enlisted women,
with honorable service, who were either currently serving on active duty or separated in year
2015 or after. The aperture of the sample participants was opened for the quantitative survey
sample to include male service members also currently serving honorably or separated in 2015 or
after. The inclusion of the male sample provided the study with to compare the data between the
gender and identify any differences between their responses. The specific sets of criteria for the
mixed-methods research design were established utilizing the guidance and recommendations
from Creswell (2014), Maxwell (2013), and Merriam and Tisdell (2016), and focused on
maximizing and enriching the quality and understanding of the meanings, processes, and content
of the research phenomena, while simultaneously working to understand the cause and effects
and relationships identified during the study. Interviews were used as the qualitative data source
to produce purposeful, inductive, and in-depth analysis of data. Standardized surveys were used
as the quantitative data source to produce statistical numerical data that is descriptive and
inferential about the stakeholder population (Creswell, 2014). The following paragraphs explain
the criteria and rationale considered in the decision and use of the mixed-methods data research
design for this study.
Survey Sampling Criteria and Rationale
Two criteria for the selection of the quantitative survey sampling participants were used
in this study. The first criterion was that participants must be enlisted male or female currently
on active duty or separated in 2015 or beyond. The second criterion was that their service
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 95

standings must be under honorable conditions. These criteria provided an opportunity to collect
statistical data from a large enough sample group to determine generalizable cause and effect
relationships with the studies enlisted women population. The following paragraphs further
defines each of these criteria.
Criterion 1 (Active or recently separated enlisted men and women). Service X’s
retention data for women reflects that women with the lowest retention percentage are those who
have met and earned the minimal requirements to be eligible for retirement and a lifelong
pension. The next subgroup, with the second lowest retention percentage, are women who have
completed their initial term of service. It is this subgroup of active duty women that represent
the largest and most significant loss of high-quality talent. Therefore, Service X’s enlisted
women were selected for three reasons. First, women represent the fastest growing and are
projected to be the largest demographic group in the U.S. workforce (U.S. Department of Labor,
2017). Second, women in Service X are considerably underrepresented in leadership positions.
Last, enlisted women represent the largest population of the female subgroups represented in
Service X. The survey sampling was intended to collect data from a large pool of participants
and the decision to add males was to provide a comparison of statistical data and a deeper
understanding of causes and effects.
Criterion 2 (Serving with honorable service). Separating from Service X with an
honorable discharge reflects that a person had maintained good standing service while serving on
active duty. To reiterate, the focus of this study is on the professional development and retention
of high-quality talent. Therefore, for this study, high quality talent is reflected and represented
by participants’ voluntary acknowledgment of actively being in honorable standings or having
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 96

recently separated under honorable discharge conditions. The following section outlines the
strategy and rationale for the survey sampling.
Survey Sampling (Recruitment) Strategy and Rationale
An external transition assistance facility, where many of the stakeholders were accessing
transition assistance support, provided support for the study with information and links to the
survey to their audience. The information sheet provided details describing the targeted
audience. There were three demographic questions incorporated into the survey that were used
to ensure participants met the criterion for the study. Participants whose responses identified
them as not meeting the sample criteria were not utilized in the final data analysis. The rationale
for this strategy is consistent with the goal and intent outlined in the conceptual framework and
quantitative methodology selected for the study (Creswell, 2014). The survey product was
designed online using Qualitrics and roughly took 10-15 minutes to complete with closed-ended
and multiple-choice questions designed to quantify the knowledge, motivation, and
organizational cultural influences surrounding the stakeholder’s decision to terminate
employment with Service X.
Interview Sampling Criteria and Rationale
Two criteria for the selection of the qualitative sampling participants to interview were
used in this study. The first criterion was that participants must be enlisted women currently on
active duty or separated in 2015 or beyond. The second criterion was that their service standings
must be under honorable conditions. These criteria provided an opportunity to ensure rich and
informative data were collected from a complete spectrum of talented enlisted women. The
following paragraphs further defines each of these criteria.
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 97

Criterion 1 (Active or recently separated enlisted women). The interviews, were the
primary means for the qualitative data collected in this study. With enlisted women being the
primary stakeholder group for the study, it was most important to hear their stories. Because the
interviews focused on a much smaller sample population, the use of women only for this data
collection method was chosen.
Criterion 2 (Serving with honorable service). Similar to the criterion for the interviews
participants separating from Service X with an honorable discharge reflects good standing
service and the type of employee likely to be classified as high-quality talent. It is this high-
quality talent that is the focus of the retention and development efforts. The following section
outlines the strategy and rationale for the interview sampling.
Interview Sampling (Recruitment) Strategy and Rationale
The sampling participant recruitment strategy for the interview method of data collection
was criterion-based described in the interviewing sampling criteria rationale section. To ensure
the data collected was rich in detail and informed with specifics related to improving the
understanding of the problem of practice, a small and purposeful sample size of participants was
used. The rationale for this strategy is consistent with the goal and intent outlined in the
conceptual framework and qualitative methodology selected for the study (Creswell, 2014;
Maxwell, 2013; Merriam & Tisdell, 2016).
Of the remaining qualitative options of data collection, the accessibility and availability
of the stakeholder group provided limited access to conducting focus groups or observations.
Participants were thereby selected through social media contacts known to have met all required
criteria. Within the initial email request for participation, information was provided explaining
the study and its purpose, the confidentiality of their participation, and a clear explanation that
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 98

the request was for volunteer participation. The interviews lasted 40-50 minutes, with semi-
structured, open-ended, and one-on-one questions that were designed to inquire and probe for
knowledge, motivational, and organizational influences related to the problem of practice.

DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 99

Appendix C: Protocols
(Interview)
Instructions
Thank you for taking the time to interview with me about Service X’s retention efforts
and initiatives. Your feedback is very important. This interview should take approximately 45
min of your time. Your participation will be completely anonymous and at any time during the
interview you feel uncomfortable, you may elect to stop.

1. Please explain to me why you joined Service X? (M) (RQ2)
a. How has this influenced your decision to end their enlisted contracts? (M) (RQ2)
2. Please think back to when you first joined Service X and discuss the career
opportunities you knew about and were considering. (K) (RQ2)
3. Please tell me how your initial understanding of Service X’s career opportunities contributed
to your career expectations. (K) (RQ2)
4. Comparing your initial and current understanding of Service X’s career opportunities are
there any differences and if so, can you please tell me about them? (K) (RQ2)
5. Please tell me about your job and where you fit within the structure of your organization. (O)
(RQ3)
6. Please explain to me how you contribute to Service X and your organization’s mission and
goals. (K) (RQ3)
7. Please tell me about any skills and/or training (professional development) that you received
while serving in Service X that you have found to be valuable. (O) (RQ3)
a. Can you please go into further detail about what specifically is valuable about these skills
and training experiences? (M) (RQ2)
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 100

8. Please share with me your thoughts and/or feelings about leadership within the organization.
(O) (RQ3)
9. What is your organization’s reaction to your decision to end your contract with Service X?
(O) (RQ3)
a. Has your administrations, personnel or human resources equivalent departments made
any efforts to influence you to extend your contract and if so, please tell me about them? (O)
(RQ3)
10. Hypothetically, if you had not yet decided to end your contract, explain to me what could the
organization do to convince you to extend? (O) (RQ3)
a. What about the organization is not meeting your career needs? (O) (RQ3)
11. Please tell me your thoughts and/or feelings about the learning, growth and advancement
opportunities for enlisted women in Service X. (O) (RQ3)
a. Do you think enlisted women are provided the same promotion and advancement
opportunities as enlisted men? In what ways? (O) (RQ3)
12. Bear with me while I ask another hypothetical question, but, if you had a platform to speak to
Service X’s leadership, what suggestions or recommendations would you provide to improve the
professional development and advancement opportunities for enlisted women? (O) (RQ3)
13. Please describe any work environment or physical factors that you feel increased or
decreased your level of job satisfaction. (O) (RQ2&3)
a. Were any of these factors implemented by organizational policies? (O) (RQ2&3)
14. Considering all the topics we discussed today, mainly your knowledge of career programs,
leadership, and career opportunities, please explain to me what factors led to your decision to
terminate your contract with Service X. (K& M) (RQ2&3)
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 101

a. Explain if you have or don’t have any feelings of membership and purpose with Service
X.
b. How much does moving influence your decision?
c. Do you feel you were treated fairly during your Service X’s career?
d. Please share with me whether or not you feel you were placed in the right job that
benefited your talents and potential for learning and growth.
15. Please share with me your thoughts about Service X’s work-life balance policies. (O) (RQ3)
a. Do you feel Service X was mindful and respectful of your personal time?
b. Please tell me if you have ever experienced work-related burnout, anxieties, overload, or
exhaustion and how did Service X react to you.
16. Please tell me your feelings about the generational differences that exist in Service X. (M)
(RQ3)
a. Did any of these differences contribute or hinder productivity or communication in the
workplace? (M) (RQ3)
17. This may be a bit sensitive, but if you would please share with me your feelings about how
Service X manages the diversity of its workforce. (O) (RQ3)
a. Do you feel Service X’s diversity policies has any positive or negative effects on your
decision to leave Service X? (O) (RQ3)
18. More specific to gender diversity, do you feel women are treated the same as their male
counterparts in Service X? (O) (RQ3)
a. Do you feel you had equal or unequal opportunities? Any examples? (O) (RQ3)
19. Please tell me what you value from any learning experiences you had serving in Service X.
(M) (RQ3)
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 102

20. If you would please share with me, what are your career plans after you transition from
Service X? (K) (RQ2)

DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 103

(Survey)
Instructions
Thank you for taking the time to compete this survey about Service X’s retention efforts
and initiatives. Your feedback is very important. This survey should take approximately 15-20
min of your time. Your answers will be completely anonymous.

The survey consists of twenty questions: eighteen multiple choice, two which you will
select or apply the appropriate response, one write-in responses, and one fill-in the blank
questions.
For questions 1-4, select either a or b as a response.
1. I am:
a. Male
b. Female

2. I am currently serving in Service X’s enlisted ranks:

a. Yes
b. No

3. I am separating from Service X within the next 12 months:

a. Yes
b. No

4. I expect to be separated under “honorable” conditions:

a. Yes
b. No

For question 5, fill in the blank for the appropriate number of years:

5. At my separation, I would have completed __ years in Service X.

Please answer questions 6-18 based on your experience in Service X:

6. Service X’s policies for men and women are fair and equal:

a. I agree
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 104

b. I somewhat agree
c. I somewhat disagree
d. I disagree

7. Communication with and feedback from my leadership has benefited my professional
development:

a. I agree
b. I somewhat agree
c. I somewhat disagree
d. I disagree

8. Service X has provided me with many opportunities for career growth:

a. I agree
b. I somewhat agree
c. I somewhat disagree
d. I disagree

9. Working for Service X has provided me with a feeling of purpose:

a. I agree
b. I somewhat agree
c. I somewhat disagree
d. I disagree

10. Service X’s policies support advancing women into senior positions:

a. I agree
b. I somewhat agree
c. I somewhat disagree
d. I disagree

11. I have been motivated to perform my job at my best potential daily:

a. I agree
b. I somewhat agree
c. I somewhat disagree
d. I disagree

12. My work and daily efforts were valued and appreciated by my leadership:

DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 105

a. I agree
b. I somewhat agree
c. I somewhat disagree
d. I disagree

13. I have been assigned to the right job for my talents, skills, education, and training:

a. I agree
b. I somewhat agree
c. I somewhat disagree
d. I disagree

14. Service X has provided me with an adequate amount of professional growth and
development opportunities:

a. I agree
b. I somewhat agree
c. I somewhat disagree
d. I disagree

15. I feel that I have been personally responsible for the professional successes and failures I had
while in Service X:

a. I agree
b. I somewhat agree
c. I somewhat disagree
d. I disagree

16. I have been satisfied with Service X’s work-life balance policies and practices:

a. I agree
b. I somewhat agree
c. I somewhat disagree
d. I disagree

17. Service X’s recognition of my personal efforts has been fair and reasonable:

a. I agree
b. I somewhat agree
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 106

c. I somewhat disagree
d. I disagree

18. Hypothetically, if I could go back in time and re-do my enlistment, I would.

a. I agree
b. I somewhat agree
c. I somewhat disagree
d. I disagree

For question 19 fill in the blank from 0-100%

19. I feel supported by my organization ___% of the time.

20. Do you feel men and women are provided equal opportunities in Service X? Please support
your response with an example.
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
Thank you, again, for your participation. If you have any questions or want to discuss any part
of this survey in greater detail or provide further information, please contact me at
stridiro@usc.edu.
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 107

Appendix D: Survey Analysis Plan Map
Research Question/
Data Type
KMO
Construct
Survey Item (question and
response)
Scale of
Measurement
Potential
Analysis
Visual
Representation
Demographics – Sample
Description
N/A
I am:
a. Male
b. Female
Nominal Percentage Table/Pie
Demographics – Sample
Description
N/A
I am currently serving in Service X’s
enlisted ranks:
a. Yes
b. No
Nominal Percentage Table
Demographics – Sample
Description
N/A
I am separating from Service X
within the next 12 months:
a. Yes
b. No
Nominal Percentage Table
Demographics – Sample
Description
N/A
I expect to be separated under
honorable conditions:
a. Yes
b. No
Nominal Percentage Table
Demographics – Sample
Description
N/A
At my separation, I would have
completed (X) many years in Service
X:
(Fill in the appropriate number for X)
Interval Percentage Table/Histogram
2) How does the
information that enlisted
women receive about
Service X’s professional
development influence
their career decision to
reenlist?
4) How does the
(O-CM)
Service X’s policies for men and
women are fair and equal:
(agree, somewhat agree, somewhat
disagree, disagree)
Ordinal
Percentage,
Frequency,
Mead.
Mode,
Range,
Standard
Deviation
Table, Figure,
Stacked Bars,
Histogram
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 108

interaction Service X’s
organizational culture and
the knowledge and
motivation of enlisted
women influence their
career decisions?
4) How does Service X’s
organizational culture
impact enlisted women
when it comes to deciding
whether to reenlist or not?
(O-CM)
Communication with and feedback
from my leadership has benefited my
professional development:
(agree, somewhat agree, somewhat
disagree, disagree)
Ordinal
Percentage,
Frequency,
Mead.
Mode,
Range,
Standard
Deviation
Table, Figure,
Stacked Bars,
Histogram
2) How does the
information that enlisted
women receive about
Service X’s professional
development opportunities
and initiatives influence
their career decisions?
(O-CS/CM)
Service X has provided me with
adequate amount of professional
growth and development
opportunities:
(agree, somewhat agree, somewhat
disagree, disagree)
Ordinal
Percentage,
Frequency,
Mead.
Mode,
Range,
Standard
Deviation
Table, Figure,
Stacked Bars,
Histogram
2) How does the
information that enlisted
women receive about
Service X’s professional
development influence
their career decision to
reenlist?
4) How does Service X’s
organizational culture
impact enlisted women
when it comes to deciding
whether to reenlist or not?
motivation of enlisted
(O-CM)
Service X’s policies support
advancing women into senior
positions:
(agree, somewhat agree, somewhat
disagree, disagree)
Ordinal
Percentage,
Frequency,
Mead.
Mode,
Range,
Standard
Deviation
Table, Figure,
Stacked Bars,
Histogram
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 109

women ending their
contracts?
2) How does the
information that enlisted
women receive about
Service X’s professional
development influence
their career decision to
reenlist?
4) How does Service X’s
organizational culture
impact enlisted women
when it comes to deciding
whether to reenlist or not?
(O-CM)
I have been assigned to the right job
for my talents, skills, education, and
training:
(agree, somewhat agree, somewhat
disagree, disagree)
Ordinal
Percentage,
Frequency,
Mead.
Mode,
Range,
Standard
Deviation
Table, Figure,
Stacked Bars,
Histogram
3) What motivates the
decisions of enlisted
women reenlist or not with
Service X?
4) How does Service X’s
organizational culture
impact enlisted women
when it comes to deciding
whether to reenlist or not?
(O-CS/CM)
My work and daily efforts are valued
and appreciated by my leadership, I
__:
(agree, somewhat agree, somewhat
disagree, disagree)
Ordinal
Percentage,
Frequency,
Mead.
Mode,
Range,
Standard
Deviation
Table, Figure,
Stacked Bars,
Histogram
4) How does Service X’s
organizational culture
impact enlisted women
when it comes to deciding
whether to reenlist or not?
(O-CS/CM)
I have been satisfied with Service
X’s work-life balance policies and
practices:
(agree, somewhat agree, somewhat
disagree, disagree)
Ordinal
Percentage,
Frequency,
Mead.
Mode,
Range,
Standard
Deviation
Table, Figure,
Stacked Bars,
Histogram
4) How does Service X’s
organizational culture
impact enlisted women
(O-CM)
Service X’s recognition of my
personal efforts has been fair and
reasonable:
Ordinal
Percentage,
Frequency,
Table, Figure,
Stacked Bars,
Histogram
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 110

when it comes to deciding
whether to reenlist or not?
(agree, somewhat agree, somewhat
disagree, disagree)
Mead.
Mode,
Range,
Standard
Deviation
4) How does Service X’s
organizational culture
impact enlisted women
when it comes to deciding
whether to reenlist or not?
(O-CS)
I feel supported by my organization
__% of the time:
(fill in the blank from 0-100%)
Ratio
Percentage,
Frequency,
Mean,
Mode,
Range
Pie Graph,
Table, Figure,
3) What motivates the
decisions of enlisted
women reenlist or not with
Service X?
(O-CS)
Hypothetically, if I could go back in
time and re-do my enlistment, I
would. This statement I __:
(agree, somewhat agree, somewhat
disagree, disagree)
Ordinal
Percentage,
Frequency,
Mead.
Mode,
Range,
Standard
Deviation
Table, Figure,
Stacked Bars,
Histogram
3) What motivates the
decisions of enlisted
women reenlist or not with
Service X?
4) How does Service X’s
organizational culture
impact enlisted women
when it comes to deciding
whether to reenlist or not?
(M-A/V)
Working for Service X has provided
me with a feeling of purpose:
(agree, somewhat agree, somewhat
disagree, disagree)
Ordinal
Percentage,
Frequency,
Mead.
Mode,
Range,
Standard
Deviation
Table, Figure,
Stacked Bars,
Histogram
3) What motivates the
decisions of enlisted
women reenlist or not with
Service X?
(M-A/SE)
I have been motivated to perform my
job at my best potential daily, I __:
(agree, somewhat agree, somewhat
disagree, disagree)
Ordinal
Percentage,
Frequency,
Mead.
Mode,
Range,
Standard
Deviation
Table, Figure,
Stacked Bars,
Histogram
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 111

3) What motivates and
inspires enlisted women to
pursue careers with Service
X?
(M-A/SE)
I feel that I have been personally
responsible for the professional
successes and failures I had while in
Service X:
(agree, somewhat agree, somewhat
disagree, disagree)
Ordinal
Percentage,
Frequency,
Mead.
Mode,
Range,
Standard
Deviation
Table, Figure,
Stacked Bars,
Histogram
M-A/V/SE= Motivation-Attributions/Values/Self-Efficacy, O-CS/CM= Organizational Cultural Settings/Cultural Models
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 112

Appendix E: Credibility and Trustworthiness
With the intention of having a single source of qualitative data collection, the threat of
credibility is present and concerning. Triangulating data is a common strategy often used with
qualitative research to increase the credibility by using multiple sources of data collection
(Merriam & Tisdell, 2016). The one means utilized to triangulate the data was to request input
and feedback from Service X’s leadership during the design of the interview protocol (Appendix
C). Beyond that, and because two of the three qualitative methods of data collection cannot be
reliably executed with this study, efforts focused on designing interviews protocols which
incorporate sound validity and reliability strategies.
In doing so, based on the readings and recommendations of Maxwell (2013), Creswell
(2014), Weiss (1994) and Merriam and Tisdell (2016), six steps were incorporated specifically to
help increase the credibility of this research. First, the use of carefully designed protocol
questions that do not infer specific responses from participants. Second, a focus on ensuring
there were no relationship or connection factors that were potentials for influence when selecting
participants. Third, a provision for participants to fact check the information collected to ensure
its accuracy. Fourth, acknowledging and disclosing personal biases that were likely to impact
the data collection, analysis, and results processes of this study. Fifth, the use of peer debriefings
to review and question the data and processes used throughout the study for content soundness.
Last, a commitment to maintain and communicate the results and findings with the accuracy,
richness, and depth found in the actual data collected ensuring readers are provided with a
detailed and verbatim description of phenomena through the lens of participants.
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 113

Appendix F: Validity and Reliability
Reliability and validity are cornerstone to all research efforts as they provide readers with
trust and confidence that the researcher’s results and conclusions were consistent and did what
they say they were going to do (Salkind, 2017). The reliability and validity of a study are
measured by the ability to duplicate research efforts and get the same results with the degree of
accuracy determined the research findings (Creswell, 2014; Merriam & Tisdell, 2016). In short,
reliability and validity determine if the study measures what is claims to measure and do the
results make sense.
The first effort implemented in this study to increase its validity and reliability was
centered around the strategy known as triangulation which uses multiple and independent
sources of data to cross-check and compare the results (Merriam & Tisdell, 2016). The primary
triangulation efforts used with this study was focused on the mixed-methods approach and
specifically the use of both qualitative and quantitative data to compare and contrast the findings.
The second effort implemented was the careful design of the data collection instruments. In the
design of the quantitative survey instrument (Appendix C), two actions were taken to ensure its
validity: the content of the items measure what they intend to measure and the construct of the
items measuring to the construct of the research (Creswell, 2014; Salkind, 2017). Each item was
designed to not only provide data that can be mapped to the study’s conceptual framework and
related research questions, but also, designed with ties to specific scales of measurements to
ensure all responses are appropriately categorized to assigned variables (Fink, 2013; Salkind,
2017). The third effort taken to increase the validity and reliability involved modeling the format
and structure of the questions from successfully used related instruments and items found to have
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 114

high degree of reliability and validity. The final step taken to ensure the validity and reliability
of the survey involved pilot-testing the instrument prior to implementing.
The use of pilot-testing increases the reliability and validity of an instrument by
exercising, verifying, and improving the design, format, and scales well prior to implementation
(Creswell, 2014). The fewer the amount of errors found equates to a more reliable instrument
(Salkind, 2017). To ensure confidence in the survey, the study used an analysis plan (Appendix
D) to map each survey question to the study’s conceptual framework and research questions.
Errors or problems identified through the pilot tests, such as skipped responses, help to trigger
necessary updates to the analysis plan to either remove or update the item and ensure it addressed
what it was intended to (Pazzaglia, Stafford, & Rodriguez, 2016).

DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 115

Appendix G: Ethics
The approaches and considerations used to ensure that the highest standards of ethics
were employed during this study’s instruments and behaviors were guided by the Institutional
Review Board (IRB) and other practices utilized throughout the qualitative research community
(Glesne, 2011; Merriam & Tisdell, 2016; Rubin & Rubin, 2012). In the following paragraphs, I
explain the steps and actions that were taken to ensure the highest standards of ethical behavior
were maintained during this study and specifically, while working with participants.
To set the tone of my ethical intentions, upon initial meetings participants were provided
with an informed consent form that documented and established a contractual agreement
regarding several key aspects about the study (Glesne, 2011; Maxwell; 2013; Merriam & Tisdell,
2016). Included as part of the informed consent form, was information suggested by Glesne
(2011) regarding their voluntary status of participation; the efforts and intent not to place them at
risk or affect their well-being by respecting and protecting their confidentiality and the security
of any information provided to me; a statement that they may freely withdraw themselves from
the study at any time without consequences; and a statement regarding my ethical and moral
responsibility to act if I am made aware of information regarding the potential danger or harm to
others. Continuing efforts to ensure participants were completely aware of the study’s
intentions, the process for how their stories would be collected, transcribed, and relayed was
explained, as well as, the use of a recording device for data collection. As such, continuing
efforts to maintain the highest ethical behavior, the recording device was only used after
receiving consent from participants and review of their option to stop the recording at any time
throughout the interview.
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 116

An ethical dynamic specific to this study was the relationship of my dual role as a
researcher and an employee contracted by the organization of study. Acknowledging that
participants and I are employed by the same organization, there was a remote potential
connection between myself and any situations brought up through conversation. To minimize
any connections with the information discussed I intentionally selected interview participants
that were no longer working in the same region or had transitioned and separated from the
organization. This decreased the likeliness of having any connection to their story, while also
minimizing the potential of any coercion or pressure to participate in the study with fears of
reprisal. Additionally, despite being a contracted employee of the organization, I clearly
confirmed and explained to participants my role as a researcher and that the use of the data being
collected was strictly for academic purposes. I also verbally stressed that the relationship
developed during the interview was built on this academic foundation. Therefore, as an
important ethical aspect of the study, participant notification of my neutral influence over the
results of the study was a crucial step in the building and establishment of trust and transparency.
Recognizing that personal biases and experiences influence our thoughts, decisions, and
assumptions it is a researcher’s responsibility to implement steps to address them.
Acknowledging that I have over 30 years of experience with professional development and
retention with the organization of interest, I recognized that my thoughts, opinions, experiences,
and assumptions were likely to deceive and distract me if not controlled for. Therefore, in the
preparations and efforts to conduct the fieldwork and to control the potential of personal
influences, I took cautions to ensure that I did not ask participants leading questions or probes.
Rather, I used the advice written by Patton (2002) and ensured the questions were worded such
that they contribute to the quality of the study by being open ended and specific only to the
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 117

experiences of participants. Additionally, the use of a recording device provided an emphasis on
accurately transcribing participants’ comments and the analysis of their stories. All personal
feelings or thoughts related to what participants were informing me were recorded for disclosure
in the memos and note used during the analysis for personal consideration of any potential
impact to the study.
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 118

Appendix H: Limitations and Delimitations
This section outlines the limitations and delimitation of this study. The first paragraph,
limitations, addresses the uncontrollable factors that have created limitations in the design of this
study. The second paragraph, delimitations, addresses the boundaries and choices made to
ensure the results of this study can answer the research questions.
Limitations
In the development of this study, there were three uncontrollable limitations that have
either restricted or influenced the methodology. The first limitation was the specific female
population of Service X being analyzed. To broaden the scope and enrich this research effort, I
examined each of the female populations that currently exists in Service X, to include,
midshipmen, officers, and the entire enlisted rank. The second limitation, time, was a crucial
factor in the selection and decision of the methodological approach decision. If more time was
available to collect, organize, and analyze, I would have implemented secondary or tertiary
qualitative and quantitative data sources to examine information and data in addition to adding
an alternative lens and perspective to the study. Finally, organizational factors, including those
identified in the literature review, such as race, rank, age, sexual-orientation, and work-life
balance likely warrant their own independent research effort and would nonetheless benefit
future research and further exploration into the understanding of their influence on recruitment,
professional development, job satisfaction, and retention policies, programs, and initiatives.
Delimitations
Despite the limitations discussed in the previous paragraph this study was designed to
identify any knowledge, motivation, and organizational gaps that may exist between Service X’s
talent management initiatives and retention results of enlisted women in their first contractual
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 119

term. Simultaneously, this study also focused on the importance of Service X employing efforts
to recruit, develop, and retain women amongst and global race for their talent. This study is only
bounded for Service X and was limited by the specific experiences of participants who
participated in the data collection. The goal of this study focused on identifying any strengths,
weaknesses, or performance gaps in Service X’s programs, policies, and initiatives while
providing accurate and rich data designed to assist in developing and implementing timely and
successful program corrections.

DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 120

Appendix I: Knowledge Influences Supporting Data
Table 10

Interview Participant Reponses to Q3
Interview Question Participant Comments
Q3: Please tell me how your initial understanding
of Service X’s career opportunities contributed to
your career expectations. (K)
“The recruitment process does not seem
to be very forthcoming.”

“If I was doing the recruiting and I
wanted to someone to actually know
about the jobs and job opportunities, you
know telling them the truth about it, and
you might not be able to get every job
that you want because there's such thing
career group rating, which that kept me
from getting a lot of the jobs that I
wanted.”

Table 11

Interview Participant Reponses to Q4
Interview Question Participant Comments
Q4: Comparing your initial and current
understanding of Service X’s career
opportunities are there any differences and if so,
can you please tell me about them? (K)
“Expectations of job and temporary
assignments is needed to avoid feelings of
being of lesser value or expendable in
primary job.”

DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 121

Appendix J: Motivation Influences Supporting Data

Figure 5. Likert scale female responses to survey item #9.

25
8
1
1
Agree
Somewhat Agree
Somewhat Disagree
Disagree
Item 9 (Females): Working for Service X has provided me with a
feeling of purpose:
60
12
8
2
Agree
Somewhat Agree
Somewhat Disagree
Disagree
Item 9 (Males): Working for Service X has provided me with a feeling
of purpose:
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 122

Figure 6. Likert scale male responses to survey item #9.

Figure 7. Likert scale female responses to survey item #15.

Figure 8. Likert scale male responses to survey item #15.
Table 12

Interview Participant Reponses to Q1

14
15
4
2
Agree
Somewhat Agree
Somewhat Disagree
Disagree
Item 15 (Females): I feel that I have been personally responsible for
the professional success and failures I had while in [Service X]:
63
12
6
1
Agree
Somewhat Agree
Somewhat Disagree
Disagree
Item 15 (Males): I feel that I have been personally responsible for the
professional success and failures I had while in Service X:
Interview Question Participant Comments
Q1: Please explain to me why you joined Service
X? (M)
“I joined to get out of small town, I
wanted something bigger.”

“Family tradition.”
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 123

Table 13

Interview Participant Reponses to Q19

Interview Question Participant Comments
Q19: Please tell me what you value from any
learning experiences you had serving in Service
X. (M)

“Core values, I think. I think
everything [Service X] gave me and
now I can use it in my everyday life.
The camaraderie.”

“Recruiter involvement, engagement,
modeling and information sharing can
make all the difference in setting
expectations.”
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 124

Appendix K: Organizational Influences Supporting Data

Figure 9. Likert scale female responses to survey item #11.

18
15
1
1
Agree
Somewhat Agree
Somewhat Disagree
Disagree
Item 11 (Females): I have been motivated to perform my job at my
best potential daily:
43
24
10
5
Agree
Somewhat Agree
Somewhat Disagree
Disagree
Item 11 (Males): I have been motivated to perform my job at my best
potential daily:
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 125

Figure 10. Likert scale male responses to survey item #11.

Figure 11. Likert scale female responses to survey item #12.

11
8
4
4
Agree
Somewhat Agree
Somewhat Disagree
Disagree
Item 12 (Females): My work and daily efforts were valued and
appreciated by my leadership:
34
27
12
9
Agree
Somewhat Agree
Somewhat Disagree
Disagree
Item 12 (Males): My work and daily efforts were valued and
appreciated by my leadership:
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 126

Figure 12. Likert scale male responses to survey item #12.

Figure 13. Likert scale female responses to survey item #18.

11
10
8
6
Agree
Somewhat Agree
Somewhat Disagree
Disagree
Item 18 (Females): Service X's recognition of my personal efforts has
been fair and reasonable:
35
24
16
7
Agree
Somewhat Agree
Somewhat Disagree
Disagree
Item 18 (Males): Service X's recognition of my personal efforts has been
fair and reasonable:
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 127

Figure 14. Likert scale male responses to survey item #18.

Figure 15. Likert scale female responses to survey item #19.

21
6
2
6
Agree
Somewhat Agree
Somewhat Disagree
Disagree
Item 19 (Females): Hypothetically, if I could go back in time and re-do
my enlistment, I would:
57
14
5
5
Agree
Somewhat Agree
Somewhat Disagree
Disagree
Item 19 (Males): Hypothetically, if I could go back in time and re-do
my enlistment, I would:
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 128

Figure 16. Likert scale male responses to survey item #19.

Figure 17. Likert scale female responses to survey item #20.

5
4
5
18
Item 20 (Females): I feel supported by my organization _ % of the time:
0-25%
26-50%
51-75%
76-100%
9
7
17
33
Item 20 (Males): I feel supported by my organization _ % of the time:
0-25%
26-50%
51-75%
76-100%
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 129

Figure 18. Likert scale male responses to survey item #20.
Table 14
Interview Participant Reponses to Q5

Table 15
Interview Participant Reponses to Q6

Table 16

Interview Participant Reponses to Q7
Interview Question Participant Comments
Q7: Please tell me about any skills and/or
training (professional development) that you
received while serving in Service X that you have
found to be valuable. (O)

“Training is not always enough to help
students feel they can be successful. JOB
aids, OJT and other opportunities to
master skills are required.”

“Women appreciate the value of the
skills they learned, however, the training
environment should continue and extend
beyond the classroom to ensure mastery
and increase student confidence.”

Interview Question Participant Comments
Q5: Please tell me about your job and where you
fit within the structure of your organization. (O)
“My career has gone it has placed me in
those non-traditional leadership
positions.”
Interview Question Participant Comments
Q6: Please explain to me how you contribute to
Service X and your organization’s mission and
goals. (O)
“I've had the opportunity to mentor a lot
of junior sailors.”

“Unless you have a mentor you're
looking for information on your own.”
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 130

Table 17

Interview Participant Reponses to Q8

Table 18

Interview Participant Reponses to Q12
Interview Question Participant Comments
Q12: Bear with me while I ask another
hypothetical question, but, if you had a platform
to speak to Service X’s leadership, what
suggestions or recommendations would you
provide to improve the professional development
and advancement opportunities for enlisted
women? (O)
“The organization also needs to ensure
communication is successfully and
stakeholders have opportunities to
express their thoughts and opinions
without feeling weak or inferior.”

“When women speak up they need to
feel valued and not treated as "bitches.”

“Organization and leadership need to
ensure every person feels valued and
appreciated.”
Interview Question Participant Comments
Q8: Please share with me your thoughts and/or
feelings about leadership within the organization.
(O)

“I feel like as women we have a little bit
more ... let me find the right word that I
want to use ... emotional attachment to
things.”

“Do I think that women have the same
opportunities as men. I think men. I
think yes. But I do think that we have
some unique challenges as far as what I
mentioned earlier about the pregnancy,
and maternity.”

“A message over to a male is not going
to translate the same way to a female,
simply because we speak differently.”

“You can have a male mentor, but
there's a lot of times, you need a same-
sex mentor. “

“I think they're making some strides to
realize that females are different than
men, other than our biological make-
up.”
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 131

Interview Question Participant Comments

“The first thing I would say is please
listen to me. Don't listen to react, listen
to understand.”

Table 19

Interview Participant Reponses to Q17

Table 20

Interview Participant Reponses to Q18

Interview Question Participant Comments
Q17: This may be a bit sensitive, but if you
would please share with me your feelings about
how Service X manages the diversity of its
workforce. (O)
“Women are still not being put in
competitive positions.”

“I think that [Service X] is moving in
the right direction.”
Interview Question Participant Comments
Q18: More specific to gender diversity, do you
feel women are treated the same as their male
counterparts in Service X? (O)
“African American and being female, I
feel like obviously I'm a double
minority.”

“[Service X] is making stride for them
to be treated equally. Whether it be
looks, uniforms, we're going to where
they wear the same uniforms.”
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 132

Appendix L: Independent Sample Test
Table 21

Survey Group Statistics

Item Gender N Mean Std. Dev Std. Error Mean
The Service X’s
policies for men and
women are fair and
equal
Male

82 2.01 .949 .105
Female 35 2.14 .944 .160
Communication with
and feedback from
my leadership has
benefited my
professional
development:
Male

82 1.95 .901 .100
Female 35 1.77 .877 .148
Communication with
and feedback from
my leadership has
benefited my
professional
development:
Male

82 1.55 .848 .094
Female 35 1.54 .741 .125
Working for Service
X has provided me
with a feeling of
purpose:
Male

82 1.40 .751 .083
Female 35 1.37 .690 .117
The Service X’s
policies support
advancing women
into senior positions:
Male

82 1.51 .653 .072
Female 35 1.83 .923 .156
I have been
motivated to perform
my job at my best
potential daily:
Male

82 1.72 .906 .100
Female 35 1.57 .698 .118
My work and daily
efforts were valued
and appreciated by
my leadership:
Male

82 1.95 1.005 .111
Female 35 2.03 .923 .156
I have been assigned
to the right job for
my talents, skills,
education, and
training:
Male

82 1.65 .961 .106
Female 35 1.80 1.052 .178
Service X has
provided me with an
adequate amount of
professional growth
and development
opportunities:
Male

82 1.71 .882 .097
Female 35 1.80 .933 .158
I feel that I have
been personally
responsible for the
professional
successes and
failures I had while
in Service X:
Male

82 1.33 .668 .074
Female 35 1.83 .857 .145
I have been satisfied
with the Service X’s
work-life balance
policies and
practices:
Male

82 2.29 1.036 .114
Female 35 2.40 1.218 .206
The Service X’s
recognition of my
personal efforts has
Male

82 1.94 .986 .109
Female 35 2.26 1.094 .185
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 133

been fair and
reasonable:
Hypothetically,
if I could go back in
time and re-do my
enlistment, I would.
Male

81 1.48 .868 .096
Female 35 1.80 1.158 .196

Table 22

Independent Sample Test Results

Levene's Test for
Equality of
Variances
t-test for Equality of Means

F (test
statistics)
Sig.
(P-
Value) T
Df
(degree
of
freedom)
Sig.
(2-
tailed)

Mean
Difference
95% Confidence Interval of the
Difference
Std. Error
Difference Lower Upper
Service X’s
policies for men
and women are
fair and equal:
Equal
variances
assumed
.008 .927 -.683 115 .496 -.131 .191 -.510 .248
Equal
variances
not
assumed
-.684 64.641 .496 -.131 .191 -.512 .251
Communication
with and
feedback from
my leadership
has benefited
my professional
development:
Equal
variances
assumed
.007 .934 .996 115 .321 .180 .181 -.178 .537
Equal
variances
not
assumed
1.007 65.918 .318 .180 .179 -.177 .536
Service X has
provided me
with many
opportunities
for career
growth:
Equal
variances
assumed
1.004 .318 .036 115 .971 .006 .165 -.321 .333
Equal
variances
not
assumed
.038 73.057 .970 .006 .156 -.306 .318
Working for
Service X has
provided me
with a feeling
of purpose:
Equal
variances
assumed
.407 .525 .209 115 .835 .031 .148 -.262 .324
Equal
variances
not
assumed
.217 69.665 .829 .031 .143 -.254 .316
Service X’s
policies support
advancing
women into
senior
positions:
Equal
variances
assumed
2.768 .099 -2.109 115 .037 -.316 .150 -.613 -
.019
Equal
variances
not
assumed
-1.841 49.112 .072 -.316 .172 -.662 .029
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 134

I have been
motivated to
perform my job
at my best
potential daily:
Equal
variances
assumed
3.227 .075 .863 115 .390 .148 .172 -.192 .488
Equal
variances
not
assumed
.957 82.582 .341 .148 .155 -.160 .456
My work and
daily efforts
were valued and
appreciated by
my leadership:
Equal
variances
assumed
.890 .348 -.390 115 .697 -.077 .198 -.470 .315
Equal
variances
not
assumed
-.404 69.623 .687 -.077 .191 -.459 .305
I have been
assigned to the
right job for my
talents, skills,
education, and
training:
Equal
variances
assumed
.520 .472 -.770 115 .443 -.154 .200 -.549 .242
Equal
variances
not
assumed
-.742 59.370 .461 -.154 .207 -.568 .260
Service X has
provided me
with an
adequate
amount of
professional
growth and
development
opportunities:
Equal
variances
assumed
.004 .948 -.512 115 .610 -.093 .181 -.452 .266
Equal
variances
not
assumed
-.500 61.132 .619 -.093 .185 -.463 .278
I feel that I have
been personally
responsible for
the professional
successes and
failures I had
while in Service
X:
Equal
variances
assumed
2.810 .096 -3.393 115 .001 -.499 .147 -.791 -
.208
Equal
variances
not
assumed
-3.072 52.422 .003 -.499 .163 -.825 -
.173
I have been
satisfied with
Service X’s
work-life
balance policies
and practices:
Equal
variances
assumed
3.537 .063 -.486 115 .628 -.107 .221 -.544 .330
Equal
variances
not
assumed
-.456 56.026 .650 -.107 .235 -.579 .364
ServiceX’s
recognition of
my personal
efforts has been
fair and
reasonable:
Equal
variances
assumed
1.441 .232 -1.546 115 .125 -.318 .206 -.726 .089
Equal
variances
not
assumed
-1.483 58.689 .144 -.318 .215 -.748 .111
Hypothetically,
if I could go
back in time
Equal
variances
assumed
6.107 .015 -1.634 114 .105 -.319 .195 -.705 .068
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 135

and re-do my
enlistment, I
would.
Equal
variances
not
assumed
-1.460 51.212 .150 -.319 .218 -.757 .119

DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 136

Appendix M: Knowledge, Motivation, and Organizational Recommendations
Introduction. Knowledge influences were used to measure the effectiveness of the
organization’s goal and identified based on the frequency distribution of responses during
qualitative stakeholder interviews and supported by quantitative survey results, and the literature
review. The conceptual and analytical framework used with this study is Clark and Estes (2008)
gap analysis. The knowledge influences indicate what information is needed to accomplish the
organization’s goal through conceptual and metacognitive knowledge (Krathwohl, 2002; Rueda,
2011). Table 23 includes identified knowledge influences along with supporting theoretical
principles that support the embedded recommendations.
Table 23
Summary of Knowledge Influences and Recommendations
Knowledge Influence
D (C), P & M
Principle and Citation Context-Specific
Recommendation
Enlisted women should be familiar
with the policies and initiatives
that exist to support them in
navigating a successful career in
Service X and when the
information is applicable to them.
(D-C)
Information Processing Theory
suggest that information
learned meaningfully and
connected with prior
knowledge is stored more
quickly and remembered more
accurately because it is
elaborated with prior learning
(Schraw & McCrudden, 2006)
Provide enlisted women with
supplemental career development
information, such as a job aid, to
reinforce and build upon knowledge
and information exposed to about
Service X’s policies and initiatives
designed to support their career
decision-making processes.
Enlisted women need to know how
to effectively integrate their
individual skills learned into their
work environment. (P)
Information Processing Theory
suggest that to develop mastery,
individuals must acquire
component skills, practice
integrating them, and know
when to apply what they have
learned (Schraw & McCrudden,
2006).
Provide enlisted women with
mentors who model, coach and
provide other scaffolding means of
training designed to help them make
sense of and master the information
learned.
Enlisted women should learn self-
regulatory strategies to improve
engagement processes to create
desired performance and career
choice results. (M)
Social Cognitive Theory
suggest that self-regulatory
strategies, including goal
setting, enhance learning and
performance (APA, 2015:
Teach enlisted women strategies to
manage their motivation, time,
learning strategies, control of their
physical and social environment, and
monitor their own performance.
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 137

Dembo & Eaton, 2000; Social
Cognitive Theory, 2009).

Declarative (Conceptual): knowledge solutions. Enlisted women should be familiar
with the policies and initiatives that exist to support them in navigating a successful career in
Service X and when the information is applicable to them. Krathwohl (2002) suggest that
conceptual knowledge is the fundamental and basic information necessary for individuals to be
familiar with a subject or discipline. According to Clark and Estes (2008) when people are
afforded opportunities to learn and use their new knowledge and skills, there is an increased level
of transfer and enthusiasm about what has been learned. Therefore, for enlisted women to
successfully navigate a career in Service X, they should be familiar with policies and initiatives
instituted by the organization to support and provide them with career enhancing guidance.
Schraw and McCrudden’s (2006) suggest that people should be provided with
opportunities of experiencing new knowledge to help them make sense of it. According to
Schraw and McCrudden (2006), information learned meaningfully and connected with prior
knowledge is stored more quickly and remembered more accurately because it is elaborated with
prior learning. Furthermore, connecting the new material with people's’ interest encourages
them to learn (Schraw & McCrudden, 2006). Grossman and Salas (2011) state that
organizations that fail to adequately identify and address knowledge and skill development can
expect to experience employee performance deficiencies in areas such as turnover, productivity,
and morale. Their analysis was based off the Global Human Capital Study conducted by IBM
which concluded by identifying that adaptable workforce needs people with skills and
capabilities to communicate a vision, provide structure, and deliver results (IBM, 2008). Clark
and Estes (2008) also suggest that people be provided with job aids that outline the specific task
required for them to accomplish or achieve a performance goal on their own. Enlisted women,
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 138

therefore, need to be provided with supplemental education and training, along with a job aid,
that reinforces knowledge learned about Service X’s policies, initiatives, and programs
developed to support their career development processes.
Procedural knowledge solutions. Enlisted women should be taught how to effectively
integrate their individual skills learned into their work environment (P). Providing people with
opportunities to learn, practice, and exercise training increases the implementation and
development of skill learned and enhances the memory, understanding, analysis, and evaluation
of the training (Krathwohl, 2002). To develop mastery, individuals must acquire component
skills, practice integrating them, and know when to apply what they have learned (Schraw &
McCrudden, 2006). The more managers enable people to learn and use their new knowledge and
skills, the greater level of transfer achieved (Clark & Estes, 2008). Therefore, enlisted women
should be provided with mentors who model, coach and provide other scaffolding means of
training designed to help them make sense of and master the information learned.
Schraw and McCrudden (2006) suggested in their discussion on information processing
theory that developing mastery requires individuals to acquire component skills, practice
integrating them, and know when to apply what they have learned (Schraw & McCrudden,
2006). Buzzetta, Hayden, and Ledwith (2017) posit that key to information processing theory
are career problem solving and decision-making skills that can be can be learned, improved
upon, and recalled for future use. It is therefore the opportunities to put new knowledge into
practice that enforces the transfer of knowledge (APA, 2015). However, to further cement the
transfer of knowledge, individuals should also be provided with guidance, modeling, coaching
and other forms of scaffolding during implementation (Mayer, 2011). Enlisted women should
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 139

therefore be provided with training designed to improve their information processing skills and
help them make sense of and encourage mastery of skills.
Metacognitive knowledge solutions. Enlisted women should learn self-regulatory
strategies to improve engagement processes to create desired performance and career choice
results. Baker (2006) suggest that metacognitive knowledge is the understanding and awareness
of one’s ability and control of their cognition. Enlisted women, therefore, need to be provided
with training that addresses strategies on managing their motivation, time, learning, control of
their physical and social environment, and how to monitor their performance.
Research (APA, 2015: Dembo & Eaton, 2000; Social Cognitive Theory, 2009) reveals
that self-regulatory strategies, including goal setting, to enhance learning and performance.
Baker (2006) posits that when learners have awareness and control over their own cognitive
processes, learning is enhanced. Therefore, enabling enlisted women with self-management
skills will aid them in their ability to improve their cognitive abilities to manage their
performance and choices and ultimately better prepare them to navigate a successful career in S.
Motivation Recommendations
Introduction. Motivational influences highlight three important aspects related to
employee performance: active choice, persistence, and mental effort (Clark & Estes, 2008).
Research suggest that organization talent management and retention efforts are influenced by and
evolve into a dyadic relationship between employees and the organization’s culture and climate
(Beechler & Woodward, 2009; Cohen, 2013; Deery, 2008; Gregory & Milner, 2009; Govaerts,
Kyndt, Dochy, & Baert, 2011; Hughes & Rog, 2008; Kyndt, Dochy, Michielsen, & Moeyaert,
2009; Lewis & Heckman, 2006; McCauley & Wakefield, 2006). Organizations desiring talent
satisfaction, engagement, and retention require efforts and processes that focus on establishing
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 140

and building cultures that value and appreciate employee efforts (Govaerts et al., 2011; Kyndt, et
al., 2009). Four variables to motivation that may influence the motivation of enlisted women are
self-efficacy, personal attributions, goals, and values (Lumley et al., 2011; Mayer, 2011; Rueda,
2011). Table 24 includes identified motivation influences along with supporting theoretical
principles that support the embedded recommendations.
Table 24
Summary of Motivation Influences and Recommendations
Motivation Influence Principle and Citation Context-Specific Recommendation
Enlisted women need to be
motivated through the activation
of personal interest and high
expectation for success through
perceptions of self-confidence.
(Self-Efficacy)

High self-efficacy can positively
influence motivation (Pajares,
2006).
Feedback and modeling
increases self-efficacy (Pajares,
2006).
Learning and motivation are
enhanced when learners have
positive expectancies for success
(Pajares, 2006).
Supervisors and leaders maximize
opportunities for enlisted women to
complete relevant and useful tasks that
connect their interest with utility value and
positively influences their learning and
motivation.

Enlisted women need to attribute
their personal contribution and
effort to success or failures.
(Attributions Theory)

Learning and motivation are
enhanced when individuals
attribute success or failures to
effort rather than ability.
(Anderman & Anderman, 2009).
Provide feedback that stresses
the nature of learning, including
importance of effort, strategies,
and potential self-control of
learning (Pintrich, 2003).
Supervisors and leaders provide enlisted
woman with opportunities to experience
success, and ensure they receive timely
feedback to help them recognize when
results are of their own actions.
Enlisted women need to
understand the value of their
personal contribution to the
organization (Expectancy Values
Theory)

Rationales that include a
discussion of the importance and
utility value of the work or
learning can help learners
develop positive values (Eccles,
2006; Pintrich, 2003).
Feedback as well as actual
success on challenging tasks
positively influences people’s
Supervisors and leaders provide enlisted
women with formal (evaluation forms) and
informal (verbal counseling and
mentorship) feedback regarding the
importance and value of task and the value
of their personal contributions.
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 141

perceptions of competence
(Borgogni et al., 2011).

Self-Efficacy. Enlisted women need to be motivated through the activation of personal
interest and high expectation for success and with perceptions of self-confidence. Pajares (2006)
suggest that that high self-efficacy can positively influence motivation. He also posits that
learning and motivation are enhanced when learners have positive expectancies for success
(Pajares, 2006). Therefore, to improve self-efficacy of enlisted women the recommendation is
for Service X supervisors and leaders to maximize opportunities for them to complete relevant
and useful task that are connected to their interest and strengthen their self-efficacy and drive to
act, pursue goals, and accomplish task. Bandura (2000) posits that an individual’s self-efficacy
will determine what tasks they choose, how much effort the use, what results they expect, and
why they choose to continue or stop efforts to accomplish tasks and goals. Eccles (2006) adds
that motivation and interest are increased when they are provided opportunities to have choice
and control over their day-to-day behaviors. Rueda (2011) discussed factors that contribute to an
individual’s self-efficacy are prior knowledge, experience, and feedback. Research (Benight &
Bandura, 2003; Luzipio & Van Dyke, 2018) reveals that employees in the same work
environment may experience different levels of job satisfaction and meaning based on their
individual levels of self-efficacy. Thus, a strong sense of self-efficacy motivates and drives
individuals to act and pursue goals regardless of the obstacles or barriers. Therefore, providing
enlisted women with opportunities to make choices and have control over their own efforts
would increase their self-efficacy by inspiring personal interest and expectation for success
through positive perceptions of self-confidence.
Attributions. Enlisted women need to attribute their personal contribution and effort to
success or failures. According to Anderman and Anderman (2009) learning and motivation are
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 142

enhanced when individuals attribute success or failures to effort rather than ability. They suggest
that leaders provide feedback that stresses the process of learning, including the important of
effort, strategies, and potential self-control of learning. (Anderman & Anderman, 2009). In
addition, they add that an individual's controllable efforts are generally perceived as positive,
regardless of the outcome, because even with failures an individual can presume that increasing
efforts will result in subsequent success (Anderman & Anderman, 2006). Therefore, to improve
the motivation amongst enlisted women the recommendation is for Service X supervisors and
leaders should focus on increasing their feelings of attribution by providing them with timely
feedback to help them recognize when results are of their own efforts or lack of.
According to Schunk, Pintrich, and Meece (as cited in Rueda, 2011) an individual’s feelings of
attribution can predict future choice, persistence, and mental effort. Anderman and Anderman
(2009) posit that an individual's learning and motivation are enhanced when they attribute their
successes and failures to effort rather than ability. They posit that attribution theory is guided on
an individual’s constant drive to understand why and how they succeed or fail and what
influences their motivation, persistence, and mental effort (Anderman & Anderman, 2006).
Therefore, from a theoretical perspective increasing feelings of attribution amongst enlisted
women will enhance their motivation and understanding of personal contributions and efforts
towards their success or failures.
Expectancy Value. Enlisted women need to understand the value of their personal
contribution to the organization. According to Eccles (2006) rationales that include a discussion
of the importance and utility value of the work or learning can help learners develop positive
values. He also posits that activating personal interest through opportunities for choice and
control can increase motivation and learning and motivation are enhanced if the learner
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 143

values the task (Eccles,2006). Feedback, as well as actual success on challenging tasks
positively influences perceptions of competence (Borgogni et al., 2011). Therefore, to improve
motivation of enlisted women the recommendation is for Service X supervisors and leaders
should increase their expectancy value by providing them with formal (evaluation forms) and
informal (verbal counseling and mentorship) feedback regarding the importance and value of
task and the value observed from their personal contributions.
Eccles (2006) suggest that an individual’s expectancy values are influenced by the
perception of their utility and the cost involved with participating in tasks. He further posits that
discussing the importance and utility value of work and learning can help learners develop
positive values (Eccles, 2006). According to Yough and Anderman (2006) in their research on
goal orientation theory, an individual’s intrinsic and extrinsic task values, along with their
expectations, are likely to inspire feelings from external stimuli, such as feedback. Bandura
states that self-confidence in the work environment is not as important as task-specific
confidence (Bandura, 1993) and suggest that an individual’s values and beliefs are an important
motivational force behind their accomplishment of task and goals. Therefore, from a theoretical
perspective increasing expectancy value in enlisted women would improve their motivation by
increasing the understanding the utility value of their personal contribution to the organization’s
task and goals.
Organization Recommendations
Introduction. This study has identified four organizational influences, identified through
semi-structured qualitative interviews and supported by quantitative surveys and the literature
review, as being influential to achieving the organization’s goals for retaining and developing
enlisted women. Clark and Estes (2008) suggest that an organization’s culture is the more
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 144

important process to consider because of the significance of its influence on how people
collectively accomplish goals. They further posit that three common approaches to an
organization’s culture are in its environment, groups, and individuals (Clark & Estes, 2008).
According to Gallimore and Goldenberg (2001) an organization's culture can be observed
through the lens of its models and settings. Cultural models are often viewed as customary,
invisible, and unnoticeable, reflect a shared understanding of how things occur (Gallimore &
Goldenberg, 2001). Cultural settings, viewed as more visible, concrete, and tangible, represents
the physical environments where the models are developed (Gallimore & Goldenberg, 2001).
According to Rueda (2011) though cultural settings are influenced by individual and group
behaviors, it is also being shaped by the unwritten customs and interactions developed by the
people who reflect and represent the cultural model (Rueda 2011). For this study, the cultural
models and settings, represent the organization’s ability to influence the retention and
professional development of enlisted women by providing them with resources, support, policies,
and practices that support both gender and generational diversity efforts. Table 25 includes
assumed organizational influences along with supporting theoretical principles that support the
embedded recommendations.
Table 25
Summary of Organizational Influences and Recommendations
Organizational Influence Principle and Citation Context-Specific Recommendation
Cultural Setting Influence 1: The
organization needs to support
and encourage feelings of
appreciation and positive work-
identity.
Effective leaders are aware of the
influence of motivation as it relates
to communication and its role in
organizational change (Gilley, A.,
Gilley, J., & McMillian H. 2009)
Ensure goals and objectives specific to
the organization's diversity efforts are
clearly established, published, and
communicated to ensure all stakeholders
are aware of program priorities and
intent.
Cultural Setting Influence 2: The
organization needs to encourage
policies and practices that
Effective organizations ensure that
organizational messages, rewards,
policies and procedures that govern
The organization will conduct an
informal audit of the organizations’
policies, procedures, and ensure
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 145

inspire trust through
characteristics modeled by its
leaders, such as honesty,
fairness, transparency, and
cooperation.
the work of the organization are
aligned with or are supportive of
organizational goals and values
(Clark and Estes, 2008).
programs implemented are routinely
checked for alignment with goals.
The organization will also ensure leaders
are committed to goals through
modeling and demonstration of
behaviors of trust, honesty, and support
of stakeholder autonomy.
Cultural Model Influence 1: The
organization needs to ensure that
all stakeholders understand the
importance and significance of
its diversity programs.
Effective leaders promote diversity
at the highest levels of the
organization (DiTomaso, Post &
Parks-Yancy 2007).
Effective leaders address
institutional policies and practices
that create barriers for equity
(Bensimon, 2005).
Effective leaders demonstrate a
commitment to valuing diversity
through inclusive action.
They promote an organizational
culture that promotes equity and
inclusion and cultivate an
atmosphere where diversity is
viewed as an asset to the
organization and its stakeholders
(Prieto, Phipps & Osiri, 2009).
Ensure all personnel in leadership
positions are trained and assessed on
their ability to commit to and value the
organization’s diversity goals.
Ensure key organizational leaders and
influencers, capable of sharing diversity
goals, are identified and utilized in
program’s implementation efforts.
Cultural Model Influence 2:
Stakeholders need opportunities
to communicate directly with
leaders involved in change
efforts.
Effective leaders know how to
create and manage good working
relationships with stakeholders
(Denning, S (2005).
Effective leaders have the skills and
strategies needed to redesign their
organization for effective
communication (Lewis, L.K., 2011)
Create a feedback system that provides
all stakeholders with opportunities to
communicate ideas, concerns, and
thoughts related to change efforts.

Cultural settings. Of the two cultural settings identified in Table 25, this influence was
chosen because of the significant impact it has on the organization’s ability to develop policies
and practices that increase feelings of value, appreciation, and develop a positive work identity
with enlisted women through characteristics modeled by its leaders, such as honesty, fairness,
transparency, and cooperation. Gilley, Gilley and McMillian (2009) state that effective leaders
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 146

are aware of the influence of motivation as it relates to communication and its role in
organizational change. Clark and Estes (2008) suggest four ways to influence motivation within
an organization’s culture to help people develop self- and team- confidence, remove perceived
barriers, create a positive emotional environment, and communicate reasons and values for
performing goals. By doing so, the organization will foster and encourage an environment that
increases stakeholder confidence, trust, optimism, while inspiring values that align with the
organization’s goal. Therefore, this suggest that to inspire trust amongst enlisted women, all
diversity efforts be clearly established, published, communicated, and routinely checked for
alignment with organizational goals to ensure all stakeholders are aware of program priorities
and intent. It is also suggested that to inspire trust the organization needs to ensure its leaders are
committed to goals by modeling and demonstrating behaviors of honesty, fairness, support, and
transparency.
Kyndt, Dochy, Michielsen, and Moeyaert, (2009) state that employees with a high
organizational commitment are those who have a strong identification with the organization,
value the sense of membership within it, agree with its objectives and values systems, are likely
to remain in it and, are prepared to work hard on its behalf. These values also contribute to a
person’s work identity which is the image they have of themselves including their values, beliefs,
and goals and the perceived similarities with that of their work environment (Eckel & Grossman,
2005). Clark and Estes (2008) suggest that values are one means by which people express
expectations about what makes them effective. They also posit that an organization’s goal
should be to increase stakeholder commitment by connecting their values to the benefits of
achieving goals (Clark & Estes, 2008). Therefore, from a theoretical perspective ensuring goals
and objectives specific to the organization's diversity efforts are clearly established, published,
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 147

and communicated, would simultaneously fulfill the organizations needs to support and
encourage feelings of appreciation and positive work-identity amongst enlisted women.
Cultural models. Of the two cultural models identified in Table 25, this influence was
chosen because of the significant impact it has on the ability of enlisted women to communicate
and provide productive feedback to the organization. Enlisted women need a work environment
that values and promotes trust and inclusiveness throughout the entire organizational structure.
According to Denning (2005), effective leaders know how to create and manage good working
relationships with stakeholders. One of the key features of effective organizational changes that
Clark and Estes (2008) recommends is for organizations to communicate constantly and candidly
to those involved about plans and progress. Through open and candid dialogue, the organization
creates an atmosphere of trust which helps stakeholders adjust to unexpected events and
occurrences (Clark & Estes, 2008; Rath & Conchie, 2009; Colquitt, Scott & LePine, 2007 as
cited in Starnes, Truhon & McCarthy, 2010, p.6). Therefore, this suggest that key leaders and
influencers support an environment of trust while promoting organizational diversity goals by
creating opportunities for stakeholders to communicate ideas, concerns, and thoughts about
organizational initiatives and change efforts.
Govaerts, Kyndt, Dochy, and Baert, (2011) state that organizational practices that create
productive and highly desired work environments comprise of strategies that establish employee
trust with transparent policies, goals, and processes which are understood, implemented, and
supported by the organization’s leadership. Thus, by building and establishing trust in the work
environment there becomes an increased sense of integrity which directly correlates to a
healthier organization identity (Northouse, 2016). In addition, Clark and Estes (2008)
encourages that organizational change efforts utilize stakeholder feedback opportunities to
DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 148

determine when and if improvements are occurring. Therefore, from a theoretical perspective
creating a productive and highly desired work environment for enlisted women, it is
recommended that the organization create a feedback system that provides all stakeholders with
opportunities to communicate ideas, concerns, and thoughts related to change efforts.

DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 149

Appendix N: Immediately Following Training Evaluation
Instructions: You participated in training a few months ago. This survey is an assessment to
determine the value of your experiences applying what you have learned.

For each of the questions below, circle the response that best characterized how you feel about
the statement as: SD (Strongly Disagree), D (Disagree), N (Neutral), A (Agree), or SA
(Strongly Agree)

1. The training was engaging for me SD D N A SA
2. The training was applicable to me SD D N A SA
3. I am confident that I will be able to apply the information learned SD D N A SA
4. I am confident the feedback provided to the facilitators will be valued SD D N A SA
5. I am clear about where to find additional resources related to the
information discussed
SD D N A SA
6. I would recommend the training to others SD D N A SA
7. I was overall satisfied with the training SD D N A SA

For the following question, please provide detailed feedback:

1. Please provide any additional comments regarding how this training can be improved?

DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 150

Appendix O: Supervisor After Training Checklist

Instructions: A few months ago, a sailor working for you participated in career development
training focused on teaching and developing skills to better enhance their career and
professional development. Use this checklist while conducting career counseling to assess the
application of career and professional development behaviors and efforts while on-the-job.

Rating Scale

1= Effective use of targeted behavior
2= Moderately effective use of targeted behavior
3= Ineffective use of targeted behavior

Comments may include specific observations that support the rating, as well as coaching notes
to help the sailor to be more effective in their performance and career decisions.

Target Behavior Rating Comments
Utilizes journal for self-reflection
Integrates skills learned into work environment
Engaged in career choices
Aware of policies, programs, and initiatives related to career choices
Shows expectations for personal success
Contributes success and failures to personal efforts
Feels valued and appreciated
Provides valuable feedback

DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 151

Appendix P: Delayed Training Evaluation

Instructions: You participated in training a few months ago. This survey is an assessment to
determine the value of your experiences applying what you have learned.

For each of the questions below, circle the response that best characterized how you feel about
the statement as: SD (Strongly Disagree), D (Disagree), N (Neutral), A (Agree), or SA
(Strongly Agree)

1. I remembered most of what I learned during training SD D N A SA
2. I applied what I learned in the training on the job and it helped
me
SD D N A SA
3. My job had the necessary resources described in the training SD D N A SA
4. I was provided with adequate support from my supervisor SD D N A SA
5. I find the job aids provided during training useful SD D N A SA

For the following question, please provide detailed feedback:

1. Please provide any additional comments regarding your experiences applying training
objectives?

DEVELOPING AND RETAINING TALENTED ENLISTED WOMEN 152

Appendix Q: Data Analysis and Reporting

Key Measurements
Goal Actual
Measurement
Dashboard
Status
Sustainment or increase in the retention 84% XX ⇧ ⇔ ⇩
Feelings of value, morale, job satisfaction and
positive work identity
100% XX ⇧ ⇔ ⇩
Integration of skills into the work environment
100%
XX ⇧ ⇔ ⇩
Understanding of the need to engage between
individual performance and career choices
100% XX ⇧ ⇔ ⇩
Familiarity with organizational initiatives, policies,
and programs that support professional development
100% XX ⇧ ⇔ ⇩
Expectations for success through perceptions of self-
confidence

100%
XX ⇧ ⇔ ⇩
Feelings that contribute success and failures to
personal efforts

100%
XX ⇧ ⇔ ⇩
Feelings of value and appreciation for personal
contributions
100% XX ⇧ ⇔ ⇩
Participation in feedback opportunities to the
organization regarding change efforts.

100%
XX ⇧ ⇔ ⇩
Positive perception of the organization
100%
XX ⇧ ⇔ ⇩

Abstract (if available)

Linked assets

University of Southern California Dissertations and Theses

Conceptually similar

PDF

The role of professional development and certification in technology worker turnover: An evaluation study

PDF

Manager leadership skills in the context of a new business strategy initiative: an evaluative study

PDF

Stop the revolving door: the influence of emotionally intelligent leadership practices on employee retention in non‐profit human service organizations

PDF

The impact of advanced technologies on the workplace and the workforce: an evaluation study

PDF

Understanding the varied effects of leadership on employee retention in high stress work environments

PDF

Early to mid-career employee development: an exploratory study

PDF

A customer relationship management approach to improving certificate completion

PDF

Retaining female field grade officers in the USAF: an evaluative study

PDF

Partnerships and nonprofit leadership: the influence of nonprofit managers on community partnerships

PDF

Development of intraorganizational post-merger collaboration plan: an evaluation study

PDF

A strategic talent management retention model: an effective way to shape the United States Space Force

PDF

Employee churn in afterschool care: an evaluation study of manager influences on employee retention and turnover

PDF

Leadership readiness: evaluating the effectiveness for developing managers as coaches

PDF

Structured leadership development in the judicial system to enhance public service: an executive dissertation evaluation study

PDF

Relationship between employee disengagement and employee performance among facilities employees in higher education: an evaluation study

PDF

An evaluative study of accountability and transparency in local government: an executive dissertation

PDF

The impact of high turnover and burnout among behavioral health's clinical workforce (clinicians)

PDF

Addressing the challenges of employee retention: a qualitative analysis of job satisfaction and perceptions of advancement by marginalized women in the insurance industry

PDF

Influencing teacher retention: an evaluation study

PDF

Increasing collaborative practices in the military: an improvement study

Asset Metadata

Creator Stridiron, Andre Joseph, III (author)

Core Title Developing and retaining employees: exploring talent management initiatives for enlisted women

School Rossier School of Education

Degree Doctor of Education

Degree Program Organizational Change and Leadership (On Line)

Publication Date 10/31/2018

Defense Date 10/15/2018

Publisher University of Southern California (original), University of Southern California. Libraries (digital)

Tag employee development,job satisfaction,Motivation,OAI-PMH Harvest,organizational culture,organizational practices,retention,talent management,Women,workforce

Format application/pdf (imt)

Language English

Contributor Electronically uploaded by the author (provenance)

Advisor Seli, Helena (committee chair), Murphy, Don (committee member), Ott, Maria (committee member)

Creator Email ajstridiron@yahoo.com,stridiro@usc.edu

Permanent Link (DOI) https://doi.org/10.25549/usctheses-c89-100545

Unique identifier UC11675269

Identifier etd-StridironA-6924.pdf (filename),usctheses-c89-100545 (legacy record id)

Legacy Identifier etd-StridironA-6924.pdf

Dmrecord 100545

Document Type Dissertation

Format application/pdf (imt)

Rights Stridiron, Andre Joseph, III

Type texts

Source University of Southern California (contributing entity), University of Southern California Dissertations and Theses (collection)

Access Conditions The author retains rights to his/her dissertation, thesis or other graduate work according to U.S. copyright law. Electronic access is being provided by the USC Libraries in agreement with the a...

Repository Name University of Southern California Digital Library

Repository Location USC Digital Library, University of Southern California, University Park Campus MC 2810, 3434 South Grand Avenue, 2nd Floor, Los Angeles, California 90089-2810, USA