Developing Skilled Labour: An Analysis of The Major Factors Which Enable and Hinder Employee Training in Contruction Companies in VietNam :Doctor Thesis - Major: Business Administration

DEVELOPING SKILLED LABOUR:

AN ANALYSIS OF THE MAJOR FACTORS

WHICH ENABLE AND HINDER EMPLOYEE

TRAINING IN CONSTRUCTION COMPANIES

IN VIETNAM

by

HUYNH QUANG MINH

Supervisory Panel: Associate Professor Meg Smith

Dr. Jayne Bye

Dr. Heath Spong

A thesis submitted to the Western Sydney University

in part fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of

Doctor of Business Administration

October 2016

Acknowledgement

I would like to take this opportunity to express my deep gratitude to all those who have

supported me for my doctoral level thesis and contributed to my study to complete this

dissertation in the Doctor of Business Administration (DBA) program.

Firstly, I would like to thank the Vietnam Ministry of Education and Training, which

sponsored my study. Thanks to the International School of Business (ISB), University of

Economics in Ho Chi Minh City (UEH) and Western Sydney University (WSU) who

accepted me into the DBA program. Thanks also to the Industrial University of Ho Chi

Minh City (IUH), which assigned and supported me for further study.

Secondly, to my supervisory panel, I would like to express my sincere thanks to

Associate Professor Meg Smith, Dr. Jayne Bye and Dr. Heath Spong for their valuable

guidance and advice throughout the entire research. Their constant support, patience and

dedication have inspired me to confidently complete my thesis.

Thirdly, I would like to thank the staff of the construction companies in Ho Chi Minh

City who participated in the survey. I would like to thank them for their time and

willingness to share your perspectives.

Fourthly, this thesis has had the benefit of professional editorial advice regarding

language, completeness and consistency (standards D and E of the Australian standards

for editing practice) from Doug Cooper, a professional member of the Society of Editors

(NSW).

Last but not least, I would like to express my deepest gratitude to my family members,

especially my parents and my wife who took care of my children with enduring love and

compassion while I studied in Australia and supported my academic dream coming true.

Huynh Quang Minh

Statement of Authentication

The work presented in this thesis is, to the best of my knowledge and belief, original

except as acknowledged in the text. I hereby declare that I have not submitted this

material, either in full or in part, for a degree at this or any other institution.

Huynh Quang Minh

Table of Contents

Acknowledgement

Statement of Authentication

Tables of Contents ………..……………………………………………………………………. i

List of Tables................................................................................................................................v

List of Figures.............................................................................................................................vii

Abstract......................................................................................................................................viii

CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION................................................................................................ 1

1.1 Introduction.......................................................................................................................... 1

1.2 Statement of the research problem....................................................................................... 7

1.3 Research questions............................................................................................................... 9

1.4 Contribution of the thesis................................................................................................... 10

1.5 Organisation of the thesis .................................................................................................. 11

CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW................................................................................... 13

2.1 Introduction........................................................................................................................ 13

2.2 Rationales for employee training-performance, productivity and competitive advantage 15

2.3 Moderators of employee training – infrastructure, funding and access to skilled labour.. 21

2.4 Training types .................................................................................................................... 24

2.5 The attitudes of managers towards employee training – strategy, investment and context25

2.5.1 Training and management strategy – high or low skills?............................................ 26

2.5.2 Training as management investment or management risk.......................................... 27

2.5.3 Contextual shapers of the attitudes of managers......................................................... 28

2.6 Relationships between company ownership, company size and training provision .......... 30

2.6.1 Company ownership types.......................................................................................... 30

2.6.2 Company ownership and employee training provision............................................... 31

2.6.3 Company size training provision and training types................................................... 35

2.7 Conceptual model, research questions and hypotheses...................................................... 38

2.7.1 Conceptual model ....................................................................................................... 38

2.7.2 Research questions and hypotheses ............................................................................ 39

2.8 Conclusion ......................................................................................................................... 43

CHAPTER 3: METHODOLOGY............................................................................................. 44

3.1 Introduction........................................................................................................................ 44

ii

3.2 Research method................................................................................................................ 45

3.3 Research design ................................................................................................................. 46

3.4 Population and sampling technique ................................................................................... 47

3.5 Questionnaire design and data collection........................................................................... 48

3.6 Variables used in the survey questionnaire........................................................................ 52

3.6.1 Training types ............................................................................................................. 52

3.6.2 Business ownership/Business forms........................................................................... 53

3.6.3 Company size.............................................................................................................. 53

3.6.4 Attitude measure ......................................................................................................... 54

3.7 Data analysis...................................................................................................................... 55

3.7.1 Pearson’s chi-square test............................................................................................. 57

3.7.2 Analysis of variance (ANOVA) and post-hoc testing................................................. 58

3.8 Comparison of methodology with previous studies of Vietnamese human resource

management practices.............................................................................................................. 61

3.9 Methodological assumptions, limitations and delimitations.............................................. 63

3.10 Ethical assurances............................................................................................................ 63

3.11 Conclusion ....................................................................................................................... 64

CHAPTER 4: RESULTS........................................................................................................... 65

4.1 Introduction........................................................................................................................ 65

4.2 Sample demographics........................................................................................................ 65

4.2.1Age and gender ............................................................................................................ 66

4.2.2 Education and managerial experience......................................................................... 67

4.2.3 Company size and ownership type.............................................................................. 69

4.3 Employee recruitment and training provision.................................................................... 70

4.3.1 Companies with a specific department or unit responsible for training...................... 71

4.3.2 Companies have received sponsorship or subsidy from any organisations for training

employee .............................................................................................................................. 71

4.3.3 The difficulty of recruitment....................................................................................... 72

4.3.4 Training provision....................................................................................................... 74

4.4 Company size and training practices ................................................................................. 78

4.4.1 Company size and training provision.......................................................................... 78

4.4.2 Company size and attitudes of managers towards training......................................... 84

4.5 Company ownership types and training practices.............................................................. 95

4.5.1 Company ownership type and training provision ....................................................... 95

4.5.2 Company ownership type and attitudes of managers towards training..................... 101

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