| This exploratory study examined data to reveal patterns in the relationship between job classifications and employment-related knowledge and skills in an attempt to determine the perceived level of competency in and satisfaction with organizational and information technology (IT)-related knowledge and skills in 6 areas: Organizational Overview, Organizational Skills, Target Organizational Unit, General IT Knowledge, Technical Skills, and IT Product. The perceptions are those of IT and end user (EU) personnel from 10 job classifications present in a non-profit, client services organization. This study performed a simultaneous empirical examination (needs assessment) of these groups. The research used a quantitative methodology that allowed for cross-sectional assessment and comparisons across different groups. A descriptive survey was used to collect data. Participants recorded their responses (perceptions) using a 5-point Likert scale. Although participants' perceptions were reported on the survey, the perceptions were not directly measured. No treatment was administered. The methodology is founded on one that was developed and employed by Nelson (1991) in his assessment of education needs. The findings suggest that: the perceptions of IT and EU personnel differ in Zmud's (1983) six categories of employment-related general knowledge and skills and that the difference is statistically significant in 11 of 2 constructs; there is a statistically significant difference in IT and EU perceptions between job classifications on all of the usefulness and proficiency variables, taken together; and, the perceptions of EU job classifications, absent the word processing specialist job classification, strongly indicate that knowledge of the organization, knowledge of the organizational (work) unit, and organizational skills are very useful in performing their jobs. The line separating the perceptions of information technology and end-user personnel is blurred for job classifications that do not require knowledge of the organization for the successful performance of their jobs. |
