June Winding Down

Research Project Status

Since my last post, more completed surveys trickled in, providing us with a total of more than 1,400 surveys for this project.  Along with the six focus groups, that must place it among the larger employee communication projects conducted.  Thanks to a small group of incredible students from the Poznań University of Economics, all survey data has now been transferred to Excel spreadsheets, and those files forwarded to my colleagues Dr. Jaehee Cho and graduate student Nick Woods at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte.  They are transferring the data to high-level statistical software for detailed analysis.  Dr. Cho has already provided descriptive statistics for the first partner company, allowing me to complete the initial report we will provide to company leaders within the next two weeks.  Dr. Cho is now working on an analysis for the second company so I can complete that report as well.

Most of the completed 9-page surveys -- 300 more surveys
have not yet come back from the students entering the
data into the Excel spreadsheet, though I have the
Excel files.

Qualitative and quantitative data have allowed us to provide each participating company with a detailed profile of the communication health within their organizations.  Internal/employee communication is considered by many to be the most important component of an organization’s communication efforts and responsibilities, and this recognition has rapidly risen in recent years. Researchers consistently find a clear association between effective internal communication and management communication competence on the one hand and employee job satisfaction and organizational communication satisfaction on the other. Further, there is strong, research-based support for the claim that internal communication, as an instrument of trust building, contributes significantly to employee commitment and innovation. Employees are the organization’s most consequential stakeholders and are often the most direct connection between the organization and its relevant external constituencies: the communities in which it operates (local, regional, national and global); government agencies and officials that monitor and regulate the organization’s operational activities; media; customers and clients; vendors; investors; etc. An organization will not long survive if it fails to communicate effectively with its employees.

My wife, Robin (far left), and I hosted a pizza party to
thank all the fantastic students who helped by
transferring survey data from the surveys themselves
to Excel spreadsheets -- an incredibly tedious task
involving 1,400+ surveys.  They did a flawless job.

Bucket List

I can now check several items off my bucket list:

• Sitting on a beautiful summer day in a floating cafe on the bank of the Vistula River sipping a draught Polish pivo.
• Similarly, sitting on the steps of a 16th century Polish cathedral munching a grilled kiełbasa purchased from an outdoor vendor.
• On the banks of the Warta River in Poznań at 11 p.m., being in the midst of an attempt to set a new Guiness record for the number of illuminated lanterns released into the night sky.
• Surrounded by enthusiastic (to put it mildly) football (soccer) fans from Ireland, Croatia, Italy and Poland in the Poznań Fanzone, watching EURO 2012 matches on giant screens.

Let me explain.  On Monday and Tuesday of this week, Robin and I made a brief visit to Toruń, a city about two hours by train from Poznań.  Many say it's the most beautiful city in Poland, and I would not dispute that.  The weather cooperated fully, and we enjoyed seeing sights such as the many magnificent cathedrals, the ruins of what must have been a seriously impressive Teutonic castle, an extensive collection of Gothic art and artifacts in the old City Hall, and the Copernicus Museum (Toruń was the astronomer's hometown).  Toruń is yet another great reason to spend time in Poland.  That accounts for the first two bucket list items.

One corner of the ruins of the Teutonic castle in
Toruń, Poland, on the bank of the Vistula River.

Throughout Toruń, there were many school groups
benefitting from the deep history that is so well
preserved in the city. Here we are inside the Teutonic
castle ruins.

A view of Toruń from the bell tower of St. John's Cathedral.

The ornate interior of one of the Toruń cathedrals.

The breakfast buffet in our Toruń hotel.

Visiting the Copernicus museum (perhaps in the home in
which he lived -- they can't say with certainty) was
especially moving to me as a former U.S. Air Force
navigator.  I used to perform celestial navigation
(before GPS and computers), relying on the concepts
that Copernicus conceived and developed.

The third item on the bucket list involves floating lanterns released from the banks of the Warta River, which flows through Poznań.  This happened last evening from around 10:30 p.m. until 11:45 p.m.  It seems this is an annual event here, with the intent each time to establish a new Guiness record for number of lanterns released.  To be in the midst of thousands of people releasing the lanterns they had purchased for the occasion is a phenomenal experience.  The best way to understand the ethereal beauty of the spectacle is to view a video of last year's event.  Here's a good YouTube link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YBR3RJPcRhk&feature=fvsr.  From that video you can link to many others of the same event -- mesmerizing. 

The fourth bucket list item refers to the Fanzone here in Poznań, which I described in my previous blog post.  Robin and I have reveled in the infectious fan enthusiasm surrounding EURO 2012.  Poland, unfortunately, did not go through to the second round, but the young team acquitted themselves impressively.  The Fanzone continues to function here, but most of the international fans have moved on.  It was quite a week nevertheless as tens of thousands of fans, primarily from Ireland, Croatia and Italy, flocked to the city. 

Supporters of various EURO 2012 teams gather in the
Fanzone to watch a match.

In addition to the largest screen, smaller screens elsewhere
in the Fanzone permitted fans to be seated during the
matches.

Outside the Fanzone, many additional fans enjoyed the matches
and time between in the many outdoor cafes and bars,
especially in the Stary Rynek (Old Market Square).

The Fanzone included an enclosed VIP area.

Quite a few fans purchased the recyclable folding chairs --
the design that won the contest I reported on in an
earlier blog entry.

 

Report on the Weather and Upcoming Activities

As a final note, I know my friends back in Charlotte and elsewhere in the U.S. are enduring unusually hot temperatures.  I can assure you that is not the case here.  We've had just two or three days in the last three weeks that were genuinely pleasant.  For the past several days, for example, the temperature as seldom risen above the 50's (Fahrenheit), with a combination of steady rain, drizzle, mist, or simply bleak grayness.  Here's hoping for a significant improvement in the days ahead.

In a couple weeks, we will travel to Lake Bled, Slovenia, to attend BledCom 2012 (http://www.bledcom.com/), among the most important annual public relations conferences.  I will serve on a panel during the symposium along with my colleague Dr. Ryszard Ławniczak of the Poznań University of Econonomics.  Many Europeans say Lake Bled is the most beautiful spot in all Europe. 

Later in July, we will travel for several days to Gdańsk, Poland, on the Baltic Sea.  We will be meeting, at least for one day, one of my childhood friends (who happens to be of Polish descent) and his wife as they stop in Gdańsk during a Baltic cruise. 

In the meantime, I will be working diligently on the reports for our research partner companies as we are slated to present our reports formally to company leaders within the next two weeks.

That brings you up to date.  Please leave your comments on my blog below -- I very much appreciate hearing from you.  Dziękuję i do widzenia!

Data Gathering Complete

Research Project Reaches Milepost

The past three weeks have flown by for a variety of reasons.  I'm pleased to report that Jacek, Martyna and I have completed the data gathering process here in Poznań.  We have conducted six focus groups, three each at two companies in the Poznań area that agreed to partner with us in the project.  The focus groups yielded a rich trove of qualitative data that is assisting us immensely in preparing our analysis and recommendation reports for each of the two companies.  Each focus group included at least 10 employees, and each focus group was comprised of participants from different segments of the workforce.  Discussion was lively and highly useful, reflecting the leadership skill of my Polish research team colleagues as well as the eagerness of employees of the two companies to contribute to constructive improvements in communication structures and procedures.

With each of the companies, we followed the focus groups with a 9-page employee survey.  Despite its dauntning length, employees were quite cooperative, and the respective HR departments were fully supportive of our effort.  Consequently, we collected 1,140 completed surveys -- an extraordinarily high number for a research project of this nature.  It gives us a high degree of confidence that our results will be meaningful and valid.  We are now in the process of entering the data from the paper-and-pencil surveys into Excel spreadsheets.  Each survey contains 103 individual items, so I've calculated that we will have entered nearly 140,000 data points when we're finished!  I will send completed spreadsheets electronically to colleagues Dr. Jaehee Cho and graduate assistant Nick Woods at my home university, UNC Charlotte.  From the spreadsheets, data will be transferred to two statistical analysis software programs (SPSS and AMOS) for thorough "crunching."  The results, I think, will provide grist for several significant research papers in the coming months.

Events in Warsaw

During the week of May 20, I traveled on two days to Warsaw and back -- roughly three hours by train each way.  On Wednesday, my purpose was to present a guest lecture at the University of Warsaw's School of Journalism and Political Science.  My lecture was at the invitation of Dr. Jerzey Olędzki, a leading figure in European public relations scholarship.  More than 50 students attended my presentation on the emerging functions and roles of public relations within the context of evolving social, political, economic and cultural contexts.  The students were, as always, attentive and engaging.  These opportunities to exchange ideas with the great students here has been a great joy of this Fulbright experience.

Following my lecture, I was interviewed by a journalist who maintains a blog on public relations in Poland and by a reporter for the university's television station.  Here's a link to the video clip: http://www.uw3d.tv/video-wyklad-prof-alana-freitaga--783#content. 

Freitag is interviewed for the University of Warsaw
television station following his guest lecture.

On Friday, I returned to Warsaw for two events.  The first was a Fulbright recognition reception at the home of U.S. Ambassador to Poland Lee Feinstein.  It was clear the ambassador is a staunch supporter of the Fulbright scholar exchange program, evidenced by his hosting of about 50 Fulbrighters for the 2-hour event.  Fulbrighters present included U.S. scholars like me who are about to complete their appointments to Poland, as well as U.S. students completing Fulbright appointments as teaching assistants or to conduct research related to their theses or dissertations.  The majority of Fulbrighters, though, were those Polish students and scholars about to embark on appointments to U.S. universities and colleges.  Ambassador Feinstein, assisted by members of the Polish Fulbright Commission and its Board of Directors, acknowledged each Fulbrighter individually, presenting certificates to each.  Lunch and informal discussion followed the ceremony.  The second event was a meeting of U.S. Fulbrighters at the offices of the Polish Fulbright Commission.  It was the last meeting for those of us who have served here in Poland during this academic year.

Ambassador Feinstein (at lectern) addresses Fulbrighters
at his residence in Warsaw.  Members of the Polish Fulbright
Commission and its Board of Directors are to the Ambassador's
left.

Polish and U.S. Fulbrighters enjoy informal conversation
following the official remarks and presentation of
certificates.

Seasonal Progress in Poznań

The calendar says June, but the weather in Poznań the past week simply does not correlate with the month.  Today (June 4), we have slate gray skies, temperatures peaking in the 50s and a chilly, light rain.  Good for the asparagus I suppose, but not the pleasant early summer weather we were all hoping for.  Still, my wife, Robin, and I continue to delight in our time here.  It has been an interesting experience -- living in a 600 sq.ft. apartment and not having a vehicle.  That probably sounds like a challenge to U.S. readers, and it is.  But you know what?  It's just fine.  Even having only a dormitory-size refrigerator and a toaster oven to complement the cooktop is a situation we have found perfectly workable.  The heat to our apartment building was turned off effective May 1, and we have no air conditioning should the temperatures reach that level, but we're coping comfortably.  It's been interesting to see how simply we can live.

For example, not having a vehicle for our six months here has meant we have become highly skilled at the use of public transportation.  During our first weeks here, we were constantly referring to the city map to make the right connections.  These days, we know instinctively how to get where we're going and can even calculate the most efficient combination of buses and trams when there are options to consider.  Each week, we purchase a 7-day ticket for about $10 each -- good for all buses and trams in the Poznań area.  I never think about needing gas or finding a place to park -- there's a good deal of freedom in that.  I will miss that.

A Special Visit

For the past 10 days, Robin and I were blessed by having our daughter, Katie, and granddaughter, Alexis, visiting with us from Charlotte, North Carolina.  Even with a 600 sq.ft. apartment, and the space requirements of a 1-year-old just learning to walk, we had a fantastic time.  Katie's husband, Nathan, could not get the time off from work to join us as well, but that might have been something of a space squeeze even for veterans of European living.  This morning, we had to say goodbye to Katie and Alexis at the Poznań airport, but we will retain many wonderful memories of their visit. 

Robin and Alan introduce 1-year-old granddaughter, Alexis,
to the beauties of Poznań.  This was taken during a recent
warm day at Malta Lake, just a 15-minute tram ride from
our apartment. 

The Cool Students at the Poznań University of Economics

I'm pleased to share a video link with you that illustrates why I so much enjoy my interaction with the students at my host university here in Poland.  The video shows students who are about to complete the last term of the last year of their master's degree program here.  They have reported to the lecture hall to take the last scheduled exam for their degree.  Their enthusiastic performance is a plea to the professor to cancel the exam.  They have woven in the theme of Euro 2012, the European soccer championship tournament that begins this week, with several matches scheduled for here in Poznań.  The song the students sing is the Euro 2012 theme song, with lyrics changed to reflect their hope that the professor will agree to their proposal.  I'm afraid I don't know how it came out.  Watch the video, and perhaps you'll start to appreciate what I say about the incredible spirit I find here in Poland.  Here's the link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bht9xqY00kM.

The Weeks Ahead

My attention for the coming weeks will be focused on completing the reports for the two companies that partnered with us on the employee communication research project.  The aim is to complete and formally present the reports to each company by the end of June.  We're on track, so I'm optimistic. 

As always, thanks for reading, and do widzenia!