AN ASSESSMENT OF ORGANIZATIONAL CLIMATE IN THE U.S. AIR FORCE’S 87 CONTRACTING SQUADRON UNIT

Abstract

Collins and Garcia’s 2018 thesis, “A Thematic Assessment of The Organizational Climate in the Army’s Contracting Workforce,” explored the effects on retention and job satisfaction of contracting personnel. Their research suggested the analysis of other service organizational climates could yield a similar report to provide leaders with insights on improving current systemic issues concerning recruitment and retention goals. This thesis considers the culture at an Air Force contracting unit, explicitly focusing on the 87 Contracting Squadron (87CONS) and its 2020 organizational climate survey. The study found that organizational climate, culture, and job satisfaction significantly impacted how satisfied employees felt about their jobs and their willingness to stay with an organization. In addition, the data analyzed concluded that 87CONS’ leadership is focused on improving the organization’s climate and culture and consistently makes significant efforts to satisfy employee needs whenever possible. Last, the recommendations of this research circled around morale, environment, and organizational culture improvements by leadership, thereby providing a supplemental resource to leaders throughout, helping them formulate solutions on specific areas of concern within a particular organization.