The importance of a configural versus universalistic approach to understanding the impact of climate on employee attitudes, service outcomes and financial performance

This study tested relationships between store climate, collective employee attitudes, service outcomes (employee perceptions of service quality and customer satisfaction) and financial performance in a sample of 83 stores from a large supermarket chain. Store climate was measured in two ways: through a set of independent climate dimensions and through a configural approach whereby the profile across all dimensions was used to represent the climate systems. Results indicated that both climate dimensions and climate systems are significantly related to employee attitudes, employee perceptions of service quality, and financial performance but are not related to customer satisfaction. Employee attitudes were significantly related to employee perceptions of service quality but not customer satisfaction and financial performance. Finally, employee attitudes partially mediated the relationship between the set of climate dimensions and service quality and fully mediated the relationship between climate systems and service quality. Taken together, the results indicate that climate has a direct relationship to employee attitudes, service and financial outcomes, and that climate systems provide a more comprehensive explanation of these relationships than do climate dimensions. Limitations and implications for theory and practice are discussed.