The Employee Factor in the Service-Profit Chain Framework: A Study Among Service Employees Working Within a Leading Chinese Securities Firm

This study investigates the employees working in a Chinese leading securities firm by applying Structural Equation Modeling techniques to assess the importance of employee factors in the service-profit chain. The findings of this study indicate that positive linkages do exist between employee factors and corporate profitability. Moreover, we have found that employee satisfaction can be predicted by internal service quality as perceived by employees. A high amount of employee satisfaction can result in lower intentional turnover. And profitability seems to be strongly influenced by employee tenure. Our study has implications for Chinese securities firms because employee factors are measurable and accountable to the company's profitability. This contribution has tried to add to the knowledge domain regarding the service-profit chain model by testing it within Chinese culture. (C) 2005 by The Haworth Press, Inc. All rights reserved.