Saturday, November 19, 2022

Employee Engagement

The field of management, industrial psychology, and organizational theory have all devoted a significant amount of research to the subject of employee engagement (Jeung, 2011). As a consequence of this, it is inextricably linked to the intricate administration of the Human Resources (HR). In the fast-paced and competitive business environment of today, HRD (Human Resource Development) specialists need to be able to make distinctive contributions to the efforts made to improve the overall quality of the work done by personnel who come from a wide variety of backgrounds, experiences, and skill sets (Kim et al., 2017). 

It is difficult to keep workers engaged, but it is necessary to do so in order to prevent employee burnout (Bakker, Demerouti & Sanz-Vergel, 2014). Many academics believe that "work engagement" and "employee engagement" are two of the most important factors to consider while researching human resource development (Lee et al., 2016). Employee and job engagement are frequently thought of as similar terms due to their reciprocal dependence on the requirements of the job and the resources that are available (Bakker & Demerouti, 2007). 

Because there are no fundamental differences between literacy and employee engagement, the author of this essay utilizes the phrase "employee engagement" to facilitate literacy. This is because, in terms of theoretical and scientific discoveries, there is no difference between the two (Bakker, Schaufeli, Leiter, & Taris, 2008). 

The level to which members of an organization's workforce are excited about, committed to, and interested in the work that they do is referred to as worker engagement (Schaufeli, Bakker, & Salanova, 2006). According to Farndale and Murrer (2015) and Shuck and Wollard (2010), an employee's level of thought, emotion, and action is what determines the degree to which he or she is dedicated to the organization's goal.

"Employee engagement" is defined by Xiao and Duan (2014) as a worker's "positive psychological state" in regard to their job or profession. Working satisfies a number of psychological and physiological demands, in addition to providing a monetary incentive for doing so (Alderfer, 1969). The need will cause a change in perspective, which will lead to enhanced motivation and passion regarding job (Mokaya & Kipyegon, 2014). 


It is possible that meeting these conditions may boost employee involvement, which will, in turn, increase the quality of the work produced by each employee. Therefore, the quality of an employee's work is crucial to the success of a company as a whole in motivating employees to work hard toward achieving their shared goals (Alqarni, 2016). 

The level of employee engagement in the industrial sector has a substantial bearing on the viability of the company and, as a consequence, leads to improved performance (Mokaya & Kipyegon, 2014). Being professional is giving one's work one's complete and undivided attention at all times. The level of dedication a worker demonstrates determines the overall level of quality in the product that person produces. The problem is that the organization is infested by "fleas," which lowers its overall quality and makes it more difficult for the organization to achieve its goals (Mokaya & Kipyegon, 2014)

If people feel that their current jobs do not provide them with the opportunity to meet their needs, they are more likely to intend to look for new employment (Biron & Boon, 2013). However, the quality of an employee's performance may be significantly damaged if human resources fails to implement job descriptions appropriately. This is because human resources are so important to the success of an organization in achieving its goals that there is a legally binding agreement that tries to foster organizational commitment (Cesario & Chambel, 2017). 

Employee engagement can be impacted by a wide variety of external factors, one of which is providing compensation that is market-competitive and proportionate to experience (Pang & Lu, 2018). Employee engagement can be increased through the use of open lines of communication inside the firm. The presence of supporting coworkers has a comparable influence on an individual's performance as does the presence of a supportive work environment. Employee engagement can be affected by a wide variety of internal factors, one of which is the workers' view of their own level of competence in their jobs (Sofiah & Kurniawan, 2019). 

Other research has indicated that individuals are more dedicated to their jobs when they are able to maintain a healthy balance between their professional and personal lives (Alqarni, 2016). Extensive study has shown that a person's excitement for their profession can affect their devotion to it, which in turn can affect their performance (Burke, Astakhova & Hang, 2015). The engagement of workers is essential to the success of businesses because it drives up overall productivity, which in turn boosts employee happiness and morale.

References

Alqarni,  S.  A. Y.  (2016). Quality  of work-life  as  a predictor  of work  engagement  among  the teaching. International Journal of Humanities and Social Science. 6 (8) 118 – 135.

Alderfer C. P. (1969). An empirical test of new theory of human need. Organizational Behavior and Human Performance. 4 (1) 142 – 175.

Bakker, A. B., & Demerouti, E. (2007). The job demands-resources model: State of the art. Journal of Managerial Psychology. 22 (3) 309 – 328. https://doi.org/10.1108/02683940710733115

Bakker, A. B, Schaufeli, W. B, Leiter, M. P, & Taris, T. W. (2008). Work engagement: An emerging concept  in  occupational  health  psychology.  Work  and  Stress.  22  (3)  187    200. doi:10.1080/02678370802393649

Bakker, A. B., Demerouti, E., & Sanz-Vergel, A. I. (2014). Burnout and work engagement: the JD–R approach.  Annual Review of  Organizational Psychology and  Organizational Behavior.  1, 389  – 411. DOI: 10.1146/annurev-orgpsych-031413-091235

Biron,  M.,  &  Boon,  C.  (2013).  Performance  and  turnover  intentions:  A  social  exchange perspective. Journal of Managerial Psychology. 28, 511 – 531

Burke, R. J., Astakhova, M. N., & Hang, H. (2015). Work Passion Through the Lens of Culture: Harmonious Work Passion, Obsessive Work Passion, and Work Outcomes in Russia and China. Journal of Business and Psychology. 30 (3) 457 – 471. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10869-017-9500-2

Cesario, F. & Chambel, M. J. (2017). Knowledge and Process Management. Published online in Wiley Online Library. DOI: 10.1002/kpm.1542

Farndale, E., & Murrer, I. (2015). Job resources and employee engagement: a cross-national study. Journal of Managerial Psychology. 30, 610 – 626. doi:10.1108/jmp-09-2013-0318

Jeung,  C.  W.  (2011).  The  concept  of  employee  engagement:  A  comprehensive  review  from  a positive  organizational  behavior  perspective. Performance  Improvement Quarterly.  24,  4969. doi:10.1002/piq.20110

Kim, W., Kim, J., Woo, H., Park, J., Jo, J., Park, S. & Lim, S. Y. (2017). The Relationship Between Work  Engagement  and  Organizational  Commitment:  Proposing  Research  Agendas Through a Review of Empirical Literature. Human Resource Development Review. 1 – 27. DOI: 10.1177/1534484317725967

Mokaya, S. O., & Kipyegon, M. J. (2014). Determinants of Employee Engagement in the Banking Industry in Kenya: Case of Cooperative Bank. Journal of Human Resources. 2 (2), 187 – 200

Pang,  K.,  &  Lu,  C.S.  (2018).  Organizational  motivation,  employee  job  satisfaction,  and organizational  performance:  An  empirical  study  of  container  shipping  companies  in Taiwan. Maritime Business Review. 3 (1) 36 – 52

Schaufeli, W. B., Bakker, A.  B., & Salanova, M. (2006).  The  measurement of work  engagement with a short questionnaire: A cross-national study. Educational and Psychological Measurement. 66, 701 – 716. doi:10.1177/0013164405282471

Shuck,  B.,  & Wollard,  K. (2010).  Employee engagement  and HRD:  A seminal  review  of  the foundations.  Human  Resource  Development  Review.  9,  89    110. doi:10.1177/1534484309353560

Sofiah, D  &  Kurniawan,  G.  Hubungan  self-efficacy  dengan  work engagement  pada  karyawan.  Jurnal Fenomena. 28 (1) 54 – 61. DOI: 10.30996/fn.v28i1.2641

Xiao,  M.  L.,  &  Duan,  L.  (2014).  Job  engagement  of  employees  in  state-owned  enterprises: Construct  clarification  and  scale  development.  Organizational  management. 1,  35    41. http://dx.doi.org/10.16471/j.cnki.11-2822/c.2014.01.017

 


4 comments:

  1. Hi Vidura, indeed superb topic and further, It can be stated that work is a motivational boost to achieve a variety of needs (from the ages) and must be met psychologically and physiologically (Maslow,1943; McClelland, 1990; Alderfer, 1969). The need is an impetus that will spur change on the cognitive side of the individual so that it will motivate the enthusiasm for work (Mokaya & Kipyegon, 2014). From the encouragement of fulfilling these needs, employee engagement can increase over time, which in turn will affect the quality of individual work (Rich, Lepine & Crawford, 2010).

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    Replies
    1. Thank you for your valuable comments Derrick. Furthermore Frank and Taylor (2004) defined employee engagement as the amount of discretionary effort exhibited by employees in their job. To some, the concept of employee engagement seems to overlap with organizational commitment, organizational citizenship behavior, and job involvement (May et al., 2004; Robinson et al., 2004). The study by Hallberg and Schaufeli (2006), who present the concept of employee engagement theoretically and empirically, defined engagement as representing experiences of vigor, dedication to the role, and periods of absorption over extended periods of time – weeks, months, or even years.

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  2. Agreed. Also, The Caterpillar Company defines it as: ‘The extent of employees commitment, work effort and desire to stay in an organization. ’Dell Inc declares that, ‘To compete today, companies need to win over the minds (rational commitment) and the hearts (emotional commitment) of employees in ways that lead to the extraordinary effort. ’The Corporate Leadership Council defines it as ‘The extent to which employees commit to something or someone in their organization, how hard they work and how long they stay as a result of that commitment. ’The Gallup Organization simply states that it ‘is the involvement with, and enthusiasm for, work’ (Vance2006a, b).The Gallup Organization (2006)

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  3. Hi Manomi, Thank you for sharing your valuable Opinion via good examples. Furthermore research conducted by practitioners and academicians has found positive outcomes of employee engagement (Saks, 2006), such as positive relationships with organizational outcomes, which in turn lead to better financial performance and profitability (Armir and Buckley, 2009; Gibbons, 2008; Robertson‐Smith and Markwick, 2009; Saks, 2006; Salanova et al., 2005; Schaufeli et al., 2009; Xanthopoulou et al., 2007).

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