Managerial Implications of Employee Engagement

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Today, there are four major impediments that may affect the level of productivity in any given organisation. These challenges include call to satisfy clients, need for innovation, call for a speedy response to the ever-shifting market requirements, and augmented levels of competition. Consequently, both managers and workers ought to be committed to the attainment of a company’s objectives in order to overcome these impediments.

It is, therefore, necessary for management to come up with effective strategies to deal with the issue at hand, for instance, management should ensure that all aspects of a company’s operations are supportive and encouraging to employees. They can achieve this by first ensuring that the organisation’s basic requirements are put in place.

Such requirements may include high quality of goods and services that employees can easily advocate for. An excellent system of delivery that guarantees that pledges and promises made to the customers are met, effective practices which are sincere, clear-cut, and executed with honesty.

Most importantly, management should consider the manner in which it should provide thrust to motivate workers as this influences their level of commitment to the company (Miller 2011, 377).

Even though technology is known to dominate the current corporate section throughout the world, a lot of focus has recently been put on employees as well as the manner in which they are handled by their seniors. It is often said that the best managers produce the best results from their employees.

As a matter of fact, throughout history, managers have devised several approaches and strategies which have been aimed at enhancing performance of employees. In addition, a lot of research has been carried out with regards to employee engagement. For this reason, there is need to critically examine employee engagement as well as roles played by managers and relationship between employees’ self-efficacy and managers’ effectiveness.

This will help to explain the impacts as well as benefits of enhancing employee engagement. Moreover, it will help to illuminate on various ways that may be used to enhance employee engagement. This paper attempts to add to this body of knowledge and more specifically, it attempts to critically examine managerial implications of employee engagement (Tammy 2003, 24).

Effective management largely depends on the foundation of the management principle as well as the process of management being used. On the other hand, the concept of employee engagement is a management approach that has been employed to boost individual as well as organisational activities.

Moreover, scholars have shown that there exists a relationship between employee’s activities and organisational dedication, employment fulfillment as well as employee engagement. Research has shown that there exists a direct relationship between employees’ engagement and managers’ effectiveness.

In general, it is important to note that employees engagement incorporated with managers self-efficacy is imperative ingredients of a company’s success that are likely to improve managers’ effectiveness. Consequently, effective management is vital in order to achieve considerable development in any organisation (Miller 2011, 381).

Employee Engagement

The main challenge experienced in understanding employee engagement lies in several conceptualised definitions. As a matter of fact, there has been no agreed definition of employee engagement. This not withstanding, employee engagement can be defined as a situation whereby individual employees within a given organisation are totally occupied and passionate about their work (Tammy 2003, 26).

Employee engagement can also be used to refer to an intrinsic aspiration within the employees to add something valuable to their places of work (Stewart 2007, 20). The above definitions seem to bring out a connection between high degree of employee engagement and improved employee as well as organisational performance.

A lot of research has been done with regards to employee engagement, ranging from issues regarding advantages of raising the level of employee engagement as well as the means of improving employee engagement. The extensive research, good indicator that enhancing employee engagement, plays a major role in employees as well as organisational performance.

Employee engagement in any organisation is vital as disengagement of employees is a major cause of lack of enough dedication and drive in workers. Indeed, research indicates that employee engagement is highly associated with workers’ returns, customer fulfillment, reliability, security, output as well as effectiveness.

For these reasons, if an organsation effectively handles employee engagement, then it is highly likely to achieve a high level of performance index (Meyer 2010, 29).

Benefits of Employee Engagement

Engaged employees often become promoters of an organisation, its products as well as its services, hence, contribute to the organisations overall financial success.
Engaged employees are more enthusiastic about their work and often execute it in a better manner.
Employee engagement boosts the workers’ zeal, and obligation to the company’s objectives.
Employees’ engagement boosts the employees’ faith in the company.
Employees’ engagement builds the workers to become effectual brand representatives of the organisation.
Employees’ engagement creates a positive attitude among employees which is then transferred to the organisations’ customers and thus improving their fulfillment (Miller 2011, 384).

Nevertheless, engagement approaches which have no proper direction are not likely to attain these benefits and may even fail and lead to poorer employee morale as well as uncertainty. Thus, supervisors who embrace employee engagement should carefully reflect on their reasons of advocating for employee engagement, how well they can effectively execute the same (Miller 2011, 385).

Even though research has shown that employee engagement has recently been embraced in several organisations, a recent survey has shown that about 42% of contemporary employee engagement strategies were predicted to be futile.

Thus, employee engagement should be executed with a lot of precaution for the attainment of positive outcomes. In case it is properly executed, employee engagement can be a splendid way to motivate employees and also ensuring that an organisation’s objectives are met (Miller 2011, 385).

Ensuring that Employee Engagement Facilitates the Achievement of an Organisation’s Goals

Managers should ensure that they connect the employee engagement strategies with the realisation of the company’s objectives. As a matter of fact, employee engagement should be seen as a means to an end but not an end in itself. Consequently, managers should ensure that they first establish the company’s main objective as it is pointless to have employee engagement without linking it to the organisation’s goals (Mintzberg 1998, 48).

In addition, managers should ensure that they show their commitment to the ideas of engaged employees, for instance, they should always make sure that they respond and act on employees’ propositions for improvement of the organisation’s performance. It is, indeed, very exasperating to employees when they are asked for suggestions and their responses disregarded (Mintzberg 1998, 58).

Moreover, supervisors should always volunteer to teach employees more about the business or organisation itself. This is because of a lack of enough knowledge on how a company runs may influence employees to give unsuitable suggestions. Ideally, knowledgeable and empowered employees are likely to produce best outcomes from employee engagement programs (Tammy 2003, 94).

Drivers of Employee Engagement

Even though we can determine the level of employee engagement through employee surveys, we may not be in a position to identify necessary areas that need to be improved within an organisation through surveys. It is, therefore, important for managers to consider a variety of factors, which are also referred to as drivers, which are said to improve general employee engagement.

In case these drivers are effectively handled, a company can successfully deal with increasing employees’ degree of engagement.

These drivers include effective communication, performance intelligibility and response, organisational values, incentives as well as appreciation, excellent relationships between employees and managers, professional advancement prospects and familiarity of a company’s objectives are some of the major aspects that enhance employee engagement as discussed below (Stewart 2007, 39).

Employee perceptions of his/her job and company

According to a recent study, a worker’s attitude towards his/her work in a particular organisation has a major influence on his/her on loyalty to the organisation which has a tremendous impact on customer satisfaction (Lehman 1985, 52).

The clarity of job expectations in the employees

In case the management’s expectations are not clearly outlined to employees, and the entire fundamental resources are not adequately provided, unenthusiastic feelings such as boredom or bitterness may crop within employees and they are, therefore, likely to shift their attention from the organisation’s general wellbeing to survival mechanisms (Lehman 1985, 58).

Professional development opportunities

Research has shown that career improvement opportunities often have a positive impact on workers attitudes as it contributes to employee motivation. As a matter of fact, in many organisations, this is often suggested by employees and made effective through management. In most cases, career improvement has a positive impact on organisations’ general performance (Suk and Seung 2006, 86).

Regular and effective communication between employees and managers. Management should always strive to present an opportunity for dialogue where employees air their views, are appreciated and reminded of management’s expectations. This way, employees are likely to develop a feeling of belonging and, hence, likely to influence their productivity positively (Henessy 2004, 49).

An effective relationship among workers and with superiors: An effective relationship among employees and with their superiors is a vital ingredient in the organisations’ general performance. In case employees do not relate with their fellow employees as well as managers in a cordial manner, they are not likely to perform at their best.

As a matter of fact, employee engagement is a direct manifestation of workers feeling towards their relationship with their colleagues and superiors. In addition, such a relationship moves management closer to workers and they are, thus, in a better position to understand workers grievances and respond to them appropriately.

In such instances, management is able to depict when performance is not at its best in good time and, thus, act promptly (Henessy 2004, 56).

Perceptions of an organisation’s culture and values

An organisation’s culture and values postulate a vital inspirational factor of employee engagement. Absence of the two is likely to affect a company’s performance negatively (Meyer 2010, 37).

Reward for engagement

In any organisation, it is important for managers to reflect on the benefits that an organisation stands to gain if they offer incentives to employees. This is an important way of improving employees’ drive and, thus, improves their engagement.

In order to achieve this, it is important for supervisors to set sensible goals for employees, pick the most appropriate rewards for the incentive program, constantly address reward issues, come up with several and different winners and different rewards, support constant effort, present awards in a transparent manner and assess incentive programs on a regular basis (Meyer 2010, 45).

Conclusion

In conclusion, it is evident that there is a higher probability of engaged workers presenting a transparent and excellent behavior within their work place. Research has proved that employee engagement is often associated with an attitude or a discernment that develops impression of being appreciated and involved in an organisation’s well being which consequently leads to improved organisational performance.

Furthermore, it is clear that managers within any company should constantly look for various ways through which they can enhance performance of their workforce. Employee engagement is one way though which they can achieve this. However, managers should be actively involved in formulating and executing effective strategies as well as practices that will completely influence employee engagement.

In addition, employee engagement can only be consequential if management and employees have a more authentic accountability while addressing organisational issues, for instance, it is important for workers to be presented with an opportunity to air their views to management. Clearly, employee engagement can only be efficient when used with an appropriate purpose and by those who have the appropriate skills in executing it.

Reference List

Henessy, Whitney. 2004. Employee engagement in organisational development. London: Prentice Hall.

Miller, Kathy. 2011. Employee Engagement: Why Do It If You Can’t Do it Right? Journal of Management Development 21 (5): 376-387.

Lehman, James. 1985. Human Resource Management: Employee contributions in organisations. USA: Simon and Schuster Inc.

Meyer, Richard. 2010. Human Resource Management. Croatia: Zrinski.

Mintzberg, Henry. 1998. Human Resource Management: Employee engagement. London: Prentice Hall.

Stewart, James. 2007. Essentials of Human Resource Management. New York: Routledge.

Suk, Kim., and Seung, Kim. 2006. Human Resource Management: Principles and Practice Australia: Blackwell Publishing.

Tammy, Sturge. 2003. Strategic Human Resource Management. New Jersey: John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

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