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SUMMARY
Early in 2007, 4-consulting in association with DTZ Consulting & Research was commissioned to undertake research on the importance of employee engagement within the public sector and how the Scottish Executive could improve the engagement of its employees. A staged approach was adopted as follows:
- Stage 1 - a literature review of employee engagement covering both the public and private sectors
- Stage 2 - a review of the current status of employee engagement in the Scottish Executive and ways this could be improved.
This summary provides an overview of the key findings from the Stage 1 literature review.
Employee engagement
The literature on employee engagement builds on earlier research and discussion on issues of commitment and Organisational Citizenship Behaviour (OCB), but means more than what these terms encapsulate. The defining distinction is that employee engagement is a two-way interaction between the employee and the employer, whereas the earlier focus tended to view the issues from only the employee's point of view.
Definitions of engagement, or characteristics of an engaged workforce, focus on motivation, satisfaction, commitment, finding meaning at work, pride and advocacy of the organisation (in terms of advocating/recommending either the products or services of the organisation, or as a place to work). Additionally, having some connection to the organisation's overall strategy and objectives and both wanting and being able to work to achieve them, are key elements of engagement. A recurring theme in the literature is the idea that engagement involves workers 'going the extra mile', and exerting discretionary effort over and above what is normally expected.
Drivers of engagement
It is clear that the organisation has a responsibility to lead engagement, and there are several key areas the organisation can address to encourage engagement among its employees. Leadership, effective management, open, two-way communication, pay and benefits, fair and equal treatment, employing the 'right' workforce, career development and training, working hours, and health and safety are all aspects of the work environment that organisations can control and influence and have been found to impact upon engagement levels. However, there is no 'one size fits all' model of engagement, and different employees will place different emphases on the extent to which they value each of these elements in return for 'going the extra mile'.
Variations in employee engagement
The findings of this literature review suggest that there is no discernable difference between the dynamics of engagement within the public sector as opposed to the private sector. Rather differences in engagement levels result from organisational characteristics; in whichever sector that organisation sits. However, findings suggest that the public sector performs weaker in areas relating to strategic vision and change management, both of which are important to employee engagement.
Engagement tends also to vary across individual and job characteristics, with minority ethnic employees and females found in some studies to have higher rates of engagement than men or those with a disability or medical condition. In general, managers and professionals have greater levels of engagement than their colleagues in supporting roles.
Modelling engagement
The models in the literature illustrate the factors that can affect engagement and how engagement impacts on the wider performance of the organisation. It is clear that there is no 'one-size fits all' model of engagement. However, what can be concluded is that the primary driving force behind engagement is the organisation, its view of engagement and how it acts to create an environment conducive to engaging employees. Important areas in which the organisation can work to improve engagement include training and career development, effective management, promoting a clear strategic vision, communication, fair treatment, pay and benefits, job satisfaction, cooperation and trust. These factors vary between those that tend to be taken as given, and written explicitly into the contract of employment ( i.e. pay and benefits) and those that are organisational-dependent, cannot be taken for granted and require the organisation to take an initiative ( i.e. ensuring two-way communication, promoting a strategic vision and building trust).
Secondary to this are some variations in individual employees, with different groups or individuals responding differently to the environment in which they work, as discussed above.
Impact of engagement
Regarding the impact of engagement, this study examined the general sentiment of the literature, the evidence available and several case study examples of organisations across the private and public sector. The impact of engagement (or disengagement) can manifest itself through productivity and organisational performance, outcomes for customers of the organisation, employee retention rates, organisational culture, and advocacy of the organisation and its external image. Whilst there are several caveats to some of the results (discussed below), it is clear that some of the major employers in the UK (Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) and the NHS for example) are taking employee engagement seriously and are actively implementing measures to increase engagement levels.
Measuring and monitoring engagement
Measuring the extent of engagement within an organisation is usually achieved through an employee survey. However, the real value in such a survey lies in the extent to which the results are used as a basis to identify the organisation's strengths and weaknesses so that the necessary corrective actions can be taken. Although none of the literature covered explicitly referenced a monitoring framework, several methods to continually observe and measure engagement level were noted and included recurring surveys, focus groups, online communication, and in the case of RBS, an extensive human capital model.
Conclusions on the literature
It is concluded that the literature reviewed is more or less consistent in its view of employee engagement, in that the nature of engagement as a two-way interaction between employee and employer is emphasised as is the growing importance and relevance of engagement to organisational outcomes. However, it must be noted that these conclusions are drawn within the context of the type of literature available on the subject. Many of the authors in this field are either researching organisational experience and/or are responsible for the implementation of management consultancy solutions and therefore cannot be considered as strictly independent. There tends to be limited consideration of the costs of driving up employee engagement, although considerable attention is given to quantifying the benefits.
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