Importance of work environment on
employee engagement
Employee behaviors do not occur in a
vacuum, but in a specific and unique work environment. People placed in work
environments that “fit” are more likely to intrinsically enjoy their work
(James and Jeanne,2006). Flexible work practices have long been viewed by
employees as valuable workplace tools to facilitate work life management.
Employees report that workplace flexibility influences decisions to join an
organization, satisfaction with their jobs, and plans to stay with their
employers. Recently, some employers have come to recognize that workplace
flexibility positively influences valued business outcomes such as attracting,
motivating, and retaining key talent in competitive labor markets, increasing
employee satisfaction and engagement, as well as improving efficiency and
effectiveness (Amy et al,2008). The reverse is true for those
placed in work environments that do not “fit”. For these employees, normal
daily work occurrences may be unpleasant and interpreted more negatively, thus
resulting in negative outcomes such as boredom, poor work performance, and lack
of satisfaction. Also younger employees were “less loyal to the company”. As a result, younger employees may take the
view that nothing is permanent, and may disproportionately emphasize the
importance of work environments that match their preferences (James and
Jeanne,2006).
Video 03: Benefits of employee engagement
Source :LineZero.,2018
Amy,L.R., Janet T. C., Laurie L. S.
E.,Jeffrey H., and Robert T. B.,2008,’ The relationship of perceived flexibility, supportive work life
policies, and use of formal flexible arrangements and occasional flexibility to
employee engagement and expected retention’, <www.reserchgate.net>,
11(2),pp.183-197.
James,W.W.,Jeanne,H.Y.,2006,’
Generational preferences for work environment fit: effects on employee outcomes
‘,Emerald Group Publishing Limited,12(2),pp.150-161.
As you have correctly said Shanaka, Bhavani et al. (2015) state that employee engagement is the best tool to gain competitive advantage. They further mentioned that through engaged employees a company can gain many advantages such as reduction in attrition rates, increase company performance and worth of stakeholders. According to a research done by Osborne and Hammoud(2017) found out that US corporations loss annually $350 billion due to disengaged employees. Therefore Shanaka as you correctly said engaged employees drives an organization forward. Through them a company can gain more reputation with reduction in cost factor. So a company has to take this factor as a critical issue and should analyze further the ways of engaging employees.
ReplyDeleteShamila(2018) state that Employee engagement is integral in driving organisational success as engaged employees are motivated and strive to achieve organisational goals and objectives.The economic climate in South Africa propagates many organisations to consider retrenchments, restructuring, and continuous improvement in pursuit of profitability and sustainability(Statistics SA: 2017).
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