Bailey madden engagement PDF

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Title: The Meaning, Antecedents and Outcomes of Employee Engagement: A Narrative Synthesis

Academic Citation: Bailey, C., Madden, A., Alfes, K., Fletcher, L. (2015) “The Meaning, Antecedents and Outcomes of Employee Engagement: A Narrative Synthesis”. International Journal of Management Reviews, 19, 1, 31-53

Summary of Article: 

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Generally engagement is viewed in a positive manner o Enhances workplace attitudes both for an individual and for entire organizations o Fosters a better mindset  Reduces the mindset and risks of turnover in employees that are highly engaged  Employees that are more engaged tend to be less likely to ‘burnout’ o Workers are more aligned with organizational citizenship behaviors when they are engaged There is significant room for expansion on the literature and research o Most of the findings are based on self-reporting rather than objective measures o Engagement still lacks a widely accepted definition  Especially considering the new ‘management practice’ approach rather than mindset-based approach o There is a lack of policy or action recommendations on how best to develop engagement in the workplace

Main Headings and Points Made: Operational Definitions 

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Personal role engagement o Uses Kahn (1990) definition - the individual’s cognitive, emotional and physical expression of the authentic self at work Work task or job engagement o Active positive state of mind regarding work activities o Engagement being the opposite of a ‘burnout’ mindset  Builds on the definitions provided by the Utrecht Group – positive fulfilling state of mind  Employees have a strong commitment and positive attitude to work activities Multidimensional engagement

Saks definition - ‘a distinct and unique construct consisting of cognitive, emotional and behavioural components that are associated with individual role performance’ Composite altitudinal and behavioural construct o Swanberg uses the Utrecht definition but modifies it to account for cognitive and emotional engagement as well as behavioural engagement Engagement as a management practice o Engagement is something you can do rather than ‘be’ Self-engagement with performance o Based on individual self-responsibility and commitment to performance o

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Outcomes of engagement 

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At the team and organizational level o Saw engagement associated with higher performance  Studies used individual self-perceptions of performance rather than objective measures – susceptible to biases ad errors o Individual level  Looks at in-role performance data but also uses self-reported data  Data did demonstrate appositive relationship between engagement and individual task performance Extra role performance o Links were found between engagement and organizational citizenship behavior, innovation, initiative, knowledge sharing and creativity  Again were majority self-reported data Well-being and health o Positive association between engagement and life satisfaction o Negatively associated with burnout – more engaged workers less likely to burnout o Positive relationship with Organizational commitment and job satisfaction o Negative relationship with turnover intentions in workers  More engaged workers are less likely to leave

Implications for firms 

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There are a broad range of factors and antecedents that affect engagement o Job design for autonomy o Frequent and relevant job performance feedback o Ensure positive, authentic and relevant leadership Mindsets were identified that promoted engagement o Focus on enhancing individual resilience, reducing bullying and harassment

Recommendation for future research   

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Significant gaps in a clear definition for engagement and well-established measurements Need to evaluate the full range of factors that influence engagement in the workplace, and which are more important than others More studies that focus on the use of engagement as a management practice rather than a state o Would develop recommendations for interventions to increase engagement Developing the more contextual aspects of engagements in an organizational setting

Differences between firms and industries in how engagement is measured, responded to and fostered Research into how diversity and equality affect engagement Which factors do individuals rank as the most important when it comes to engagement o Expand scope beyond job vs organizational engagement o

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