What is employee engagement?

Employee Engagement has become a hot topic which is commanding the attention of an ever increasing number of companies. It is somewhat surprising therefore that, as yet, there is no generally accepted single definition of employee engagement. Many companies and HR managers are talking about it, but very few define it. So our purpose here is to provide a succinct review of the research into employee engagement, and to offer a range of definitions, including our own working definition.

One of the most comprehensive reviews of the research is "Employee Engagement, A Review of Current Research and Its Implications" published in 2006¹ by The Conference Board, a prestigious US research organization which delivers business intelligence to many of the World's leading companies.

This review cites twelve major studies on employee engagement published by top research firms such as Gallup, Towers Perrin, Blessing White, the Corporate Leadership Council and others. Each of these studies offers a different definition of employee engagement, and The Conference Board offers a synthesised definition which sees employee engagement as

"a heightened emotional connection that an employee feels for his or her organization, that influences him or her to exert greater discretionary effort to his or her work."

This closely reflects the view of the CIPD which sees employee engagement as

"a combination of commitment to the organisation and its values, plus a willingness to help out colleagues (organisational citizenship). It goes beyond job satisfaction and is not simply motivation. Engagement is something the employee has to offer: it cannot be 'required' as part of the employment contract."²

The question is: what circumstances or conditions are needed before a person can feel that heightened emotional connection or sense of commitment and organisational citizenship? In other words, what are the key ingredients of employee engagement? Digital Opinion's own research points to the following:

• The nature of the work - Is it mentally stimulating day-to-day?
• Support - Does the employee feel supported by their line manager and colleagues?
• Recognition - Does the employee feel that their efforts are recognised and valued?
• Loyalty - Does the employee want to stay with the company and develop their career?
• Advocacy - Is the employee willing to recommend their company to family and friends?
• Values - Does the employee feel that managers and colleagues "walk the talk" in terms of the company's values?

In our view these are the pre-requisites for employee engagement. They inform our definition:

"Engaged employees enjoy their work and are proud to tell people that they work for the Company. They go the extra mile to help their customers and colleagues, and they want to stay and develop a career with the Company. In the long run they are the real contributors."

And they are the key factors which underpin our approach to conducting employee engagement surveys and helping companies to raise the level of engagement.

The next question of course is: why does employee engagement matter? Click here to find out

Click here to learn more about how Digital Opinion can help you to conduct an employee engagement survey.

¹ "Employee Engagement, A Review of Current Research and Its Implications" published in 2006 by The Conference Board

² Employee Engagement A CIPD Factsheet originally issued January 2007; latest revision January 2008.