Managers who foster at least 65% employee engagement, based on employee engagement surveys conducted by Hewitt Associates, Inc., provide a 19% higher return to shareholders than managers who do not foster a 65% or higher employee engagement level. The purpose of this single site case study was to identify strategies that frontline managers used to build employee engagement, leading to higher organizational performance. The transformational leadership theory was used as the conceptual framework for this study. Data were collected through semistructured interviews from a purposeful sample of 3 frontline managers at a beverage manufacturing facility in the Midwest of the United States. Data also included performance metrics from the organization to identify the leading facility within the organization. Using data triangulation and Yin's explanation building analysis method, several themes emerged, including the need for open and honest communication, setting and understanding expectations, maintaining professional relationships, and including employees as an important part of the organization. These findings may contribute to social change by enhancing the training for frontline managers. Such enhancements may build employee engagement, decrease workplace stress, and boost work-life balance and quality of life.

The purpose of this qualitative, single case study was to explore strategies that leaders used to engage employees. The conceptual framework for this study was Saks's multidimensional approach to employee engagement. Semistructured interviews were conducted with 5 leaders from an office design company in the midwestern region of the United States who had a minimum of 2 years of experience of engaging employees. Company archival documents related to employee engagement were also collected. Data analysis consisted of compiling the data, coding for emergent and a priori codes, disassembling the data into common codes, reassembling the data into themes, interpreting the meaning, and reporting the themes. Seven themes emerged from data analysis: (a) communication, (b) employee involvement, (c) employee development, (d) top-down approach with manager buy in, (e) flexibility with time, (f) tailored strategies for different demographics, and (g) engagement with the workspace/environment. The implications of this study for positive change are that organizational leaders can incorporate these strategies to engage employees to achieve a competitive edge over competition. Engaged employees could benefit local communities and could have the flexibility to participate in community activities and foster positive social change.

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Online and hybrid onboarding, or new-hire training and assimilation, has grown increasingly common in corporate settings, especially since the COVID-19 pandemic. This study explores how perceived onboarding experience, work locus of control, occupational self-efficacy, and employee engagement differed between those who onboarded with in-person, hybrid, or online methods. This study also explores how work locus of control could moderate these relationships and examines the relationships between employee engagement and onboarding experience, locus of control, and self-efficacy. This study used quantitative research methods in the form of a self-administered online questionnaire aimed at corporate employees who had onboarded within the previous 18 months. One hundred fifty-three employees completed the survey. It was found that no significant difference in the variables existed between modalities, except for the task characteristic subscale of perceived onboarding experience in which scores were lower for those onboarded in-person. However, work locus of control was found to significantly moderate the relationships between onboarding modality and experience, locus of control, and self-efficacy. Additionally, employee engagement was increased with higher perceived onboarding experience, more internal loci of control, and higher self-efficacy. In addition to the research questions, demographic data were also explored. It was found that perceived onboarding experience was negatively correlated with age, education level, and employment level, locus of control was negatively correlated with age, and work-related self-efficacy was positively correlated with employment level. Further, males were found to have more internal loci of control while females had more external loci of control. Women were also found to have statistically significant lower employee engagement. Overall, this study found that, while onboarding modality itself is not a predictor of employee experiences, other characteristics of onboarding and individuals' attributes could impact the success of onboarding programs and employees' experiences.

In spite of the fact that discussions regarding the social inequality of lesbian, gay and bisexual (LGB) individuals have been at the forefront of the U.S. national dialogue over the last decade, and estimates suggest that LGB employees comprise between 6 and 17 percent of the workforce (Gonsiorek & Weinrich, 1991), little is known about the experiences of these individuals at work. The limited research that exists suggests that inclusive diversity programs (e.g. gay-friendly organizational policies and practices, such as same-sex partner benefit programs), LGB employee experiences and fears of discrimination, and decisions regarding the disclosure of their sexual orientation are of central concern for LGB employees. However, at present only a small number of empirical studies have been conducted, resulting in relatively inconclusive findings. For example, research on the role of the environment at work with respect to LGB employee disclosure decisions has generated evidence that disclosure is related to both reduced and increased levels of discrimination. Explanations for these mixed findings includes evidence that the decision to disclose or not disclose one's LGB identity is driven by a multitude of factors such as individual attitudes suggesting that elements of the organizational environment may be more useful if considered a context in which LGB employees enact disclosure decisions. In addition, evidence suggests that the decision to disclose one's LGB identity is much more complex than a simple "to tell" or "not to tell" dichotomy. This complexity, theoretically and empirically captured in the concept of identity management strategies, has been argued to have detrimental effects on the well-being and productivity of LGB employees. However, as of yet there has been little research conducted to empirically investigate these claims. I propose that employee engagement, articulated by Kahn (1990) as a psychological presence in which workers are able and motivated to fully employ and express themselves physically, cognitively and emotionally at work, offers a useful framework in which to examine the potential effects of identity management. Employee engagement incorporates both the well-being of employees and the repercussions with respect to their performance, conceptually capturing the range of outcomes speculated to be related to identity management. Therefore, this study investigates the impact of identity management on LGB employee engagement. Data was collected via an online survey of a national sample of self-identified LGB employees, obtained through announcements posted on gay and lesbian news and information websites, social network websites, and occupation-related online discussion boards. Findings suggest that while aspects of Kahn's model of engagement apply to LGB employees, other configurations of the conditions of engagement may be more appropriate for these workers. Additionally, the findings indicate that in work environments perceived as less psychologically safe with respect to being lesbian, gay or bisexual, strategies of identity management used to avert disclosure of one's sexual orientation may help reduce the negative impact of non-disclosure on engagement, while integrating one's LGB identity at work, particularly in environments perceived as psychologically safe, may have positive implications for LGB employee engagement. / Ph. D.

Business leaders often encounter difficulties in achieving sustainable employee engagement in the work environment, yet employee engagement is critical to an organization's financial success. The purpose of this qualitative single case study was to explore strategies business leaders use to overcome or mitigate the challenges of employee disengagement. A purposeful sample of 6 leaders employed at an insurance company participated in the study based on their knowledge and experience in implementing successful employee engagement strategies. The conceptual framework for the study was Kahn's personal engagement theory. Data were collected using semistructured interviews, company documents, and archival information. Data were analyzed using thematic analysis. Four themes emerged: leader–employee relationship; effective internal communication and feedback; compensation, awards, benefits, and incentives; and professional training and development to improve employee engagement. The implications for positive social change include the potential to provide leaders with strategies to increase employee engagement, which may create employment opportunities for community members, which could lead to the stability and general well-being of the community.

For organisations in South Africa to preserve talented and skilled employees it is important that these organisations consider the psychological needs of their employees. This is particularly true for supervisors and their relationships with their subordinates. South Africans are daily engaged in working and influencing people within their workplaces. Although supervisors are not capable of addressing or changing all the problems and concerns of employees, they can intervene in order to improve the quality of their employees’ working lives. A suggested point to start with is within the supervisor’s behaviour and their relationships with employees, due to its effect on employee engagement and intentions to leave. Consequently, when employees experience a deprived relationship with their supervisors, it will contribute to lower employee engagement levels and higher intentions to leave. To possibly decrease the negative impact of supervisor behaviour, it is important that supervisors pay attention and create an environment in which satisfaction of the psychological needs of their subordinates can be maintained. The objectives of this study were to investigate the relations between supervisor behaviour (that supports psychological need satisfaction), psychological need satisfaction, employee engagement and intentions to leave. A convenience sample (N = 139) of employees working under the guidance of a leader/supervisor was taken from manufacturing companies across South Africa. Participation in the study was voluntary. A measuring battery measuring supervisor behaviour (i.e. perceptions of supervisor support, trust and competence-focused behaviour), work-related basic need satisfaction (i.e. the satisfaction of psychological needs such as autonomy, competence and relatedness) work engagement (i.e. cognitive, emotional and physical engagement) and intention to leave was used. Descriptive statistics, exploratory factor analyses, alpha coefficients, Pearson product-moment correlations, and multiple regression analyses were used to analyse the data. The results indicated that the measuring instruments used in this study were valid and reliable for further analyses. The results showed that supervisor support comprised one factor and not three factors as expected. Furthermore, the results showed that supervisor support for autonomy, competence and relatedness had a large effect on autonomy satisfaction and a medium effect on relatedness satisfaction. Supervisor relations did not impact competence satisfaction. The effect of supervisor support on autonomy satisfaction was larger than on relatedness satisfaction. Results from this study showed that supervisor support, autonomy satisfaction and competence satisfaction affected work engagement. Employees will tend to be engaged when supervisors demonstrate supportive behaviour and when they are able to regulate themselves because they feel a sense of competence and autonomy. The results also showed that supervisor support for psychological need satisfaction, autonomy satisfaction and relatedness satisfaction predicted employees’ intentions to leave organisations. Lastly, the results showed that supervisor support for psychological need satisfaction impacted employee engagement indirectly and positively via autonomy satisfaction, and indirectly and negatively impacted intention to leave via autonomy dissatisfaction. Recommendations were made for manufacturing organisations as well as for future research. Manufacturing organisations and employees should comprehend the impact of supervisor behaviour and psychological need satisfaction on outcomes such as employee engagement and intentions to leave, as both parties are similarly affected by its consequences. Interventions should be implemented to address the satisfaction of employees’ basic psychological needs. Additionally, manufacturing organisations should understand the importance of supervisor behaviour and the impact it can have on their business unit and the organisation as a whole. Recommendations for future research were made. / MA (Positive Psychology)--North-West University, Vaal Triangle Campus, 2015.

For organisations in South Africa to preserve talented and skilled employees it is important that these organisations consider the psychological needs of their employees. This is particularly true for supervisors and their relationships with their subordinates. South Africans are daily engaged in working and influencing people within their workplaces. Although supervisors are not capable of addressing or changing all the problems and concerns of employees, they can intervene in order to improve the quality of their employees’ working lives. A suggested point to start with is within the supervisor’s behaviour and their relationships with employees, due to its effect on employee engagement and intentions to leave. Consequently, when employees experience a deprived relationship with their supervisors, it will contribute to lower employee engagement levels and higher intentions to leave. To possibly decrease the negative impact of supervisor behaviour, it is important that supervisors pay attention and create an environment in which satisfaction of the psychological needs of their subordinates can be maintained. The objectives of this study were to investigate the relations between supervisor behaviour (that supports psychological need satisfaction), psychological need satisfaction, employee engagement and intentions to leave. A convenience sample (N = 139) of employees working under the guidance of a leader/supervisor was taken from manufacturing companies across South Africa. Participation in the study was voluntary. A measuring battery measuring supervisor behaviour (i.e. perceptions of supervisor support, trust and competence-focused behaviour), work-related basic need satisfaction (i.e. the satisfaction of psychological needs such as autonomy, competence and relatedness) work engagement (i.e. cognitive, emotional and physical engagement) and intention to leave was used. Descriptive statistics, exploratory factor analyses, alpha coefficients, Pearson product-moment correlations, and multiple regression analyses were used to analyse the data. The results indicated that the measuring instruments used in this study were valid and reliable for further analyses. The results showed that supervisor support comprised one factor and not three factors as expected. Furthermore, the results showed that supervisor support for autonomy, competence and relatedness had a large effect on autonomy satisfaction and a medium effect on relatedness satisfaction. Supervisor relations did not impact competence satisfaction. The effect of supervisor support on autonomy satisfaction was larger than on relatedness satisfaction. Results from this study showed that supervisor support, autonomy satisfaction and competence satisfaction affected work engagement. Employees will tend to be engaged when supervisors demonstrate supportive behaviour and when they are able to regulate themselves because they feel a sense of competence and autonomy. The results also showed that supervisor support for psychological need satisfaction, autonomy satisfaction and relatedness satisfaction predicted employees’ intentions to leave organisations. Lastly, the results showed that supervisor support for psychological need satisfaction impacted employee engagement indirectly and positively via autonomy satisfaction, and indirectly and negatively impacted intention to leave via autonomy dissatisfaction. Recommendations were made for manufacturing organisations as well as for future research. Manufacturing organisations and employees should comprehend the impact of supervisor behaviour and psychological need satisfaction on outcomes such as employee engagement and intentions to leave, as both parties are similarly affected by its consequences. Interventions should be implemented to address the satisfaction of employees’ basic psychological needs. Additionally, manufacturing organisations should understand the importance of supervisor behaviour and the impact it can have on their business unit and the organisation as a whole. Recommendations for future research were made. / MA (Positive Psychology)--North-West University, Vaal Triangle Campus, 2015.

Research report presented to the Unisa School of Business Leadership / The purpose of the research is an investigation into how employee involvement can be used as a tool towards raising levels of engagement within actively disengaged employees at Ngwane Mills.

Communication methods in the corporate environment must change. Organisations can no longer expect effective communication when using intranet sites or sending employees countless emails. This type of communication does not create the learning environment and most employees either do not read the intranet sites, or there is just too much email which could be seen as spam by the employee. These types of technologies also create a culture where organisations are lead from the top and there is not a culture or platform to create feedback loops. Most large corporate organisations have a tendency where many silos are created and cliques are formed, which is not in line with the culture of a learning organisation. Although there are a number of studies which look at how Internet based micro-blogging affect social connectedness, there is however limited information as to the effect that micro-blogging, if used internal to the organisation, would have on employee engagement, or how it can affect the competitive nature to the organisation. The research is exploratory in nature and set out to review what impact internal micro-blogging has on the organisation. The research uses Vodacom, one of the leading Information and communications technology (ICT) and telecommunications companies in South Africa, as the case study, as micro-blogging was recently introduced into this organisation.