ENGAGEMENT

Engagement takes place when people are committed to their work. They are interested, indeed excited, about what they do. Job engagement can exist even when individuals are not committed to the organization, except in so far as it gives them the opportunity and scope to perform and to develop their skills and potential. They may be more attached to the type of work they carry out than to the organization that provides that work, especially if they are knowledge workers.

Enhancing job engagement starts with job design or ‘role development’ as discussed in Chapter 23. This will focus on the provision of:


● interest and challenge – the degree to which the work is interesting in itself and creates demanding goals to people;

● variety – the extent to which the activities in the job call for a selection of skills and abilities;

● autonomy – the freedom and independence the job holder has, including discretion to make decisions, exercise choice, schedule the work and decide on the procedures to carry it out, and the job holder’s personal responsibility for outcomes;

● task identity – the degree to which the job requires completion of a whole and identifiable piece of work;

● task significance – the extent to which the job contributes to a significant end result and has a substantial impact on the lives and work of other people.


All these factors are affected by the organization structure, the system of work and the quality of leadership. The latter is vital. The degree to which jobs provide variety, autonomy, task identity and task significance depends more on the way in which job holders are managed and led than any formal process of job design. Managers and team leaders often have considerable discretion on how they allocate work, and the extent to which they delegate. They can provide feedback that recognizes the contribution of people, and they can spell out the significance of the work they do.