Organizational practices and employee

Organizational practices and employeeengagement: a case of Malaysia
electronics manufacturing firms
Ling Suan Choo, Norslah Mat and Mohammed Al-Omari
1. Introduction
The competition in the marketplace is getting fiercer nowadays due to globalization.
Furthermore, the global financial crisis that occurred in the period 2007-2008 had forced
companies to increase their competitiveness for business survival. Consequently, employee
engagement has emerged as the most discussed topic among top management over the
globe in this decade, since it is an important element for business survival and success. And
Malaysia, with its highly educated workforce, is no exception.
Previous research has demonstrated the relationship of employee engagement with positive
work outcomes, such as low attrition, high performance, and positive business results
(Hallberg and Schaufeli, 2006; Saks, 2006; Schaufeli and Bakker, 2004). Findings from
BlessingWhite (2005), State of Employee Engagement research report showed a clear
correlation between engagement and employee retention, with 85 percent of engaged
employees indicating that they planned to stay with their current employer. Ramsey and
Finney (2006) also found that engaged employees may be more likely to commit to staying
with their current organization. However, Robinson et al. (2004, p. 1) commented that
‘‘engagement is big in the HR consultancy market, yet there is a dearth of academic
research in this area’’. Likewise, Saks (2006) commented that there is a lack of research on
employee engagement in academic literature. In a nutshell, there seems to be a knowledge
gap in employee engagement, which drives the need for more empirical research in this
area.
This study on employee engagement not only expands our knowledge in the theoretical
development, but also offers managers practical insights in employee motivation and
engagement. To know how to improve employee engagement is particularly important as
some reports have shown a decline in employee engagement, and a deepening
disengagement among employees (Bates, 2004).
To address the call for more research in employee engagement, this paper presents the
study of multinational electronics manufacturing companies, based in Malaysia, in six parts.
The first part of this article discusses what employee engagement is, followed by a
discussion on the outcomes of employee engagement and how to motivate employees.
Next, the study methodology is described, followed by the analysis and empirical findings.
Last, are the discussions of the findings, limitations, and suggestions for future research,
and conclusion.
2. Literature review
2.1 Employee engagement
The notion of employee engagement was first introduced by Kahn in 1990. Since then, many
corporate consultants and scholars have given their perspectives on the concept of
DOI 10.1108/17515631311295659 VOL. 14 NO. 1 2013, pp. 3-10, Q Emerald Group Publishing Limited, ISSN 1751-5637 jBUSINESS STRATEGY SERIES j PAGE 3
Ling Suan Choo is based in
the School of Management,
Universiti Sains Malaysia,
Minden, Malaysia.
Norsiah Mat is based in the
College of Business,
Universiti Utara Malaysia,
Sintok, Malaysia.
Mohammad Al-Omari is
based in the School of
Management, Universiti
Sains Malaysia, Sunagi
Petani, Malaysia.
employee engagement. Despite the growing interest and discussion, the concept of
employee engagement still lacks a universal definition and is riddled with inconsistencies
and overlapping definitions. Kahn’s (1990, p. 694) initially defined employee engagement as
‘‘the harnessing of organization members’ selves to their work roles; in engagement, people
employ and express themselves physically, cognitively, and emotionally during role
performances’’. Others have defined employee engagement as the emotional and
intellectual commitment to the organization (Baumruk, 2004; Richman, 2006; Shaw, 2005).
Alternatively, Frank and Taylor (2004) defined employee engagement as the amount of
discretionary effort exhibited by employees in their job. To some, the concept of employee
engagement seems to overlap with organizational commitment, organizational citizenship
behavior, and job involvement (May et al., 2004; Robinson et al., 2004). The study by
Hallberg and Schaufeli (2006), who present the concept of employee engagement
theoretically and empirically, defined engagement as representing experiences of vigor,
dedication to the role, and periods of absorption over extended periods of time – weeks,
months, or even years.
2.2 Outcomes of employee engagement
Research conducted by practitioners and academicians has found positive outcomes of
employee engagement (Saks, 2006), such as positive relationships with organizational
outcomes, which in turn lead to better financial performance and profitability (Armir and
Buckley, 2009; Gibbons, 2008; Robertson-Smith and Markwick, 2009; Saks, 2006; Salanova
et al., 2005; Schaufeli et al., 2009; Xanthopoulou et al., 2007). For instance, the study by
Salanova...