What do engagement measures really mean?

Abstract

PurposeThis paper aims to discuss how and with what employees engage at work. It seeks to offer an explanation of “locus of engagement” – what aspects of their work individuals engage with to a lesser or greater extent – and “emotional” and “transactional” engagement – demonstrating that people can engage at different levels, both of which might result in performance but also in very different behaviors.Design/methodology/approachThe paper is based on research completed for CIPD by The Kingston Engagement Consortium drawing on both quantative and qualitative data collected from member companies over a six‐year period of study.FindingsThe paper argues that managers need a deeper understanding of how employees are engaging with their work to effectively leverage performance through engagement. It finds that despite much work on engagement, the issues of with what and at what level people are engaging is still relatively unexplored. It also finds that how and with what people engage can have implications for their performance and other behavior which will impact on the success of the organization.Originality/valueThis has practical implications for managers and demonstrates that engagement surveys alone will not give sufficient information to enable them to manage engagement effectively.