Impact of Structural Empowerment and Employee Engagement on Adaptive Performance: The Mediating Role of Knowledge Hoarding

Abstract

In the most recent times, due to the worldwide pandemic situation, business organizations are confronting with different work environments, and working in the organizations is different from the previous time. Nowadays, the demand for adaptive workers has augmented, and it is compulsory for employees to adapt well to the modifications. In this rapidly changing and volatile work environment, the current research investigates the impact of structural empowerment (SE) and employee engagement (EE) on employee adaptive performance (AP). This study aims to have an empirical investigation of the mediating role of knowledge hoarding on adaptive performance in the dominant context of engaged and empowered employees. The purpose of this research is to test a theoretical model linking employee engagement and workplace empowerment to the employees’ adaptive performance through a mediation mechanism of knowledge hoarding in the growing environment of the services sector of Pakistan. The proposed theoretical model suggests that fear and anxiety mediate the relationship between project uncertainties and the use of improvisation as an adaptive response to uncertainties. Trait positive affect may strengthen this relationship, since individuals high in this trait might manage their emotions in a way that will lead to higher improvisation levels with impact on innovation. This study will also empirically investigate the moderating role of experimental culture, availability of real time information and communication as well as team work quality and expertise in project teams between improvisation and innovation.  Descriptive, correlation and regression analyses were run to analyze the data. Tools of ADANCO 2.2.1 and SPSS 23 were applied to perform data analysis. To measure and explain the proposed model, well-established scales are adopted. The outcomes of this research study show that structural empowerment (SE) and EE statistically impact adaptive performance (AP) and improve it.  However, EE and SE incline to undermine KH.