Alan M. Saks

Antecedents and consequences of employee engagement

Purpose – Employee engagement has become a hot topic in recent years among consulting firms and in the popular business press. However, employee engagement has rarely been studied in the academic literature and relatively little is known about its antecedents and consequences. The purpose of this study was to test a model of the antecedents and consequences of job and organization engagements based on social exchange theory.Design/methodology/approach – A survey was completed by 102 employees working in a variety of jobs and organizations. The average age was 34 and 60 percent were female. Participants had been in their current job for an average of four years, in their organization an average of five years, and had on average 12 years of work experience. The survey included measures of job and organization engagement as well as the antecedents and consequences of engagement.Findings – Results indicate that there is a meaningful difference between job and organization engagements and that perceived organi...

Is job search related to employment quality? It all depends on the fit

In this longitudinal study on job search, fit perceptions, and employment quality, 113 graduates completed surveys prior to organizational entry and 4 months after entry. Job search behavior and career planning were positively related to pre-entry person-job (P-J) and person-organization (P-O) fit perceptions, and pre-entry P-J fit perceptions mediated the relationship between career planning and postentry P-J fit perceptions. P-J and P-O fit perceptions were positively related to job and organizational attitudes, and pre-entry P-J fit perceptions mediated the relationship between career planning and job attitudes. Further, the relationships between pre-entry fit perceptions and employment quality were mediated by postentry fit perceptions. These results indicate that P-J and P-O fit perceptions play an important role in linking job search to employment quality.

When success breeds failure: The role of self-efficacy in escalating commitment to a losing course of action

The search for individual differences relevant to behavior in escalation situations has met with little success. Continuing the search, this study investigated self-efficacy judgments as a potentially important individual difference in escalating commitment to a losing course of action. Predictions derived from self-efficacy theory suggest that self-percepts of high efficacy would exacerbate the economically irrational escalation bias whereas self-percepts of low efficacy would diminish it. These predictions were consistently supported in this laboratory study where business students responded to decision dilemmas in which funds had been committed to a failing course of action. Theoretical and practical implications of these findings are drawn for the escalation and self-efficacy literatures.

Personal Control in Organizations: A Longitudinal Investigation with Newcomers

Personal control over ones work environment is an important theme in many branches of the social sciences. In the present study, longitudinal field data were used to assess a model of personal control in organizational settings. Business school graduates completed questionnaires prior to graduation and after 4 months (n = 297) and 10 months (n = 231) on the job. The results suggest two distinct responses to perceived personal control. The first implies a proactive orientation where control begets control: self-efficacy was positively associated with control, both variables were positively associated with problem-focused reactance, control and reactance were both negatively related to helplessness, and helplessness was negatively related to work adjustment. The second response to personal control implies a reactive orientation where unmet expectations prompt a sense of futility and withdrawal: control was negatively associated with unmet expectations, and unmet expectations were positively associated with helplessness and negatively associated with work adjustment.

Employee engagement, human resource management practices and competitive advantage

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to argue in support of a model that shows how four key HRM practices focused on engagement influence organizational climate, job demands and job resources, the psychological experiences of safety, meaningfulness and availability at work, employee engagement, and individual, group and organizational performance and competitive advantage. Design/methodology/approach – This conceptual review focuses on the research evidence showing interrelationships between organizational context factors, job factors, individual employee psychological and motivational factors, employee outcomes, organizational outcomes and competitive advantage. The proposed model integrates frameworks that have previously run independently in the HR and engagement literatures. Findings – The authors conclude that HRM practitioners need to move beyond the routine administration of annual engagement surveys and need to embed engagement in HRM policies and practices such personnel selection, socializatio...

Workplace spirituality and employee engagement

Interest in workplace spirituality and employee engagement has increased considerably over the last decade among practitioners and scholars. However, even though both topics focus on the importance of the spirit at work, they have emerged independent of each other with little attention to how they are related. In this paper, I describe how workplace spirituality and employee engagement are related and the implications of workplace spirituality for employee engagement. In particular, I describe the importance of workplace spirituality for meaningfulness at work and for engagement maintenance and generalization. A model of workplace spirituality and employee engagement is presented in which three dimensions of workplace spirituality (transcendence, community, and spiritual values) relate to employee engagement through four psychological conditions (meaningfulness in work, meaningfulness at work, safety, and availability). The paper concludes with a discussion of the implications of the model for research and practice on workplace spirituality and employee engagement.

An Investigation into the Relationship between Training Evaluation and the Transfer of Training

The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between training evaluation and the transfer of training in organizations. We hypothesized that training evaluation frequency will be related to higher rates of transfer because evaluation information can identify weaknesses that lead to improvements in training programs and create greater accountability among stakeholders for training outcomes. The data were obtained from 150 training professionals who were members of a training and development association in Canada. The results indicated that training evaluation frequency is positively related to training transfer. However, among Kirkpatricks four levels of evaluation criteria, only behavior and results criteria were related to higher rates of transfer of training, indicating that the level of evaluation criteria is important for training transfer. These results indicate the importance of organizational-level initiatives such as training evaluation in addition to individual-level practices for facilitating the transfer of training.

Accountability in Training Transfer: Adapting Schlenker’s Model of Responsibility to a Persistent but Solvable Problem

Decades have been spent studying training transfer in organizational environments in recognition of a transfer problem in organizations. Theoretical models of various antecedents, empirical studies of transfer interventions, and studies of best practices have all been advanced to address this continued problem. Yet a solution may not be so elusive. This paper spotlights the crucial role of accountability in solving the transfer problem by applying the theoretical lens of Schlenker ’s pyramid of accountability. A conceptual framework is advanced and implications for future research and practice are discussed. Recommendations for practice include conducting a training transfer accountability audit to determine where and for whom accountability lapses exist in an organization, developing and clearly communicating prescriptions and expectations for training transfer for each stakeholder group, and evaluating training transfer outcomes across training programs.

The relationship between age and job performance evaluations for entry‐level professionals

This study examined the relationship between age and job performance evaluations for newcomers recently hired into entry-level positions in public accounting firms. We predicted and found a negative relationship between age and job performance evaluations. This relationship was eliminated after controlling for undergraduate grade average and prior work experience, operationalized as the number of jobs that a newcomer had previously held. Results are discussed in terms of the possibility of negative age effects in entry-level positions and the potential reasons for such findings.

Getting newcomers engaged: the role of socialization tactics

Purpose – The purpose of this study is to examine the relationship between socialization tactics and newcomer engagement and the mediating role of person‐job (PJ) and person‐organization (PO) fit perceptions, emotions, and self‐efficacy.Design/methodology/approach – A survey was completed by 140 co‐op university students at the end of their work term.Findings – Institutionalized socialization tactics were positively related to PJ and PO fit perceptions, emotions and self‐efficacy, but not newcomer engagement. Socialization tactics were indirectly related to newcomer engagement through PJ fit perceptions, emotions, and self‐efficacy.Research limitations/implications – Socialization tactics might be too broad and general to predict newcomer engagement. Future research should measure more specific socialization practices and job resources.Practical implications – Organizations that want to engage new hires should use social socialization tactics to create positive emotions, develop higher PJ fit perceptions,...