The mediating role of informal learning on work engagement: older workers in the US public sector

2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Osaretin Uhunoma ◽  
Doo Hun Lim ◽  
Woocheol Kim
Keyword(s):  
Organizational Culture ◽  
Informal Learning ◽  
Work Engagement ◽  
Older Workers ◽  
Organizational Level ◽  
Organizational Setting ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Older Employees ◽  
The Impact

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine the mediating relationship between organizational culture, informal learning and work engagement of older workers in a public organizational setting. More specifically, this study aimed to investigate if informal learning is a pivotal component connecting an organizational-level factor (culture) to work engagement, which, in turn, directly influences business performance in the workplace. Design/methodology/approach After a careful review of the selected and relevant literature, four hypotheses were developed to test the structural relationships between the selected variables. Findings The data analysis indicated that informal learning mediated the relationship between organizational culture and work engagement for older employees working in a public organizational setting. Practical implications The findings from this study provide a solid justification for promoting informal learning in organizations to ensure knowledge transfer between younger and older generations while minimizing knowledge and financial loss for organizations. Originality/value In previous research, little emphasis has been placed on the impact of informal learning on work engagement. This study presents a valuable finding about the role of informal learning to facilitate work engagement for older workers.

Informal learning and work engagement among older workers

2022 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Informal Learning ◽  
Work Engagement ◽  
Older Workers ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Older Employees ◽  
Younger Workers ◽  
Firm Success ◽  
Key Skills ◽  
Pertinent Information

Purpose Transfer of key skills and knowledge between older and younger workers remains vital for ongoing firm success. The effectiveness of this process can be increased when organizations provide opportunities for informal learning that serve to heighten levels of work engagement among older employees. Design/methodology/approach This briefing is prepared by an independent writer who adds their own impartial comments and places the articles in context. Findings Transfer of key skills and knowledge between older and younger workers remains vital for ongoing firm success. The effectiveness of this process can be increased when organizations provide opportunities for informal learning that serve to heighten levels of work engagement among older employees. Originality/value The briefing saves busy executives and researchers’ hours of reading time by selecting only the very best, most pertinent information and presenting it in a condensed and easy-to-digest format.

Informal learning, work engagement and their effects on work-family enrichment

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Mansi Rastogi ◽  
Osman M. Karatepe
Keyword(s):  
Informal Learning ◽  
Work Engagement ◽  
Structural Equation ◽  
Equation Modeling ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Hotel Employees ◽  
Work Family ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Work Family Enrichment ◽  
Family Enrichment

PurposeDrawing from work-family enrichment (WFE) model and path-goal theory of motivation, this paper proposes and tests work engagement (WE) as a mediator between informal learning and WFE.Design/methodology/approachQuestionnaires measuring informal learning, WE and WFE were filled out by 290 hotel employees in India. The abovementioned linkages were tested via structural equation modeling.FindingsThe findings suggest that hotel employees' informal learning fosters their WE and WFE. The findings also reveal that WE partly mediates the impact of informal learning on WFE.Originality/valueMost of employees' learning efforts in the workplace emerge from informal learning. However, there is still limited information whether employees' informal learning activates their WE, which is a timely and significant topic. Importantly, there is a paucity of evidence appertaining to the effect of informal learning on WFE, which is underrepresented in the current literature. Evidence about the mechanism linking informal learning to WFE is also sparse.

Work-family enrichment and well-being: the role of occupational future time perspective

2018 ◽  
Vol 23 (6/7) ◽  
pp. 542-556 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hélène Henry ◽  
Donatienne Desmette
Keyword(s):  
Emotional Exhaustion ◽  
Work Engagement ◽  
Older Workers ◽  
Time Perspective ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Future Time Perspective ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Work Family ◽  
The Relationship

Purpose In the context of workforce aging, the purpose of this paper is to investigate the mediating role of occupational future time perspective (OFTP) in the relationship between work–family enrichment (WF-E) and two well-being outcomes (i.e. work engagement and emotional exhaustion). In addition, the moderating role of age on the relationship between WF-E and OFTP, and consequently, on the indirect effects of WF-E on work engagement and emotional exhaustion through OFTP, will be examined. Design/methodology/approach Cross-sectional survey research (n=263) was conducted in a public sector company in Belgium. Structural equation modeling and bootstrap analyses were performed to investigate the hypothesized relationships. Findings The dimension “remaining opportunities” of OFTP mediated the positive relationship between WFE and work engagement, and the negative relationship between WFE and emotional exhaustion. Chronological age moderated the positive relationship between WFE and the dimension “remaining time” of OFTP, with stronger effects among older workers. Research limitations/implications This research has confirmed that OFTP is influenced by WFE and that WFE matters, especially for older workers. Future research should continue to study the effects of the work–family interface on older workers. Practical implications Age management practices should take WFE into consideration when managing an aging workforce. In particular, older workers may benefit from WFE to increase their perception of remaining opportunities at work, which, in turn, increase well-being. Originality/value This study contributes evidence for the role of personal resources (i.e. remaining opportunities) in the relationship between WF-E and well-being at work.

The role of organizational justice in the customer orientation–performance relationship

2020 ◽  
Vol 33 (2) ◽  
pp. 277-297
Author(s):  
Francisco Trincado-Munoz ◽  
Leslier Valenzuela-Fernández ◽  
Melany Hebles
Keyword(s):  
Organizational Justice ◽  
Work Engagement ◽  
Structural Equation ◽  
Customer Orientation ◽  
Perceived Fairness ◽  
Content Type ◽  
And Performance ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The Relationship

PurposeWhile companies have increasingly encouraged employees to adopt a customer orientation, less attention has been given to the impact that customer orientation has on employees' job outcomes and performance. Previous research has used job demands-resource theory (JD-R) and proposed several mechanisms through which customer orientation influences performance, yet the intervening variables in the process have shown inconsistent results. The purpose of this paper is to investigate the contextual role of organizational justice on the relationship between customer orientation and performance through work engagement. In this way, offering more understanding of the contingent effects that intervene in the customer orientation–performance relationship.Design/methodology/approachUsing a structural equation model (SEM) in a sample of 249 marketing, sales and management managers in Chilean companies, this paper tested different hypotheses concerning the role of work engagement, organizational justice and customer orientation in relation to perceived performance.FindingsThis study informs that organizational justice (procedural and distributive justice) moderates the relationship between customer orientation and performance through work engagement. Precisely, the findings reveal that at lower values of organizational justice, changes in customer orientation negatively influence work engagement and in turn performance.Originality/valueThe results contribute to strengthening customer orientation theory by integrating a contextual variable often omitted: organizational justice. By exploring the moderation effect of organizational justice on customer orientation, this paper reveals contingent effects of employees' perceived fairness on the organization in the relationship between customer orientation and performance through work engagement. The findings encourage managers to look after employees' perceived organizational justice when they implement customer-oriented approaches, in particular, of those employees who work in the frontline sales and service positions.

New ICTs for Knowledge Management in Organizations

2016 ◽  
Vol 20 (3) ◽  
pp. 417-422 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pedro Soto-Acosta ◽  
Juan-Gabriel Cegarra-Navarro
Keyword(s):  
Knowledge Management ◽  
Information And Communication Technologies ◽  
Intellectual Capital ◽  
Collective Intelligence ◽  
Organizational Level ◽  
Special Issue ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Academic Knowledge ◽  
The Impact

Purpose The purpose of this special issue is to point out the possibilities of new information and communication technologies (ICTs) for knowledge management (KM) in organizations, offering different perspectives on and approaches for the role of new ICTs for KM, as well as measuring the impact and diffusion of new ICTs for KM within organizations. Design/methodology/approach The selection of the papers included in this special issue is largely based on the work of the conference “7th European Conference on Intellectual Capital - ECIC” (April 2015, Cartagena, Spain), where the special issue editors organized a track on “New ICTs for Knowledge Management in Organizations”. The conference gathered leading scholars in the fields of intellectual capital and KM, dealing with the acquisition, creation and sharing of collective intelligence and how to utilize increased academic knowledge and networking in promoting economic and organizational innovations and changes. Findings The collection of papers covered in this special issue identifies challenging problems on the role of new ICTs for KM and their role in the design and implementation of innovative products, services or processes in organizations. Research limitations/implications The special issue tries to offer some new relevant advances for the academic and practice communities in the growing body of research analyzing new ICTs for KM. However, the theoretical and empirical advances showed represent only a partial view, which corresponds to the impact of new ICTs for KM at the organizational level of analysis. Practical implications The nature of new ICTs, such as social networking tools, wikis, internal blogging and the way they are used, suggest that nowadays they may differ from traditional organizational systems in two critical ways: the voluntary (typically not mandatory) use and their lack of activity or process orientation. Originality/value The special issue explores the phenomena by integrating different perspectives and approaches, including qualitative and quantitative empirical. This integration overcomes some limitations about the understanding of the issues under investigation.

scholarly journals Strategic improvisation and HEIs performance: the moderating role of organizational culture

2018 ◽  
Vol 2 (3) ◽  
pp. 212-230 ◽  
Author(s):  
Najafi Auwalu Ibrahim ◽  
Rosli Mahmood ◽  
Muhammad Shukri Bakar
Keyword(s):  
Organizational Culture ◽  
Organizational Factors ◽  
Individual Characteristics ◽  
Academic Leaders ◽  
Inconsistent Result ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Future Studies ◽  
The Difference ◽  
The Impact

PurposeThis study aims to explore the relationships between strategic improvisation, organizational culture and higher education institutions (HEIs) performance. The dynamic nature of today’s environment, increased population and demand and budget cuts have created a lot of pressure on HEIs around the world. Hence, the need for effective human resource capable of providing advanced policies for efficiency and sustainability of these institutions.Design/methodology/approachA total of 229 questionnaires were filled and returned by academic leaders from HEIs in Kano state, Nigeria. The study used partial least squares path modelling to test the hypotheses postulated.FindingsThe major findings indicate that both strategic improvisation and organizational culture dimensions have direct relationship with HEIs performance. However, only innovative culture moderates the relationship between strategic improvisation and HEIs, while bureaucratic culture and supportive culture fail to support the proposed hypothesis.Research limitations/implicationsMore studies are needed to further validate the impact of strategic improvisation (SI) on other public sector performance. Also, future studies should use longitudinal approach to establish at which stage SI has more impact on performance. Also, future studies should identify the difference that exists between units, department and faculty leaders, as some are more likely to engage in SI due to the nature of their specialization.Practical implicationsIt is obvious that HEIs performance is not only limited to organizational factors but also individual characteristics such as ability to improvise. Hence, HEIs should consider SI ability during employment to ensure efficiency, performance and sustainability. Moreover, organizational culture of HEIs needs to be updated and to be more flexible in accommodating new initiatives or failure to encourage display of such ability.Originality/valuePrevious studies especially in the for profit sector have demonstrated the role of SI and organizational culture on performance. Thus, the present study is one of the early studies in the non-profit sector, specifically the HEIs. Moreover, the inconsistent result of the previous findings necessitates the study to test the moderating effect of organizational culture.

Assessing the impact of organizational culture on achieving business excellence with a moderating role of ICT

2019 ◽  
Vol 26 (1) ◽  
pp. 117-146 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rassel Kassem ◽  
Mian Ajmal ◽  
Angappa Gunasekaran ◽  
Petri Helo
Keyword(s):  
Organizational Culture ◽  
Positive Role ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Ict Use ◽  
Business Results ◽  
Business Excellence ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Moderating Role

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to discover the impact of different dimensions of organizational culture (mission culture, adaptability culture, involvement culture and consistency culture) on business excellence results criteria (customer results, people results, society results and business results) in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and explore the moderating role of information and communication technology (ICT) use in both service and manufacturing industries.Design/methodology/approachData were collected by questionnaire from 448 managers in nine companies that have won the Sheikh Khalifa Excellence Award in the last three years. Structural equation modeling was used to examine the data.FindingsOrganizational culture is significantly related to business excellence. However, these effects varied for different business excellence criteria. Three organizational culture types had a significant positive role in achieving excellent customer-related results. All four types of organizational culture had a positive role in achieving excellent people-related results. Only two culture types had significant role in achieving excellent society-related results. Business results were positively related to a balance between the four types of organizational culture. ICT use moderated the relationship between organizational culture and results related to customers, people and business, but not society.Research limitations/implicationsThis study had some conceptual limitations. In particular, it considered the organizational culture as four types in the research model, but without structuring the indices under each type. It also had some methodological limitations. It was cross-sectional and used a self-administered questionnaire, which means that no causal relationships can be implied, and there may have been some bias in responding.Originality/valueThis is one of the first studies that investigate the relationship between organizational culture and business excellence in UAE excellence award-winning companies.

Testing a dynamic model of the impact of psychological capital on work engagement and job performance

2018 ◽  
Vol 23 (1) ◽  
pp. 33-47 ◽  
Author(s):  
Guido Alessandri ◽  
Chiara Consiglio ◽  
Fred Luthans ◽  
Laura Borgogni
Keyword(s):  
Job Performance ◽  
Work Engagement ◽  
Psychological Capital ◽  
Equation Modeling ◽  
Dynamic Nature ◽  
Content Type ◽  
And Performance ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Over Time

Purpose Psychological Capital (PsyCap), consisting of hope, efficacy, resilience, and optimism, is a positive state associated with attitudes, behaviors and performance. The purpose of this paper is to investigate a dynamic mediational model posing work engagement as the mediator of the longitudinal relation between PsyCap and job performance. Design/methodology/approach Data came from all white collar employees who responded to this study’s variables (n=420) from a comprehensive data set drawn from a large communications service company over two consecutive years. Job performance was rated at the end of each year by the direct supervisor as part of the organizational appraisal system. Findings Structural equation modeling analysis found that both absolute levels and increases in PsyCap predicted subsequent work engagement increases which in turn predicted job performance increases. Moreover, the mediating role of the changes in work engagement between previous PsyCap and performance change was confirmed over time. Research limitations/implications There is much to gain in conceptualizing the relations among PsyCap, work engagement and job performance as dynamic, rather than static. The results support the conservation of resources theory, in which employees are motivated to acquire, protect and foster their valued (psychological) resources to attain successful performance outcomes, in order to create a gain cycle of resources (Salanova et al., 2010). Moreover, it provide further empirical validation for the idea that processes, like work engagement, are sustained by personal resources, and that these latter exerts mostly an indirect effect on organizational behavior outcomes (Xanthopoulou et al., 2009b). Practical implications These results are important from a practical point of view, because they point to the importance of training interventions aimed at developing and sustaining PsyCap as an important determinant of workers’ motivation and behavior within the organization. Considerable literature offers practical insights and guidelines for developing PsyCap (Luthans et al., 2006, 2015; Luthans and Youssef-Morgan, 2017). Originality/value Despite the demonstrated state-like, dynamic nature of PsyCap, its relationship with performance has mainly been statically analyzed and the role of possible mediating mechanisms largely ignored. This study begins to fill this research gap by investigating the dynamic nature of PsyCap in relation to work engagement and job performance and whether over time engagement mediates the relationship between PsyCap and job performance.

The impact of age on innovation

2015 ◽  
Vol 38 (4) ◽  
pp. 404-420 ◽  
Author(s):  
Richard A Parsons
Keyword(s):  
Older Workers ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Older Employees ◽  
Human Resource Department ◽  
Age Diversity ◽  
Independent Variable ◽  
The One ◽  
The Individual ◽  
The Cost ◽  
The Impact

Purpose – This paper aims to develop a model of individual innovation based on an employee’s innate propensity to innovate and the specific costs and benefits expected to the individual from the innovation. This model is then used to study the way an employees’ age will impact innovation. Design/methodology/approach – This paper proposes variables which drive an individual’s innovative behavior based on a literature review. This theoretical model is then maximized to show how age drives an employees’ innovation output in three ways. A small survey is used to substantiate the theory. Findings – In this model, the age of the employee becomes an important independent variable with negative elements associated with both the cost and benefit the employee will receive from their innovation efforts. However, age will be positively associated with an employee’s ability to implement and capitalize on their innovation. Practical implications – Firm’s must pay attention to the career life cycle of their employees. The human resource department must take on the task of focusing on delivering the programs needed to support older employees’ particular needs relative to producing innovation. Social implications – As the Western workforce ages, considerations for dealing with older workers and age diversity will become more important. Models such as the one developed in this paper will be important for understanding and managing the changing workforce. Originality/value – This model develops a theory of how age can impact an employee’s innovation in three specific ways that have not previously been addressed in the literature. This model also proposes an explanation for surprising results found in several prior studies.

scholarly journals Employee age and the impact on work engagement

2020 ◽  
Vol 19 (5) ◽  
pp. 209-213
Author(s):  
Stephanie Douglas ◽  
Robin Roberts
Keyword(s):  
Employee Engagement ◽  
Work Engagement ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Older Employees ◽  
Utrecht Work Engagement Scale ◽  
Post Hoc ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Employee Work Engagement ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
One Way Anova

Purpose Employee engagement studies are popular in contemporary research because of the complexity organizations face in nurturing the performance and productivity of multi-generations of workers. The purpose of this paper is to assess association of age and dimensions of work engagement. Design/methodology/approach In total, 181 participants completed the Utrecht Work Engagement Scale (UWES) to measure work engagement including the dimensions of absorption, vigor and dedication as well as demographics. One-way ANOVA and post hoc tests were conducted to examine the relationship between age and work engagement. Findings Employees 50 years of age and older were found to have statistically significant higher work engagement scores than the employees under the age of 50. Statistically significant scores were also found to be higher in absorption and dedication. Originality/value The workforce is aging with older employees becoming larger populations in organizations. Understanding how age influences employee work engagement supports human capital management strategy within organizations. HR professionals can also use the findings to develop targeted employee engagement to leverage the dedication and talents of older employees.

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