An empirical study on

Employee
Engagement
belal.reza@gmail.com

Syed Belal Reza

[Date]

Contents
I. Chapter ONE: Introduction --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1
II. Chapter TWO: Literature Review ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 7
III. Chapter THREE: Methodology--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 15
IV. Chapter FOUR: Outcomes -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 18
V. Chapter FIVE: Discussion ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 22
VI. Chapter SIX: Analysis and Final Conclusions --------------------------------------------------------------------- 24
VII. Bibliography ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 28
VIII. Appendix ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 30

List of Tables
Table 1 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 17
Table 2 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 19
Table 3 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 19
Table 4 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 20

I. Chapter ONE: Introduction

Even though it has been branded by words such as absorption, vigour and dedication,
to be fully engaged in something basically means that you are deeply enveloped in a positive
state of mind that is fulfilling personally and, more importantly, professionally as well. This
is not something that you can enjoy only temporarily or requires you to be stuck within a
specific category. True engagement is an involving state of mind that revolves around
persistence and pervasiveness. The persistence applies to the continuous attachment that
you have to whatever you are engaged to and the pervasiveness applies to the cognitive
state of mind that you remain in, even though neither of these things have to target any
specific person, place, event or even attitude [Insert-1]. Employees that are completely
engaged in their job and the company that they work for need to go beyond the point of
just being motivated. They need to fully comprehend everything about the vision and goals
of the company what those goals are, the steps that they need to be followed in order to
accomplish those goals and the significance that what they do for the company will play in
the whole scheme of things [Insert-2]. The complete sense of engagement for employees
can only be achieved if a person has a full mental and emotional commitment to that
company as well as the eager spirit to go above and beyond the call of duty when it comes
to assisting their company in meeting their goals [Insert-3]. Over the past few years,
numerous studies and surveys have been conducted and have confirmed that a lot of
executives and business professionals are concerned about the engagement of their
employees. Those same studies have also proven that, with this high level of engagement,
it is quite possible for the overall engagement of their employees to directly result in the
overall success for their company along with exponential increases in their annual revenue
[Insert-3, 4, 5]. Additionally, the staff and personnel of these companies commit themselves
to even enhancing the quality of their overall performance by at least 20% and they are only
close to 10% likely to quit or resign from working there. This increase and maintenance of
their companys retention rate will also generate massive numbers of satisfied customers,
overall productivity and increased profits all because of complete engagement among the
employees [Insert-6, 7].
Within recent years, confirmed studies and surveys that have focused primarily on the
engagement of a companys employees has really started to gain momentum primarily
because of the positive psychological enhancements and the fulfilment of the professional
needs of a company to maximise the impact that they have on the lives and well-being of
their own employees. Why are the positive psychological enhancements so important? In
order for a person to truly have a reason or purpose for living, there has to be a substantial
amount of valued experience, individual traits of a positive nature as well as virtues that are
beneficial for the good of the community [Insert-8]. On the contrary, the professional needs
of a business are driven simply because of the international intensity that evolves from the
competition surrounding their respective industries. This just reinforces the essential
necessity for a companys personnel to be committed to their respective companies on both
a mental as well as an emotional level. A companys target objective to measure their level
of complete engagement within their staff is one of the growing trends in todays world of
business. Why is that the case? Regardless if you believe the results of conducted studies
or reports over the past several years, it is becoming almost impossible to deny the fact that

there is a striking difference between the performances within the workplace of companies
that have a staff filled with highly engaged employees in comparison to the companies that
do not [Insert-9].
Nonetheless, being overly anxious or worried remains a top trend in todays world of
business which is a direct indication of the fact that engagement of employees within
companies overall is drastically declining over time. Employees are becoming more and
more uninvolved and disconnected from their companies in general [Insert-3, 4]. Normally,
these levels of engagement start off on the high note and then gradually will taper and drift
off over the first few years of the employees time working for their respective companies.
Eliminating decline in this area completely is impossible and improbable; there is always
going to be some present in the work environment regardless of how great the company
may be to their employees. However, this inevitability should not deter companies from
actively seeking out opportunities to get their employees engaged again at these very
moments to help minimise that overall decline [Insert-9].
Over 3,800 employees in Bangladesh work for Grameenphone, the multimillion dollar firm
of telecommunication [Insert-13]. This company conducted a survey recently that
discovered one out of every four of their workers is engaged to their company [Insert-13].
How does that compare with the rest of the world? Well, studies have confirmed that the
international average is about one out of every five [Insert-10]. Therefore, the workforce of
Bangladesh is more engaged than any other workforce around the world [Insert-11]. That
same survey also concluded that Bangladeshis are able to identify very closely with the
overall principle of engagement. How so? The reason behind the engagement of close to
70% of them is due to the fact that they believe in the vision of the company and trust in
their abilities and efforts to reach the objectives and goals that they have set out for
themselves. Over 80% have a full understanding how what they do each and every day on
the job contributes to the big picture of their success.
Even though there had been numerous studies conducted on between individual companies
as well as studies that compared the individual departments of individual companies, there
really had never been any verified studies that focused on the continuous engagement of
Bangladeshi employees over an extended period of time. That is the point that many
companies need to realize, as mentioned earlier. The complete engagement of employees
is not something that can happen once or at specific times during the year. A company can
only reap the true benefits of complete engagement if it is continuous throughout the year.
The current study of a companys engagement levels is truly important and plays a
significant role in a companys development, because they have to take the necessary
actions to address the problems and issues discovered through the results of those
confirmed studies. Are the investments that a company makes throughout the year to
improve the morale and enhance the satisfaction of their staff truly worth it? Has there
been any real growth because of those changes? Are the employees now more or less
engaged to the company because of the changes that have been made?
A recent study was conducted between a couple of facilities that specialize in manufacturing
in Bangladesh as well as a centre of administration. Established in the late 1990s, this
company is heavily involved in activities that are related to the distribution of food and

beverages. This company is also infamously known for bragging about their great things
come in small packages workforce, consisting of not more than a thousand employees. In
the year of 2010, the decision was made by the executives of this company to take the
journey of assessing the overall engagement levels of their employees over the course of
the following two years.

Definitions
The primary factors that characterize most people revolve around the concept of building
and retaining the solid foundation of the commitment to doing a great job. Built upon that
foundation are other significant elements, such as an employees desire to do a great job as
well as their abundance of energy when it comes to doing that job. Millions of employees
around the globe strive to enjoy that amazing feeling that you normally get in the pit of your
stomach on your first day of work but disappear shortly thereafter and are never heard
from again. These steps lead to the main goal of maximizing overall performance on an
individual basis as well as the organisation in general.
Business owners, managers and other executives need to realize that their employees play
the most significant role in the achievement of success in their industry. Therefore, they are
able to capitalize on their true potential by ensuring that everything that each of their
employees brings to the table remains at the nucleus of their overall operation. Such things
as capability, commitment, creativity and an overall positive attitude work wonders for the
morale of the entire staff and the productivity of the entire organisation in general. It is
obviously true that a great business strategy and a sufficient amount of capital are also vital
factors to the formula of success. However, the key factor that determines whether a
business will succeed or fail is focused on the behaviour of that companys employees while
they are on the job.
A strategic approach to achieving full engagement of employees on the job allows them to
do their very best while they are on the clock. They are only able to do their very best if
they feel appreciated and respected, as well as they are fully aware of how important their
involvement is to the success of the entire company. An associate of the company that
specializes in home insulation, KHI, once stated that the engagement of a companys
employees occurs the moment of equally shared value the employee is valued by the
business and the business is valued by the employee [Insert-11].
Employees that are fully involved and engaged have been able to inadvertently create a
deeply personal connection with their jobs and the companies that have hired them to do
those jobs. They strive to do their very best and to have successful careers within their
respective companies, which directly results in long-term monetary benefits for both the
company and its staff.
When it comes to results, behaviour and attitude within the rules of engagement, there are
several key differences. An employees attitude gives them the ability to feel pride and
overall loyalty to their company and to their job. They play essential roles within their
departments and are key team players. Their behaviour allows them to go above and
beyond in everything they do, ensuring that they reach their full potential within their

assigned position. As a result, the number of internal conflicts, resignations and

terminations is drastically decreased. This is only achieved, however, when all three of
those key factors are consistently at work, stimulating and reinforcing each other within the
companys efforts to raise the bar of employee engagement. There is a direct correlation
between an employees level of engagement and their level of performance, because it has
been proven that improvements in one area also generate improvements in the other.
Professional engagement was first systematically developed by Kahn, (1990) based on the
binding of an organisations members to their business roles. Once engagement has been
achieved, the employees feel liberated enough to speak freely and exhibit expressions on all
levels mentally, emotionally and even physically. The second construct related to the
levels of engagement in the behaviour of an organisation is viewpoint expressed by
Csikszentmihalyi (1975, 1990). He (1975) once defined this continuous, fluid connection as a
holistic feeling that people experience only when they are totally involved with someone
or something. At this point, the person and his or her environment are completely in sync,
fully united subconsciously as one being.
Therefore, to be fully engaged as an employee means that they are fully involved and
committed to that organisation and everything that is stands for and works toward as a
business. They are fully aware of the context within their business, working side by side
with their fellow employees to make the necessary improvements and adjustments for the
good of the entire company. A two-way connection is required for this binding to be
successful, requiring the organisation to also work at further developing and nurturing the
engaging relationship that it has formed with its employees. An employees engagement is
simply used as the measuring scale that provides the final determination as to whether or
not that employee is truly associated with their company.
Studies have confirmed a close association between the engagement of a companys
employees and the current structure of the term known as job involvement (Brown 1996)
and flow (Csikszentmihalyi, 1990). What exactly is job involvement? It has been defined
as being the degree to which the job situation is central to the person and his or her
identity (Lawler & Hall, 1970). Studies conducted by Kanungo (1982) proved that it can also
be defined as a persons cognitive state of their own psychological identification, which
depends on both the needs that need to be fulfilled and the overall potential of a specific
job to be able to fulfill those needs. From this perspective, it is clear to see that a persons
job is connected to their own self-image. Jobs in this view are tied to ones self-image. An
employees engagement can even be referred to as the precursor for their level of
involvement within their job, because deeply engaged employees easily identify themselves
with what they do for a living.
Kahn referred to the engagement of an employee from the three levels of physicality,
cognition and emotionalism. However, it has been proven that the importance of being
satisfied with a persons line of work is more so directly connected to just the cognitive
level.
Human Resource managers and consultants agree that an employees engagement (or lack
thereof) within a company correlates with how they feel about their overall experience

working with the company and how they feel they are being treated. Therefore, emotions
are key elements that play an important role when it comes to the bottom-line victories
won within a company. No matter what the Human Resources or management
departments may do to increase employee satisfaction, there is always going to be the
group of people that never give their best. There is no way around that, regardless of the
company or the industry. However, most employees have the strong desire to commit
themselves to organisations in order to satisfy the empowering yet basic need to be an
important part of something that is important.

Facets of An Employees Engagement

There are three fundamental facets of the complete engagement of employees, according
to the confirmed studies and surveys that have been conducted, initially, the distinctly
unique mental makeup and experiences of each individual employee. Then, the
responsibility of the employers to create conditions that encourage employees to become
engaged and finally, Communication and collaboration between all employees, regardless of
level or department.
The environment conducive to employee engagement has to be created and maintained by
the organisation in order for that organisation to create and maintain success in their
respective industry.

II. Chapter TWO: Literature Review

The superior value of the customer services department within any organisation is the
leading factor of the overall growth and sustenance of their success. Why is that? In order
to build a business filled with the highest quality of employees, you first have to select the
right people for those elite positions. The highly qualified employees then serves the
customers best in the industry. There is an extensive list of documented studies that have
confirmed the usefulness of proper selection tools and systematic approaches when it
comes to the recruitment and hiring of high quality employees (Hunter & Schmidt, 1983;
Huselid, 1995; Schmidt, Hunter, McKenzie, & Muldrow, 1979; Schmidt & Rader, 1999).
Almost immediately after these ones have been hired, they are required to take decisive
action to impact and increase the success of respective companies. After employees have
been selected, they make decisions and take actions every day that impact the success of
their organisations. It is their inner motivates and overall drives that influences them to
make most of those active decisions. Many people believe that the way that employees
treat each other as well as the way that they themselves are treated weighs heavily when it
comes to whether they act positively or negatively towards their company. For instance,
studies have confirmed the existence of relationships connecting service intentions and
customer perceptions with the overall attitudes within the workplace and the resulting
performance rates for the employees as a whole (Schmit & Allscheid, 1995; Iaffaldano &
Muchinsky, 1985). Current analyses report the existence of a solid relationship connecting
an employees performance on the job with how much (or less) they are satisfied with that
particular job (Judge, Thoresen, Bono, & Patton, 2001). Questions about what this means in
the long-term have not completely been answered yet. However, the majority of research
that has been collected in reference to this theory has proven it to be true.
Confirmed studies have also proven that satisfied employees that take pride in the service
that they provide and are oriented with their customers are able to achieve proper
perceptions of the best way to service these customers along with other positive results for
the organisation as a whole (Ostroff, 1992; Reynierse & Harker, 1992; Schneider, 1991;
Schneider, Ashworth, Higgs, & Carr, 1996; Schneider & Bowen, 1992; Schneider, White, &
Paul, 1998; Ulrich, Halbrook, Meder, Stuchlik, & Thorpe, 1991; Wiley, 1991). Years ago, it
was discovered by Mayer and Schoorman (1992) that trust relates negatively with turnover
rates but, on the other, works positively with rates of performance. In addition, there has
been a journal produced by the Gallup Organisation (Gallup) that clearly highlights an
abundance of confirmed case studies that establish the connection between variables of an
employees attitude and the results of their business. The measurable elements of both of
these studies focused on the individual level as well as the overall business.
There is an overabundance of research conducted through social services that focus on
frustration. On the other hand, there is a very limited amount of empirical data on the
engagement of employees (Freeney &Tiernan, 2006). Consulting firms and management
departments are the ones that have compiled the vast majority of this data (Saks, 2006).
The following information provided is related to the compiled data on frustration, focusing
on the evidence proving its detrimental, negative effects and its comparisons to levels of
engagement within a staff of employees. The review will also briefly cover highlighted

points from the studies on engagement as well as those that studied predictive elements for
engagement as well as frustration overall.

Evidential Data on Frustration

The overall connection that people establish between themselves and the complications
that they encounter within their line of work is well known as being an important social
problem that has been widely described as frustration (Maslach et al., 2001). Studies
have confirmed that frustration is accurately considered to be a psychological syndrome,
developing as a direct response to repetitive stressors that a person can experience while on
the job (Maslach et al., 2001). The severe, detrimental effect that frustration can have on
employees has been proven in numerous ways.
Decade ago, Maslach et al. (2001) separated the detrimental consequences of frustration
into two groups one focused on an individuals health and other focused on the
individuals performance on the job. The frustration related to job performance correlates
with an individuals number of absences form the job and the overall increases in the
companys turnover rate. Undoubtedly, studies have proven that increases in staff turnover
create decreases in the business overall finances. The expenses that are invested in the
recruitment, hiring and training of new employees for some businesses can exceed $50,000
per individual (Yoon & Kelly, 2008). A companys productivity and overall effectiveness
decreases with every employee that suffers from burnout and stays employed with that
company.
These frustrated employees also create personal conflicts in the workplace and may disrupt
the work of co-workers. Frustration is not something that can be contained once it has
infected one employee; it is extremely contagious and can easily spread like an epidemic
throughout the staff. Frustration on the job has been proven to affect an individuals life at
home with their families as well. It is also detrimental for a persons health as well,
correlating with several stress-related conditions and diseases such as anxiety, substance
abuse and severe depression (Maslach et al., 2001). Even though frustration has been in
existence for several decades, it is still a huge problem in the workplace today (Ayers, 2006).
These levels are only the rise and do not seem to be decreasing any time soon. A recent
survey that was conducted by the Conference Board in the United States of America proved
that more and more people are not as satisfied (if at all) with their jobs as they were in the
past. For instance, 56% of the people that were surveyed in that study stated they were
satisfied with the vacation policies provided by their respective companies. However, a
decade later, only 51% of that same group were still satisfied. Overall satisfaction with the
physical facilities of their company also declined over that same ten-year period by 4%. The
age or income of an employee did not seem to affect employee satisfaction either way, but
the overall trend was confirmed to be on the decline across the board (Baldwin, 2005). A
recent study of 1,200 US employees discovered that the overall satisfaction scores through
all of the major categories of the professional work environment have declined and the
number of people that responded to this study who felt as if they were engaged at all barely
passed 50% (Frauenhiem, 2006).

It has been proven that employees will start off at a new job fully energized, excited and
engaged as they are fully prepared to embark on this new adventure of employment,
according to a study conducted by Coffman and Gonzalez-Molina (2002). Sadly, though,
that number drops on average during the first half of their first year with the company to
38% and, after a decade, is less than 20%. Since the quality and effectiveness of its staff are
two of the most important elements of an agency that specializes in human services, these
saddening statistics are even more alarming (Ewalt, 1991).
Recently, another issue has arisen that could possibly also be a factor contributing to high
frustration levels. What is that? It is the exponential increase for services that also have a
sufficient decrease in revenues (local and national) that provide programming for those
specific jobs. Therefore, the primary focus and objective of program administrators and
managers has shifted towards effectiveness and efficiency as well as accountability of those
service providers because these factors can drastically increase the presence of stress and
overall dissatisfaction among the employees (Ritchie, Kirche & Rubens, 2006). The
bureaucratic system in which customer service workers operate limits the effectiveness that
an employee can have on their clients life. This system creates an environment that is
more conducive for enhanced control and the organisation of massive numbers of
employees in one specific area. Unfortunately, it also increases the separation of labor
which creates isolation among the employees, fragmentation and the overall
reprogramming of workers (Arches, 1991).
Most of the research conducted on frustration that has been covered already focused on
predecessors and results. It wasnt until recently that researched have begun paying
attention to the other side of the spectrum of frustration the engagement of employees
(Gonzalez-Roma, Schaufeli, Bakker, & Loret, 2004). Current studies are conducted around
the world, searching for comparisons between the positive structure of engagement and the
negativity of frustration overall. It is understood that engagement could create perspectives
on how to eliminate the issue of frustration (Maslach et al., 2001). As long as the issues of
stress and workplace dissatisfaction are addressed, companies will be able to successfully
create an environment for their employees to likely become engaged without many
complications (Freeney & Tiernan, 2006). This process would call for an emphasis on the
prevention of frustration overall as well as the fostering of effectiveness, involvement and
energy enhancements within the workplace (Maslach & Leiter, 1997).
Investigations have been conducted by several researchers to determine whether or not
staff engagement is the absolute opposite factor of frustration (Maslach et al., 2001,
Schaufeli & Bakker, 2004, Gonzalez-Roma, et al. 2004, Freeney & Tiernan, 2006). At this
point in time, their research supports that theory (Freeney & Tiernan, 2006). The core
elements of frustration are such things as cynicism, exhaustion and inefficacy overall, which
are direct opposites of the vigor, absorption and dedication associated with engagement
(Gonzalez-Roma et al. 2006). These polar opposites also have different predictors and
resulting consequences as well (Schaufli & Bakker, 2004).
Frustration was compared with disengagement by Kahn (1990) and the conclusion was
reached that the employees that withdraw from their job mentally, emotionally and
physically are the ones that are disengaged and suffer from frustration (Freeney & Tiernan,

2006). A significant difference between the two conditions is that frustration focuses
particularly on the demands of a job. On the contrary, engagement is displayed through
employment resources as job control, easy accessibility to needed materials, the job
resources such as job control, the attainability of educational opportunities, overall
involvement in the decision-making procedure, positive fortification, and backing from
colleagues (Freeney & Tiernan, 2006).
Frustration profiles were conducted by Maslach and Leiter (1997) with the staff of a couple
of hospital units. Employees from one of the units showed typical profiles, proven by their
unfavorable scores across the board. On the other hand, the other hospital unit scored
favorably in those areas including control, overall value and workload. Towards the top of
the list of the fascinating discovers of those researchers was the fact that the patients of
those units that had engaged staff members were much more satisfied with the level of
overall care that they were receiving in contrast to those treated by the burnt out staff from
the other unit (Maslach & Leiter, 1997).
The unquestionable link, then, between engagement and frustration conditions have been
proven by the results of research conducted recently. An employee that is clearly engaged
will not become frustrated; however, this does not necessarily mean that an employee that
is not frustrated is also engaged (Freeney & Tiernan, 2006). The research that has been
conducted on the comparisons between engagement and frustration have contributed
greatly to this field overall and should not be stopped any time soon. However, the overall
perspective needs to be broadened from just focusing on the human services field and
related occupations.

Past Research of Employee Engagement

The most understandable study of the engagement of employees was developed through
the Gallup Organisation when they used the Q12 instrument. For over half of a century,
their poll has questioned customers as well as employees on an abundance of different
topics related to the workplace. The main attempt for this survey was to discover how
satisfied people are within their jobs. It focused on the degree of which the needs of
employees are being addressed and studied further the emotional connections that exist
with their employment. Results of this research proved that top scoring employees on
employment engagement have a 56% higher rate of success when it comes to customer
loyalty, 44% higher rate when it comes to staff turnover, a 50% higher rate when it comes to
productivity results and over a third higher rate on the resulting profitability.
The Q12 instrument consists of items that have been proven to rely on the influence of the
manager. According to the results from that survey, space for practical change is permitted.
Over time, consultants from Gallup have been able to teach managers and have worked
with companies to establish strategic approaches to necessary changes. The companies
studied scored one-half standard deviation (and sometimes one full standard deviation)
higher when it came to their employee engagement in the interim period between the first
two years of implementing those changes. Evidence that has presently been gathered from
these studies have reflected that the engagement of employees is somewhat influenced by

the manager, can be modified and can also vary extensively from one work environment to
another (Coffman & Gonzalez-Molina, 2002).
Through his research, Kahn wanted to find a way to identify the conditions that a person
must go through psychologically in order to explain momentary experiences of personal
engagement (or even disengagement) depending on various situations that may arise at
work (Kahn, 1990). Using observational methods and effective interviewing techniques, he
conducted a study on personal engagement among 16 members of a firm and 16 camp
counselors. From his findings, he concluded that people have a choice to make in their
respective lines of work. They can draw from within to different degrees at work while
committing themselves in all possible ways to the various roles that they have to perform
throughout the day. Or, they can withdraw and completely disconnect themselves from
their roles and assigned tasks. The results of his study prove that the meaningfulness,
availability and safety are key psychological conditions that will determine how an individual
will perform his or her role within the workplace. The identification of these conditions
provides a solid foundation and structure for the studies being conducted on employee
engagement.
The state of overall meaningfulness has been described by Kahn (1990) as a condition that
allows an employee to feel truly valuable and useful, knowing that what they are doing
every day on the job is makes a difference and is appreciated by upper management. In
this context, the attribute of safety can be defined as conditions within an environment that
allow people to act normally without the fear of negative results or detrimental
consequences. It is discovered in scenarios within the workplace that workers believe they
will not suffer by being engaged to their work. Kahn (1990) once defined the attribute of
availability as possessing the means necessary to be engaged with your job at any given
moment. Kahns model does recognize the fact that life outside of the workplace as well as
internal coping mechanisms can have a significant impact on an employments engagement
(or lack thereof) to their job. His work (1990) also determined that employees have
proportions of themselves that are personally preferred and expressed within their
performance on the job. If a match could be made between those preferable actions and
the mental conditions present within the workplace, they will be able to successfully engage
themselves with the job (Kahn, 1990).
A field study was conducted several years ago on an insurance agency in the Midwest. May,
Gibson and Harter (2004) used a format for their survey that thoroughly examined the
reasons behind some employees becoming engaged while others became alienated or
disconnected all together. Their results proved that simple job satisfaction is definitely not
the same as true employee engagement. Actual engagement requires active emotions and
cognitive behaviours. Their studies actually supported Kahns earlier findings that value and
safety were direct links to how much an employee chose to personally invest into their roles
in the workplace. A positive relationship was also found between meaningfulness and job
enrichment with a perfect role fit. The support provided by a great supervisor or manager
and positive relationships with co-workers are also related directly to the psychological
safety that is experienced in the workplace.

An analysis of past studies focused on the engagement of employees was conducted several
years ago by the Gallup Organisation, according to Harter, Schmidt, and Hayes (2002). The
relationship between the satisfaction and engagement of employees was thoroughly
examined along with the professional results of customer service and satisfaction, profit,
turnover, accidents and productivity overall. It was also noted by Harter et al. (2002) that
the active quality of those measured elements provides definition for the engagement of
employees in general. Therefore, complete engagement is directly related to valued results
and many of the primary concerns of engagement. Top scoring businesses when it came to
engagement also provided proof of decreased turnover rates in their respective companies
(Harter et al., 2002).
Over 14,000 employees from multiple occupations were interviewed in a cross study
conducted all around the authors country by Schaufeli, Bakker, and Salanova (2006). They
used a systematic questionnaire that provided an accurate measurement of engagement
levels within the workplace. Their research proved that engagement was directly connected
to such qualities as vigor and dedication, as mentioned earlier. The only similarity that was
determined between frustration and engagement is the fact that it is a stable condition that
slightly increases over time (Schaufeli et al., 2006).
Over 100 employees from different industries were surveyed by Saks (2006) in a study that
was structured around a model that tested the precursors and consequences of
engagement both on a job level as well as on an organisational level. Saks (2006) concluded
that, on an organisational level, the engagement consisted of a persons attachment and
attitude towards their respective company. On the other hand, employee engagement
focused more on how much (or less) the employee was actually absorbed within their own
job role. The study also determined that resources on the job are the top predictor of all of
the different dimensions of engagement that have been studied and are specifically
important to workers involved in working conditions that are extremely stressful (Bakker et
al., 2007).

Forecasters of Frustration and Engagement

Researchers today have barely touched the surface of explorations when it comes to the
phenomenon of engagement in the workplace. However, the studies that have been
conducted to examine the correlations between the engagement of employees and their
frustration prove that they are related only by being at opposite ends of the same spectrum.
The only way that you can truly comprehend or determine predictive factors of engagement
would be to examine the factors that are directly linked to frustration and work towards the
opposite end in order to achieve true engagement.
Some researchers have tried to determine if the setting has any significance when it comes
to these conditions, whether it should be suburban or urban. Rholand (2000) focused on
directors of several mental health centres in Iowa to determine if they had higher levels of
frustration, purposing that the conditions experienced in suburban areas would be much
different than those experience in urban settings. The results of that study proved that the
setting (whether suburban or urban) really does not have much significance in this regard.

Recently, a similar study was conducted by Sprang, Clark & Whitt-Woosley (2007) when they
tried to examine the relationship between frustration and the location of the practice. Their
studies provide that suburban areas do produce a higher number of frustrated employees
than urban areas. It proposed that these increases could be due to the various elements
associated with suburban practices that do not affect urban ones such as the shortages of
available health professionals, the limited availability of resources, demanding workloads
and their overall geographical isolation. Their studies clearly showed that isolation could be
a serious issue for social workers assigned to suburban areas.
According to their findings, problems that arise in urban areas are usually noticeable by the
public and other professionals within the industry. However, problems within the suburban
community mostly fly under the radar until a natural disaster or public crisis that draws a lot
of media exposure occurs. This overall neglect can cause social workers in suburban areas
feeling isolated and less important than their colleagues I urban areas. The findings from
this research also noted key problems, including professional isolation (Waltman, 1990;
Watt & Kelly, 1996), decreased accessibility to formalized resources (Davenport &
Davenport, 1982), privacy and nondisclosure issues as well as complications dealing with
transportation (Ginsberg, 1998) have also been recorded.
The results of the frustration studies previously conduct might have some differences. A
large amount agrees there are negative key components in suburban agencies practice
settings that have possible effects on the levels of frustration. Moving forward form this
hypothesis the suburban workers might become less involved in the work they have to do.
The site that was used to test the study was in an area of the mid-western part of the state
that had the same population as the study that was already being conducted. The areas
included in the areas tested were highly urban, office locations in regards to how involved
the population included areas in the South Asian region ranging from very suburban to
highly urban areas including business locations that will examine how involved this
particular key component is to for this population.
Additional factors of include how much work experience an individual has and how it relates
to frustration. These factors were also examined. Even though some studies show that
frustration happens when people are new to job, other studies show no connection at all.
Studies conducted play a very important role in learning about frustration. Some studies on
frustration agree that individuals with less years of service are likely to report higher levels
of frustration; the opposite is thought to be true of engagement. While some studies on
frustration agree that individuals with less years of service are likely to report higher levels
of frustration, the opposite is thought to be true of engagement. Coffman and GonzalezMolina (2002) In a different study, Schwartz, Tiamiyu and Dwyer (2007) sampled 1,200
social workers to find out if social work clinicians decline in hope or exhibit increased
frustration over the course of their careers. Research shows a lower frustration rate in
recent years in private practices. Public practices however do not have the same results.
There has been no foreseeable evidence change in public settings. Some factors were not
fully looked into, such as employees with multiple years of service that have scores that do
not get better but gradually get worse. Also employees have the tendency to drop off in six
months or less or the drop off that happens within ten years of employment

Additional examination of the data gathered shows that gender also might play a part in the
frustration of human service workers .In a study Turkish study of school counselors
conducted by Yildirim (2008) results showed that levels of frustration did not differ
significantly between males and females. There is a difference in the actual data in some of
the research gathered in several of the studies however the research offers that females are
more vulnerable to stress and, therefore, tend to report higher levels of frustration than do
their male counterparts. (Sprang, Clark, & Whitt-Woosley, 2007). Despite this research
other studies showed that there might possibly be a higher frustration rate among male
employees. Yet another source, the Schaufeli, Bakker, and Salanova study (2006), showed
that the Belgian, German, Finnish, and Norwegian men scored slightly higher on the three
engagement dimensions than did women in the study. The verdict is still out because the
research supports both sides. The tools that were used in the study will be compared on
how involved each gender is engaged. The agency staff is the source of influence to how
much their employees are involved. A good team reflects good leadership. Employees tend
to reflect or imitate the characteristics of their leaders; it may be difficult for them to
engage if the leaders of the organisation do not demonstrate positive behaviours associated
with engagement (Kerfoot, 2008). The discoveries found in this study will seek to help the
agencies understand their supporting staff and the leaders and managers they employee.

III. Chapter THREE: Methodology

The Involved Parties
In order to properly oversee how employees respond in this kind of setting, an Internet
study in August 2012 was taken. The group was 306 employees that were employed in
Grameenphone. This particular telecommunication organisation is in Bangladesh. The
author had the approval from the UK university and got the designated access to
Grameenphone to conduct the survey over Internet. With this approval each employee
received written approval to participate in the study. Each of the employees was even
urged to take part in the study by allowing them to take this survey during the operating
hours of the business. No one was excluded from the survey taking process. The written
consent was given by each individual employee. This meant each employee was aware and
wanted to take part in the study by survey. Once each employee agreed to take the survey
they were sent an Internet link via email attachment. Next the employee would be able to
answers the questions of the survey on a secure website. At the beginning the employees
were asked for some demographic information too.

The Tools Involved

Because the research and human resource teams are able to have access to large amounts
of information with very little overhead, they are gaining popularity. These kinds of Internet
surveys are essential because they are allowing companies to expend less time, money,
effort and manpower. Additionally, web surveys allow data to be collected and downloaded
into statistical software without additional data entry (Witt, 1998). No matter how much
detail is put into these kinds of surveys there is a wealth of other information on the
Internet that can be misleading. Participants may tune out the survey or base their
responses on the visual effect and entertainment value of the instrument (Couper, 2000).
Additionally, research shows that web surveys fail to meet the response rates of traditional
mail surveys (Couper, 2000).
There are tools that can be used if this is the type of study that has been chosen in any
particular business. A tool known as The Google Docs is one such way to maximise this type
of Internet technology. Host sites like these can be more cost effective because they allow
subscribers to use free and tend to be user-friendly. For example, the ease of email
correspondence will allow the professional to receive the answers as soon as the survey
study is taken. The results were delivered in aggregate and anonymous form and the data
remained private but could be shared with others given the researchers consent (Survey
Monkey, 2008).
Even though there still are some drawbacks to this kind of Internet research it still remains
popular. Employees Internet Studies by survey are conducted to see how the human
services department can use the information that they are receiving as a tool to better
understand their future employee. By using Employee Internet Studies, information that
was important but that was missed was able to be gathered with the consent of the
employees to the human services department.

Taking note of all the information given it is important to weigh the benefits and drawbacks
of this kind of Internet based study by survey accordingly. Is using the Internet to examine
empirical research enough? Is there enough information to properly conduct a controlled
study? These questions are important to review.
An Internet-based study entitled Employee Engagement Survey was pioneered and
created, for a number of employees with similar characteristics. This Employment
Engagement Survey was originally designed for the inclusion of employees who were
already working with the company. Items were first gathered by reviewing the Gallup
Organisations 12-question instrument designed to measure employee engagement
(Thackray, 2001). Gallup conducted numerous focus groups and completed thousands of
interviews with workers in order to identify the key areas that measure engagement. Having
been used with approximately 1.5 million employees, Gallups tool makes an ideal
instrument from which to model the survey questions for this study (Thackray, 2001).
Another tool that can be useful research is found at http://www.decwise.com/employeesurveys.html. This site is imperative because it reviews and compares the actions and
performance of employees and can help management teams to form a model for what they
want for future employee relations. Another source that is a wealth of information is the
Decisionwise Employee Engagement Survey. By reviewing the, Are We Making Progress
questionnaire professional agencies can take the experience studies already given to help
them in developing their own model for the survey they want to offer.
(http://www.baldrige.nist.gov/PDF_files/Progress.pdf).
The major factor in making a blueprint for the original survey was to consider what
questions would really grab the attention of the employee. This model proposes that in
order for individuals to fully engage with their jobs, the three psychological conditions of
meaningfulness, safety, and availability must be met in the work environment (Kahn, 1990).
The questions are asked in a very strategic way. Each of grouped questions has a specific
meaning, initially, the organisations leadership and planning, then, the organisations
corporate culture and communications. About the employees, their role at this organisation,
their work environment, relationship with your immediate supervisor and friends, rewired
training and development, satisfaction factors, career forecasting.
The next major factor involved in the development of the original survey was to create some
questions focused on the psychological aspect. Another major proposition of the
engagement model is that the three key psychological conditions are to some degree within
the control of the management of a given agency (Coffman & Gonzalez-Molina, 2002).
These types of questions engage the employee to see how they would handle themselves in
situations that are controlled by management. It allows one to see how a person would use
their mind to properly think their way through situations where they might be agitated by
management or by fellow employees. Employees were asked several questions including
the targeted nine questions hidden in the questionnaire without directly asking them
specifically.
After a surface blueprint was completed the survey was tested on several professionals in
the field customer service teams or units. The selection of these individuals was not at

random. They were carefully selected based on their experience in their given fields of
customer services. These professionals included several key members of the customer
service team such as the Manager, a number of existing workers, and Specialists. Having
information from these valued individuals solidified that the information chosen was
correct. The validity of the research was again tested with a pilot study in July 2012. The
seven question study was done to form the blueprint for this survey created a study that
could utilized for an official format and was used as a tool for some 306 customer service
staff members. These questions tested to discover what the satisfaction level and
engagement of the staffs. Cronbachs Alpha is used to determine if all the items within the
instrument measure the same thing. The closer the alpha is to 1.00, the greater the internal
consistency of the items being measured (George & Mallery, 2006). The marker of an
acceptable reliability coefficient is generally 0.7. However, even lower thresholds are
sometimes reported in the literature (Nunnaly, 1978). The given evidence shows that the
Cronbachs score of .773 is solid proof that the study works. The only question that added
any weight to the results was the question regarding having friends and work. Even
removing that specific question still met the requirements to be suitable in the study.
Table 1
Reliability Measure of Pilot Study Data

Recognition of Job
Concerned Supervisor
Mission of Org
Work Friends
Employee Inputs
Training and Equipment
Coworker Cooperation

Cronbachs
Alpha
.773
If Removed,
Scale Mean

N of Items
7
If Removed,
Scale Variance

27.81
27.21
27.19
26.72
27.59
27.29
27.11

16.539
17.126
19.266
22.365
15.812
18.219
21.855

Correlation
Correlated
Items
.675
.658
.531
.216
.575
.372
.386

If Removed,
Cronbachs
Alpha
.712
.712
.729
.789
.719
.777
.774

The Process
The Customer Service of Grameenphone received an email that was sent to each of the
individuals that worked for the division. Each person who worked for the company gave
their informed permission that the information be used for the company. Once the
employees clicked on the link they would be able to take the survey on a secure site. They
would have ten days in order to answer all the questions. The findings of each survey were
sent to be studied using Google Docs Form to make each survey nameless. The forms after
made anonymous were downloaded into the SPSS program for analysis as mentioned above
the host website was http://www.docs.google.com.

IV. Chapter FOUR: Outcomes

Chapter One recognized the significance of empirical research indicating the stages of the
engagement of a staff particularly for Grameenphone specializing in telecommunication business.
Chapter Two then shifted the focus towards literature that connects directly to the detrimental
effects that frustration can have on employees and how it compares to the positive effects of
complete engagement. It also included a thorough review of past studies on the subject and
highlights from those studies. Chapter Three provided detailed descriptions of the procedures and
techniques that are put into practice to determine just how much (or less) a staff is actually engaged.
It then determined just how much things affecting work and life in general (i.e. job position, gender,
years of service, etc.) impacted the existing levels of engagement. Within this chapter, descriptions
will be provided of the participants of that study as well as an analysis of the results.

Features of the Sample

To truthfully study the engagement of employees, a survey was e-mailed to a complete staff of the
Customer Service division of Grameenohone. Out of the 306 employees that worked within that
agency at the time, 210 (n = 210) completed the survey, which is a response rate of 68.6% overall.
Since no other similar studies have been conducted, there is no other population available to which
these results can be compared. On the other hand, this sample does share some similarities to the
sample that was worked with during the pilot study survey. Both groups worked for Customer
Service of Grameenphone. Their offices were nationwide as well as the locations of those offices
throughout the divisional headquarters. The customer touch points of Grameenphone are known as
Customer Center. Another similarity was that both groups served individual people.
Out of all of the people that responded to the survey, 80% (n = 167) were female and 20% (n = 43)
were male. 78% were classified as non-supervisory staff (n = 163) and 22% (n = 47) admitted to being
supervised by one person at least. 157 (74.3%) reported themselves as being professional staff
where the remaining 25.7% were support staff.
The number of service years within the agency varied among the groups. 55 (26.1%) were employed
0 to 2 years, 48 (22.7%) were employed between 3 to 5 years, 41 (19.9%) were employed between 6
to 8 years, 20 (9.5%) were employed between 9 and 10 years and the remaining 46 (22.3%) worked
for 10 years and over with Grameenphone.
145 people (69%) within that sample worked in a suburban area that was non-urban while the
remaining 65 (31%) stated that they worked within an urban office. 11 of the people that responded
chose not to answer each of the questions focused on engagement so their surveys were completed
dropped from the statistical studies. Therefore, the results only reflected the remaining 199 people
that responded. The respondents that chose not to completely answer the questions focused on
demographics on their surveys were dropped from the statistical test that addressed the
outstanding variable.

Outcomes
The purpose of the survey instrument being designed was to measure the levels of engagement of
the participants to their jobs. Once all of the responses had been collected, Chronbachs Alpha was
then conduct to test the instruments reliability overall. The final score from that test of .773 was

similar to the result from the pilot study and is considered as being acceptable when it comes to
reliability (Nunnaly, 1978).
As mentioned within the Appendix, the participants were given five items to choose from when they
were answering each question strongly agree, agree, neutral, disagree and then strongly disagree.
Strong agree was systematically coded as five points while strongly disagree was coded simply as
one point. With that point system, the lowest possible score was 8 while the highest possible score
was 40. The final scores that fill between 32 and 40 indicated that the employees were engaged
more fully than those that scored below 32. Results showed that the vast majority of those that
responded with engaged to their jobs (M = 29.30, SD = 3.95).
The sample responses are described in Table II to each of the items listed on the measurement scale
of engagement. Table III focuses on the overall score of engagement for the sample.
Table 2
Engagement Scale: Descriptive Statistics

Recognition of Job
Concerned Supervisor
Mission of Org
Work Friends
Employee Inputs
Training and Equipment
Coworker Cooperation
Longer Stay
Valid N

Descriptive Statistics Engagement Scores

N
Range
Min
199
4.00
1.00
199
4.00
1.00
199
3.00
2.00
199
3.00
2.00
199
4.00
1.00
199
4.00
1.00
199
4.00
1.00
199
4.00
1.00
199

Max
5.00
5.00
5.00
5.00
5.00
5.00
5.00
5.00

Mean
3.5518
4.1297
4.1010
4.4192
3.8213
3.7448
4.1797
3.6801

Mean
29.2952

SD
3.9521

Table 3

Valid N

Total Scores: By Responses of Participants

N
Min
Max
199
16.00
40.00

Hypothesis One: The connection between the engagement level of

participants and their respective office location.
The main objective for this study was determining the engagement levels for the staff of the agency
as well as examining the degree to which demographic variables and work-life variables impact the
engagement scores overall. This specific hypothesis stated that the people responding to the test
that worked in suburban office locations would report lower scores than the ones that work in urban
settings. The independent T-test of these samples was assigned as the statistical measure for this
specific question and evaluated the difference in means that existed between the two groups,
assuming that the variable were normally distributed among the groups and that the variation of
scores was not different (Wienback and Grinnell, 2007).

The results of the Levenes test proved that equal variances would be assumed and that an alpha
level would be set to .05 to limit a Type I error or accepting the null falsely. Within this specific
sample, the mean score of the participants from the suburban settings was 28.9871 (SD = 3.80), n =
138. On the other hand, the mean score for the participants from the urban settings was 28.8791
(SD = 4.10), N = 61. Therefore, this showed that the respondents from the suburban settings
reported higher engagement levels than those working in urban settings. Nonetheless, there was no
real significance of the statistics between the urban and suburban employees in regards to their
engagement scores. Thus, there was no support for the hypothesis (p = .330, 197 df, t -.977).

Hypothesis Two: The connection between the participants engagement level

and their years of service within the agency.
This hypothesis stated that the participants of the study that had worked for the agency longer
would report lower engagement scores than the newer employees. An analysis that focused on
bivariate correlation was conducted to study this question, determining the extent of relationship
between engagement levels and their service years.
Since the data of the sample was not the ratio or interval measurement level, the Spearmans Rho
Correlation was selected. The Kolmogorov-Smirnov testing system of normality showed that the
total number of service year variables and complete scores were not normally distributed,
confirming the use of Spearmans Rho. This specific system is able to produce a correlation
coefficient that is positive or negative and represents a numerical value within the range of -1.00
and +1.00 (Wienbach and Grinnell, 2007).
Specifically for this study, the .05 rejection level (which is generally accepted) determined whether
or not the hypothesis could even be supported (Wienbach and Grinnell, 2007). As reflected in Table
IV, the results do not validate any important correlation between the years of service and employee
engagement.
Table 4
Relationship between Years of Service and Total Score
Correlations
Spearman's Rho

Years Served

Correlation Coefficient
Sig. (1-tailed)
N

Total Score
.084
.119
199

Hypothesis Three: The connection between the engagement level of the

participants and their gender.
This specific hypothesis explained that the males would report higher engagement levels than the
females. Once again, the independent T-test was selected as the primary statistical measure.
The Levenes test results showed the equal variances were able to be assumed and also that an
alpha level of .05 was selected for the test. Within the sample, the mean score for the males was
30.6055 (SD = 3.20), N = 41 and the mean score for the females was 28.8162 (SD = 3.89), N=158.

Even though the males scored higher on the instrument, the difference between the two groups was
not really significant in reference to statistics so the hypothesis was not sufficiently supported by the
test (p = .064, 197 df, t 1.800).

Hypothesis Four: The connection between the engagement level of the

participants and the job roles of supervisors.
This specific hypothesis stated that the supervisors that responded would report much higher
engagement scores. The independent T-test was selected as with the other tests and the results of
the Levenes test showed equal variances could properly be assumed with the chosen alpha level of
.05. The mean score for the supervisors was 29.9187 (SD = 2.88), N = 44 and the mean score for nonsupervisors was 28.8984 (SD = 4.03), N = 155. Results proved that the supervisors scored much
higher on the instrument than the workers who were not supervisors. Thus, the hypothesis was
supported (p = .040, 196 df, t 2.063).

V. Chapter FIVE: Discussion

The main focus on this specific chapter is summarizing the significant findings within the study, the
current conclusions that were collected from the results as well as the implications for research,
future policy and practice. The objective of the first section is to summarize the significant findings of
the impact that demographics and the variables of work-life have on the engagement levels of
employees to their jobs. The second section will draw further conclusions and discuss the studys
results. The final section proposes research implications, practice and policy for the measurement of
the levels of employee engagement within the social work field.

Summary of Significant Findings

The score results from the scale that measured employee engagement of the sample group of 199
employees from the nationwide customer centres of Grameenphone was analysed further to
determine whether or not the staff member was engaged with their job. The questions that were
discussed within the study were all based on the theory that demographics and work-life variables
had a significant impact on an employees level of engagement to their job. The following are the
significant findings from each of the specified hypotheses.

1. Variances in the report of employee engagement working in urban and

suburban offices.
Within the sample, the mean score was 30.51 for the participants from the suburban offices and
29.01 for the participants from the urban offices. Therefore, the suburban participants were clearly
more engaged than the urban participants.
Unfortunately, though, the hypothesis was not supported because the results were not significant
statistically. There are no reported similarities between the two groups that the results could be
compared to, but the results are definitely in agreement with those found in the Rholand study
(2000). The results of that study showed that the rate of frustration was not higher for the
individuals that worked in suburban locations. The employees reported an equal level of
engagement even though Grameenphone was spread throughout several different geographic areas.
An explanation for this conclusion might be the fact that was continuity when it came to the training
of the supervisors and the overall implementation of procedures and active policies. Therefore,
similar atmospheres were established within the work environments of each of the different office
locations. A positive side to the study was the sign that practices and policies enforced by agencies
are clearly fostering an environment conducive to employee engagement without worrying about
whether or not the office was in an urban or suburban location.

2. Variances in the report of levels of engagement of employees in

connection to their years of employment in Grameenphone.
According to the results of the study, there was not a significant connection between their service
years and engagement scores. Therefore, the employees that had worked there over 10 years could
be just as engaged as those that had been working there for less than five. This finding varies from
the theoretical assumption of employee engagement at work, which proves that it will decrease over
time (Coffman & Gonzalez-Molina, 2002).

Nevertheless, the conclusion further supports the theory that engagement has no direct connections
with work-related issues, such as income or seniority. On the other hand, it is a construct solely
related to the employees control of their own fate at work along with their sense of true
empowerment (Buhler, 2006).
In addition, conclusions from that study are similar to Yildirims frustration analysis from 2008. It
found no real connection between years of service and employee frustration. One of the
explanations behind the findings is simply that the agency provided the environment that was
necessary for the staff to become engaged, regardless of other work-related issues such as seniority,
tenure or pay. One of the implications from the results of the study enforced policies that encourage
overall engagement of employees regardless of their length of service.

3. Variances in the report of employee engagement, based on gender.

The mean score for the males was 30.53 and 28.97 for the females, indicating that the males were
more engaged to their jobs than female. The difference, though, did not support the hypothesis
because the variance was not really significant.
The results from this study were similar to two past studies that concluded employee engagement
and frustration rates did not differ between males and females (Schaufeli et al., 2006; Yildirim,
2008). The scores from this study showed some levels of variance when compared with a previous
study on frustration rates that showed females were more at risk of suffering from frustration in
their job (Sprang et al., 2007). Based on the results from that study, males and females both have
the same opportunity to engage themselves to their job within the agency.

4. Variances in the report of employee engagement based on their duties as

supervisors.
The mean score for the supervisors was 30.65 and 28.96 for the people that were not supervisors.
Within the sample, employees that were not supervisors were less engaged to their jobs than
employees that were supervisors. Therefore, the study was able to support the hypothesis. These
results were similar to those discovered by Schaufeli et al. (2006) when he made the discovery that
managers were more engaged than blue collar employees.
An insinuation from those results was that the agency should further analyze their enforced policies
which could possibly separate the people in management positions from the direct line staff. By
doing that, they will ensure that they are not building a work environment that contributes to the
actual disengagement and disuniting of their employees. The study clearly proved the benefits of
having a fully engaged management staff, because the rest of the employees are more likely to
follow their example and become engaged themselves. This theory is supported by the assumption
that employee engagement is completely dependent on an agencys management team and that the
behaviours of supervisors has a significant impact and overall influence of the levels of engagement
for their employees.

VI. Chapter SIX: Analysis and Final Conclusions

Recent literature and other forms of research have demonstrated an enhanced interest in the
overall subject of the engagement of their employees. Studies have proven that the level of
engagement is directly connected to the positive outcomes and organisational structure.
Unfortunately, no research directly focuses on employees working within the field of customer
services. This study was specifically created to serve as a means of exploration into employee
engagement when it comes to organisations that specialize in customer services. Another benefit of
the study was that it accurately examined the effects and overall impact of the demographic and
work-life based variables that focused on the scores of the participants. This plan also continued the
further development and refinement of the Employee Engagement instrument.
This study focused on the employee engagement within Grameenphone staffs. The instrument was
created in order that the scores that were between the midpoint of the total score possible and
above reflected at least average engagement. Thus, the score of 14 and above that point would
verify engagement and above average engagement would be represented by scores above 22.
Studying this sample showed that the vast majority of the people that responded were significantly
engaged to their respective jobs. The mean score of engagement overall was 29.9 out of a possible
40, which placed the entire group within the upper range of employee engagement. When focusing
on the higher engagement rates of the studied population, the possibility that the group of
employees could be more engaged than employees in other industries should be taken into
consideration.
The nature of the customer service industry clearly implies that the actual mission of their agency
may compel employees to care more about engaged to their jobs. The results of this study should be
compared with other populations that focus on human services to clearly see if the rates are above
average or similar to any other average group.
The actual theory of employee engagement suggests that in a study where the employees are
engaged, the levels of productivity and customer service would be exceptionally higher. Reviewing
the annual report of the studied organisation reflected that they exceeded the standards for the
entire fiscal year.
As a matter of fact, the organisation was able to report a 67.1% success rate for results with clients
(source remains disclosed to protect the agencys confidentiality). In addition, the agency reports
reflected that 98% of the 1,900 clients that were surveyed reported being respectfully treated by the
employees and 93% stated that their services were readily available. A major conclusion generated
from the study was that high levels of employee engagement might be connected to the higher
standard of service results and other reports of high quality customer service. To further explore the
possible relationship between these two factors, more research is required.

Instrument
The researcher was the person that created the instrument used in this study (see Appendix). It was
created to fulfill the purpose of measuring employee engagement within the field of customer
services. The duration of the survey was conducive to quick and simplistic completion, encouraging a
higher participation rate. Designed to measure the important concepts of employee engagement,
this allowed the research to further study demographic factors and variables of work-life against the
studied levels of employee engagement. After being pilot tested, it was concluded that the

instrument was reliable with a Cronbachs Alpha score of .773. After one question was added in, the
score increased to .798 which also demonstrated acceptable reliability.
A major conclusion of this study was the proven reliability and effectiveness of the instrument when
it comes to measuring the levels of employee engagement, which is great news for researchers that
want to study these levels within agencies that specialize in human services.
The Employee Engagement Survey would not be used within many more studies that deal with
employees in the field of human services in order to continue developing their effectiveness and
being able to determine which demographic factor(s) were the mostly connected with high levels of
engagement. One of the explanations for the high level of engagement overall was that the agency
provided three important psychological conditions of promoting engagement: availability,
meaningfulness and safety for their employees (Kahn, 1990).
Within the survey, three questions addressed the mental condition of meaningfulness. According to
Kahns research (1990), this condition is described as a feeling that is received as a return on a
persons investment of themselves into their work. Employees experience this condition when they
feel valuable, worthwhile and useful to their company (Kahn, 1990). The first survey question asked
participants if they had every received a degree of recognition for good performances on the job.
184 of the respondents (87%) answered within agree to strongly agree, showing that the staff of the
agency agreed that they received a return on the investment of themselves within their jobs.
The third question asked respondents if the agencys target object made them understand how
much their work really mattered. 199 of the respondents (96%) astoundingly gave a positive
response to that question between slightly agree to strongly agree. This result shows that the target
objective and mission of the company was clearly understood by the staff and they felt positive
about the work that they were doing. The fifth question asked them if they felt as if their opinions
and thoughts were taken seriously on their job. By agreeing to the question, the results would
indicate that they felt that they were making valuable contributions to the agency. This was proven
by the resulting fact that 195 of the respondents (95%) agreed with the statement.
Kahn (1990) described the condition of safety in his report as a significant factor and important
psychological condition when it came to employee engagement. His research further showed that
employees feel safe in an environment that is both open and supportive.
Safety occurs when individuals feel liberated and able to express themselves without negative
consequences, confident in the fact that their environment is clear of boundaries and the
organisational norms are clearly understood (Kahn, 1990). The question on the scale of employee
engagement asked participants if they were concerned about their own welfare. 197 (94%) agreed
with that statement which showed that they felt as if they were supported by their management
team, feeling connected to their superiors.
Another question focuses on the issue of having friends on the job. Participants agreed with that
statement since 202 (97.5%) selected a response between slightly agree and strongly agree, showing
that employees felt connected with their co-workers and freely expressed themselves. The seventh
question asked participants if they felt their co-workers did a good job, in which 199 employees
agreed, proving that they work toward a common goal with their co-workers within the agency. The
final psychological factor of the structure of engagement overall is availability. Kahn (1990)
described this factor as being the sense of possessing the psychological, physical and even emotional
resources required in order to invest oneself into the role that they play at work.

A question on the survey asked participants if the organisation that they worked for provided the
equipment that they needed to successfully complete their jobs. The overall positive response
showed that 189 (90%) of the employees at least agreed with the statement, proving that the
agency regularly supplied exactly what the employees needed in their assigned roles within the
agency. The eighth question asked the participants if they would still be working for the same agency
two years later. 180 (72%) agreed with that statement.
Kahns (1990) studied model of employee engagement proved that those psychological conditions
were related to engagement as well as management control within the agency. The aforementioned
scores from the finalized study showed that the management team of the studied agency made a
positive contribution to the overall engagement of their employees. It was recorded that the agency
being studied successfully implemented a plan for leadership development one month prior to the
conduction of the actual survey. The focus of the plan was empowering supervisors and training the
members of management on effectively leading their teams.
The program put a variety of different strategies into practice that require attendance for leadership
training courses, assigned readings and the overall development of an official leadership plan for
each and every supervisor or manager. One can reasonably assume that the plan may have
positively impacted the final scores of the survey. A significant implication from these results is that
the agency should consider continuing investments into the leadership plan and any other related
programs to maintain high levels of employee engagement. Directing resources towards the
companys target objective is proven, then, to be an effective and worthy investment for the agency
to consider.

Implications for the Policy of Social Work

Since these significant psychological conditions of employee engagement are within the
managements control of the agency to an extent, studies of that engagement should interest policy
makers specializing in social work. As previously recorded, research has shown that engaged
employees assist agencies in reaping such benefits as enhanced efficiencies and increased levels of
customer satisfaction and overall productivity along with the decline of turnover rates (Buhler,
2006).
Therefore, the results from the surveys conducted within the agency would inform policymakers of
the areas that needed to be addressed, such as specific strategies that could be developed to target
those specific objectives. Leaders within specific agencies should take the time to focus on the
implementation of policies that enhance the engagement of management and staff which would
increase the overall productivity of employees individually as well as the entire agency.

Insinuations for Practice for Social Work

This study was a great way to inform practitioners about the importance of being engaged within the
workplace. They should be able to comprehend the mental conditions associated with engagement
as well as how staff members that are engaged are beneficial to their agency.
They strived to become even more engaged with their jobs to maximise their overall effectiveness
with customers and clientele and also develop themselves to become more effective in their work.
The results of the study reflect the overall rates of engagement of the employees to their job were
relatively high. It is presumed, then, that the agencys practitioners are emotionally connected
within their jobs, motivated and willing to go above and beyond normal expectations just to get the
job done.

Insinuations for Social Work Research

Before this study was conducted, there were no verified research projects that focused specifically
on the engagement levels of works in customer services field. The study was conducted to
determine the levels of employee engagement within this specific public agency. The results
reflected that the sample population was overall significantly engaged within their jobs and that the
management staff provided the key mental conditions required for the employees to remain
engaged. Future studies should be conducted across the full spectrum of agencies that specialize in
human services in order to fully study the similarities and differences that exist when it comes to the
engagement rates of different staffs in different offices.
More research is required in order to determine which demographic variables or factors of work-life
are directly connected with high rates of engagement. The research projects that use the scale of
employee engagement specifically created for this study should be used repeatedly to provide more
documented results proving the reliability of the instrument overall. In addition, these studies
should be repeated regularly to ensure the stability of those rates of engagement. If an agency has
initiated the implementation of different strategies specifically designed to enhance employee
engagement, the study should be repeated to measure their overall effectiveness.

Conclusion
The results of this confirmed study greatly contributed to the limited research available on the topic
of engagement for employees. It contributed specifically to the beginning statistical information
gathered about employee engagement among the staff of a customer services department.
Employee engagement is widely understood as being an imperative part of the outcomes of
successful organisational structures and should be closely analysed within the field of social work.
Funding for their organisation is often connected directly to success rates of that organisation. A
staff that is fully engaged can significantly contribute to achieving positive outcomes, proving that
the concept of full engagement should be a top priority of social work research and the
implementation of innovated policies.

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VIII. Appendix