Definitions :
Job Enlargement:
Definition:
Job Enlargement is said to be a contingency when
organizations rotate their employees on different ranks / positions and also
assign slight extra tasks to perform in normal routine (Dessler, 2005)
Job enlargement is to expand the duties of a job to
inculcate more range and increased number of tasks at the same level. (Greenberg
& Baron , 1997 , p.163)
Simply, It is a process involving expansion of tasks
and duties at horizontal level (at same level) in order to deliver a
challenging & different work in order to alleviate the work boredom and dissatisfaction.
Job Engagement:
Definition:
Robinson
et al. (2004) define employee engagement as “a positive view of an employee
about his/her organization. Engaged employees work with passion to improve
performance within his/her the job for the benefit of the employer. Therefore,
organizations must work to promote and nurture engagement, which demands a
two-way relationship between employer and employee.”
Gallup
International defines Job Engagement as work with enthusiasm and involvement.
Precisely,
It is an approach to infuse commitment in employees towards organization’s
goals and values, for contribution to organizational success and personal
well-being.
Job
Enlargement Explained;
Hellergen
& Sverke (2001) assert that, with increased competition , organizations are
finding it difficult to retain employees and management gets overwhelmed with
extra responsibilities and costs , therefore it is becoming very common to
transform the work activities of the employees at workplace and enabling them to
work at different levels.
According
to Dessler (2005), Stagnancy in work nature and tasks without due change might
bring inefficiency and may result in workplace boredom and decreased motivation
level of employees.
Advantages
of Job Enlargement :
Job
Enlargement has been widely suggested as recommendation for employee
satisfaction and employee motivation in research articles and papers.
·
Job Enlargement effects motivation level , organization commitment
level & satisfaction level ((Morrison, 1994; Hellgren & Sverke, 2001)
·
Job Enlargement , if implemented in its true essence is far more easier
and cost saving than Job Enrichment (Amacom. 1973)
·
With accomplishments and fulfillment of personal growth needs ,
employee retention increases.
·
Job Satisfaction considerably increases as the contributions are
acknowledged and work becomes challenging.
Disadvantages of Job Enlargement
Some researchers hold view that Job Enlargement
lessens the social interaction of employees at workplace , and this can be attributed
as the main reason that it decreases the motivation level of employees.
·
High Training costs
·
Redesigning existing work system
·
It is not necessary that Productivity will increase
·
Workload Increases
Job Engagement Explained;
Concept of Job Engagement is relatively new, and it
appeared in literature for two decades (Ellis and Sorensen, 2007).
According to Perrins Global Workforce Study (2003) ,
Job Engagement is when the employees put every persistent discretionary effort
to help their company succeed. With these definitions, Job Engagement is often
confused with Job Satisfaction , which in real spirit is not. Engagement is
commitment with passion to strive for the success of employer or company which
is beyond Job Satisfaction (BlessingWhite, 2008; Erickson, 2005). Hence , the
Job Engagement is obtained by aligning Job Satisfaction and Job Contribution.
According to Penna research report (2007) , the
employees are satisfied and ultimately more engaged when they find meaning of
and at work. Employees want to work in those organizations where they can
obtain the meaning of their work.
Development Dimensions International(DDI, 2005) adds
that employee engagement can be infused and achieved by following measuers;
·
Alignment of efforts with strategy
·
Psychological Empowerment
·
Encouragement of teamwork and collaboration
·
Assistance to employees in growth and development
·
Providing Support and Recognition
Advantages
of Job Engagement
Employee
engaged organizations experience enormous benefits; employee retention,
productivity, profitability, customer loyalty and safety. Moreover, Researches
also suggest that there is positive relationship of job engagement with organizational
performance and customer satisfaction (Coffman, 2000; Ellis and Sorensen, 2007).
Disadvantages
of Job Engagement
There
are some limits , which managers need to consider . Professor Thomas
Britt adds that when employees are more engaged , they create high expectations
of their own work and when faced with persistent low organizational support ,
less availability of resources and lack of guidelines due to some external
shocks creates a dissatisfaction with employees that may compel them to leave
the organization.
Conclusion
Job Enlargement and Job Engagement are two very
essential components that organizations need to infuse and implement in their
workforce. With bringing variety to the daily routine tasks and encouraging
employees involvement in their work and decisions of organization can
contribute a lot in terms of flourishing , job satisfaction , job involvement ,
organizational citizenship behavior and perceived organizational support.
