Improving The Engagement Levels of Part-Timers
Duong, Thu (2020)
2020
All rights reserved. This publication is copyrighted. You may download, display and print it for Your own personal use. Commercial use is prohibited.
Julkaisun pysyvä osoite on
https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi:amk-202005128637
https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi:amk-202005128637
Tiivistelmä
The aim of the thesis was to investigate why part-time employees are not engaged and what can be done to improve their engagement levels. The main focus group was part-time employees who work in the customer service or sales industries either alongside studies (students) or without studying on the side (non-students). In addition, the aim of the study was to investigate how engaged part-time employees are and what factors influence their engagement.
The main theoretical concept of this study was employee engagement, which presents the engagement of employees according to Kahn’s (1990) employee engagement model. Other theoretical concepts were employee engagement models, employee engagement methods, measuring employee engagement, and part-time employment. Data for the research was collected from several sources in literature, other written sources, and electronic publications and journals.
The empirical part consisted of a quantitative survey (n=107) conducted through Webropol 3.0. The quantitative survey was carried out at discretion, using a snowball sample by distributing an electronic survey (Webropol 3.0) through the internet and social media channels. The population of the study was made up of part-time employees working in the customer service and sales industries. The main focus was on taking averages and looking at a range of figures in order to get a comprehensive understanding of part-time employees’ engagement levels. In addition, the data analysis used in the study was quantitative analysis.
Based on the key findings, the results mainly applied to the younger age groups (19-34) and to Finns. The key findings made from the data and results indicated that key factors resulting in engagement were that the employees had the opportunity to combine work and leisure, and to contribute to their own well-being. In addition, good interaction and the atmosphere in the work community, as well as supportive managers, engaged part-time employees. However, key findings also indicated that central factors resulting in disengagement were inadequacies in feedback, communication, rewards and benefits, opportunities for development and training, clear and common goals, and equality. The findings allowed the author to come up with concrete development recommendations for improving parttime employees’ engagement levels relating to the aforementioned factors. The recommendations made were to provide more feedback and improve communication, to pay more attention to expressing an assessment of the food work of employees, to provide more development opportunities and training, to have clearer and more common goals, and to have an equality plan. Additionally, to succeed, organisations should evaluate and learn to better adapt to the fast-changing business environment because factors and situations will certainly change as time passes and industries change.
The main theoretical concept of this study was employee engagement, which presents the engagement of employees according to Kahn’s (1990) employee engagement model. Other theoretical concepts were employee engagement models, employee engagement methods, measuring employee engagement, and part-time employment. Data for the research was collected from several sources in literature, other written sources, and electronic publications and journals.
The empirical part consisted of a quantitative survey (n=107) conducted through Webropol 3.0. The quantitative survey was carried out at discretion, using a snowball sample by distributing an electronic survey (Webropol 3.0) through the internet and social media channels. The population of the study was made up of part-time employees working in the customer service and sales industries. The main focus was on taking averages and looking at a range of figures in order to get a comprehensive understanding of part-time employees’ engagement levels. In addition, the data analysis used in the study was quantitative analysis.
Based on the key findings, the results mainly applied to the younger age groups (19-34) and to Finns. The key findings made from the data and results indicated that key factors resulting in engagement were that the employees had the opportunity to combine work and leisure, and to contribute to their own well-being. In addition, good interaction and the atmosphere in the work community, as well as supportive managers, engaged part-time employees. However, key findings also indicated that central factors resulting in disengagement were inadequacies in feedback, communication, rewards and benefits, opportunities for development and training, clear and common goals, and equality. The findings allowed the author to come up with concrete development recommendations for improving parttime employees’ engagement levels relating to the aforementioned factors. The recommendations made were to provide more feedback and improve communication, to pay more attention to expressing an assessment of the food work of employees, to provide more development opportunities and training, to have clearer and more common goals, and to have an equality plan. Additionally, to succeed, organisations should evaluate and learn to better adapt to the fast-changing business environment because factors and situations will certainly change as time passes and industries change.