Engagement in the workplace : the experience of employees working in Malta

Abstract

The aim of this research is to understand how employees experience and adjust their engagement to perform at the workplace, comparing the viewpoints of employees from three different categories of business industries in Malta. This study aims to improve understanding of how these participants view the factors that change their performance at work by influencing their engagement and motivation. The methodology chosen for this study is Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA) and qualitative semi-structured interviews to help obtain individual and mutual experiences. This approach also highlights and analyses four main themes and twelve sub-themes that emerged from the interviews. The main themes were ‘Work Environment’, ‘Communication’, ‘Motivation’, and ‘Employee Learning and Development’. This study confirmed and illustrated research findings on the crucial factors that affect engagement levels of employees. Even though individual employees’ experience of factors that influence their engagement is unique, the results also show common characteristics among employees from different business sectors.