The role of employee commitment and why you should invest in it

King Arthur of Britain considered himself and his knights to have an equal say in plotting the group’s strategy. The famous round table meetings reflected King Arthur’s view that everyone’s voice is important.

Another example of commitment offered by King Arthur and his Knights of the Round Table is their shared mission. Their vigorous search to find the Holy Grail (the legendary cup used by Jesus and his disciples at the Last Supper) exemplifies the importance of a central mission to guide organizational strategy and actions.

However, the approach of King Arthur perhaps best offers an example of employee commitment: the sheer loyalty of King Arthur’s knights toward their king’s future plans! While your company isn’t a kingdom, wouldn’t it be great if your employees had the same degree of commitment to your organization? Let’s learn about employee commitment techniques that could impress even kings.

Employee commitment is an emotional attachment to and involvement with an organization. Employee commitment is a bond between the employee and the organization such that the employee wants to continue serving the organization and helping it achieve its objectives.

Employees with high organizational commitment improve the organization’s performance by reducing instances of turnover, absenteeism and improving the quality of service..

A committed employee is more compatible with the organization and more productive than those employees with lower levels of satisfaction, loyalty, and responsibility. In addition, highly committed employees observe that organizational commitment not only increases success in a specific role but also encourages the individual to take many voluntary actions necessary for the life of the organization.

Many demographic variables affect employee commitment. For example, age is a positive predictor of employee commitment. Older employees view their current employers more favorably. Older employees may also be more committed because they have a stronger investment in and a greater history with their organization.

HR leaders must address employees’ social needs to affiliate and belong. Employees want to be in a comfortable and safe work environment. To create employee commitment, an organization must provide the right starting point for employees. For example, during the recruitment process, HR managers can:

• Share details about the organization’s mission and vision
• Provide help and support
• Convey the organization’s ethics and values

Organizations need to be attractive to the right people; thus, the initial contact between an organization and a prospective candidate is significant. Leaders must attempt to communicate clearly with prospective employees by developing an employer brand. The brand should condense the organization’s essential nature and values and what it’s like to work for the organization.

When there’s a match between what people expect from the job and what the job provides, employees will be more committed to fulfilling their obligations. These expectations start as early as before the employee gets an offer letter, i.e. pre-entry expectations. Unmet expectations lead to future dissatisfaction.

Such expectations usually relate to the type of work employees are given and the training and development opportunities they receive. With this in mind, realistic job previews (giving candidates a real experience of what the job is like) can be beneficial.

There is a link between early job experiences and employee commitment. Therefore, the induction program should be the final step of the recruitment and selection process.

A good induction program will give employees a chance to get to know the organization and enter the work environment with ease and confidence. This will make recruits more receptive to feedback and other interventions that encourage social integration.

Training is also an essential part of the induction process. Although commitment is not necessarily the intended, or at least not the most apparent, training objective, it can nevertheless be influenced in the process.

The quality of relationships between managers and their employees relates to commitment. Employees who have good relationships with their immediate managers have greater commitment to their employers. Therefore, good relationships between managers and employees is one of the most critical factors affecting motivation at work.

Employees’ commitment reflects day-to-day contacts with line managers and how objective targets are set. Effective communication on a job-related issue is crucial in securing individual performance.

Emotional attachment to colleagues is another important element of commitment. However, these attachments must be maintained through frequent contact with colleagues. Unless there is an occasion for frequent and rewarding interaction, stronger feelings of belonging that can bind employees to the organization are unlikely to emerge.

Employees evaluate their experiences at work in terms of whether they’re treated fairly. Therefore, we can conclude that employee commitment is shaped by the perception of how fairly the organization treats them. Organizations that strive to foster greater commitment from their employees must first provide evidence of their own commitment to their employees.

HR leaders need to focus on the following aspects to increase the sense of trust among employees:

• Growth: Address developmental needs to help employees become more proficient in their job.
• Work-life balance: Allow greater personal time when needed so employees can maintain healthy work and personal lives.
• Health and safety: Take all measures to protect employees’ health and safety. Examples of these measures include creating an employee-centered wellness culture, providing environments where safety is ensured, and providing a variety of health programs for employees to make use of.

How happy an employee is in a job profoundly affects behavior and commitment. Employees who enjoy their jobs tend to commit to work and stay longer than those who don’t. Job and work–life satisfaction are important. A satisfying job typically has three properties:

• It has intrinsically enjoyable features
• It provides an opportunity for growth and development
• It makes employees feel that they can influence organizational outcomes