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Alberto Venturini

What really is motivation?

Cos’è davvero la motivazione ?

Scritto da

Alberto Venturini

in

Engagement  ·  4 min read

1. Introduction

In contemporary organizations the notion of Employee Engagement (MOTIVATION) has become central to understanding the competitiveness and sustainability of work. The literature defines it as a set of psychological states, behaviors and organizational conditions that lead the employee to engage voluntarily, with energy, responsibility and a sense of belonging. It’s not about “being satisfied”, but about feeling an active part of the value created by the organization.

The Macleod Review (2009), a milestone in the study of the phenomenon, summarizes the concept with an effective definition:
“Employee engagement is about how we create the conditions in which employees offer more of their capability and potential.”

2. The fundamental components of Employee Engagement

Research indicates that engagement is the result of alignment between three dimensions:

  • cognitive: understanding the role, strategy and objectives of the organization;
  • affective: sense of belonging, trust, perceived integrity;
  • behavioral: energy, proactivity and discretionary contribution to improvement.

These dimensions emerge only in precise conditions, the result of an authentic relationship between people and the organization.

2.1 Trust and organizational integrity

Trust represents the first foundation of engagement. Employees become engaged when they perceive fairness, consistency and respect. The Psychological Contract (Rousseau, 1995) suggests that people become committed when promises, commitments and company values ​​are clear and respected.

2.2 Communication and reciprocity

Engagement is a “two-way” process: commitment cannot be asked for without creating stable channels of listening, dialogue and participation. Organizations that generate engagement are those that include employees in discussions about processes, priorities and changes, offering real spaces to contribute ideas and opinions.

2.3 Empowerment and role clarity

Engagement requires a clear understanding of the company’s purpose and your contribution. Engaged people know how the company intends to achieve its goals and how their role fits into this trajectory.

3. The employee and employer perspective

3.1 For the employee

An engaged worker lives his daily activity with energy, proactivity and sense of direction. He joins the company knowing what he has to do, feeling valued, supported in his development and connected to a purpose.

3.2 For the employer

For the company, engagement manifests itself as:

  • greater productivity;
  • better customer orientation;
  • reduction of absences, accidents, conflicts and turnover;
  • greater innovation and voluntary contribution;
  • stronger competitive ability.

The ideas, experience and commitment of employees become a strategic resource, difficult to imitate.

4. What Employee Engagement is NOT

Engagement is not emotional manipulation, nor a mechanistic attempt to obtain greater effort through slogans, superficial rewards or superficial initiatives. Studies show that employees quickly recognize and respond to such practices cynicism and disaffection.

Engagement is not created with tools, posters or motivational meetings.
It is built through daily behaviors, governance, consistency and well-designed systems.

5. Why Employee Engagement is crucial today

The contemporary socio-economic context presents new challenges:

  • aging of the Italian population;
  • reduction of the available workforce;
  • global competition based on skills;
  • increase in education levels and worker expectations;
  • growth of innovation, fueled by complex human ideas and contributions.

Organizations that do not focus on engagement risk losing the best talent, failing to attract new ones and slowing down their ability to adapt.

6. Employee Engagement: a competitive factor

Evidence from Gallup, CIPD, Harvard Business Review and various meta-analyses confirm that high levels of engagement generate:

  • +21 percent productivity
  • +10 percent customer satisfaction
  • -41 percent absenteeism
  • -59 percent involuntary turnover

Engagement is therefore revealed a robust predictor of firm performance, impacting innovation, service quality and resilience in turbulent markets.

Engagement-oriented organizations build more equitable, participatory and accountable work systems. They don’t “motivate”, but they enable.

Bibliography

  • MacLeod, D., & Clarke, N. (2009). Engaging for Success: Enhancing Performance Through Employee Engagement. UK Government Report.
  • Kahn, W. A. ​​(1990). Psychological Conditions of Personal Engagement and Disengagement at Work. Academy of Management Journal.
  • Gallup (2023). State of the Global Workplace Report. Gallup Press.
  • Rousseau, D. (1995). Psychological Contracts in Organizations: Understanding Written and Unwritten Agreements. Sage Publications.
  • Saks, A. M. (2006). Antecedents and consequences of employee engagement. Journal of Managerial Psychology.
  • Schaufeli, W. B., & Bakker, A. B. (2004). Job demands, job resources, and their relationship with burnout and engagement. Journal of Organizational Behavior.

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