| Major organizational change creates disruption to business operation. Existing employees can provide necessary support and influence through the change process. Retaining engaged employees is a crucial, yet unstudied, component of successful organizational transformations because of the stability they provide. This study investigated employee engagement and retention during an organization's corporate relocation. Although a great deal of turnover is expected during this type of change, maximizing the number of employees who relocate or stay with the company as long as possible will greatly improve business continuity. Employee engagement provides a mechanism to facilitate retention. Framed by the theoretical underpinnings of the job demands-resources (JD-R) model (Bakker & Demerouti, 2007), this study was the first to shed light on how organizations can engage and retain employees during a corporate relocation by managing job demands and providing job resources. Using archival data from 750 employees of one multi-national company relocating its U.S. headquarters, hypotheses were tested through secondary data analysis. With respect to job demands, results supported an ideal speed of change within the corporate relocation process to maximize employee engagement. Concerning job resources, effective leadership, task significance, and manager support emerged as most important to engaging employees. Additionally, employee engagement was found to be negatively associated with voluntary termination and intent to leave the organization as well as positively associated with the intent to stay. Finally, results supported a mediated relationship whereby employee engagement mediated the relationships between job resources (i.e., effective leadership, task significance, and manager support) and turnover. Based on these findings, insights and recommendations are provided for organizations planning to relocate or undertake another large-scale transformation. The need for future research related to employee engagement and retention during times of organizational change is also discussed. Empirical exploration will provide guidance for improving the employee work experience and organizational effectiveness. |
