New ways of working and work engagement

Abstract

This article investigates whether New Ways of Working (NWW) are related to employee work engagement in the Netherlands. We test our hypotheses using a sample of 656 employees from 14 industry sectors and 12 occupational fields. Our study reveals that three facets of NWW positively affect work engagement: manage your own work, unlimited access and connectivity, and open workplace. The effects of open workplace and unlimited access and connectivity on work engagement appear to be fully mediated by the combination of social interaction and transformational leadership. Managing your own work is however not mediated by social interaction or transformational leadership. As such, it is the only facet of NWW that directly affects work engagement. Our results hold important practical implications for organizations that consider implementing NWW. To maximize the positive impact of NWW on work engagement, while keeping the cost of introducing NWW to a minimum, firms should take account of the abilities and preferences of their line managers with respect to transformational leadership. Depending on these, a limited or more comprehensive set of NWW facets may be most efficient at promoting work engagement.