The Impact of Socio-Demographic Factors on Employee Engagement at Multinational Companies in Thailand

Main Article Content

Ngaochai Sungmala
Amara Verawat

Abstract

Thailand is an increasingly high-profile global market, with growing employment by multinational corporations (MNCs), which participate in many economic areas. For these firms, employee engagement is a key success factor in the firm’s performance. Employee, engagement contributes to individual performance outcomes and firm outcomes such a profitability, productivity and efficiency. However, there are some gaps in the literature on the factors that contribute to employee engagement in Thai MNCs. For example, it is poorly understood how employee demographics influence employee engagement. It is also unclear how employees of domestic subsidiaries of MNCs respond to the MNC organizational environment and culture. This Article aimed to study (1) the impact of socio-demographic factors on the part company, and (2) to investigate socio-demographic factors part individual on employee engagement at the Thailand-based divisions of multinational corporations (MNCs). The sample was MNC employees in Thailand. There were 400 MNC employees completed an anonymous survey which asked about their socio-demographic categories and engagement levels. Quantitative method was conducted to determine whether engagement varies with age, education level, marital status, years of working with the company, job position, industry, and the countries where their companies are headquartered. They were selected by convenience sampling technique. The instrument for collecting data was a questionnaire. Analysis data by Descriptive statistics and Chi-square Analysis.


The research results were found as follows: (1) Employee engagement levels varied based on the company’s country of origin but not by industry; and (2) Of the five hypotheses that predicted personal socio-demographic effects on engagement, three were confirmed and two were rejected. These three factors are age, education level and years of working for the company.


The results can be implied that socio-demographic factors may be used to identify the employees who are most likely to become disengaged from their work and develop strategies to reduce this trend. Second, employee retention programs should be prioritized, given the positive relationship between years of service and engagement.

Article Details

How to Cite
Sungmala, N., & Verawat , A. . (2021). The Impact of Socio-Demographic Factors on Employee Engagement at Multinational Companies in Thailand. Journal of Multidisciplinary in Humanities and Social Sciences, 4(2), 694–711. Retrieved from https://so04.tci-thaijo.org/index.php/jmhs1_s/article/view/249144
Section
Research Articles
Author Biography

Amara Verawat , Silpakorn University International College (SUIC), Thailand

Tel.086393-1849

References

Antony, M. R. (2018). Paradigm shift in employee engagement–A critical analysis on the drivers of employee engagement. International Journal of Information, Business and Management, 10(2), 32-46.

Blessing White (2011). Employee engagement report 2011: Beyond the numbers: A practical approach for individuals, managers, and executives. Retrieved from http://www.digitalopinion.co.uk/files/documents/Employee_Engagement_Report_Blessing_White_%202011.pdf.

Dowling, G. (2000). Creating corporate reputations: identity, image and performance. Oxford, UK: Oxford University.

Gesis Leibniz Institute for the Social Sciences. (2019). Socio-demographic characteristics. Retrieved from https://www.gesis.org/en/gesis-survey-guidelines/instruments/survey-instruments/socio-demographic-variables/.

Harter, J. K., Schmidt, F. L., & Hayes, T. L. (2002). Business-unit-level relationship between employee satisfaction, employee engagement, and business outcomes: A meta-analysis. Journal of Applied Psychology, 87(2), 268-279.

Harter, J. K., Schmidt, F. L., & Kraut, A. I. (2006). Connecting employee satisfaction to business unit performance. In Kraut, A. I. (Ed.), Getting action from organizational surveys: new concepts, technologies, and applications. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass, 33-52.

Holcombe, K., & Buehler, L. (2018). Trends in employee engagement 2017. Retrieved from http://newmeasures.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/01/Newmeasures-White-Paper-Trends-in-2017-Employee-Engagement-1-1.pdf.

Jaupi, F., & Llaci, S. (2015). The impact of communication satisfaction and demographic variables on employee engagement. Journal of Service Science and Management, 8(2), 191-200.

Kelliher, C., Hailey, V. H., & Farndale, E. (2014). Employee engagement in multinational organizations. In Alfes, K, et al. (eds), Employee engagement in theory and practice. London: Taylor and Francis. 180-194.

Kular, S., Gatenby, M., Rees, C., Soane, E., & Truss, K. (2008). Employee engagement: A literature review. Retrieved from https://eprints.kingston.ac.uk/4192/1/19wempen.pdf.

Lind, D. A., Marchal, W. G., & Wathen, S. A. (2012). Statistical techniques in business and economics. New York, NY: McGraw-Hill/Irwin.

Macey, W. H., & Schneider, B. (2008). The meaning of employee engagement. Industrial and organizational Psychology, 1(1), 3-30.

Maiorescu, R., & Wrigley, B. (2016). Diversity in multinational corporations. Taylor & Francis.

Oehler, K., & Adair, C. (2018). Trends in global employee engagement: global employee engagement rebounds to match its all-timehigh. Retrieved from http://images.transcontinentalmedia.com/LAF/lacom/Aon_2018_Trends_In_Global_Employee_Engagement.pdf.

Piansoongnern, O., Anurit, P., & Kuiyawattananonta, S. (2011). Talent management in Thai cement companies: A study of strategies and factors influencing employee engagement. African Journal of Business Management, 5(5), 1578-1583.

Peakon (2020). Global employee engagement data 2020. Retrieved from https://peakon.com/heartbeat/data/employee-engagement/

Piyachat, B., Chanongkorn, K., & Panisa, M. (2014). The relationships among perceived employer branding, employee engagement, and discretionary effort. DLSU Business & Economics Review, 24(1), 59-72.

Richman, A. L., Civian, J. T., Shannon, L. L., Jeffrey Hill, E., & Brennan, R. T. (2008). The relationship of perceived flexibility, supportive work–life policies, and use of formal flexible arrangements and occasional flexibility to employee engagement and expected retention. Community, Work and Family, 11(2), 183-197.

Rigg, J., Sydnor, S., Nicely, A., & Day, J. (2014). Employee engagement in Jamaican hotels: do demographic and organizational characteristics matter?. Journal of Human Resources in Hospitality & Tourism, 13(1), 1-16.

Simpson, M. R. (2009). Predictors of work engagement among medical-surgical registered nurses. Western Journal of Nursing Research, 31(1), 44–65.

Sorenson, S. (2013). How employee engagement drives growth. Gallup Business Journal, 4, 1-4.

Valentine, A. (2020). The Effects of Transformational Leadership on Work Engagement in the Kingdom of Thailand: A Case Study of a Thai MNC. AU-GSB e-JOURNAL, 12(2), 50-67.

Zeng, H., Zhou, X., & Han, J. (2009). Employee engagement and personal performance in hotel service industry of China. Proceedings from ICSSSM ’09: The Sixth International Conference on Service Systems and Service Management, Xiamen, China.