Socialization, employee engagement and innovation in organizations

Abstract

Socialization (On-Boarding), Employee Engagement and Innovation in Organizations. Today innovation has become a great strategic device and key to organizational survival as companies are increasingly becoming wiped out by game-changing ideas. Whereas many organizations are increasingly emphasizing innovation as an avenue to create new products, reduce costs and increase revenue, they do very little to nurture it. The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between socialization, employee engagement and innovation. Relying on a cross-sectional, correlational survey research design, a total of 207 identified participants from Kampala Capital City Authority completed the research questionnaire. Data was analyzed using SPSS and the findings of the study highlight positive relationships between socialization and employee engagement (r= 0.186, p <0.001), employee engagement and innovation (r= 0.247, p<0.001) and a weak and negative relationship between socialization and innovation (r= -0.023, p<0.001). The study further highlights employee engagement as a significant mediator between socialization and innovation (β = 0.26, p<0.001). The study presents interesting implications for managers and the academia on the role of socialization and employee engagement in driving innovation within organizations. The conclusions from the study are that focusing on the drivers of employee engagement is a great way to improve innovation, socialization is a key factor in employee engagement but not as much for innovation. The study recommendations include organizations paying more attention to employee engagement initiatives to bring about innovation and taking deliberate steps to plan and execute proper employee socialization programs in order to guarantee employee engagement among new hires.