An Investigation into Employee Engagement and Professional Development Policy Creation and Implementation on Full-time Faculty Employees in the Ontario College Sector: A Case Study

Abstract Concern for the importance of employee engagement amongst organizational leadership has been recognizable, albeit unevenly, wherever work processes require the enthusiasm, skill and judgement of employees in order to be successful. It is increasingly clear that engagement is linked to positive outcomes, both for individuals and for organizations. An increased interest in the engagement level of employees has highlighted the positive effects of employee engagement on organizational performance (Harter, Schmidt Hayes, 2002; Kahn, 1992; Shuck, Rocco Albornoz, 2011); however, I found in my literature review that relatively little is known about the impact of organizational policy creation and implementation on employee engagement. This research study was undertaken to extend and clarify an understanding of employee engagement rooted in an elaboration of concepts offered originally in Kahn’s influential ‘Engagement Model’ (1990). This approach argued by Kahn and his colleagues represents a key point of departure within the field of Human Resource Development (HRD) (Shuck Reio, 2011; Shuck, Reio Rocco, 2011; Shuck Rose, 2013; Shuck Wollard, 2010) by focusing on the employee experience. With this study, I aimed to fill an important void in the HRD literature (McGoldrick, Stewart Watson, 2002). Specifically, the objective of this study was to generate an exploratory and descriptive account of how professional development policy-making influences the engagement of full-time faculty at Durham College (Ontario, Canada). This research examines the effect that the implementation of a professional development policy had on the employee engagement of full-time faculty employees. This research presents a new framework for assisting college leaders to increase employee engagement and contributes to the HRD literature by illuminating theory-based strategies for faculty employee involvement in the creation and implementation of professional development policies.Ed.D