Factors promoting employee engagement in the pharmaceutical manufacturing industry

Abstract

Employee Engagement is a critical business issue for the pharmaceutical industry especially owing to the highly competitive nature of this industry. This research postulates that factors can be identified that promote employee engagement in the pharmaceutical manufacturing industry. The purpose of the study is to research the factors that contribute to employee engagement in the pharmaceutical industry and to make recommendations in line with the results obtained that may be appropriate and significant to assist the pharmaceutical industry. The organization that was studied is MZ Pharmaceuticals The Problem in Context provided an analysis of the first level of complexity within the pharmaceutical industry. The focus of the Problem review was to unravel the second level of complexity. A mind map was created using the ideas generated from a brainstorming. These ideas were grouped into themes. The objectives of this research are: • Objective 1: To identify if employee engagement is a perceived value by the organization. • Objective 2: To determine whether employees have sufficient tools to enable adequate engagement within the organization. • Objective 3: To investigate the contribution of motivation, organizational culture and leadership on employee engagement within the organization. This problem analysis presented in Chapter 2 unravels the third level of complexity underlying the constructs identified in the problem review from Chapter 1. It attempts to provide a deeper level of understanding of the business complexity through the application of relevant business management theory and models. The literature review was conducted in order to seek knowledge and insight about published literature which assisted in formulating the perspectives and various arguments in understanding the complexity of the research problem. Chapter 4 includes the research methodology of the study which is both qualitative and quantitative in nature. The aim of the research study was to determine the factors promoting employee engagement in a pharmaceutical manufacturing facility which is discussed in Chapter 5. The findings will provide a better understanding of the factors promoting employee engagement. The main purpose of the study was to determine the factors that promote employee engagement in the pharmaceutical manufacturing facility. In order to achieve the research purpose and aim, the research question and research objectives that formed the basis of gathering data and interpreting data will be reiterated. The findings depict the following: • Employee engagement is a perceived value by the organization • Employees require improvement in employee engagement tools to improve employee engagement within the organization • In terms of culture, a culture change is needed to support employee engagement • Motivational levels of the organization are not sufficient to support employee engagement • The leadership within the organization is not adequate to support effective employee engagement. In light of the findings, recommendations are made for alignment of factors promoting employee engagement within the organization. Suggestions for further research are also made.