In 2008, ASTD partnered with Dale Carnegie Training and the Institute for Corporate Productivity (i4cp) to evaluate employee engagement. The study found that engaged workers were willing to contribute more to work efforts, typically beyond their ordinary job parameters. In this respect, it seems that respondents to the survey are associating engagement with a willingness to "go the extra mile" in the workplace. This is an interesting finding because it places the idea of effort or work ethic at the pinnacle of what it means to be engaged. The next most highly rated indicators of engagement are linked to the organizational image that workers present to the outside world. \[more\]Therefore, an engaged employee is one who speaks well of his or her employer and is willing to recommend the organization to others. This "face to the outside world" aspect of engagement is also probably related to the fact that seven out of 10 respondents believe to a high or very high degree that customer satisfaction scores are a key indicator of engagement.

Source: Learning's Role in Employee Engagement (ASTD/Dale Carnegie Training/i4cp)

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