According to CIPD (2021), employee voice represent a strategy where people actively engaged in communicating their views to employers while influencing issues that affect them in their workplace. The importance of this is to assist establishing an open and trust-based relations among the employers and employee hence organisation success. On the other hand, CIPD (2021a) identify employee engagement as cognitive state of the mind characterised by employees feeling of happiness and fulfilment which drive high-level productivity, appropriate quality of products and services and innovation embrace. Putting into account of Makite Solutions case study organisation, the evident problems associated with disrespect, lack of sufficient support and industrial unrest in the organisation evidenced by go-slow tactics and talks of strikes. These issues impact on the organisation voice and engagement scope.

Further, CIPD Asia (2021) identify employees voice and engagement as instrumental in harnessing work-life balance and improving organisation operations. This inform on the different modern developments which have emerged and include figure 1 illustration;

Figure 1: Employee voice and engagement in modern workplace

The different emerging developments include;

Technology and social media development– Previously, organisations were prioritising on use of surveys and manual platforms in evaluating employees voice and engagement. Since the advent of technology and social media have contributed to altering communication approaches in an entity (see figure 2);

Figure 2: Transition of employee voice and engagement strategies

The immense features of the process evidence employee voice and engagement achieved by both listening to employees while integrating it with external environment. Owing to their relevant structuring with minimal voice channels, employee engagement is gained.

Generation Z and Millennials increase venture in workforce– Considering Makite Solutions which has a subsidiary in Saudi Arabia (KSA), Zawya (2021) evidence Generation Z as including approximately 12.2% of overall workforce. Contrary to the elderly, the identified generation request for employers listening to voice and engagement in organisation practices. This is for attaining cooperative culture of employee voice with its recommendation.

Increase in Gig Economy and Opportunities– Representing past best strategy, CIPD (2017) evidence Gig economy as representing 4% of UK who work as adults with an age of 18 and 70 years. This is altered appropriately with contractual terms and job categories having an influence on labour costs, flexible numbers and increasing necessity for leveraging on employees voice and achieving competitive advantage. The identified aspect impact change in employee voice and also engagement level.

COVID-19 Pandemic– Before the emergence of COVID-19 pandemic, employee voice was a significant issue impacting on engagement level. This is to guide entities in efficiencies improvement, increasing collaborative practice, making decisions and innovation embrace. As evidenced in Nisha Chanana (2020), majority of staff perceive a feeling of stress and problems in current COVID-19 pandemic which affect voice quality and engagement scope.

1.2 Employee involvement and employee participation and building relationships

As evidenced in Markey and Townsed (2013), employee involvement is identified as opportunities offered to employees in making decisions impacting their job functions. This is either the immediate job role (task discretion) or broad organisation factors (organisation participation). Conversely, employee participation is a direct or indirect involvement in active decision making either in the employee part of their representative/trade unions.

The main difference of employee participation and involvement is the former applied in identifying the real business activities undertaken by the employees, the latter note on the input scope of the employees decision making in regard to the business activities performed.

Employees involvement and participation is appropriate in building relationships. For example, by employees involvement, the capacity of influencing decision making is detailed as opposed to engaging representatives. On the other hand, in employee participation, building relationships is evident from the way in which working organisations, involvement, performance and learning in the employees business environment is achieved. Additionally, the employees are appropriately positioned to leverage on innovation as shown in figure 3;

Figure 3: Employees involvement and participation in building relationships

In Makite Solutions case study organisation, the evident issues include favouritism and inexistence of objectivity in their used selection criteria. The expats vacate some of their main job roles which is significantly attributed to inexistence of holistic employees involvement and participation. Specifically, this is evidenced in Gifford et al. (2005) as influencing direct participation. This has an influence on making decisions with the assumption being the distinct forms of relationships exist such as controlling organisation practices.

1.3 Employee voice tools and approaches to drive employee engagement

Google Surveys- According to Sostek and Slatkin (2017), these are applied to…………

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