MANILA, Philippines ? Employees of top corporations in the Philippines display the highest level of commitment and focus among workers surveyed across the Asia-Pacific region, according to a study by global consultancy firm Watson Wyatt.
The findings indicate that the country?s corporate sector is in a good position to weather the global financial storm, the consultancy firm said.
The ?employee engagement? score for the Philippines stood at 77 percent, up by four percentage points from the previous survey in 2007, according to the study results Watson Wyatt released Monday.
Engagement is measured as a combination of the ?commitment? factor or employees? motivation toward achieving the company?s goals, as well as ?line of sight? or employees? focus and direction to make their organizations successful.
The country?s overall commitment score stood at 71 percent, an increase of seven points, and the overall line of sight score is 86, an increase of one point.
In an interview, Watson Wyatt Philippines associate consultant Carlo Felicia said there was no international benchmark on the engagement score as the firm recognized the socioeconomic and cultural dynamics that were unique to each country.
But he said the 77 percent score obtained by the Philippines was ?pretty good? and, in fact, turned out to be the highest not only in Southeast Asia, but the Asia-Pacific region as a whole.
Felicia said that Indonesia garnered an employee engagement score of 71 percent, Thailand 72 percent, and Malaysia 67 percent.
The Philippines? score was also higher than India?s 75 percent and China?s 66 percent.
Greater employee engagement is a valuable economic asset leading to higher productivity, said Deirdre Lander, head of human capital group at Watson Wyatt Hong Kong.
?So it is crucial for employers to take steps to engage their employees even when business has slowed down,? Lander said.
Data collection for the latest survey started in 2008, covering top 500 Philippine enterprises and multinational firms. With editing by INQUIRER.net
