Organizational Commitment

Organizational Commitment may be viewed as an organizational member's psychological attachment to the organization. Organizational commitment plays a major role in determining whether a member will stay with the organization and zealously work towards organizational goals.

High levels of organizational commitment are related to superior business performance, increased profitability, improved productivity, employee retention, customer satisfaction metrics, reduced customer churn, and above all improving the workplace culture. That’s the level of commitment an organization would expect from its employees.

Types of Organizational Commitment

Also known as the “Three Component Model of Commitment” there are three distinct types of organizational commitment:

Affective commitment relates to how much employees want to stay at their organization. If an employee is affectively committed to their organization, it means that they want to stay at their organization. They typically identify with the organizational goals, feel that they fit into the organization, and are satisfied with their work. Employees who are effectively committed feel valued, act as ambassadors for their organization and are generally great assets for organizations.

Continuance commitment relates to how much employees feel the need to stay at their organization. In employees that are continuance committed, the underlying reason for their commitment lies in their need to stay with the organization. Possible reasons for needing to stay with organizations vary, but the main reasons relate to a lack of work alternatives and remuneration. A good example of continuance commitment is when employees feel the need to stay with their organization because their salary and fringe benefits won’t improve if they move to another organization. Such examples can become an issue for organizations as employees that are continuance committed may become dissatisfied (and disengaged) with their work and yet, are unwilling to leave the organization.

Normative commitment relates to how much employees feel they should stay at their organization. Employees that are normatively committed generally feel that they should stay at their organizations. Normatively committed employees to feel that leaving their organization would have disastrous consequences, and feel a sense of guilt about the possibility of leaving. Reasons for such guilt vary but are often concerned with employees feeling that in leaving the organization they would create a void in knowledge/skills, which would subsequently increase the pressure on their colleagues. Such feelings can and do negatively influence the performance of employees working in organizations.

Team Engagement Vs. Organizational Commitment

Here's how team engagement and organizational commitment compare:

• Team engagement: Team engagement refers to how satisfied an individual may be at work and their level of awareness regarding the company.
• Organizational commitment: This term refers to the amount of effort an individual may put into their work. It can also involve the emotional attachment they feel to their work, colleagues, and company.

Understanding the difference between these terms may help you improve both or decide which to focus on in your work setting.

Benefits of Organizational Commitment

Since organizational commitment determines how long employees will stay with your organization, committed employees are any and every organization’s assets. Some of the key benefits and advantages of organizational commitment are as follows:

• High employee productivity: Committed employees are highly productive. They believe in the organization, its goals, vision, mission, and the leadership team. These employees not only demonstrate high levels of productivity, but they also ensure their colleagues and team members too display the same.
• Reduced absenteeism: A committed and motivated staff will report much lesser absenteeism than their peers. Committed employees look forward to going to work, completing their work, helping out with projects, and contributing toward organizational goals.
• Excellent team players: Since dedicated employees are heavily invested in the organization, and its success, they are great at collaborating with and working in teams.
• Strong advocates: Dedicated and committed employees believe in their organization, and hence, are effective and positive advocates of their employers. They are strong believers and supporters of their employer’s products, services, and policies.

See Also

Organizational Commitment Questionnaire (OCQ)