Responsibility for raising employee engagement lies predominantly with line managers rather than HR departments, claims a recent survey by People Management

Asked to consider the influence of managers and HR in engagement, 42 per cent of the 856 respondents said that it was mostly the duty of line managers, while 9 per cent felt it was entirely a management concern.

This compared with just 1 per cent of those polled who believed that responsibility laid mainly or wholly at the feet of HR. The significant remainder of respondents – 48 per cent – indicated that responsibility for increasing employee engagement should be shared between the two.

The survey findings also revealed that 45 per cent of HR professionals felt they were more engaged than the wider workforce, compared to the one in four who disagreed with this assertion.

Over half the HR professionals surveyed believed that employee engagement could be accurately measured (58 per cent), in comparison with 23 per cent who disagreed or strongly disagreed.

“The continued pressure on finances and resources within many organisations means that workforce engagement remains vitally important,” said People Management’s news editor, James Brockett.