Virtual teams are increasingly expanding across the workforce facing many challenges to remain competitive. Like traditional "brick-and-mortar" workforces, there may be challenges within virtual teams that affect organizational success such as employee engagement, job satisfaction, commitment, leadership, trust, and knowledge sharing. However, it is uncertain how virtual teams maintain long-term sustainability. This research study brings together two constructs, employee engagement and computer-mediated communication, to examine their importance and relevancy in virtual team's effectiveness (success). Further, social exchange theory (SET) theoretical foundation explained employee motivation and satisfaction behaviors. This research employed a quantitative, non-experimental explanatory research design and used two instruments to investigate the relationship between computer-mediated communication (CMC) competence and employee engagement in telecommuting knowledge workers in the US. To measure dimensions of employee engagement, the researchers used the Utrecht Work Engagement Scale (UWES-9) and the Computer-mediated Communication (CMC) competence model to measure 5 subscales of computer-mediated communication, i.e. expressiveness, attentiveness, efficacy, knowledge, motivation. The target population was a random sample of 134 teleworkers. Demographic information collected included age, gender, education level, and number of years of service. The findings suggest that the most significant predictor of engagement is attentiveness, followed by expressiveness, and then motivation. Thus, leadership can engage in telecommuting knowledge workers to increase and maximize productivity.

Small businesses are the predominant contributors to the U.S. economy, yet they face many challenges to remain competitive and sustainable. There are several reasons a small business could fail, including a lack of human resources, limited financial resources, competition, technological advancements, disaster, and globalization. Improving employee performance by getting them engaged and productive in their work is an issue that cannot be overlooked for small businesses to function and remain competitive. There is limited empirical evidence that explains the dimensions of performance management and employee engagement in small businesses. However, how small businesses sustain their long-term performance remains uncertain. This study sought to bring together two previously distinct constructs: overall employee engagement and overall performance management, characterized by performance goals and development, a climate of trust, and feedback and recognition. The research was correlational in nature. A survey was conducted to generate and analyze data gathered from 121 employees of small businesses located in the United States. A series of Pearson correlation analyses confirmed the existence of statistically significant positive relationships between employee engagement and each variable of performance management, namely performance goals and development, feedback and recognition, and climate of trust. Notwithstanding these positive correlations, a multiple regression model with the three performance management variables as independent variables and employee engagement as the dependent variable suggested that there was a statistically significant regression model F(3, 117) = 32.34, p < .001, R2 = .453, explaining 45.3% of the variability in employee engagement. Nonetheless, this model confirmed that the variables performance goals and development and climate of trust were not statistically significant in the model (p > .05). In other words, only the feedback and recognition variable was statistically significant in the regression model, suggesting that it explained most of the variability in engagement, including that already explained by the other two variables. Overall, the outcome of this study suggests that small businesses implementing performance management processes have more engaged employees. The conclusions drawn from these findings suggest that overall performance management and overall employee engagement contribute to small business productivity and organizational success.

With the current post-pandemic unpredictable work environment characterized by remote and hybrid work, the leadership culture of an organization is important in fostering a desirable working environment. Such a culture of leadership is modeled by leaders of the organization and instilled in new leaders, as leadership helps motivate, inspire, and engage employees. The purpose of this study was to analyze if the four types of leadership culture (mentoring, risk-taking, result-oriented, and coordinating) as determined by the Organizational Culture Assessment Instrument (OCAI) have a direct influence on the level of engagement of employees. To analyze the influence of organizational leadership culture on remote employee engagement, this study implemented a quantitative non-experimental correlational design. Remote employee engagement was measured using a validated instrument called EENDEED (Enhanced Engagement Nurtured by Determination, Efficacy, and Exchange Dimensions). Data were collected through an online survey from 325 participants, all remote workers in organizations within the United States and a multiple regression analysis was conducted. The findings of this study confirmed that there was a statistically significant relationship between an organization’s leadership culture and its employees’ level of engagement. In other words, the organization leadership culture as defined by OCAI contributes to employee engagement. Mentoring was shown to be the highest contributor in employee engagement. In other words, a mentoring-based leadership culture produced more engaged employees. While risk-taking and coordinating produced a statistically significant positive contribution to employee engagement, a result-oriented culture was not significant in contributing to employee engagement.