Effectiveness of employee suggestion schemes – from critical success factors to outcomes

Past studies have noted the important role of employee suggestion system (ESS) within the organizations. The use of ESS has been shown to help organizations address improvement- and cost-related problems. The advantages of ESSs are not limited to improving a work-related performance but can also lead to innovations through employees’ creativity. Creative ideas are very important for organizations to build its competitive advantage. Therefore, it is important to identify and understand the factors that contribute to the effectiveness of employee suggestion scheme and its success which has not been well-studied. This study aims to provide decision-makers within organizations with a deeper understanding of the factors that need to be considered in organizing and managing ESSs for its maximum effectiveness

An analysis of 273 surveys collected from several organizations with ESS experience in the United Arab Emirates was conducted. Survey scales were developed based on previous research and hypotheses are stated. Regression analysis was used to test the hypotheses. Correlation analysis were used to understand the interrelations among the five factors

Results suggest that the four critical success factors, namely, system capability, organizational encouragement, leadership support and employee participation, are positively related to the ESS outcome and its valuable predictors. Some managerial implications of the results of this study are important to note. It is critical for managers to establish rewards, evaluation, feedback and awareness of ESS.

On the basis of a possible future extended research scope in combination with a qualitative research methodology, one could deepen the understanding of influence of country of origin and of institutional mechanisms that might explain higher effectiveness of ESS outcome This appears to be the first published research study to link critical success factors for maximum effectiveness of ESSs.