Diversity at work can support engagement efforts for individuals, workplaces, and communities; however, “engagement” can mean different things to different people.
For individuals, it might mean:
For workplaces, it might mean:
For communities, it might mean:
The Career Engagement model (Neault & Pickerell, 2011) offers a holistic conceptual framework which informed the creation of the Diversity at Work website and development of resources to support the employment of diverse individuals. The following provides a summary of the model including the:
Lastly, we’ll share additional links where you can access helpful resources if you’d like to learn more.
Originally developed in 2011 by Drs. Borgen (Neault) and Pickerell, Career Engagement can be thought of as “a state in which one is focused, energized, and able to derive pleasure from activities linked to work and other life roles” (Pickerell & Neault, 2016, p. 5). Some statements you might use to describe the experience include:
Take a moment to reflect on your experience(s) of feeling “engaged.” Deepen your understanding by considering the following questions:
What were you doing?
Where were you?
Who were you with?
How did it feel?
The model builds on several foundational works on the topic of engagement (e.g., Khan, 1990; Shuck, 2011) and flow (Csikszentmihalyi, 1991, 1997). It captures the dynamic interaction between challenge and individual/organizational capacity in response to the emerging understanding of career as something that extends beyond paid employment to include a variety of life roles for diverse individuals.
For a more in-depth summary of the model’s theoretical background and development, refer to Pickerell and Borgen’s (2023), Optimizing Career Engagement: A Guide for Enhancing Careers and other Life Roles; however, as you get started, keep these “5 Big Ideas” in mind:
Career engagement is influenced by both challenge and capacity
As you can see from Figure 1, there are two major factors measured by the model – Capacity and Challenge. Capacity is measured on the x-axis and comprises external priorities, needs, and resources (e.g., organizations, industry) as well as individual priorities, roles, relationships, health, and abilities (e.g., physical, intellectual). Challenge is measured on the y-axis and comprises not only the level of difficulty but also how meaningful and motivating work and/or tasks/activities are.
The colour of the model is intentional. Like a stop light, green is an indication that you are good to proceed, amber means be cautious, and red marks danger.
When the Capacity and Challenge factors are balanced, the intersecting coordinates will land within the green “zone of engagement.” Here individuals will feel emotionally and cognitively connected, deriving pleasure from the activities they are engaged in.
Think back to the earlier reflection on when you felt “engaged.” Consider the following questions.
What challenge factors were present?
What capacity factors were present?
However, engagement isn’t static. Reflecting the realities of our lives, Challenge and Capacity fluctuate across contexts (e.g., work, life, learning) throughout time. The dotted, zig-zag line throughout the zone of engagement helps to illustrate that continuous small adjustments are necessary to sustain engagement, resilience, and optimal life experiences.
In moving outwards into the amber zones, you will find two potential paths – one through feeling “overwhelmed” and the other through feeling “underutilized.” Note that there isn’t a hard line between the zones – the colour slowly changes from green through yellow and into amber.
If there is too much Challenge for available Capacity, individuals may begin to feel anxious, uneasy, worried, stressed, and/or burnt out – an indicator they are slipping into the “overwhelmed” region. Conversely, if there is too much Capacity for available Challenge, individuals may begin to feel bored or apathetic – an indicator they are slipping into the “underutilized” region. At this stage, small adjustments can support re-engagement efforts; however, either state, if left unchecked, will ultimately result in feeling “disengaged.” Once disengaged, regardless of the route you took to get there, more intensive interventions are likely necessary.
The career engagement model can be a useful tool for individuals, workplaces, and communities.
For diverse individuals with complex needs, the model can support with:
For workplaces with a diverse workforce, the model can support with:
For communities, the model can support with:
The next resource provides a brief introduction to a “systems-based” perspective, one that builds from a holistic approach to career and integrates both individual and contextual factors.
