Proactive influence tactics that increase work engagement for remote employees

Purpose COVID-19 accelerated the already growing prevalence of employees working remotely, and limited research exists on the effectiveness of proactive influence tactics in remote work settings. This study aims to identify which proactive influence tactics may best facilitate employee work engagement in a remote work setting. Design/methodology/approach Survey data stems from 231 employees who work remotely in the USA. Hierarchical regression was used to analyze the data and assess interaction effects. Findings Evidence was found for positive relationships between work engagement and multiple proactive influence tactics (collaboration, consultation, inspirational appeals, exchange, apprising, rational persuasion, personal appeals and ingratiation) and a negative relationship between work engagement and pressure. The percentage of time an employee spends working remotely moderated the proactive influence tactic-work engagement relationship. Significant interaction effects were found for exchange and personal appeals. Practical implications The results highlight several influence tactics that managers can consider using to increase employee work engagement. The findings also demonstrate the increasing effectiveness of certain influence tactics, such as exchange and personal appeals, as employees spend more time working remotely, shedding light on important considerations for managers seeking to optimize employee engagement in remote work environments. Originality/value The study contributes to the limited literature on proactive influence tactics and work engagement and examines these relationships in a remote work setting. In addition, it examines the moderating effect of the percentage of time an employee spends working remotely.