ABSTRACT
As employee engagement enjoys its days in the sun, lauded by national policy-makers, management consultants and top managers as a path to pursue to improve organizational performance, advocates might reflect on the lessons from the history of management fads and fashions. Like employee engagement, T-groups, quality circles, business process reengineering and In Search of Excellence all had their period of glory, only to fade into the background as enthusiasm waned or more attractive alternatives appeared on the horizon. The aim of this chapter is to consider whether employee engagement will follow the path of the faded stars or become more firmly established at the heart of continuing good management practice. The chapter starts by describing the characteristics of management fads and fashions before going on, in the light of these, to assess the specific case of employee engagement. The conclusions will veer towards pessimism about its long-term prospects.
