Workers with Heavy Travel Schedules: Highly Engaged, Satisfied, But Also Most Likely to Leave

Participants in a work-related travel study were categorized into four groups:

1.  No Travel;

2.  Light Travel (10 percent to 30 percent of the time);

3.  Heavy Travel (40 percent to 60 percent of the time); and

4.  Road Warrior (70 percent to 100 percent of the time).

When asked about job engagement, the survey responses revealed a disparity between the four main groups. Those in the No Travel and Road Warrior groups felt less engaged with their jobs and organizations than did those who classified themselves in the Light Travel and Heavy Travel categories.

Despite having the highest engagement and satisfaction ratings, members of the Heavy Travel group are also the most likely to consider leaving their organization within the next 12 months. Employees across the board reported more satisfaction with their individual jobs than with their organizations.

According to the study, senior and middle managers travel the most, men travel more frequently than women and younger workers travel more than older workers. Sixty-seven percent of respondents indicated they travel to some extent, with 55 percent grouped in the light travel category.

Although the majority of their travel is in the Light Travel category, employees who work in China and India travel more than people in the rest of the world. Japan and Mexico also rank highly; in Mexico, the highest percentage is in the Light Travel category (43 percent). The same is true for Japan (32 percent in the light travel category), although Japan has the largest percentage in the Road Warrior category (11 percent).

More travel equals less work/life balance. The survey also examined workers’ attitudes about work/life balance and stress levels. Surprisingly, employees who do not travel for work feel they have much less work/life balance than Light Travelers, but as expected, significantly more work/life balance than Road Warriors. The Light Travel and Heavy Travel classifications reported feeling less stress than the other workers did.

“The results of this survey illuminate interesting relationships between business travel and employee engagement,” said Jack Wiley, executive director, Kenexa Research Institute. “Organizations should be cautioned, however, that there is a breaking point - employees who spend the grand majority of their time on the road are more stressed and lack work/life balance. The needs of the employee should be considered before signing them up to go on the road, but the good news is, once they’ve signed up, they seem to enjoy the autonomy that work travel offers.”

Source: Kenexa Research Institute; www.kenexa.com.

Reprinted with permission. © CCH