THE MODERATING ROLE OF TELECOMMUTING ON THE NODE OF EMPLOYEE ENGAGEMENT, ITS DIMENSIONS AND EMPLOYEE PERFORMANCE

Objective: To investigate the moderating effect of telecommuting on the relationship between employee engagement, its physical, cognitive, and emotional dimensions, and employee performance within the South African Information and Communication Technology (ICT) sector.   Theoretical Framework: This study adopted the Employee Engagement theory and Social Exchange Theory which provide a basis for understanding the variables under study.   Method: A quantitative research design was adopted. An online survey was utilised to collect data. A combination of non-probability sampling methods was employed to gather a total of 478 complete responses from employees in the South African ICT sector. The data was analyzed using a range of statistical tools, including structural equation modelling, to derive empirical insights and test the proposed hypotheses.   Results and Discussion: The results reveal that telecommuting moderates the relationship between cognitive engagement and employee performance, as well as the relationsip between emotional engagement and employee performance. However, telecommuting did not moderate the relationship between physical engagement and performance, nor the relationship between employee engagement and performance. These findings suggest that telecommuting enhances employee performance primarily through its impact on cognitive engagement and emotional engagement.   Research Implications: The study's findings imply that organizations, particularly in developing economies, should tailor their remote work policies to strengthen cognitive and emotional engagement among employees to optimize performance outcomes.   Originality/Value: This study contributes to the existing literature by providing empirical evidence on the moderating role of telecommuting in the relationship between different dimensions of employee engagement and performance within the ICT sector in South Africa.