How organizational and employee‐customer identification, and customer orientation affect job engagement

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine the impact of organizational and employee‐customer identification on job engagement. The paper also aims to explore the role of customer orientation in the model as a consequence of identification, in addition to an antecedent of engagement. Design/methodology/approach – This study utilizes an online survey administered to Cooperative Extension employees in frontline service roles. Amos 18.0 was employed to examine the proposed structural model. Findings – This study examines and finds that employee‐customer identification is an important contributing factor for customer orientation and job engagement among frontline employees in service industries. The findings also reveal that customer orientation acts as an intervening effect necessary in linking organizational identification and employee‐customer identification to job engagement. Research limitations/implications – The study's results advance understanding and consequently reveal the importance of employee‐customer identification to employee behavior. Specifically, the results underscore the prominent need for managers to build‐up interpersonal connections with customers by reducing their firm's dependence on electronic storefronts in service‐based encounters. The study raises issues that address the necessity for a proper medium between human connections and technology intelligence programs within service industries. Originality/value – This research authenticates the need to examine a holistic identification model that includes the social outcomes of organizational identification as well as the relational impact of employee‐customer identification. Furthermore, the understanding of customer orientation as it relates to relational identification is advanced.