How do employees interact in routine change? High-involvement work practices at Tencent

Purpose: This study aims to explore the interactive mechanisms between high-involvement work practices (HIWPs) and employee engagement and their impact on the process of organizational routine updating. Design/methodology/approach: This study adopts an inductive longitudinal single-case study method. By collecting data from literature and conducting employee interviews, it examines routine elements such as organizational participation in design, employee responses and behavioral interaction patterns and it conducts a qualitative analysis of the organizational routine updating process in the case enterprise. Findings: This study shows that the interaction structure of HIWPs–employee engagement is the main antecedent of organizational routine updating. This interaction structure determines employee behavior and impacts organizational routine updating. Therefore, this study proposes a theoretical framework of “structure-behavior-organizational routine updating.” Under the HIWPs–employee engagement interaction structure, interactive behaviors among employees are generated, in which proactive behaviors can lead to adaptive behaviors of other employees, promoting more employees to participate in the company’s organizational change and development at a deeper level and facilitating the changeover between old and new practices in the company. Research limitations/implications: The limitation of this study is its focus on a single case, which may reduce the generalizability of the findings. Future research could expand the sample size and conduct multi-case studies to validate the results. Furthermore, data collection primarily relied on interviews and secondhand information, which may be subject to potential biases and limitations. Future studies should integrate quantitative data to enhance the objectivity and reliability of the research. Practical implications: This study provides strategic support and actionable insights for organizations aiming to achieve efficient transformation in the digital era. Organizations should implement HIWPs to stimulate employee agency and facilitate organizational routine updating through open communication channels, diverse incentives and effective career development support. Originality/value: Based on structuration theory, this study examines the dynamic, mutual-construction relationship between HIWPs and employee engagement in organizational routine updating. Using the “Structure-Behavior-Organizational Routine Updating” framework, this study analyzes and summarizes the triple-interaction structure, uncovers the behavioral interaction mechanisms driving organizational routine updates and unveils the “black box” of HIWPs and organizational routine updating.