Effects of employees’ career competencies development on their organizations

Purpose – This paper examines the effects of the development of employees’ career competencies (knowing-why, knowing-how, and knowing-whom) on the employing organization and assesses the role of career satisfaction in this relationship. The purpose of this paper is to contribute to research on the consequences of employees’ boundaryless careers. Design/methodology/approach – The study involves a two-wave quantitative investigation of alumni of a large public university in the Netherlands. Findings – The results suggest that by investing in the development of their career competencies, employees contribute to organizational culture, capabilities, and connections. However, these contributions depend on employees’ level of perceived career satisfaction. If employees are satisfied with their careers, they contribute more to their organizations. Research limitations/implications – Further longitudinal research, strengthened by an additional, third wave of data collection, is needed to replicate the present findings. Practical implications – The study highlights the importance of employees’ career development for organizations. Originality/value – This study is the first empirical investigation of the link between the development of employees’ career competencies and employees’ contributions to their employers and one of a few studies that examines career satisfaction as a moderating variable.