Yogyakarta – Digital transformational leadership, work-life balance, and job autonomy play a crucial role in enhancing employee engagement among Generation Z students working remotely or in hybrid arrangements. This finding comes from a study conducted by Razin Saka Wiksa and Andriyastuti Suratman from Universitas Islam Indonesia, Yogyakarta, published in 2026. The research reveals that organizational culture serves as an important mediating factor, strengthening the impact of these three workplace resources on employee engagement. The findings suggest that organizations should foster digital work environments built on trust, flexibility, and collaboration to maximize employee commitment and performance.
The rapid advancement of digital technology and the widespread adoption of remote and hybrid work after the COVID-19 pandemic have fundamentally changed organizational practices. These changes have created new challenges in managing human resources, particularly for Generation Z students who simultaneously pursue higher education and professional careers. To remain engaged in their work, these young employees require digitally competent leaders, a healthy balance between work and personal life, and sufficient autonomy to manage their tasks independently.
To examine these relationships, the researchers employed a quantitative causal research design involving 216 Generation Z students in Indonesia who had been working remotely or in hybrid arrangements for at least two months. Respondents were selected using purposive sampling, and the collected data were analyzed through path analysis using SPSS. The study investigated the relationships among digital transformational leadership, work-life balance, job autonomy, organizational culture, and employee engagement.
The findings demonstrate that digital transformational leadership has a positive and significant effect on employee engagement, with a regression coefficient of 0.288 and a t-value of 8.520. Leaders who effectively communicate a digital vision, provide technological support, and encourage innovation are better able to motivate Generation Z employees and increase their commitment to work. Moreover, digital leadership significantly contributes to developing an adaptive organizational culture characterized by trust, transparency, and collaboration.
The study also found that work-life balance positively and significantly influences employee engagement, recording a regression coefficient of 0.552 and a t-value of 7.783. Flexible working arrangements enable students to balance academic responsibilities, professional commitments, and personal life, reducing stress while maintaining motivation and productivity. At the same time, organizations that support work-life balance help create healthier organizational cultures by demonstrating concern for employees' well-being and encouraging supportive workplace relationships.
Among all variables examined, job autonomy emerged as the strongest predictor of employee engagement. The analysis reported a coefficient of 0.579 for employee engagement and 1.019 for organizational culture, with t-values of 13.784 and 18.449, respectively. These results indicate that providing employees with greater freedom to determine their work schedules, methods, and decision-making processes significantly increases intrinsic motivation, personal responsibility, and emotional attachment to the organization.
Further analysis revealed that organizational culture has a positive and significant influence on employee engagement, with a regression coefficient of 0.372 and a t-value of 10.232. A transparent, inclusive, communicative, and results-oriented organizational culture strengthens employees' emotional connection with their workplace. Overall, digital transformational leadership, work-life balance, and job autonomy explain 47.5% of the variation in employee engagement, while organizational culture significantly mediates the relationship between these workplace resources and employee commitment.
According to Razin Saka Wiksa and Andriyastuti Suratman, the findings extend the application of Job Demands-Resources (JD-R) Theory to the context of Generation Z remote workers. The study highlights job autonomy as the primary resource that maximizes the benefits of digital leadership and work-life balance through a positive organizational culture. Therefore, organizations are encouraged to establish trust-based work environments, empower employees with greater decision-making authority, and strengthen collaborative digital cultures to sustain high levels of employee engagement among Generation Z in the evolving world of remote work.
Author Profile
Razin Saka Wiksa and Andriyastuti Suratman — Universitas Islam Indonesia, Yogyakarta.
Research Source
Article Title: The Influence of Digital Transformational Leadership, Work-Life Balance, and Autonomy Work towards Employee Engagement with Culture Organization as Variables Mediation for Students Working Generation Z with Remote Work
Journal: East Asian Journal of Multidisciplinary Research (EAJMR), Vol. 5, No. 7, 2026.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.55927/eajmr.v5i7.234
Journal Link: https://journaleajmr.my.id/index.php/eajmr
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