Understanding Employee Voice Behavior Through the Use of Digital Voice Channel in Long-Term Care: An Embedded Multiple-Case Study

Changing a hierachical organizational culture within the health care sector toward a culture of shared governance can be understood as a necessary strategy to address challenges, such as shortages of nursing staff and high turnover of nursing staff. Data from business organizations show that the use of digital voice channels provides employee voice. This approach provides the opportunity for employees to speak up by getting involved through virtual voice channel and making comments in an anonymous forum, which subsequently will positively influence staff turnover and sick leave. The purpose of the study ADVICE—understanding employee voice behavior: experiences of long-term care with a digital voice channel—is to analyze and understand how the use of a digital voice channel can impact organizational culture in a long-term care setting. The aim of ADVICE is to understand how a digital voice channel can support staff in making their voices heard and to learn, what managers need to be able to use a tool such as digital voice channel to change their work environment. Therefore, an embedded multiple-case study will be used to explore the experiences of two health care providers who have already implemented a digital voice channel. Therefore, focus group interviews with employees, discursive-dialogical interviews with managers, meeting protocols, and data from the digital voice channel will be analyzed. The results may help to better understand the use of a digital voice channel in the health care sector and its transformative potential for leadership. At the organizational level, research can help to improve the attractiveness of the workplace by understanding how to give employees a voice.