Well-being at Work and Employee Performance: Towards Managerial Practice Reframing in the Digitalization Process - Moroccan Context

Abstract With an increasingly competitive and dynamic economic environment, employees' well-being at work is increasingly regarded as a strategic catalyst for Human Resources Managers (HRMs) to enhance employees' commitment and company performance. The current research discusses the interplay between employee well-being and performance with the goal of establishing a managerial model tailored to the specific needs of companies in Morocco. Despite a multitude of theoretical frameworks of motivation and job satisfaction as described in contemporary literature, few studies adopt a contextual and qualitative approach to analyze this connection in emerging economies where organizational processes and cultural traditions affect the association. Based on qualitative research using semi-structured interviews of HRMs in Moroccan SMEs, the study elicits some common themes. They are the concept of well-being as a source of performance, motivational drivers like autonomy and appreciation, and monitoring devices of well-being (e.g., social barometers, informal feedback). The study suggests that where well-being is embedded in company culture, there is a more engaged, productive, and resilient workforce. The proposed managerial model incites concrete and context-related actions: creating a healthy work climate, promoting autonomy and appreciation, ensuring flexibility, and implementing repeated well-being reviews. This is an attempt to reconcile the workers' expectations with the organizational necessities of performance and competitiveness. The integration of well-being into strategic management enables SMEs not only to improve worker satisfaction but also to ensure long-term organizational resilience. Keywords: Workplace well-being, Organizational Performance, Moroccan SMEs, Human Resource Management, Employee Motivation, Digitalization