Similar professional standards link nurses together but healthcare professionals practise across a variety of areas and have different experiences of the workplace. It cannot be assumed that a positive experience in one setting will be replicated in another, even if it is in the same organisation. This article explores the factors that affect workplace culture and outlines the rudiments underpinning nurse engagement from a work perspective. It also analyses staff engagement in the health service sector by examining the status, certainty, autonomy, relatedness and fairness (Scarf) model, and demonstrates the relevance of this framework.