5 Key Ways To Drive Employee Engagement
What do we mean by employee engagement? Simply put, it’s how much employees feel passionate about being at work, how loyal they feel towards the company and fellow workers and whether they want to go the extra two miles.
Research has shown that the downside of low employee engagement can be a heavy price to pay for the US economy. Various estimates put the cost between $450 to $550 billion per year. On the plus side, a 2016 Gallup study showed that companies in the top quartile for employee engagement outperform their competitors in many categories with, for example, 21% more profits, 20% higher productivity and between anything from 25-60% lower turnover.
The findings of a Forbes Insights and SilkRoad survey of 212 U.S.-based CFOs and financial executives revealed that the fastest-growing firms put greater emphasis on understanding their employees and engaging them compared with slower-growing firms.
So employee engagement does matter. It matters a lot.
But how can we tell whether we have low or high employee engagement? How can we measure this? One way is the traditional yearly all employee survey. It will provide an indication and trend. Another is some of the various apps that are cropping up that provide real-time feedback on employees emotional engagement such as Keyhubs Voice or Trakstar.
But nothing can really replace superior management and their genuine interest and connection with their people. The best solution is NOT more money. That’s a short term solution. I would suggest there are 5 key drivers for high employee engagement and we should strive to provide an environment where our people:
1. Are Strongly Connected
That strong personal ties are developed by paying attention to what’s important to people in and out of work by sharing lunch and coffee breaks and listening.
2. Obtain Recognition
We all want to make a difference and be recognized for it. By moving from just measuring individual performance to evaluating team performance we can engender “team spirit and feelings of greater contributions to the greater cause.
3.Have Choice
Delegate more and empower people within guidelines so they can make more choices and be more in control of their own destiny.
4. Get Provided with Challenges
Ensure that your people get projects that stretch them and potentially take them outside of their comfort zone.
5. Encouraged to Laugh
Yes, humor is OK at work. I have opined on this several times in articles. It’s OK to laugh and fun is generated by providing the environment in which people can relax and joke but also know when to get serious.
Having engaged employees is a fundamental part of any successful, business and will become increasingly important as Generation Y, or Millennials, have more influence in the workplace.