You’ve probably heard the term “Employee Engagement” used to describe a best practice within an organization. But what does it look like, and how do we know when our employees are engaged?
In a somewhat simplistic sense, employee engagement is a focused approach in the workplace that results in happy employees, committed to the organization, who are giving their best each and every day. These employees believe in the company, are proud to work there, and are committed to the success of the organization.
It is up to employers to set the stage for a culture of employee engagement – by creating the right conditions so employees will strive to reach their individual potential and create successful outcomes for the organization. This includes having a culture that values two-way communication, integrity and trust. Quite often that means things like frequent and honest dialog with your employees. Listening to your employees (the ones that do the actual work) is a valuable tool for an employer. Not only will you get great information, but you will be building a trust bridge between management and employees.
There are several ways to tell if your employees are fully engaged in their work and in the company culture. How is their attitude? Engaged employees are generally very positive and upbeat. They look forward to coming to work each day, and actively seek out opportunities for contribution. They are eager to discuss ideas and work to inspire those around them. Engaged employees are great to have on a team, because of their positive attitude and the fact that they will “cheerlead” others. How do they feel about the company? Engaged employees feel pride in the company or organization. They have a deep sense of loyalty and will quite often go the extra mile to ensure work is done to a high standard.
Numerous research studies and surveys have been done around the topic of employee engagement. The findings are fairly universal in suggesting that employee engagement actually drives bottom line results for companies. This is partly due to the fact that the majority of engaged employees believe they can make a difference for their company in the areas of productivity, product quality, customer service and cost containment. These are powerful profit drivers that can be affected by whether or not your workforce is engaged! So, don’t we all want engaged employees?
Unfortunately, employee engagement isn’t something we can implement! There is no simple system to install that will produce engaged employees. Rather, it requires a concerted effort on the part of the top leadership to actively create a culture of engagement. Leaders cannot mandate engagement. It has to grow organically in the right environment. It starts with two-way communication. Leaders need to share their vision for the company down to the lowest level in the organization. They need to be willing to listen to comments and ideas and show gratitude to the employees who are sharing their thoughts and ideas. Employees have to see that there is a path for growth. Very few people want to be on a dead-end track – most people are motivated by additional learning, adding levels of competency and complexity to their jobs and being able to envision a path for growth.
Focusing on communicating the vision and the yearly business plan, engaging employees in conversation, and providing additional opportunities for growth are three great ways to begin to instill a culture of employee engagement in your company.
