Having engaged employees is not only nice to have, but it also makes a difference in the financial success of an organization. While some managers believe that in order to make employees happy and reap the benefits, all they need to do is celebrate birthdays, put foosball tables and snacks in the break rooms, and make employees feel welcome on their first day; this superficial approach does not leave to long term success. Employees can tell when leadership is committed to creating a workplace culture where employees like what they do, are loyal to the organization, and contribute their best efforts.
Here are five statistics from the Gallup Organization that should make you a believer in the power of engaged employees.
1. Companies with an engaged workforce are 21% more profitable. Gallup’s findings about the link between employee engagement and concrete and practical behavior indicate that it’s been proven that employee engagement is expressed with concrete actions, not emotions. The most successful organizations make it a central element of their business strategy. Because of this, engaged team members look for ways to make and save their employer money. They also produce better quality products and have less waste.
2. Companies that are leaders in customer experience have 60% more highly engaged employees. It’s a virtuous cycle. Employees enjoy their workplace, so they take great care of their customers, who, in turn, buy more and tell their friends – and so on and so on.
3. When companies don’t focus on employee experience, it causes customers to go elsewhere. When companies have highly engaged employees, those organizations outperform their competitors by 147%.
4. Employees who feel their opinion is valued are 4.6 times more likely to give their all in the workplace. Employees look for communication between colleagues to be reciprocal. When it is, organizations will gain more customers, attract a wider range of stakeholders, and are more effective sources of insight and feedback.
5. 96% of employees agree that empathy is one of the top ways to increase worker retention. Communication and empathy are intrinsically connected, as they work together to understand and manage one’s own emotions and those of others. Employees seldom feel admired and empowered in a business that lacks empathy.
Because it’s usually the C-Suite or leadership team who are most focused on the numbers, that’s also where change begins – at the top. Look for ways to start implementing, measuring, and improving your engagement levels. After all, the better you make your employees feel, the more they’ll contribute to your company’s growth and success.
