Organizations want their employees to be dedicated, productive, and engaged in their work. However, 67% of employees are either not engaged or actively disengaged. Disengagement is expensive; disengaged employees are costing U.S companies up to $550 billion a year! Employee engagement should be one of the main priorities of organizations to ensure they are getting the highest productivity from all employees.
In this article, we discuss how organizations can increase their employee engagement.
1) Start at the top
Managers are the front line when it comes to engaging their team. In fact, a fully engaged manager translates into a 50% high engagement rate among their team members. Managers should not assume that their employees have all the tools and training that they need to be successful. Managers need to work with their employees to ensure they are getting enough training and have the correct skillset to perform their jobs well. Feedback is a really important tool to make sure that employees are getting the right opportunities and training. When an employee knows how to do their job and has the skillset to perform it well, they are more likely to be engaged at work.
2) Understand the strengths and weakness of employees
Different employees have different strengths and skillsets. When employees are thriving in a certain position and receiving feedback and recognition continuously, it encourages them to give 110% to help their team and company succeed. Managers need to be able to understand their employees’ skills and place them in positions to best utilize their skills. If employees are struggling, managers need to provide training and coaching.
It is also important to realize that sometimes a great employee is just not in the right position. Transferring them to a different project or even a different team that better suits their skillset and professional goals can help increase employee satisfaction, engagement, and motivation. Moreover, ensuring that employees are in the right position that suits their skillset can increase retention rates down the line. Be strategic; place employees in positions that they will produce great work and where they will be engaged.
3) Provide recognition
Recognition is a simple gesture that many managers often forget, but it is one of the most vital aspects to keep employees engaged. 40% of employees claim that their company does not prioritize employee recognition. Imagine working for a boss that never said thank you! It would be discouraging to say the least.
Implementing a reward system can be a powerful motivator for employees. While some companies may not be able to afford a structured reward/recognition program, not all rewards need to be a bonus or increase in pay. A simple act of appreciation for hard work can go a long way. Most employees would be happy with a simple thank you or good job from their boss. Having a robust performance management solution that allows managers to document feedback and give recognition can keep employees engaged so they can continuously produce good work.
4) Continuously provide feedback
Engagement surveys sometimes do not accurately depict satisfaction levels at an organization. In addition to surveys, organizations need to be implementing continuous feedback. Continuous feedback allows for more open, frequent, and constructive conversations to flow between managers and their direct reports. 89% of HR leaders agree that ongoing feedback and check-ins are key for successful outcomes. So why aren’t organizations/managers providing their employees with more feedback?
More often than not, managers may be apprehensive to provide critical feedback because it may offend and thus, cause more employee disengagement. In reality, feedback (when given correctly) will do the exact opposite.
Employees are wanting feedback more often to evolve their skills and get real-time guidance on how they can improve their performance. If your company has not embraced a culture of feedback, start small. Encourage managers to give employees feedback once or twice a month. Remember that providing the right training is also critical if you want employees to give meaningful feedback to one another continuously.
How is your company keeping your employees engaged? Let us know! We want to hear from you!
