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Employee engagement is a popular topic in the HR space and has become a major challenge for businesses. A new generation in the workforce demands it, widespread use of technology enables it and a fast-paced environment makes its meaning ever clearer -- all the factors contribute to employee engagement becoming more important than ever. Companies with engaged employees outperform those without by up to 202%... the bottom line clearly proves its efficacy.
Companies are struggling to implement an ongoing employee engagement process, and managers must realize engaged employees do appear overnight. As a manager, you should be focused on engaging employees around the clock. Few organizations are successful at keeping employee engagement at a high level for a number of reasons. One of the biggest problems? Companies adopt a one-time, simplistic model for their engagement program. Take a look at what an ongoing employee engagement model will do for your company:
Few organizations are successful at #EmployeeEngagement for a number of reasons. Read why:
Better Performing Employees
Most HR professionals would agree that high levels of employee engagement lead to a high performing workplace, and the stats are there to prove it. Like these:
- Employee disengagement costs more than $500 billion per year to the U.S. economy.
- Three-fourths of employees that work for companies with financial performance that is significantly above average are moderate or highly engaged.
- Companies with engaged workers have 6% higher net profit margins.
The list goes on. Engaged employees are more likely to tackle extra work and perform at a higher level. After all, a happy worker is usually a hard worker. When implementing an ongoing employee engagement program, a company reaps the benefits around the clock.
Employee Engagement Tip: Encourage continuous feedback, and be open for feedback. Feedback is valuable in any employee engagement program and allows for performance improvement. Fostering ongoing feedback helps identify strengths and weaknesses of both employees and management. Keep this continuous by setting goals for semi-formal feedback on a monthly or biweekly basis.
More Innovation
Creating new ideas is what innovation is all about, and it’s very unlikely to have an innovative person who is not engaged. In a recent study by Gallup, 61% of engaged employees feed off the creativity of their colleagues, compared to a mere 9% of disengaged employees. Innovation is always beneficial to a company, as smart ideas and new ways of doing things can lead to better efficiency and overall higher company productivity. Implementing ongoing employee engagement improves overall innovation and creative thinking from all levels of employees.
61% of engaged employees feed off the creativity of their colleagues vs. 9% of disengaged employees:
Employee Engagement Tip: Empower employees and foster a culture of trust. In today’s fast paced environment it’s important for companies to be flexible. Hierarchical thinking prevents companies from being agile. Try to empower your employees and show confidence in them and their capabilities. Let them take on new projects, encourage innovative thinking and be open to new ways of doing things. Keep this continuous by creating blocks of time during regular meetings where employees can share progress and focus on new ideas. Start with just ten minutes!
Better Staff Well-Being
The average full-time working American reports working an average of 47 hours per week, more than counterparts in the world’s largest economies. It’s clear that there is some hard work being done, so well-being at work is becoming more important than ever. Career and work are a major part of our lives so they have a large effect on personal health and overall well-being.
Employee wellness is shown to have a great affect on workplace productivity. A study at the University of Warwick found that employees that were happy were 12% more productive than those who felt unhappy. Turn your organization into a productivity powerhouse by enforcing employee well-being with engagement.
How to turn your organization into a productivity powerhouse:
Employee Engagement Tip: Give credit to your employees and show appreciation. Many people work best when they receive credit for the work they have done. When appreciation is shown, people tend to be more confident, ambitious and committed to business goals and success. Keep this continuous by publicly or privately recognizing a different person every week. Focus on the challenge overcome rather than the work done.
Higher Staff Retention
If employees are not enjoying the work they do, they are not going to carry on doing it well. Engaged workers are more likely to enjoy showing up to work every day and are less likely to leave the company. Lower your company's turnover by investing in year-round employee engagement. Some statistics to prove this:
- Engaged millennials are 64% less likely to say they will switch jobs if the job market improves in the next 12 months.
- Just 37% of engaged employees would consider leaving for a 20% raise or less, compared to 54% of actively disengaged employees.
- $11 billion is lost annually due to employee turnover.
Employee Engagement Tip: Encourage career development and succession management. Development opportunities are strong motivators for employees. Take the time to have regular career discussions and 1-on-1 meetings with your staff. This will help you build relationships with your employees and help reduce turnover. Keep this continuous by asking employees at every feedback session or formal review what other tasks, projects or jobs attract their interest. While you may not be able to move people around the company at will, you can create teams that play to these newfound areas of interest. The bonus? You’ll have well-rounded employees who understand the big picture of their work and how it affects their co-workers.
The benefits of creating an ongoing employee engagement model in your company are extremely valuable, and it is key to implement the strategy successfully. Building an engaged workplace is crucial to success, so start implementing now and remember to keep your engagement plan continuous.
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