Employee engagement seems to be the latest buzz phrase in business. According to a Society for Human Resources Study conducted in Spring of 2013, Forty-seven percent (47%) of companies surveyed stated that employee engagement was their MOST important HR challenge. And it's good that organizations are recognizing this because a recent Gallop poll noted that as employee engagement increases, company profits do too.
So what is engagement? It's when an employee is fully focused, involved in, and enthusiastic about his or her work. If an employee is engaged, they act in the best interest of the company and work to further the organization's interests.
How To Increase Employee Engagement
Weaving engagement into a company culture takes effort...and it is not a do-it-and-you're-done endeavor. It requires sustained effort. The folks at Gallop state that integration takes a focus on four main areas: 1) Strategy and leadership philosophy; 2) Accountability and performance; 3) Communication and knowledge management; 4) Development and ongoing learning opportunities. Yikes, sounds like a lot of work!
In building the strategy and leadership philosophy, a few key points stand out:
Once the structure of an engagement process is developed, the deployment of an actual communication plan needs to take place so that engagement permeates every conversation and becomes a part of the culture.
The sustainability of any engagement process will involve development and learning opportunities. The is one way to directly invest in employees so they are able to perform the work tasks necessary and it gives them a positive feeling (and heightens engagement) about the organization.
One final note from our friends at Gallop - only about 1/3 of a typical organization's employees are engaged. Think of the opportunities that could present themselves if you doubled that...
So what is engagement? It's when an employee is fully focused, involved in, and enthusiastic about his or her work. If an employee is engaged, they act in the best interest of the company and work to further the organization's interests.
How To Increase Employee Engagement
Weaving engagement into a company culture takes effort...and it is not a do-it-and-you're-done endeavor. It requires sustained effort. The folks at Gallop state that integration takes a focus on four main areas: 1) Strategy and leadership philosophy; 2) Accountability and performance; 3) Communication and knowledge management; 4) Development and ongoing learning opportunities. Yikes, sounds like a lot of work!
In building the strategy and leadership philosophy, a few key points stand out:
- Every action that the leadership of a company sets in motion has an emotional undercurrent for employees. Being methodical and thoughtful about the approach to business and how employees are treated is an important part of the journey.
- Involvement of the leadership team is critical to the success of an engagement process. This means they have a voice in the development AND deployment of the messages.
Once the structure of an engagement process is developed, the deployment of an actual communication plan needs to take place so that engagement permeates every conversation and becomes a part of the culture.
The sustainability of any engagement process will involve development and learning opportunities. The is one way to directly invest in employees so they are able to perform the work tasks necessary and it gives them a positive feeling (and heightens engagement) about the organization.
One final note from our friends at Gallop - only about 1/3 of a typical organization's employees are engaged. Think of the opportunities that could present themselves if you doubled that...
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