The Fundamentals of Employee Engagement

There is an international employee engagement crisis. According to a Gallup survey, 85% of the worldwide workforce feels disengaged. On the bright side, this issue can be prevented with the use of initiatives that recognize employees the right way. This finding offers an opportunity for employers to address the need to add value to their employee’s work experience. After all, employees spend over 40 hours per week in the workplace making it practically a second home. You want to make sure they look forward to coming to work every day.

The good news is we have the power to change the culture of an organization from the executive team to frontline employees. Focusing on employee engagement programs and delivering a strong company culture ultimately impacts customer happiness, employee productivity and your bottom line.

Start with the 20:60:20 Model

What is the 20-60-20 model and how does it apply to HR? The 20-60-20 model should be applied when a company reviews its current human resources strategy. Overall, it means 20% of employees will accept new changes, 60% of employees will be neutral about change, and 20% will be resistant to accepting change in the organization. The good news is 60% of employees will be open to providing feedback and participate in employee engagement initiatives. As a result, the remaining will follow if the new programs are receptive and relatable to employees.

Focus on Career Development Programs

A reason why employees feel disengaged at work is that there is no effort on developing the skills of workers. Employees want career development opportunities to get that next promotion, potentially transfer to a new department where their talents can be fully utilized or receive in-depth feedback on their performance. I appreciate how my manager one time went out of the way to teach me about (ATS) Applicant Tracking Systems used by human resources to track words in a resume to select candidates for an interview. I once worked at an organization with a career development program that I found extremely impactful. Some of my favorite aspects of the career development program were the following:

• Career Plan: Include realistic action steps to complete employee goals, education or activities.
• Career Tools: Offer the right tools for employees, whether it be full access to online educational videos or other niche services that can help them succeed.
• Department Cross-Over Opportunities: Open up the opportunity for employees to assist other departments outside of their own; encourage their curiosity and interest.

Provide a Successful Onboarding Experience

The Society for Human Resource Management stated, “new employees who attended a structured orientation program were 69 percent more likely to remain at the company for up to three years.”

Most companies have a dull onboarding program with a new hire filling out forms on the first day. As the month’s pass, the employee must figure out the company culture on their often. It can be an isolating experience which increases turnover rates of new hires in the first 90 days of employment. Here is a list of onboarding tips I recently discovered.

Onboarding Tips that help Employee Engagement

• Share the history of the company
• Send employment forms electronically before the employees first day
• Introduce the new hire to executives and management
• Sit the employee near the desk of a potential mentor

When a new employee goes home, the conversation about your company to family and friends should be positive because it will be beneficial for your community to think highly of the company from an employment perspective.

Get Executives Involved

The Muse stated, “90% of leaders think an engagement strategy have an impact on business success but barely 25% of them have a strategy.” Human resources and management can be excited about employee engagement, but if executives are disinterested or not visible, it will not help a company long term. Executive involvement means the CEO attending a work event, and introducing themselves to every employee. It includes executives attending team meetings to introduce themselves to frontline staff. If there is an extracurricular activity being offered to employees outside of work, it might be a good idea to encourage your executives to participate; this increases trust in leadership and enhances the employee experience.

When it comes to the employee experience, don’t let your employees simply receive documentation, sign forms and receive employee benefits. Instead, be an organization that embraces work culture from the top down.

Ask for Feedback from Employees

As an employer, think of employees as a customer; create engagement programs that support their career goals with options to improve their health. Most onboarding strategies include providing a survey asking new hires what they want and how their onboarding experience was. Make sure to ask for feedback from employees – they provide the answer on how to effectively boost employee engagement at your organization.

Employee Engagement Questions

• What do you want to see more at the workplace?
• Do you feel valued at work and how can we improve?
• How do you want to be recognized and rewarded?
• Does your manager support your career goals?
• What events or employee programs do you recommend?
• How can we be better?

The questions should be open-ended to receive clear responses and encourage honest feedback without limitations.

Recognize Your Employees

Never forget to make your employees a top priority. One way to show your appreciation for employees is through frequent recognition and rewards. When you recognize your employees more, you will reap in the benefits of employee engagement. After all, 69% of employees cited Recognition and Rewards as a motivation to stay at their current job in 2018. Appreciate your employees on a daily basis and watch employee engagement rise.

To learn more about how to increase employee engagement through recognition, check out this eBook: Employee Recognition: More Than Just a Day. 3 Ways to Make Recognition an Everyday Event.