Every leader I meet seems to have the same question: “How can I drive employee engagement despite the rapidly changing work environment?”
There is no doubt that the last three years have been extremely difficult for organizations and their leaders to not only deliver results but also navigate the complexity of the changing work dynamics. Some businesses are entirely remote, while others have taken a hybrid approach or attempted to bring employees back into the office.
Regardless of where an organization stands in the evolving dynamics of work and how work is performed, one imperative has taken a significant hit: driving organizational and employee engagement. Leaders and people managers have found the job of employee engagement to be more difficult than ever, and what many employees responded to previously will most likely fall on deaf ears now.
Inspiring greater employee engagement has never been more important than it is now. And if an organization and its leaders don’t have a well-thought-out plan for increasing engagement and creating a healthier workplace, this needs to be front and center every day.
Gallup states that sleeping is the only activity that most of us engage in more than work throughout our lives. According to estimates, we spend approximately 81,396 hours working. Furthermore, 60% of global workers are emotionally disconnected from their jobs.
Leaders must not only understand what will move the needle in terms of increasing engagement but also actively seek new and innovative ways to advance their efforts. Here are a few suggestions to consider.
Highlight the Voice of the Employee
Failing to regularly highlight the voice of the employee is a surefire way to undermine employee engagement and keep it at a standstill. To highlight the employee voice, it’s important to set up a system and process for regularly collecting employees’ ideas and suggestions about how the company can better support them and help them do their best work.
The level of employee engagement can be significantly increased when employees feel that their opinions matter and the leaders of the organization consistently provide a platform to hear them out.
Initially, this may seem like a waste of time that will only encourage complaining. However, when leaders clarify that the objective is not to assign blame or make excuses but rather to seek solutions to improve the organization, the tone begins to shift.
Start today by highlighting the voice of the employee and testing what works best for your organization and team. Establish a regular rhythm and adjust as you go.
Examine and Improve the Employee Experience
The customer experience is always a top priority for most business leaders, but it’s also important to examine the employee experience in your company. Is it reviewed, tweaked, and improved in the same way that efforts to provide better customer experiences are?
It is critical to remember that when the employee experience is enhanced and improved, it directly translates into a better customer experience. At the end of the day, it is your people, your organization’s employees, who are responsible for providing exceptional customer experiences.
Examine the entire employee journey within your organization, not just the onboarding procedure and experience for all new hires. What can be made better? What should your company stop doing?
Manager Training and Upskilling
Few things have a greater impact on employee performance and engagement than the performance of your managers.
When it comes to increasing employee engagement, how important is the performance of managers within an organization? At least 70% of an organization’s engagement scores are accounted for by managers.
Boosting employee morale and productivity is a top priority for any business. Make sure all managers are regularly trained on the necessary competencies and skills. Don’t just rely on communicating the significance of it.
Inspiring greater employee engagement is crucial not only for enhancing the culture of an organization but also for transforming its business performance. Take responsibility for it now.