Discovering how to engage employees can help your team bring more good things to work. Engaged employees produce more, have better ideas, put their heart and soul into their job and willingly do more than what is required of the job. Disengaged employees do the bare minimum, stay but don’t contribute, and often negatively impact the client or customer experience as well as the experience of other team members.
A staggering 70% of employees are either disengaged or neutral. What a wasted opportunity to do amazing things! Companies like Google, Zappos, West Jet, and SAS Institute, have figured out that to have engaged employees you need to deliberately build a culture that fosters engagement. So here are some good tips on how to engage employees.
1. Strong vision
A clear picture of where the company is going that is strong enough to ignite passion and purpose in employees. Without it, they don’t know where they are going, and chances are they won’t go out of their way to contribute their strengths along the way.
2. Clear communication
Clear expectations shared about how to be successful, and regular multi-directional feedback keeping people on track.
3. A Learning Environment
An environment where people learn from mistakes, don’t shy away from them and grow because they are not afraid to take risks.
4. Leaders by Presence Not Just Function
Leaders that people want to follow; that allow team members to share their best selves.
5. Solid performance management process
Not a check box exercise. Self-managed, employee owned and directed, based on goals, and balanced results. Tied to real business results, not just an HR Exercise.
6. Strong Team
A true feeling that someone has your back. Collaboration is more important than internal competition.
7. Trust
Earned by regular actions and behaviours aligned with values.
8. Culture of Recognition
Behaviours aligned with values are recognized. Employees feel that their contributions are recognized in a meaningful way. Not recognizing or rewarding things that contradict our values.
9. Treat Front Line As Experts
Go to the front line as often as possible to ask for and listen to ideas from those closest to the customer. Then use as many of those ideas and credit the source.
10. Fair Compensation Package
It’s on the list, and it is tenth. If compensation is not perceived as fair, none of the rest matters. Doesn’t have to be the highest – just fair.
Need help getting extraordinary business results? Frustrated by employees that do not seem to contribute much more than bare minimum? Learn how to engage employees! Learn2 helps organizations build a people strategy (Link to HR Strategy/Effectiveness) that drives business results. Contact us today to get started.
