Three Steps you can take to improve employee engagement.
by: Michael DeVenney
What does it take to engage employees for winning performance?
Employee confidence in managers and supervisors has sunk to a low of 25% in 2008. Teams don’t feel that 3 of 4 managers and supervisors are effective and capable to lead. No wonder employee engagement levels have been declining dramatically in the past ten years.
The global financial crisis in the past year has not helped. Leaders are distracted and focused on surviving the markets with cuts to the workforce. Engagement has deteriorated even further due to uncertainty as to the future.
Does employee engagement matter?
Engagement matters – tremendously! Research has clearly connected the bottom-line impact of employee engagement. With higher levels of engagement, there is …
- 31% less turnover (and turnover has been increasing and costing organizations significantly)
- 12% higher customer satisfaction (and with increasing competition organizations need to keep their customers happy)
- 18% higher productivity (and with the pressure to get more done faster this is a key benefit)
- 12% higher profitability (and we all like money)
The value of employee engagement is exactly what we need – more money, more time and less stress.
What is the solution?
Let’s start first with what is engagement. One dictionary meaning that really resonates is “the act of being in gear”. We see engagement as three actions – committing, investing, and owning. When employees are engaged, they are committed to supporting the organization’s vision and strategy, they invest their strengths in work that contributes to achieving the vision and strategy, and they take ownership of their results.
People are truly the competitive advantage for the organization. The way people work is the differentiator for business success. We need an engaged workforce that is committed, invested, and taking ownership for results.
Yet less than 25% of our people are engaged! About 40% are enrolled – they want to be engaged but are not sure how to go about it. The rest are disengaged – they are not there for the team.
What can we do about it?
Most managers and supervisors feel that employee engagement is outside of their control. Employees are engaged due to intrinsic motivational issues and we just do not have the time to understand each person’s personality dimensions to move engagement forward. Plus, people are just getting lazier – the new generation wants to live first, travel second, and possibly work third. As leaders, we really don’t have a lot of options to increase engagement – it is a symptom of our time!
We absolutely do not agree. The solution to employee engagement is under the influence of the leader.
To increase employee engagement, we need to follow The Higher Law which contends that when you appeal to the highest level of thinking you get the highest level of performance.
So, telling people what to do, cracking down on people, and demanding more time and input do not conform to The Higher Law. Paying people more does not do it either.
We need a different approach.
The key objective for leaders to increase performance and achieve greater results is to engage employees through a culture of ownership. We want to lose the employee mentality.
Sounds nice but how do leaders make this happen in practical terms? To gain greater investment from employees, leaders also need to invest. Leaders need to invest time in their people to improve the level of workforce engagement.
Before we talk about how to invest the time, let’s step back and see what has been changing in our workplace environment to affect employee engagement. There are three critical shifts happening that crack the foundation of traditional workforce productivity.
- The Managerial Gap. Managers and supervisors are increasingly seen as not being effective in their ability to coach the performance of others. With front-line confidence in managerial effectiveness at an all time low of 25%, it is a serious issue. Although smart people are promoted to supervisory positions, they are not supported and trained in how to move from being an individual performer to being a coach of others. The result is an increasing gap in supervisory effectiveness and a loss of confidence and engagement.
- The Knowledge Worker. We have moved from a manufacturing workforce to a knowledge economy. More than 35% of the workforce use intelligence and knowledge to create results. Knowledge workers create greater profitability but need more collaboration and consultation than other employees. As the fastest growing dimension of our workforce, knowledge workers need more time and flexibility and do not respond to directions and orders. Employees do not feel they are getting the attention they need from leaders to do their work – engagement suffers.
- The Millennial Generation. Generation Y is hitting the workplace. Only 12% of the workforce now, they will grow in the next decade to almost 50% of all employees. Millennials are different. Yes, they believe in balancing life and work but they are productive and want to achieve results. Getting to the results is just done in a different way. With a much greater need for communication, collaboration, and meaning Millennial employees are demanding greater involvement and not seeing it.
The impact of these three shifts is the increasing need for participative leadership and managers and supervisors have not made this transition yet. Pressed for time, it is often easier for the manager to simply tell employees what to do and get it done. It may seem easier in the short term but more and more team members are shutting down, disengaging, and just waiting for instructions. Leaders say that everyone waits for them to tell the team what to do. And it is true. The reason, though, is in the mirror.
To speak to The Higher Law, leaders need to invest time in employees to do three things:
- Show how the employee’s work is meaningful and connects to the strategy and provides value for the organization and the customer.
- Provide timely and honest feedback on the employee’s work communicating clearly what is working and what is not working.
- Talk about the big picture on a regular basis so employees can see where the organization is going, what the future looks like, and what’s in it for them.
Can leaders affect the engagement of employees?
Yes – the top three factors that result in increased employee engagement are under the influence of the leader.
First and foremost, employees want work that has meaning and contributes value to both the organization and the customer. Each of us wants to know that what we do actually matters. It doesn’t matter what position we are in, what we do has an impact and employees need to understand how what they affects the bottom line.
Leaders need to take time to outline to each employee the organization or team strategy, what are the key results to be achieved, what four or five critical initiatives will drive success, and how the organization creates value for the customer (or key stakeholder). From there, leaders can connect the employee’s role and responsibilities to the strategy, results, initiatives, and value creation.
Each employee should know and understand the four or five activities of their role that are most important to supporting business success and customer satisfaction. Leaders should also provide clear expectations for outcomes in each of those activities. Knowing their contribution to the bottom-line and creating value for customers generates tremendous investment and accountability.
Knowing what we do that matters, we also want to know how we are doing. Feedback is the answer given most when employees are asked what they want more of from their leaders. Leaders are often hesitant to provide it – fear of conflict or confrontation. There does not to be a conflict. Feedback is about honestly providing clear perspective on what is working and what is not working. We can’t get better if we don’t know what we are doing right or wrong. Feedback should be timely and regular – not the painful annual performance assessment. It also needs to be specific – what was the situation, what behavior did the employee show, and what was the impact (what happened) – good or bad. Employees want to hear how they are doing every two to three weeks.
Lastly, employees want a picture of the future – where is the organization going, what is affecting the direction, and what’s next? Again, it doesn’t have to be just the good news – to reduce the fear of uncertainty, employees appreciate truth and honesty. The picture will not always be rosy. Knowing what is in front of the organization, employees will be much more likely to commit and invest their strengths and energy in supporting the strategy. Need-to-know basis and closed-door meetings de-motivate people and increase fear – both will reduce engagement and productivity. We do not need to be protected – show us where we are, what is in front of us, and what is needed from us honestly and clearly – and you will get it. Leaders need to take time each quarter to update people on the big picture, the status of the progress, the challenges and opportunities, and what’s needed. We don’t need to make the decisions - we just want to know what’s happening honestly and clearly.
There are other factors that affect employee engagement. Pay is actually number five. The three factors that have the most positive impact on getting people in gear and committed, invested and taking ownership are directly under the influence of the leaders. In real terms, the investment for leaders is about 5% to 10% of their time – the savings on the other side are enormous.
To appeal to the highest level of thinking and gain the highest level of performance, leaders have a practical and painless answer to the challenge. Invest time in your people and they will invest in your leadership.
We will always have disengaged employees but the level should be between 10% and 20%. With only about 25% of people currently engaged, that means leaders have a tremendous opportunity to make a difference in results – 55% of their workforce want to be engaged and can be engaged. Invest the time to show them how their work matters, provide feedback on their performance, and show them the big picture.
Engagement is more about communication than any other factor. The solution is under the control of the leader. Invest time and communicate.
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Are You Leading for Engagement?
