How do you make your employees engaged in your company and what drives employee engagement?
Low level of employee engagement
Many organizations struggle with a low level of employee engagement. A study from Gallup shows that:
Overall, just 10% of employed residents in Western Europe are engaged — that is, involved in and enthusiastic about their work.
The low percentages of engaged employees represent a barrier to creating a high performing work culture. This has consequences for the entire productivity of your company and the services you're offering to your customers.
Communication as a barrier
One of the most common challenges is traditions. Many companies are very traditional when it comes to internal communication. They communicate through multiple platforms such as an intranet, email and not to forget all the printed sheets in the back office.
This way of communication creates a gap between HQ and the employees. It is very difficult to reach every employee group, especially the non-desk workers who don't have access to a computer during their workday.
The above leads to another problem - daily communication. Your employees want to feel well informed and updated on what’s going on in the company.
It’s important that you reach every employee group with targeted information on a day to day basis. Daily communication secures that both HQ and the employees are up to date and aware of each other's needs and demands.
One way to solve this problem is to gather all your communication in a One Point of Contact Communication Platform. In this way, your employees only have to seek their information in one place which creates a much greater overview and saves them a lot of time.
Personal investment increases efficiency
If you communicate with your employees on a daily basis, then you’re also hands-on with what’s going on in your company.
Frequent communication builds a stronger relationship with your employees because they feel included in the overall strategy.
The study from Gallup also shows that employees who believe that their opinions count at work are more likely to feel personally invested in their job.
That are valuable findings because if your employees are personally invested in their jobs they are often:
- More efficient
- Eager to succeed
Be ambitious on behalf of your employees
It’s important to acknowledge individual strengths and trust your employees with autonomy. If your employees feel that the management is constantly looking over their shoulder they will not produce their best work possible.
The Gallup study also showed that strength-based workplaces are more likely to unleash employees’ potential. So how can you unleash your employees' potential and how do you show them you're ambitious on their behalf?
These three aspects are key to securing employee engagement:
- Trust your employees with individual responsibility and freedom to approach their work tasks.
- Outline the possibilities for development for your employees. This will give your employees something to look forward to, aspire them to achieve more, and stay engaged in their job.
- Let your employees know that they are valued. Make your employees feel like an important asset in your organization. In this way, you connect every employee which creates a feeling of community and belonging.
These insights will help you figure out why you are failing at employee engagement or encourage you to have a proactive approach.
