Last updated on April 17th, 2024 at 04:13 pm
Have you ever felt that the employees working with you are not loyal to your organization? If yes, then why is it so? And what can you do to make them more dedicated in the workplace?
These are the few questions that come to the mind of every owner of an organization. Besides, the simple answer to all the above-asked questions lies in the simple concept of employee engagement.
But, before delving into – why is employees engagement important, it is essential to understand the definition of employee engagement.
What Is Employee Engagement?
The engagement of employees reflects how dedicated the employees are to working towards the growth of the organization.
Engaging employees will be more committed and dedicated to their work mentally, physically, and emotionally.
When employees are connected to the company at all levels, they will go the extra mile to assist their company in achieving all the SMART goals.
You can check these signs of employee engagement to figure out how engagement your employees are.
Why Is Employee Engagement Important?
Employee engagement, employee retention, and employee turnover are the three terms that are closely connected and define the overall success of the company.
As discussed above, employee engagement reflects how dedicated employees are to their company. Employee retentions refer to the ability of the company to retain its employees. Lastly, employee turnover refers to the number of total employees leaving the company in a certain period.
If the employee engagement and retention rate of the company is high, then it will automatically delete the risk of turnovers.
To elaborate, the more engagement of the employee reflects that they are interested in working with the organization. This will automatically cultivate the feeling of staying with a company for a long time, and they would not leave the company. Hence, the employees will be more productive.
As a matter of fact, a recent study conducted by Gallup validated that globally only 20% of the employees are engaged in the workplace.
However, it is notable that whenever an employee leaves an organization, it not only disrupts the workflow of the organization but also costs a company the cost of hiring and training a replacement.
In fact, if we take a dig at the statistics, it is predicted that losing an employee can cost a company 1.5 – 2 times the employee’s salary. This surprising cost that company has to pay has even created more urgency for businesses to ensure high engagement of their employees in the workplace.
Now that we have an effective understanding of the concept of employee engagement and why it is important to a business, it is the right time to dive into the strategies that can assist businesses in enhancing the engagement of employees in the workplace.
Five Crucial Strategies of Enhancing Employee Engagement
1. Take Anonymous Feedback from Employees
The employees of contemporary workplaces demand transparency from employers. They expect their employers to effectively give them feedback on their progress.
The main reason is that employees of the modern world take feedback as a guide on the pathway to their success.
So, to enhance the engagement of employees, you should give honest feedback to your employees regarding their performance in the workplace.
Besides, as much as employees expect managers to give them feedback, they also expect their managers to collect feedback from them on the company’s work culture.
If the employees do not get the things they desire, they won’t mind looking for other job opportunities, and that’s clearly what you don’t want as an employer. Right?
Hence, this is a very common solution to the problem of low employee engagement: you should listen to what your employees expect from you as a manager or employer.
There are some situations where the employees might fear being scolded, which is why they might hesitate to give honest feedback to the managers.
So, now the solution here is the feedback has to be taken, but it can be taken anonymously so that the employees can honestly speak about the changes they wish to see in your company’s organizational structure, and if improved, the employees will be more loyal to the company.
Related: Why Listening to Employees is Crucial (And How to Do It)
2. Personalize Every Reward and Recognition
Every company has its own way of appreciating; similarly, every employee also likes certain acknowledgments.
For example, some employees might like getting subscriptions to OTT platforms. At the same time, some can have their interest inclined towards the other monetary benefits.
Now for the accomplishment of the same, set a budget to ask the deserving employee what they actually want and then give them personalized rewards. This will make them feel valued and automatically improve the company’s image in the eye of the employees.
If employees think well of their company and employer, it will boost their dedication and zeal to work harder towards the company’s growth.
This personalization of rewards will automatically result in higher engagement of the employees. This higher engagement will result in more productivity, ultimately benefiting the company in the long run.
Read More: Employee Appreciation Gift Ideas
3. Work culture
The work culture is the major factor affecting customer loyalty to the company. If the employees are happy working in your company culture, they will give their 100 percent. But this happiness depends on how you treat your employees in your organization and the company’s work culture.
The work culture of any organization works on the 3c’s, Clarity, Coaching, and Communication. If any one of the 3 loses from your organization, there will be a lack of connection which will make employees lose their interest in your company and hence results in the poor employee engagement rate of your company.
On the contrary, if you successfully create a culture where employees can openly express themselves or a culture where you practice high diversity and inclusion, it will add to your employees’ happiness. If your employees are happy, they will be engaged in working towards the successful achievement of the business objectives of the company.
4. Train and Let Them Adapt
Brad Shuck, an assistant professor at the University of Louisville, said,
The more the employee feels the company is investing in their future, the higher the level of engagement.
So, it is essential to first train the employee according to the needs of the company. Doing so helps the employee to first get a better understanding of the company and its work structure.
Additionally, it will give them a better understanding of what the company is looking for and provide the employees time to settle down into the new environment and adapt to the company’s working culture.
Eventually, the employees will be potentially more focused on the work and increase their engagement.
Related: How To Align Your HR Strategy With Modern Employee Expectations
5. Offer Flexibility
Even after the pandemic has ended, people are happy to work in their flexible hours and in their flexible environment.
So, you can allow your employees to work according to their pace and as per their comfort space. This will ensure that you trust them and focus on the results and not the process.
To validate, according to the Chicago Booth, when they collected an analysis, they found out that out of every 10 employees, 6 are more productive at home than at the office because of the favorable environment and timings.
Remote working and flexibility boosts the employee’s morale to work better. This will eventually increase the productivity and engagement of the employees and will profit the company.
Related: How To Manage A Remote Team Efficiently In Your Startup
Final Thoughts,
The company’s owner should never forget that the organization’s internal folks are as important as the other stakeholders because the people working for you can make or break an organization.
So, an organization must work hard to improve employee engagement.
About Author:
Jessica Robinson loves to write interesting and knowledgeable blogs regarding business management, education and life to satiate the curiosity of her lovely readers. Currently, she is serving as a content manager at the ‘Speaking Polymath’. Every piece of content that she writes demonstrates her immense love and passion for her profession.
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