Did you know that in most companies only about 30% of employee say fully engaged? And when it comes to workplace challenges like high employee turnover, absenteeism, low customer satisfaction, and MORE, it’s OFTEN linked to low employee engagement?
KEY STATISTICS
As a matter of fact, according to the Gallup organization, just 33% of American workers are engaged in their jobs. 52% have the audacity to say they’re “just showing upâ€. And, UNBELIEVABLY 17% DESCRIBE themselves as “actively dis-engagedâ€. So, most LEADERS have A LOT of work to do to unlock the full potential… of their TEAM.
THE BUSINESS IMPACT
And, when it comes to business high levels of employee engagement can significantly impact things like employee retention; team productivity and loyalty; organizational alignment; customer satisfaction; brand reputation; and THE MOTHER OF ALL overall SALES and PROFITABILITY. So, it’s VITAL that WE keep a CLOSE eye on the pulse of employee engagement.
EXAMPLES OF DISENGAGED BEHAVIOR
Now, in both my Executive Coaching and Consulting Practice, often when I’m working with organizations that have low employee engagement, I typically observe these nine negative behaviors.
Employees who lack passion; are pessimistic; self-centered; and UNCHECKED negative attitudes. There is also high absenteeism. People are ego-centric. They focus on monetary worth, ABSOLUTELY expecting credit… often when it’s NOT deserved.
ALSO, they often pass blame, instead of taking FULL accountability when they make mistakes. Again, these are TYPICAL characteristics of employees who consistently exemplify “disengaged†behavior.
EXAMPLES OF ENGAGED BEHAVIOR
And, when I’m working with organizations and leaders who aspire to elevate the customer experience, as well as employee engagement the expected outcome of the work that I do is to help them create an environment where employees are passionate about their job.
Where they are 100% invested in the organization; they’re interested, committed, AND involved because they have a positive emotional connection with their leader and the organization.
EMPLOYEE EXPERIENCE
Now to create and sustain a high level of employee engagement, an optimum employee experience must exist. And it starts with the new employee… interview and selection… or hiring process.
So, take a moment and think about YOUR interview process. Is it an ENGAGING, memorable experience where potential employees are eager to move heaven and earth to work for your organization? Or, is your interview process so disorganized, disjointed, and disappointing, that they immediately question working for you?
Now, other key components of an exceptional employee experience include things like a FLAWLESS onboarding process, REGULAR learning and development opportunities, AND, INTENTIONAL career development conversations that make them feel valued. Also, on-going recognition for a job well done, and feeling that their input and feedback are valued and often implemented for the betterment of the team.
EMPLOYEE EXPERIENCE vs. ENGAGEMENT
You see, to elevate and sustain employee engagement, there must be a great employee experience! So, what’s the difference you might ask?
Essentially, the employee experience is the input. It’s all of the things (including your processes), that create an exceptional work environment. While employee engagement is the END result of having either effective or ineffective processes in place. So, when you improve the employee experience, you also strengthen employee engagement. Does that make sense?
WAYS TO IMPROVE
Now let’s move on to my top 10 leadership characteristics that foster HIGH employee engagement. And as you listen, consider your strengths, weaknesses, and areas that you are committed to improving. Leaders who are exceptional at strengthening employee engagement are:
- Generous with their knowledge and expertise
- Provide actionable feedback that helps their team grow
- Value the perspective and insight of others, even if it’s different from their own
- Are considerate of others
- Keep the team focused on delivering results
Do any of these qualities resonate with you? Have you heard any ideas that you could possibly use to improve?
- Consistently communicate clear goals so there’s no confusion concerning what’s expected
- Don’t micro-manage unless it’s necessary to ensure success!
- Regularly share information from senior leadership, so change is no surprise to the team
- Make it a priority to schedule “individual†quality time in the form of 1-on-1 meetings with their team
- DURING those 1-on-1 meetings, they regularly have career development discussions, so team members are clear on what’s expected and necessary to be promoted to the next level.
RECAP
So, there you have it! We’ve uncovered the business impact of low versus high employee engagement; how the employee EXPERIENCE significantly impacts employee ENGAGEMENT. And, the top 10 characteristics of leaders who are exceptional at strengthening employee engagement. And, as I close I’d like to leave you with THREE simple things that you can do to improve (starting today)!
START – create an improvement plan, based on team feedback making sure to recognize their contributions as part of the success.
STOP – assuming you’re doing enough. Remember, there’s always room for improvement.
And CONTINUE – being open to learning and benchmarking what other leaders and organizations are doing in anticipation that you can replicate their success.
Thanks so much for watching, and have a wonderful day!