Employee engagement — for all times and tough times !
“Never waste a Slowdown — Tough business environment can be perfect alibi for declining organisation morale. But I believe otherwise. It’s time to over-engage & over-communicate with teams. They love clarity even if it’s not good news.” — Karan Bajwa, Managing Director at IBM India PVT LTD
Any organisation that supports and invests into employee engagement will achieve greater success. Your employees represent your brand and when they are happy, it shows. Understandably everyone works to get a paycheck and take care of their financial needs, but when you have employee engagement, they are happy to come to work and even happier to get involved.
Why an organisation should focus on employee engagement for the greater good -
It boosts productivity
A Gallup poll revealed that engaged employees are more productive (21% more!) than those that aren’t. Employees that feel good about how they contribute to your company will be happier to work there. So, when you make your employees feel valued, it makes them want to excel and creates a win-win for everyone.
It makes customers happier too
Let’s go back to our example at the beginning of this article. When you interact with people at a company where the employees are engaged, you are happier too. Your experience is always a good one when the people that work there are passionate about the company. If you want your customers to always feel that wonderful buzz, start investing in your employee engagement and watch the magic happen.
You will hold onto your best employees
Revolving door companies are a dime a dozen. The biggest risk is that when you do find an amazing employee who has the talent and drive, without employee engagement, you are going to lose them. Low retention rates should be your clue. If you keep losing people left and right, it’s time to start making some changes that will make them want to stay and keep giving their best efforts for your business.
It’s better for your company culture
Your company likely has a mission to profit, but what about your corporate culture? If you have gotten so swept up with the bottom line that you have forgotten about the people who helped make your company a success, go back to your roots. Unify the entire company by creating a culture of employee engagement with a mission that lines up with the ways people want to work. Once you do, you can celebrate those that are most engaged and motivate all your employees to follow suit.
People will do extraordinary things when they feel appreciated.
When your employees are respected and engaged, you’re a success
The biggest thing to remember is that engaged employees feel like the work they do matters. They feel like their successes are recognised which makes all the difference.
What it comes down to is this: treat your employees like they are meaningful. They are what has brought you to your current state of success. If you want that success to fuel itself, investing in treasuring your team from the bottom all the way to the top is the best way to keep your business thriving!