Employee Engagement

What is employee engagement? At its surface, employee engagement is a workplace methodology focused on fostering an inclusive and nurturing environment that motivates each employee to put forth their best effort every day. Employee engagement needs to be a team effort between the employee and the employer in order to be effective. Employees are responsible for their personal actions and attitudes; however, employers play a huge role in cultivating a pleasant and welcoming environment in the workplace. Employee engagement is not something that can be built overnight. Engagement is a continuous process that needs to be a conscious part of a company’s daily operations in order to yield effective results.

There are many components and nuances in employee engagement. From an employee standpoint, engagement can be broken down into two main factors: attitudes and actions.

Attitudes

The attitudes of employees include both their thoughts and their feelings. What does an employee think about their job? Do they understand their job functions and feel supported in their role? Do employees feel valued as a member of the team, or do they feel secluded and unsupported? It is impossible to precisely gauge employee attitudes; however, the way employees think and feel has a significant impact on the workplace and employee engagement. Employees who feel trusted and supported, and believe their job performance is valued, will perform better and exert more energy to go above and beyond.

Actions

An employee’s attitude directly correlates to their actions. If an employee has a poor attitude towards their company, their team, or their job, they are less likely to perform at expected levels. Disengaged employees are unmotivated and dissatisfied with their current job or job functions. They are more likely to show up late, leave work early, or put forth lackluster effort when completing their job functions. On the other hand, engaged employees are more likely to not only complete their job, but take extra steps to perform the job at the highest possible level. Employee actions directly impact their company’s profitability and reputation. Therefore, employee engagement also directly impacts a company’s bottom line and public perception.

Benefits of Employee Engagement

The benefits of employee engagement can manifest in a number of ways. One of the most obvious benefits of employee engagement is employee job satisfaction. If employees are more engaged, they are more satisfied with what they are doing and vice versa. Directly correlated to employee job satisfaction, is reduced turnover. People who are satisfied with their jobs are significantly less likely to search for another job than those that are unhappy. Reduced turnover helps companies save time and money by not having to spend as many resources on hiring and onboarding new employees.

Productivity is another large benefit of employee engagement. People who are engaged and satisfied with their jobs are more likely to show up to work each and every day. Disengaged employees on the other hand, are more likely to call out from work as they do not feel a strong sense of loyalty to their company. Employees with high attendance perform their job functions with higher productivity, since they spend more time at work. And, you guessed it, higher productivity leads to higher profitability for the company. Engaged employees are also more likely to have positive relationships with clients and customers. Positive relationships help to retain customers and can lead to an increase in customer referrals, all of which help to improve profitability.

Now that you have a better understanding of employee engagement, let’s move on to the next section to discuss ways in which employers and employees alike can drive engagement.

Sources

Robins, Alison. “6 Amazing Benefits Of Employee Engagement.” Officevibe, March 24, 2017.

“What Is Employee Engagement.” Engage for Success. Accessed October 22, 2019.