Recently I was asked to participate in an employee engagement initiative, a topic I personally believe is vital to fueling business growth in today’s environment. Employee engagement has been a hot topic in recent years, sparking interest from HR managers all the way to the executive suite.
By definition employee engagement can be described as, “a heightened emotional connection that an employee feels for his or her organization, that influences him or her to exert greater discretionary effort to his or her work”. In otherwords, the more an employee is engaged, the more productive they will be.
“According to a recent Gallup study on employee engagement, about 54 percent of employees in the United States are not engaged and 17 percent are disengaged. Leaving only 29 percent of employees engaged at work.”
Assuming that study is accurate, this is clearly and area in need of attention. Though commonly monitored from the HR department, employee engagement is often most affected by an employee’s direct manager. The Conference Board, a non-profit research organization, has identified 8 key drivers that influence employee engagement:
- Trust and integrity – how well managers communicate and ‘walk the talk’.
- Nature of the job –Is it mentally stimulating day-to-day?
- Line of sight between employee performance and company performance – Does the employee understand how their work contributes to the company’s performance?
- Career Growth opportunities –Are there future opportunities for growth?
- Pride about the company – How much self-esteem does the employee feel by being associated with their company?
- Coworkers/team members – significantly influence one’s level of engagement.
- Employee development – Is the company making an effort to develop the employee’s skills?
- Relationship with one’s manager – Does the employee value his or her relationship with his or her manager?
Though there are many strategies to increase employee engagement, the AMA is sponsoring a complimentary webcast on December 10th, focusing on one strategy entitled the “The Levity Effect: Boosting Employee Engagement and Productivity”. I’d encourage leaders at any level to take advantage of this opportunity, as this will continue to be a hot topic and one that will impact the success of your organization. Details for the free webcast direct from the AMA website are below.
The Levity Effect: Boosting Employee Engagement and Productivity
December 10, 2008 • 12:00–1:00 p.m. Eastern 
Unleashing the Power of Humor and Fun in Business
We all know the cardinal rule of public speaking is to start off with a joke. After all, when your audience is laughing, they’re listening. But the truth is that lightening up in the workplace can drive real business results. This is especially true in a bad economy. The benefits from what is termed the “Levity Effect” are not based on speculation, but are built on extensive research and case studies from organizations such as Boeing, Nike, KPMG, Yamaha, Enterprise, Zappos and dozens of others. In this program we’ll explore the remarkable power of humor and fun in business and demonstrate how an active sense of humor is not just a good personal trait but helpful for success at work.
While attending the Webcast is FREE, reservations are required. Register now or call 1-877-566-9441. Meeting Number: 17247 - 00001
Anthony,
Great Post. I would have to say I agree with the 8 points that drive employee engagement. I work closely with my CMO and he makes the effort to develop the employee’s skills which has made me feel like the work I do has a direct affect on the performance of the company.
I will definitely check out the webcast you suggested. Hope all is well, and I look forward to reading more.
Joseph
Hope you don’t mind if I use the statistics from Gallup in my blog. Those are startling. It’s incredible when you think about the opportunity for employeers to engage their associates and for other employers to recruit from organizations not taking advantage of it.
In today’s 24/7 global economy, telecommuting makes sense when done well.
Today, executives are schooled and coached in setting up ways to gauge the productivity of people they rarely see. However, managers are beginning to question this work-from-anywhere by asking: Are the telecommuters working remotely…or…remotely working? In this world of collaborating across continents and carrying the office around in our palms, companies are grappling with how to best manage telecommuters. The most important ingredient in making telecommuting work is the combination of “trust but verify.”
The Gallup Organization estimates “actively disengaged” employees—those fundamentally disconnected from their jobs—cost the U.S. economy between $292 billion and $355 billion a year.
The estimates are based on a Gallup “Q12″ employee engagement survey of the U.S. workforce, which found 24.7 million workers, or 19%, are actively disengaged.