4 Research-backed Steps to Higher Employee Engagement

Why Steps to Higher Employee Engagement Matter

By now, all business leaders should be convinced of the importance of engaging their employees – especially their top talent. Engaged workers are over 40% more productive than their unengaged counterparts.  And companies with engaged workforces have higher earnings per share.

Do You Know How Engaged Employees Are In Your Own Organization?
If not, you’d better find out.  You can use everything from a proven, customized and confidential employee engagement survey to focus groups that span multiple functions and levels.  Just find a way to get honest feedback, prioritize the key issues and take meaningful action.

4 Research-backed Steps to Higher Employee Engagement You Can Take Immediately
If you do not have the time or the resources to identify your top employee engagement improvement areas, here are four steps from our organizational culture assessment data that you can take immediately:

1. Ensure Employees Understand How They Fit Into Your Organization
   All of us like to know that we provide real value to our team and our company. Remind employees often how their specific contributions play a significant part in the organization’s success. Explicitly show them how various jobs fit into the delivery of your products and services and how their role relates to the customer success.
2. Provide Frequent Feedback
   Keep close to your employees (without micromanaging) so you can help guide their behavior both by recognizing when they’ve done well and when they need improvement. Small, regular tweaks and praise are far more effective than once-a-year performance reviews.

   Your ongoing guidance and interest show that you are invested in helping them succeed.

3. Provide Opportunities to Grow
   In addition to seeing that each employee has an individual development plan that is attuned to their interests, special talents, and the needs of the organization, try to find development opportunities for employees to branch out and take on stretch assignments of responsibility.

   What projects could they lead? Could they act as liaison to another team in order to build bridges and improve cross-functional cooperation? Are they ready to mentor a new hire?

   Show that you have faith in their capabilities and are ready to support their personal and professional growth.

4. Explore Together Ways To “Do Good”
   Employees who are part of a company that gives back to the community are proud to be part of an organization that values social responsibility. Whether it’s sponsoring a charity drive, picking up litter along the highway, or repairing homes for seniors, the possibilities are unlimited.

   Millennials, especially, care about the social impact of the company they work for.

The Bottom Line
If you do not measure the engagement level of your top talent, you can still take these research-backed steps to better engage key employees.  These simple and research-backed steps to higher employee engagement can set you on the right track to greater employee advocacy, higher levels of discretionary effort, and better employee retention.

To learn more, download The Top 10 Most Powerful Ways to Boost Employee Engagement.