I’ve got bad news...
You think you have amazing employee engagement at your company, but the truth is much different. Where do you think your company lies on the spectrum of engagement? The answer might surprise you.
Red
Engagement doesn’t exist and there is little awareness of creating change. Low engagement can be seen as:
High employee turnover
Leadership focused on employees as producers rather than people
Culture represents a you vs. them mentality
Green
I have skipped yellow on purpose. Green represents a highly engaged company. Engagement is a core value that permeates every aspect of the company. So this definitely represents your company right? More than likely, it does not. High engagement manifests itself as:
Low employee turnover
Leadership focused on employees as people first
Culture represents a “we” mentality
Corporate initiatives start from the bottom-up, NOT top-down
Feedback is welcomed and used to define and evaluate the next corporate initiative
Yellow
Most companies fall in this area. Engagement surveys are distributed once a year. There are corporate initiatives that enhance engagement, but the results are typical and measurable. Average engagement shows itself as:
Corporate initiatives based on a trend or conference
Leadership focused on employees as people first, but only for paperwork purposes
Culture claims to represent a “we” mentality, but front-line employees are almost always left out of the conversation
Employees are engaged with the company itself, but NOT with their team members or leadership (ie. “I like the company, but I don’t like the people.”)
Why Employee Engagement is Important
I spent 5 years working for a company that boasted high employee engagement, but that was only on the surface. We had an employee appreciation week, community service, and career mapping. However, there were many deep-seated issues that were never addressed, and it was these issues that ruptured genuine employee engagement.
Conclusion
True employee engagement can’t be measured- it is an intangible asset that can be felt throughout the company. Make your front-line employees part of the process, rather than leadership alone. Take action to make things better, rather than writing a report about what you plan to do.
Are you ready to move from a yellow to a green state of employee engagement? Click here to watch a short video.