In a 2016 Gallup survey it was determined that only 32% of workers are engaged in their jobs. Up until recently, some companies could focus mainly on profits since there has been a sufficient labor pool to draw from. In recent times however the unemployment rate has dropped considerably meaning the situation has reversed.
Companies can no longer get away with downsizing their staff levels and expecting those who are left to pick up the slack without some level of burnout. In addition, if companies are to retain the good people, and discourage them from jumping ship then there needs to be effective management practiced in order to keep staff engaged.
For too long, many organizations have been getting away with short term thinking, not providing proper training for staff or not taking the time to give employees quality feedback in their annual employee appraisals, for example. These practices, when present contribute to employees feeling recognized as being of value to themselves and to the company.
The number one reason people leave their company is because of their manager. One of the most important skills that is lacking with managers is that of empathy. The old command and control approach to management does not work well anymore with the modern workforce. Of course numbers are important, but equally important are people skills.
By way of example, if a person’s performance is dropping, the old way of management might have been to give the employee an ultimatum to bring up their numbers or risk the consequences. Today, the enlightened manager would take a different approach while still expressing their concern about the numbers to the employee, but in a way that would show concern as to whether there is something perhaps in the person’s home life that the manager can appropriately help to support the employee in addressing.
Managing people today requires a “whole person” approach to leadership training and career development, because what happens at home can affect what happens in the workplace. For a variety of reasons, more employees need a certain amount of flexibility in their work so as to meet the complexities of life today. The advance of technology has made it increasingly difficult to separate one’s personal life from their job.
The bottom line then is that companies not only need to find good people to work for them, they also need to know how to engage them so that they don’t leave. Employee engagement has a number of moving parts. According to a study conducted by Survey Monkey. These parts fall under 5 main areas, and each area has core factors:
Job Satisfaction = Role fit/ Autonomy/ Recognition
Personal Engagement = Whole person/ Work-life balance/ Stress
Visible Future = Path for advancement/ Transparent leadership/ Company direction
Team Dynamics = Cohesion & leadership/ Psychological safety/ Valued voice
Purpose Alignment = Meaningful work/ Company purpose/ Visible impact
One size does not fit all, and it is time for employees to be treated as individuals with different life circumstances and different motivations. This is about practicing workplace diversity and inclusion.
