With record levels of employee turnover globally, it has become important to retain top performers and provide them with a work environment that inspires them to give their best each day. While everyone in the organisation has to play their part in keeping workplace morale high, leaders have a unique ability to inspire employees to perform their best and reach their full potential. This article discusses six ways top leadership, and supervisors and line managers, can promote employee engagement. So, let’s dive right in!
use disruption to Tie personal goals to company values.
Studies show that when employees feel connected to the company’s vision, their engagement is increased by more than 4.5 times compared to when they don’t. Salesforce is a case in point. It has a program called “V2MOM,” which stands for Vision, Values, Methods, Obstacles, and Measures.
Every employee writes their own V2MOM outlining their unique personal and professional goals for the year. In it, they also describe how their goals align with the company’s values and vision. In this way, Salesforce creates a sense of shared purpose and helps its employees see how their work contributes to the company’s overall success. This approach has helped salesforce improve employee engagement and reduce turnover. And why not? When employees feel more invested in the company’s mission, it is less likely that they will look elsewhere for their life’s purpose.
Set clear goals, and provide regular feedback.
A company’s employee value proposition rests on clear expectations and honest feedback. Adobe Systems is a prime example of a company that raised employee engagement through goal-setting and feedback. In response to employee feedback, Adobe replaced its traditional annual performance review process with a new performance management system called “Check-in.”
Check-in focuses on setting clear goals and providing regular feedback throughout the year. Managers and employees meet regularly to discuss progress, align priorities, and provide feedback on performance. The system also encourages employees to set individual goals and take ownership of their professional development.
Consequently, Adobe saw significant improvements in employee engagement and retention. In a survey conducted after the implementation of Check-in, employees reported feeling 2.7 times more engaged in their work than before. The company also saw an increase in employee retention rates.
Listen to what your people need.
Creating an engaged workforce requires understanding and prioritizing the needs of your employees. Danish digital marketing agency, Webbler, is a real-world example of a company that listened to its employees and improved employee engagement. It introduced contract management software and automated the entire contract lifecycle management process, eliminating the need for manual contract workflows. The software also integrated seamlessly with other tools that Webbler used, including Salesforce and DocuSign, to streamline the contract process further.
As a result, Webbler’s employees could focus on more strategic tasks like improving customer relations and the closing rate on their sales contracts.
Be honest and transparent.
Forward-thinking companies boost employee engagement by being honest with their employees. For instance, in 2011, Patagonia pledged to donate 100% of its Black Friday sales to environmental nonprofits. With Black Friday being the biggest shopping day of the year and a major revenue driver for retailers, this was a bold and transparent move.
Patagonia accomplished far more than just raising employee engagement by offering workers a compelling incentive to show up to work on their day off. It also boosted their motivation to support the company’s mission of environmental activism.
Provide training, development, and Stretch projects.
A great leader believes in equal growth and development opportunities for everyone, regardless of their location or position within the organisation. And who do you think has mastered this trait? Google, of course. With an internal network of over 7000 volunteer teachers, Google’s g2g (Googlers-to-Googlers) program offers peer-to-peer education and mentorship to its employees outside of regular job duties.
The g2g community provides nearly 80% of all internal training at Google, including course teaching, mentoring, and learning material design. In this way, Google can offer community-driven initiatives for scalable learning, select the right people for the role based on passion and expertise, motivate and support volunteer faculty, and maintain quality across the network.
Involve your teams in company decisions.
According to a recent research, 70% of executives believe that enhancing people experience can improve customer experience, and lead to rapid revenue growth. Southwest Airlines’ “employees first, customers second” approach strongly exemplifies this.
By treating its employees well, Southwest Airlines believes it fosters happy customers and thereby achieves financial success. It also values employee feedback at all levels and democratises decision-making by involving employees in the innovation pipeline and strategic planning. This approach has yielded impressive business statistics such as:
- a low 4% voluntary turnover rate
- consistent profitability for 46 years
- low number of customer complaints
- an impressive 85% employee satisfaction rate
- a reputation of no layoffs or furloughs ever
to sum up…
Employee engagement is crucial in keeping top talent from jumping ship and unhappy employees from moving jobs quickly, and it is high time that businesses realise the benefits of leadership influences. These best practices by industry titans can help aspiring leaders and corporations build committed, and resilient teams.
Author: Qurat-ul-Ain (Annie) Ghazali – Growth Manager, Contractbook
Photo credit: Fauxels
