Encouraging employee engagement is one of the best ways companies can improve productivity. Disengaged employees account for around 70% of the workforce, and these employees are unlikely to reach their full potential at work. An unengaged employee can be unpredictable, leaving a position at a moment’s notice. However, there are many ways to increase a company’s employee engagement rate, which can lead to higher morale and productivity. Let’s review a few of the most effective ways to increase employee engagement.
Providing employees with clear and defined internal growth opportunities is a great way to increase employee engagement. Some workers may see promotions and increased pay as the only way to grow and develop within a company. While employees work toward advancing their careers, they may look for ways to surpass their peers and bulk up their resume. By developing and implementing training programs and certification courses, you can help your employees build the skills they need in order to grow. Investing in this development also helps provide employees clear direction for what they need to do to assume more advanced positions in the company.
Delegating tasks also helps increase inclusivity and builds confidence in employees who want to grow in the company. When delegating tasks, managers should be sure to set clear expectations and keep in mind these employees are still learning. Developing a “failure-tolerant” leadership mindset not only helps instill confidence in employees, but helps them overcome the fear of failure and creates a culture of educated risk-taking, which could manifest in innovation that brings great benefits to the company.
Once a top-down, annual event that was stressful to both managers and employees, the performance review has changed quite a bit over the past several years. Most companies have shifted to regular, open conversations that end in clear and direct goals set for each employee. Naturally, employees who are involved in the goal-setting process are more likely to be engaged than those who aren't. When employees have a hand in setting goals themselves, they are more likely to hold themselves accountable for them. This involvement also helps improve the employee-manager relationship.
While goal tracking varies from company to company, most companies have moved to digital, accessible, and all-encompassing tools to increase transparency. Having a visual representation of what is expected of the employee helps set the tone for ongoing performance dialogues. When employees achieve the goals, they set out for themselves, they feel a sense of contribution to the greater whole of the company as well as personal success.
Transparency in the workplace not only increases employee engagement through the trusting relationship between employer and employee, but also decreases job-related stress. This doesn’t just mean making sure executives share information with those in lower-level positions, but also departmental knowledge transfer and team transparency. Sharing feedback and fostering a collaborative work environment can create a shared purpose amongst employees and empower workers to feel connected to the overarching goal of the company.
Employees are your most valuable assets, and because of this, you should continuously strive to find ways to invest in their futures. One of the best ways for an HR department to do this, while also improving employee engagement and retention rates, is by investing in their employees’ education. Offering professional certification programs enhances their skill sets so they will perform better in their positions or grow into other areas within the company.
Digital skills are in high demand, and many employees are already choosing to invest their own time and money into these programs. By offering education incentives as a benefit of the position, prospective candidates will take notice, and you’ll have a competitive advantage from a recruitment standpoint. Offerings such as this also help employees feel supported and excited to go to work each day, encouraging them to develop their careers within your company for years to come.
The more engaged employees are, the more productive they will be. Increasing engagement can be as simple as delegating tasks that help employees feel more valued by company leadership. Helping employees shape and achieve their goals will ultimately impact their engagement level and can also lead to innovative benefits for the company.
