Employee Engagement has become a buzz-phrase. Everybody with a payroll wants more engaged employees. Right? So we start throwing the phrase around in meetings. People agree it would be nice-to-have.
Who really knows what to actually do? Where do you start? Let’s start with the Wiki Definition:
Employee engagement is a property of the relationship between an organization and its employees. An “engaged employee” is one who is fully absorbed by and enthusiastic about their work and so takes positive action to further the organization’s reputation and interests.
An organization with ‘high’ employee engagement might therefore be expected to outperform those with ‘low’ employee engagement, all else being equal.[1]
Just Another Office Commodity?
If you are leading an organization, employee engagement is something you want to either get or work to improve. And with that as a goal, some managers set out to get more engagement as if it’s like getting more office supplies.
Before you hire consultants to do surveys and install new engagement systems, please proceed with caution. Avoid making employee engagement the latest management flavor of the month.
Let’s get a better handle on this elusive intangible.
Enthusiasm for work is intangible. It begins with an individual’s attitude.
Let’s agree that people own their own attitudes. The extent that others choose to be enthusiastic about their work, is NOT within your control, no matter how much you try to get it from them. Attitudes are contagious.
While it’s impossible for you to control others’ attitudes, there IS a lot you can to to influence the way people feel about their work. But when it comes to sustaining workplace enthusiasm, carrots and sticks can quickly lose their effectiveness. With what behavioral science now knows, extrinsic motivation tactics are minimally effective over the long term.
Most of us studied Abraham Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs back in college. When we had no immediate application, our memories faded.
His theories taught us how motivation works. Higher levels of performance are attained when we are fulfilling higher level needs. How does Maslow’s Hierarchy apply to Employee Engagement? As we understand the higher levels, we are more likely to tap into our people’s intrinsic motives.
In order to be truly engaged, employees need to be driven by higher order needs. This can NOT happen if the lower level needs are not met. I believe that the key to improving engagement in today’s work environment is NOT to overlook step #2; safety.
To assure safety, I’m not talking about adding more security guards, weapon sniffing dogs or chain link-barbed wire fences around your workplace. Creating a safe environment today goes beyond avoiding physical injury harm. Our most frequent threat to employee safety is internal. A safe work environment must minimize both potential and current fears.
How secure your people feel about sharing a creative, out-of-the-box idea? What happens when they do? What happens when they don’t?
In all too many organizations, managers ignore our inherent need to feel safe. A prerequisite for improving engagement is establishing an environment where your team feels safe. Where prevalent politics and bad bosses rule, true engagement through intrinsic motivation is always illusive.
To what extent to your people have the perception that it is dangerous to:
Are hidden agendas more prevalent than not?
Is there a cover-your-tail culture?
As long as these fears are present, you have a safety issue. If you don’t address internal safety, your efforts to improve employee engagement will struggle to achieve their desired results. And, may waste both time and money.
How likely is a cover-your-tail, frightened environment able to innovate? How likely are they to dis-engage?
The first two are also referenced in the articles listed directly above.
Tom Lemanski helps accomplished leaders unlock potential, solve complex challenges, and amplify their impact.
Effective leadership is the key to driving meaningful, lasting success in a fast-changing world.
Tom’s focus on innovative strategies and self-awareness creates transformative results for leaders striving for the next level.
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