What is workforce engagement?

Workforce engagement, according to the business dictionary, is the emotional connection an employee feels towards his or her organization, which tends to influence their behaviors and level of effort in work-related activities.

Employee engagement is important and can have benefits to a company or organization. It does not necessarily correspond to your employees’ happiness, but there is a correlation between an employee’s emotional attachment or satisfaction related to their job and the company’s overall performance.

The key contributing factors that makeup workforce engagement?

To get a sense of employee engagement you will need to ask a few questions that will help determine how they identify themselves with their work. This consists of many factors including relationships with co-workers, communication, emotional commitment, and whether they feel gratification or a sense of satisfaction with their work.

• How bound are the employees to their work and co-workers?
• Do the employees communicate and treat each other well?
• How would you rate the employee’s emotional commitment towards their work?

Benefits of workforce engagement

Great workforce engagement will contribute to better organizational and individual performance and productivity. Overall it will increase the chances of business success. Poor employee engagement can be nurtured and improved upon. Here are some reasons why you should be keeping your employees engaged:

• Increased productivity results in positive business outcomes. When your employees are working hard and focusing their effort on the tasks at hand, it will increase your chances of success.
• Decreased turnover rate means that the company is not doing enough to retain their talent. That also means that the organization will need to put in the resources to constantly hire and train new staff, which is not only costly but also time-consuming.
• Increased profits come when you have a team that is productive and efficient. Engage with your employees and gradually you will see a shift in the work atmosphere and also in profits.
• Better customer satisfaction will be a likely outcome when employees are happy at work. Engaged employees will have a higher standard of professionalism which will reflect on how well they treat customers. Satisfied workers will treat customers well, which equals happy customers.

How do you implement this culture?

Now that we have established the reasons why workforce engagement is good for a business, let’s talk about how to drive employee engagement for a high working performance. To do this, organizations need to make sure that the workplace is one that is appreciative and motivational. Good workplace relationships need to be nurtured between management and co-workers. Equally important is the fact that top performers need to be retained, therefore there needs to be little to no reason why these employees would even think about leaving.

Ways to drive workforce engagement

• Encourage accountability with your high performing employees. Pass on some executive powers and allow them to feel responsible for assigned tasks and projects. A decentralized power structure will lead to innovative thinking and more creative thinking.
• Create a work culture that allows ideas and opinions to be shared freely. This increases critical thinking which can also increase productivity and problem-solving skills.
• Inclusive decision making with employees shows that you value their input and also puts them on the same page when it comes to understanding where the company is headed. This will bolster teamwork and align everyone’s goals to work towards success as a stronger unit.
• Communication is key, a well-connected team works like a well-oiled machine. If everyone is speaking the same language then it will decrease the risk of misunderstandings, mistakes, and postponing deadlines.
• Encourage and motive your employees. Recognize passion and good work, this will bring on a sense of gratification knowing that they are appreciated.
• Listen to aspirations and lead them to a path of development. Nurture your employees and provide the stepping stones for professional and personal growth.