As the economy rebounds, more and more buzz surrounds the topic of the currently employed seeking new positions. Some have asserted that the ‘buzz’ is actually causing the statistic to inflate. Whether the statistics are accurate or not, employee retention should not be ignored. The first step is ensuring that employees’ concerns, complaints, and requests are heard, after all, employee engagement = retention.
In our experience, regular feedback, dialogue and praise from superiors is the most important factor contributing to employee engagement. This includes:
Clarity of job expectations
If an employee is never taught how to handle the responsibilities of their job, what is expected of them, or if the policies change frequently, the employee can’t focus and succeed. They see their role as ‘surviving’ in their role as opposed to helping the organization succeed.
Career advancement/improvement opportunities
Supervisors should be aware of their employee’s goals and seek to help them achieve those goals: identifying training, internal promotions, or special projects.
Company Culture
The perception of the values of the organization and commitment to ethical contributions to society: diversity, volunteering, charity, environmentalism, and education.
The responsibility of employee engagement cannot end with the direct supervisor. Most surprisingly, studies have shown that senior management plays a much larger role in engagement: “Half of the employees who trust senior leaders are engaged compared to 40 percent of those who trust their direct boss and 33 percent of the North American workforce overall.” (BlessingWhite)
An engaged employee is motivated by their work, by what they can contribute to the company. A disengaged employee is motivated by what they ‘get’ from the company: raises, bonuses, vacation, etc. Rewards for high performance are important to both engaged employees and their counterparts. Without regular feedback, employees will focus more and more on the tangible rewards which can be found in any organization.
If you have any questions or comments, please, feel free to contact us! We would be happy to have a conversation with you.