What does "employee engagement" really mean to your company? Part 1

I have so many companies who contact me about wanting to improve their employee engagement in their facilities, believing that they are already well on their way.  When I begin to ask questions about what they may already be doing, I often get examples like "We have a Joint Health and Safety Committee" or "We have an employee social committee."  Although having those teams is better than having nothing, that is really not true employee engagement.  

First of all, the JHSC is a requirement, not an option.  Secondly, many JHSCs function very basically, with the HR Manager or Safety Manager leading the meetings and assigning many of the tasks to themselves or to supervisors.  Employees on those committees show up once a month for a meeting, often without a pen or paper, listen for an hour, then leave the room, not having to think about safety or the team until next month's meeting.  There is little accountability for the team members.

Although social committees are a popular way for companies to involve employees, there really is little to no decision making that happens here.  It is a very safe way for management to "involve" employees - let them plan the company picnic or pass out candy at Halloween.  I do believe social committees improve morale and are certainly of value, but, again, this is not true employee engagement.

Is employee engagement a "nice-to-do?"  Is it something that makes people feel good?  Perhaps.  But, in reality, we all know that businesses do not stay afloat by focusing just on making people feel good.  There must be a compelling business reason to make a true investment in this concept.  Implementing an employee engagement strategy that attracts and retains highly motivated team members, while adding profit to the bottom line, is possible, and, in fact, can be a key contributor to the success of your business.  

In this multi-part series, we will explore how to develop a key employee engagement strategy, which tools to use to make that strategy successful, and how to sustain it as part of an integrated culture.  

Kim Wolf Leadership Consulting and Coaching  





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