Employee Engagement – Who’s Responsibility!

It’s the responsibility of the whole workforce - the individuals, managers and executives, not just a few

The Individual:  because individuals are motivated for different reasons managers cannot take all the responsibility for engaging their workforce.  Individuals need to own their engagement driven by their unique motivators and career aspirations.  However the organisation should provide key triggers of employee engagement including career development resources, learning and development opportunities, clarity on their role and how they contribute to the organisations goal/s. 

The Manager: they must develop a brand to promote their uniqueness, and their value proposition.  This process gives the manager a sense of purpose and the confidence to internally network to further their career, another key to higher levels of engagement.  They need to build relationships with their people and help develop them through coaching.  Staff must understand the manager’s motivations and managers must understand the key drivers of engagement of their staff.

The Executive:  they also need to develop a brand, communicate with passion the organisation’s goals and objectives and walk the organisational talk.  They need to build trust by being authentic. 

Recent research by BlessingWhite (2011) found that trust in executives can have twice the impact on engagement levels than trust in the immediate manager.  However, consistent with past studies, employees are more likely to trust their immediate managers than the executives in their organisation.

The executive must hold themselves and their peers accountable for developing a constructive culture that drives high performance and engagement.

This all sounds relatively easy, doesn’t it! 

What Motivates Us and How Can We Motivate Others

Being an employee engagement specialist I found the presentation on the link below provocative and interesting and I would like to share it with you.  The key ideas are supported by the latest research on employee engagement.

The presenter Daniel Pink is a best selling author on the subject of what motivates us and how we can motivate others.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u6XAPnuFjJc&feature=player_embedded#at=26

Regards

Peter

The Power Of Full Engagement

I recently read a book titled The Power of Full Engagement and it really provides great insights and suggestions on how to perform at your best, remain healthy and be happy.

The key for all of us is to be able to perform in the storm.  To build capacity to sustain high performance in the face of increasing demand in our professional and private lives.

The central conclusion from the book is:

• Energy is the fundamental currency of high performance
• Capacity is a function of one’s ability to expend and recover energy
• Every thought, feeling and action has an energy consequence
• Energy is the most important individual and organisational resource

ENERGY, not time is the currency for high performance

The more energy we bring to the world the more empowered and productive we become

The more we blame others or external influences, the more negative and compromised our energy is likely to become

Leaders are the stewards of organisational energy in companies, organisations and in families

They inspire or demoralise others by how they manage their energy.  How they help renew the energy of those they manage/lead

The skilful management of energy = full engagement

The 4 forces of energy?

• Physical
• Mental
• Emotional
• Spiritual

Physically – energised.  Strength, flexibility, endurance, resilience (exercise and diet) 

Physical exercise stimulates cognitive capacity

Mentally – focussed.  (having a sense of purpose - goal setting)

How we organise our lives and focus our attention

Realistic optimism

Mental preparation

Positive self-talk

Effective time management and creativity

Emotionally – connected.   Ability to bounce back after disappointment, frustration and loss 

Access pleasant and positive emotions

What fuels emotional energy - self-confidence, self-control, interpersonal effectiveness and empathy

The ability to summon positive emotions during periods of stress lies at the heart of effective leadership

Spiritually – aligned with a purpose beyond our immediate self-interest.  Commitment to ones deepest values.  Passion, commitment, integrity and honesty

Fully Engaged = eager to get to work, eager to get home and know how to draw the boundaries

Employee Engagement for Middle Managers

As an employee engagement specialist I work with clients to plan a compelling future for the organisation that enables their middle managers and emerging leaders to contribute their best. Effective middle managers are crucial to the performance of an organisation as they are the conduit or link between the strategy developed by the senior executives and the people who deliver to customers and other stakeholders. They lead in the vortex where engagement happens – or doesn’t, and as a consequence often determines whether an organisation achieves it’s goals and objectives.

So what is employee engagement?

·         The level of an individual’s contribution to the company’s success, and

·         The level of personal satisfaction in the role

An alignment of maximum job satisfaction (I like my work and I do it well) with maximum job contribution (I help achieve the goals of my organisation)

The engaged employee has an emotional investment in the organisation, they are satisfied, committed and proud, they are positive and enthusiastically take on challenges and they bring discretionary effort to the workplace to get the job done.  By engaging staff middle managers can play a significant role in determining performance and business outcomes.

Here are a few tips for middle managers on how to get started to further engage staff:

Firstly it’s about you to take control of your own engagement.  To be engaged is to be able to apply your talents, respect your boss, work hard to get the job done, enjoy and be proud of your work environment, to have a clear sense of purpose and to have a career focus.  All these components of engagement lead to self- confidence and an ability to make decisions to fulfil personal aspirations. 

Research and analysis conducted by Insync Surveys identified the following key drivers of engagement:

1.       Our organisation cares about and is committed to me

2.       Our organisation has a clear set of values and behaviours that guide our everyday actions

3.       My work group is committed to improving productivity

4.       I understand what outcomes and standards are expected of me

5.       I understands how my role contributes to our organisation’s long term goals

6.       The person I report to displays confidence in our organisation’s future

7.       My skills and talents are used to their full potential

8.       Our organisation is committed to high standards of performance

9.       Our organisation has effective programs for recognising and rewarding achievements of people

10.   Our everyday actions and performance are clearly linked to our organisation’s goals

How many of these drivers can you tick?