The things you learn in grade school

After reading a great article discussing employee engagement on Forbes.com, I thought it would be a great topic to hit on before the new year. Maybe some of you can even make new years resolutions around a few of the points below.

If you judge your employee engagement within your organization by a refrigerator stocked with beer, Ping-Pong tournaments in the hallway, and an abundance of snacks in the break room, then you are in a world of hurt. As much fun as a foosball table can be at the office, it doesn’t qualify the company as being ‘engaged’ or even ‘a great place to work’. Try implementing a few of the below practices to see employee engagement and morale increase within your organization.

Trust:

Creating a trusting environment within your organization is the number one way to build an engaging workforce. When you open the door to communication with your employees you are welcoming great ideas and mutual respect which fosters engagement.

Reward:

Be upfront about the benefits your company offers when the employee signs on. They didn’t sign up for ambiguousness, they want to know right away what to expect in regards to vacation time, bonuses, and the promotion path of the company.  No surprises. Just as you would expect no surprises from your employees.

Loyalty:

Why should you expect employees to be loyal to your company if you are not loyal to them? Display signs of loyalty to the company in the presence of your employees. Also, demonstrate loyalty towards your team by treating each of them with respect and honesty.

Values:

If your company lacks values then you can basically just sweep employee engagement under the rug. And no, having a sign hanging on the wall with your ‘core values’ doesn’t count as ‘having values’. Demonstrating the company values through actions rather than words will drive employee engagement and make employees feel comfortable with their choice of signing on with your company.

Today, rather than twelve years ago, employees are choosing companies based on the four bullets above rather than a stocked break room and foosball table. They want to see real employee engagement within their organization and having a feeling of trust with their management. They don’t want to be seen as just another number but as a valued employee.

http://www.forbes.com/sites/meghanbiro/2012/10/14/your-employees-are-engaged-really/