What is the G-O-A-L of Employee Engagement?
Give a voice to your people: This promotes openness and a sense of involvement and vanishes the gap between management and lower levels. It’s good to feel when someone listens to your voice and recognizes it. For employees, this signifies that they are a part of a team. For employers, this is a way to get to know more their employees and see their potentials.
Oversee people’s well-being: Employee engagement embodies personal involvement both physically and emotionally. Nurturing both is one of the Goals of employee engagement. Having a healthy body increases productivity and decreases burnout to work. This may affect as well the workplace to which promotes a harmonious vibe diminishing stress.
Aligning people to the company’s values and vision: The clear and transparent goal of the company is one thing that needs to be communicated to its employees. Once they know the direction where the company is going from then on, they would know how and when to step up in reaching this destination. It is also a must to lay out specific goals to each sub-departments for them to feel responsible and creates teamwork as a whole.
Leveraging talent to Retain people: Employee Productivity is enhanced when their talents are maximized to their full potential. This means people are more engaged in their work because of a sense of fulfilment not only to work done but also to their talents and skills being showcased. When people see that they are developing and enhanced they feel more motivated. Then, retaining to a company is just easy once you see yourself growing.
Companies are investing a lot in employee engagement as this is proven to greatly affect the success of the company. It’s the people who do their work with passion and fulfillment towards the common goal. But the big challenge now is how would this be done? How would this be propagated when all are affected in this COVID-19 situation. As I deeply think of this, I have thought of the following simple ways to still reach the goals of Employee Engagement amidst this Covid-19 Era especially for companies who prefer the work from home set up or having limits in face-to-face interactions for safety precautions.
Working on constant communication: Making a group chat of all employees where they could share insights and ideas as well as communicate their needs would be a great help in hearing the voice of your people. Try to roll out electronic surveys and other tools to generate employee feedback. Take time also to speak with your employees or have a zoom call just to consult how they are doing and as well as update them with the company’s status.
Addressing people’s well-being: Allocating time to have an online physical exercise program like a yoga or Zumba session while employees are at home. Sharing Articles with employees about wellness on physical and emotional well-being. Engaging employees on webinars sessions about work -health-related topics could also be done. Intensify medical and financial assistance that are ready in times of need of employees.
Yield a weekly update: Updating the team with where the company is at the moment would generate a sense of engagement for the team. Team leaders should also be more flexible in terms of work consultations to assure that people are on the same page and right direction as to where the company is. Meetings could be done also online or schedule a time when people can collectively meet even on a limited number.
Skill-set Enhancement and Recognition Online: Providing employees with workshops and seminars on enhancing skill sets, done online through webinar sessions. Innovative programs using technologies to develop skills. Recognizing people through monthly awarding could also help.
As to what Heraclitus has taught us “The Only Constant in Life Is Change”, even before this Pandemic corporate world has experienced a lot of constant change. It’s just that this Covid Era made it too abrupt. Thus, employee engagement can still be intensified through flexibility and adaptability of leaders which is more needed in this current time to boost the morale and positive mindset of the employees.
Author – Michelle Amarante, Sales Associate – AUH Chapter Team Head
A professional with a heart for human resources, an advocate of Enhancing People skills and talents, and loves to write persuasive articles to share opinions and encourage people.