Employee engagement is a buzzword that continues to be echoed among the practitioners of the human resource management. This buzzword was first introduced by a group of Gallup researchers in 2004 and became an important element for the progress of a company. Why?

According to Gallup, there are basically three types of employees within an organization which are engaged, disengaged, and actively-disengaged employees. Those who are engaged work with high spirits and feel a strong bond with the company. They are the company’s valuable assets.

What is employee engagement?

Employee engagement is often interpreted as the motivation, satisfaction, and happiness of employees. It is true that these elements contribute to the level of employee engagement, but only to some extent. For example, an employee might be happy with his job because he is not too busy and has more time to watch YouTube videos. That means, happy employee is not necessarily engaged with his job. However, engaged employees tend to be happy with their work.

Basically, employee engagement is a state or behavior that encourages employees to be passionate about their work so they give heart, energy and mind to the job. Based on the Gallup survey, companies with high employee engagement rates have an increased productivity rate of 20% as well as 21% for profit.

Employee engagement ultimately increases profitability, encourages business development, reduces turnover rate, and improves company efficiency. Unfortunately, according to a State of Global Workplace report of 155 countries surveyed, the average adult working full time and feeling engaged is only 15%. That means there are about 85% of employees worldwide who do not feel engaged or are unhappy with their work.

How to encourage employee engagement?

Speaking of employee engagement program, there is no ‘one-size for all’ approach. Each company has its own personality and issue that contribute to the level of employee engagement. It is important for a company to measure the employee engagement level and find the root of the problem so that the company can design the appropriate program.

However, much of the research emphasizes the seven key factors that drive employee engagement levels. In addition to referring to the measurement results and the root of the problem, adjustments to the following key factors can help companies in designing the right program:

1. Nature of work
2. Meaningful and purposeful work
3. Opportunities to grow
4. Recognition and appreciation
5. Effective and assertive relationship
6. Communication quality
7. Leaders who inspire

Sources:

http://www.managerlenchanteur.org/wp-content/uploads/Gallup-State-of-the-Global-Workplace-Report-2017_Executive-Summary.pdf

https://iveybusinessjournal.com/publication/the-millennials-a-new-generation-of-employees-a-new-set-of-engagement-policies/

http://www.employment-studies.co.uk/system/files/resources/files/469.pdf

http://news.gallup.com/reports/191489/q12-meta-analysis-report-2016.aspx?g_source=ServiceLandingPage&g_medium=copy&g_campaign=tabs