An organisation builds itself on the work of its employees. The nature of their relationship is such that the success of the employee benefits the organisation and vice versa.
“Growth is never by mere chance; it is the result of forces working together.” – James Cash Penney, Founder of JCPenney
Investing in Employee Engagement is an innovative method of driving growth forward.
What is Employee Engagement?
Employee engagement is the level of emotional commitment an employee feels towards their job, their team, and their organisation. Emotionally invested employees:
- Take accountability and ensure quality output
- Exhibit leadership and lift their teams
- Are intrinsically motivated and value their job for more than just the paycheck
So, How Does Employee Engagement Drive Growth?
There are several factors that drive an organisation’s growth. These include:
- Customer satisfaction and their reliance on the brand
- Productivity and output of the employees
- Profitability
Better Employee Engagement lifts these factors to new levels.
Customer Satisfaction Drives Growth
Interestingly, 87% of Starbucks customers say that their affinity towards the brand is driven by how well the employees are treated.
Customers will find it difficult to attach themselves to a brand that their own associates aren’t fond of. Positivity flourishes from the inside.
Organisations strive to keep communication with customers positive because if it comes from an inauthentic place internally, the impact would be dampened.
Productivity Drives Growth
According to Forbes, Engaged Employees outperform their peers by 202%!
A company’s success is a factor of the productivity shown by its associates, and the amount of consumption of service or goods by its customers.
Engaged employees perform well and also do so for long-term. They are more likely to:
- Put in the effort
- Not take leaves
- Elevate the employee experience of their peers
Profitability Drives Growth
An SHRM report shows that employee engagement saves the company money by improving employee health. For example, construction equipment maker Caterpillar reported that employee engagement helped them save $8.8 million annually by reducing:
- Attrition
- Absenteeism
- Overtime
A better bottom line allows companies to expedite their growth.
Individual Growth Drives Communal Growth
An organisation is only as strong as the sum of its parts. Investing in the employees’ health, wellness, and engagement is crucial.
Employee Engagement Activities
Employee engagement strategies can revolve around the following ideas.
#1 Rewards and Recognition
Rewards and Recognition are most effective when they are given:
- Immediately upon completion of good work
- In front of the entire team
Set up a Platform
Setting up a company-wide Rewards and Recognition platform helps fulfill the criteria. The Rewards and Recognition platform must provide space for both peer-to-peer recognition and recognition from managers to employees.
#2 Employee Perks
Valuable perks increase an employee’s bond to their organisation.
Perks are a big part of an employee’s experience of their job. In fact, many employees value perks such as flexible work hours more than the paycheck.
Create initiatives such as:
- Remote work days
- Gift travel vouchers
- Provide special discounts to employees
#3 Employee Wellbeing
A healthy employee is a happy employee.
Help employees improve their physical health by:
- Providing discounts for gym memberships
- Providing healthy lunch options
- Setting up regular reminders for hydration, exercise, etc.
Help employees improve their mental health by:
- Promoting healthy work hours
- Promoting Hobby Clubs to bring like-minded employees together
- Setting up regular checks on the employees’ mental health
Key Takeaway
An organisation’s growth is interlinked with the success of its associates. Initiating activities for employee engagement is an effective method to promote the growth of employees. These activities would result in better customer experience, higher productivity levels, and increased profitability. Build a culture of frequent recognition in the workplace to see employee engagement levels soar. Provide employees with exclusive perks and run programs aimed at improving employee wellbeing as other methods of increasing employee engagement.
