Employee Engagement

    

What is Employee Engagement

The concept of employee engagement was first introduced in 1990 by Dr. William Kahn. He suggested that people are involved in their work at three levels – physically, cognitively, and emotionally. However, employees may be engaged at fewer levels, or even disengaged or actively disengaged.

According to Sanchez (2007), employee engagement is defined as “an outcome of how employees perceive their work, leadership of their organizations, the recognition and rewards they receive, and the communication ethos of the organization”.

Factors of Employee Engagement

Strong Leadership - Leadership is the cornerstone of engagement because of the central role leaders play in shaping organizational culture, which, in turn, shapes employee experience. 

Caring Organizational Culture - Culture, like leadership, plays a prominent role in driving employee engagement. This is why having a caring culture is one of the best ways to maintain high levels of employee engagement.

Meaningful Work - Meaningful work is essential for employee engagement because it gives employees a sense of purpose, and they will feel passionate about the work they do and perform their jobs with greater enthusiasm.

Regular Feedback and Recognition - Good communication between employees and management is an essential component of engagement, and establishing a system of feedback in your organization is a good way to hone those communication skills.

Professional Growth Opportunities  

Inclusive Work Environment - Inclusive work environments that foster honesty and transparency are becoming increasingly critical factors for engagement. 

Levels of Employee Engagement

The three levels of employee engagement are: actively engaged, not engaged, and actively disengaged.

Actively engaged employees are heavily invested in and passionate regarding their work and the company. They want to drive their company to success with their productivity and high performance. Actively engaged employees:

• Offer creative ideas for enhancing operations.

• Take on initiatives that will benefit the company.

• Support the company's vision and beliefs.

Not engaged employees are emotionally disconnected from their work and workplace.  As a result of their demands not being adequately addressed, they only invest hours in their job, not their passion or drive.

Not engaged employees:

• Perform the bare minimum to survive.

• Don't make recommendations for enhancing processes.

• Don't like change or growth.
  

  Actively disengaged employees are not just dissatisfied at work. They are also disappointed that their demands are not addressed by their workplace. These workers potentially undercut the efforts of their motivated peers every day. Actively disengaged employees:

• Through their statements, make it obvious that they do not wish to work for the organization. 

• Sabotage the efforts of their teams, management, colleagues, and the company.

• Claim credit for another person's work. 

• Blame their lousy performance on a lack of resources.
  (Hrcloud.com)
  
  

  Elements of Employee Engagement
  

  1. Leadership - Employees are desperate to have meaningful relationships with their managers. 
  
  2. Communication
  
  3. Culture
  
  4. Rewards and recognition - More than three quarters of employees say they would work harder if they were recognized more. 
  
  5. Professional and personal growth - The opportunity to develop new skills and capabilities is critically important to ambitious employees. Most employee development occurs on the job in the form of new projects or responsibilities, but could also include regional conferences, new reading materials, or certification courses. 
  
  (Achievers.com)
  
  

  References
  

  https://www.hrcloud.com/blog/what-are-the-levels-of-employee-engagement#:~:text=The%20three%20levels%20of%20employee,and%20commitment%20within%20the%20company. (Hrcloud.com)
  https://www.achievers.com/blog/8-elements-employee-engagement/ (Achievers.com)