Updated May 15, 2024
Businesses that have a high degree of employee engagement spend less time and money on recruiting and onboarding new staff. Involved personnel go above and above to achieve their objectives. The more engaged your employees are, the more likely they are to stay with your company and the more productive they will be.
But for companies struggling to improve their employee relationships, you can take measures to forge deeper connections with staff and improve employee engagement.
In this post, we’ll share actionable tips to develop your employee engagement so that your staff will be more productive and likely to spend a longer time at your company.
Improving engagement is more accessible than many companies realize – though it does take a concerted effort and strategy.
Let’s look at 15 ways to improve employee engagement in your company.
The common attitudes, beliefs, and behaviors that define your business make up your culture. Put differently – culture is what’s felt between each person. It can either bolster or detract from the work done at your company.
Employees who work for a firm with a positive company culture are more enthusiastic about beginning new initiatives and acquiring new skills because they know what is expected of them. This leads to happier workers who are more industrious because they are motivated and supported by their work culture.
When you offer training opportunities to your employees, you show them that you are committed to their development and growth. This helps engage them in their work and makes them feel like they are part of a team because you actively invest in their ability. That also helps your company, as everyone is working towards a common goal, and the devotion they feel from being trusted and believed in will make them more dedicated to your company.
Employee engagement can only be improved if you know what motivates your workforce. Employee surveys may be used to gauge employee satisfaction and identify problems.
With employee surveys, you might inquire about different aspects of life that affect your employees. You can inquire about their satisfaction with their work/life balance and their outlook on future advancement. Surveys may help you determine if your changes have succeeded or failed as you execute them.
Providing your employees with the essential tools they require to accomplish their jobs successfully and efficiently reduces stress and increases employee satisfaction. This may be accomplished in part by making technology more widely available. Depending on the company, this may look a bit different and entail more than simply supplying a computer. Technology can help streamline many of your employees’ common tasks, regardless of whether it’s setting a work reminder or accessing HR tech to check their benefits.
Recognition motivates and inspires people – and is a key component of a successful business culture. Whether big or small, tasks employees complete well should be acknowledged. Increased involvement in the workplace may be achieved via peer awards, such as 'Employee of the Month' though even small gestures, like an email or mention on a call goes a long way.
Commemorating individual milestones, such as work anniversaries and birthdays, is also very essential. It shows that every member of your team is valued and appreciated. Take the time to give your employees personal praise and understand how they want to be recognized.
Create a free work environment where your staff are encouraged and welcomed to provide honest criticism and feedback. As a manager, you need to know what your employees think about your work and what they think about your leadership style in order to enhance employee engagement.
To build a great corporate culture, all you need to do is accept input from your employees and make it clear that you will not penalize them.
Keeping great personnel isn't all about employee perks, although it surely helps. Workers can concentrate on their jobs when they have access to retirement, health, dental, vision, and other benefits. If you can improve your benefits package, you can raise employee satisfaction. Helping employees have peace of mind in other facets of life lets them focus more clearly on their work tasks – letting them work undistracted and with higher productivity.
Toxic environments are created when managers micromanage every aspect of their workers' duties and responsibilities. Keeping an eye on your staff will only make them more uneasy, and they'll do whatever it takes to satisfy you. To get the best results, offer your staff the freedom to conduct their jobs in an environment that is conducive to their well-being and productivity.
Trust works both ways too – where your staff must trust the company and leadership to give them space to function. However, trust must be given before it can be received.
Exit and stay interviews allow you to collect information on employee satisfaction and loyalty. When a team member willingly departs the firm, exit interviews create a good situation for more open and honest feedback. An employee's exit interview responses should provide light on the cause of their departure.
Flexibility is one of the most demanded benefits employees seek. It helps them feel more engaged with their work, and it can also lead to increased productivity. In large part, this is because flexibility lets employees have a better work balance, but it also demonstrates how much you trust people to be responsible for getting their work done.
When you allow your employees to rearrange hours or work remotely, you're giving them the freedom to work in a way that suits them best. They can take breaks when they need to, work from wherever they're most productive, and design their days around their commitments outside of work.
Fostering a work environment that is conducive to collaboration helps enhance employee engagement because it allows employees to feel like they are a part of a team. When employees feel like they are part of a team, they are more likely to be engaged in their work and feel a sense of ownership over their projects.
When you know your employees' career goals, you can help them create a path to reach those goals. This helps employees feel engaged because they know you are invested in their success. Plus, when employees feel supported in their career development, they are more likely to be engaged in their work. It also lets you chart a path for your own company’s development by nurturing their ambitions and letting them know they don’t need to leave to achieve it.
As a manager, when you lead by example, you show your employees that you're just as committed to the company's success as they are. This helps create a sense of camaraderie and enhances employee engagement. Plus, employees are more likely to follow your lead if they see that you're living up to the company's values.
Sharing positive customer feedback in a timely manner helps enhance employee engagement because it lets them see objectively that their work makes a difference and is appreciated. When employees feel appreciated, they are more likely to be engaged in their work and to go the extra mile for those clients.
Several advantages accrue to organizations that outsource human resources work. The main benefit, however, is an increase in employee commitment. Outsourced HR directly influences employee retention, which is a crucial measure of job satisfaction. With the help of a Professional Employer Organization (PEO), your company may provide more significant benefits to its workers at a lesser cost.
Outsourced HR also helps you build more effective recruiting, onboarding, and training processes. You are freed from tedious administrative responsibilities and may prevent trust-eroding payroll mistakes with outsourced HR. Outsourcing HR allows you to create long-term connections with your workers, encouraging them to stay loyal to your company.
Employees who are enthusiastic about their jobs are critical to the success of any company. Their productivity increases, and they are less inclined to seek work elsewhere due to their increased productivity. Training and onboarding new staff is a time-consuming process that has a detrimental effect on your bottom line. Rather than increasing staff retention, changes that improve employee engagement should be implemented instead.
Working with Questco as your HR partner can help you streamline many tasks, which frees up your internal team’s time to focus on supporting your staff.