Employee engagement: Empowering your people

While employee engagement may seem a novel or a relatively contemporary concept, its existence goes back over three decades, when the term first appeared in William A. Kahn's 'Psychological Conditions of Personal Engagement and Disengagement at Work' in 1990. Before that, during the '70s and '80s, organizations usually focused primarily on employee satisfaction, alienating the employee's positive sentiments towards the company, and severing bonds that a potentially-engaged employee could have experienced with the employer. The disconnected perspective muted relationships and rarely translated the company's support for their employees into actionable initiatives.

The focus then shifted from employee satisfaction to employee commitment, wherein employees were expected to remain loyal and committed to the organisation over a prolonged duration in return for a stable career. While commitment is an essential component and predictor of engagement, it cannot substitute engagement.

However, the '90s ushered a new era in employee empowerment, thanks to Kahn's revolutionary journal, which vividly encapsulated employee engagement and its diverse impacts on individuals and organizations. The literature provided the impetus in bridging the gap between commitment and the employee's support for the organisation, sowing the seeds for the rise and evolution of the concept of employee engagement.

The 2000s was when companies started to take brand image more seriously, analysing the relationships with their employees to achieve sustainable success. Rising turnover rates meant that employees valued happiness more than a steady revenue stream. This widespread change in attitude prompted corporations across the globe to foster positive and interactive relationships with their workforce.

However, despite witnessing the evolution and widespread adoption of the concept, some organizations are still unclear on its implementation due to the lack of involvement of one or more parties. It is essential to recognize that engagement is truly a team effort. When each member of an organization, from the senior leadership and HR to the management and the employees, wholeheartedly does their part to inspire and encourage engagement, there are benefits on each level, regardless of departments or roles.

Let us now explore the benefits of promoting employee engagement within an organization in detail.

Greater productivity

Several studies suggest that engaged employees tend to be significantly more productive than disengaged ones. Depending on the choice of reference material, inspired and engaged work cultures are shown to boost a workforce's productivity by 12 to 22 percent. However, productivity is a lot more than merely maximizing output. A highly-engaged employee is also likelier to showcase a range of traits that translate to higher degrees of performance, such as proactivity, persistence, adaptability, and the willingness to undertake additional responsibilities.

Healthier employees

Studies state that engaged employees are likelier to eat healthier and exercise regularly while being less susceptible to chronic diseases or obesity. Engagement surveys are essential in determining employees' medical condition as they provide valuable insights that can be leveraged to develop personalized policies that offer flexible schedules, health checkups, yoga sessions, or sponsored marathons. While Healthy employees are likely to enjoy their job truly while being comfortable at work, employees with health issues ought to receive adequate support from their employers as a relationship based on understanding and empathy boosts trust and productivity significantly.

An organically motivated employee

Employee engagement creates a working environment in which its employees are driven and motivated to contribute to its success. Engaged employees consistently give their best and fulfill essential tasks to accomplish organizational objectives. Since engaged employees are usually organically motivated, they are also inclined to share an emotional connection with their work and the organization, often becoming an example for their peers.

Final thoughts

Building an engaged workforce while being extremely beneficial requires timely investments in elevating the employee experience by making them feel like they have a say in things through consistent surveying. However, to unearth the true potential of your employee engagement efforts, you must measure the engagements, followed by setting tangible objectives to iron out the areas of improvement. To accurately measure employee engagement, you would need to assemble an amalgamation of qualitative and quantitative employee feedback that offers comprehensive insights regularly and sustainably. By reviewing your data, you would identify specific patterns that will effectively address obstacles, dynamically engage employees, and intercept future challenges.

Employees expect to be engaged in today's business landscape. They yearn for a sense of purpose and meaning, wanting to belong to a thriving culture. Coincidentally, what's suitable for your workforce is also beneficial for business. It would be sensible not to delay implementing your employee engagement strategy as your company's long-term success depends on it.

(The author is Vice-president – HR, Fujitsu Global Delivery Centers (GDCs))