Part II – How to Engage Everyone in the Pioneering Adventure of Business Growth – The Case for Employee Engagement
In this series of articles we continue to examine how businesses can become high growth upscaling enterprises. People-focused business growth is a central theme in these articles and shows that through good quality leadership and decision making, such growth is not a concept to be read about in a magazine but rather to be actively worked on in the here and now. Some of the inspiration for this thinking and the theme throughout the four blogs is from the work of Mauro Porcini who, as chief design officer of PepsiCo, consistently demonstrates that people focus creates success through innovation (Porcini, 2023). This article explores how employee engagement can and will unlock great strides in growth within an organisation, team or new business.
Part I – How to create an adventurous business purpose that serves as a call to action
Part II – How to engage everyone in the adventure of business growth- the case for employee engagement
Part III – How to recruit and retain top talent for the business growth journey
Part IV – How to track tangible business growth success
People will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel
Maya Angelou
(A) The Evidence for Employee Engagement – High Business Growth
For some time now there has been an accepted understanding that good leaders within business create a strong sense of team and assist in helping their people understand the purpose and values of the business through great engagement. The buy-in created by this engagement has so many business and personal advantages and can be proven through examining a number of leading management reports and surveys and in the case studies of countless high profile exemplars of leading employee engagement. The Gallup research of 2020 is frequently quoted in this article and this evidence matters because of it’s depth. As business leaders, ‘failing fast’ for success is significantly multiplied through the digestion of research that has garnered evidence from multiple sources. This evidence based leadership accelerates and promotes our learning and leads to sharper and focused success decisions. The Gallup work examined the relationship between employee engagement and business success through 456 studies, in 276 organisations, within 54 industries and in 96 countries.
So What Do We Mean By Employee Engagement?
There are many definitions for this and to a certain extent this is understandable based on the nuances of the industry sector, the evolution of a developing business, on its improving engagement or the starting point for the journey ahead. However, it is most definitely best practice for each business to use a core definition for employee engagement as from this basis an initial baseline measure of engagement levels can be taken and improving engagement properly measured and communicated to and celebrated back with all people involved.
In the Gallup reports of 2020 a good definition was fleshed out from significant research examining the employee benefits and business benefits of higher levels of employee engagement. That definition is as follows:-
‘The involvement and enthusiasm of employees in both their work and workplace.‘
Why Employee Engagement and Empowerment Matters More Than Ever
Increasingly, this challenge has become ever more significant in the context of achieving success in a competitive economy. Post pandemic the engagement and involvement of employees is not only essential to retain the best people in businesses but also to attract the best new talent. This is even more relevant when considering ‘the Great Resignation’ or through another accepted phenomenon, ‘Quiet Quitting’.
‘Engage for success’ in the UK have measured through surveys that employee engagement fell by 11% during the pandemic and that since that time it has only recovered by 3%. Now is the time to act because people are the energy and the lifeblood of our businesses and unnecessary high turnover is catastrophic to business success and to the cohesion of great teams creating growth in business. Importantly, there is a need for psychological safety in the workplace as an essential element of wellbeing and motivation for our greatest assets, our people. The evidence is strong for staff engagement to be top on our ‘to-do’ list to create high levels of business growth and in so doing to outmatch our business rivals. There is a wealth of evidence demonstrating the positive impact of staff engagement on businesses.
‘The Magnificent Seven‘ of Employee Engagement
The most significant and definitely the ‘magnificent seven’ of business success outcomes from great employee engagement have not yet been turned into a movie but they should be and they should form the staple diet of any serious leader of business and their people at the planning phase of every year. Business growth is not just good for the business itself and it’s reputation but it supports all of its employees to a successful and stable worklife, it supports business partners and stakeholders, it drives improvements in the products and services offered to clients and customers and importantly, it makes a difference to local communities and to the regional and national economy. What was the common denominator in all of those differences made? Yes, people. This is the benefit of understanding at a business and leadership level what Porcini means by ‘people in love with people’.
1. Making and Doing More – Increased Productivity
Business growth relies upon motivated people who create higher levels of productivity in the business. Multiple studies have found a positive correlation between employee engagement and productivity. For example, a report by the UK Government’s Engage for Success movement found that highly engaged employees are 50% more likely to exceed performance expectations compared to disengaged employees. According to a study by Gallup, highly engaged teams show 21% greater profitability compared to teams with low engagement levels. It is through Gallup that we discover the overall and crucial finding that engaged employees have 17% higher productivity.
2. Growing the Business – Higher Profitability
This just makes sense that those businesses with more highly engaged employees tend to be more profitable. The Gallup study also estimated that companies in the top quartile of employee engagement outperformed those in the bottom quartile by 21% in profitability. For example, a report by Aon Hewitt also found that companies with high employee engagement had a 4% higher operating margin than their low engagement counterparts. Engaged employees are more committed to achieving business goals and are likely to go the extra mile for customers. As Branson says ‘if you take care of your employees they will take care of the clients’.
3. Forging a Reputation – Improved Customer Satisfaction
Engaged employees create better customer experiences, leading to higher customer satisfaction and loyalty. Research by the Institute of Customer Service found that organisations with engaged employees outperformed their competitors in customer satisfaction by 10%. A study by Temkin Group also found that companies with highly engaged employees outperform their competitors in customer satisfaction by 12%. This therefore is not necessarily about heavy investment in products and services coming out of the bottom line of the business through making extravagant offers, it is simply about looking after your best asset as a business, your people – as simple as that – they will do the business for the business from there.
4. Being In Love with People – Keeping Your Best People
Engaged and empowered employees are less likely to be absent from work and are more likely to stay with your organisation. The UK Employee Engagement Taskforce reported that businesses with high levels of employee engagement experience 41% lower absenteeism and 59% lower turnover rates compared to those with low engagement levels. Engaged employees are more likely to stay with an organisation, reducing turnover costs. Research by Towers Watson found that companies with high levels of employee engagement have a 25% lower turnover rate compared to companies with low engagement levels. The range of 25% to 59% lower turnover is something to aim for through a deliberate leadership driven engagement with your people. This is the best way to promote the values and the purpose of your business, finding that through the loyalty and longevity of your best people you can achieve the greatest and most ambitious business goals.
5. Being the Best – Innovation and Creativity
The ability to create and to innovate inspires and energises both your people and those that their products and services serve. The ability to be fleet of foot and to consider how to ideate, to create and to design differentiates the growing businesses from the failing ones. Engaged employees are more likely to contribute innovative ideas and solutions. A study by the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) found that businesses with high levels of employee engagement were more innovative and had a greater ability to adapt to change. Engaged employees are more likely to contribute innovative ideas. A study published in the Journal of Applied Psychology found a positive relationship between employee engagement and individual creativity, suggesting that engaged employees are more likely to generate and implement innovative solutions.
‘Innovation is an act of love – or at least it should be. Always. It is a gesture of empathy, respect, generosity, of one human being’s devotion to another’
Mauro Porcini
6. Looking After Your People – Safety and Wellbeing
Communicating and empowering your people means that they are likely to take more responsibility for themselves and for others. Their commitment to each other and to the business grows exponentially. Engaged employees are more likely to prioritise safety and wellbeing in the workplace. The UK Health and Safety Executive (HSE) found that organisations with higher levels of employee engagement have significantly lower accident rates and fewer work-related ill-health cases. Engaged employees experience higher levels of wellbeing and job satisfaction. Research by the University of Warwick found that happy employees are 12% more productive, highlighting the importance of employee engagement in overall wellbeing and linking back to safety and productivity. Not only is this what we want for our people, but by keeping people safe they are more able to serve their clients and their customers and to deliver on their promise and their purpose.
7. Growing the Brand and Building a Legacy
Engaged employees can act as brand ambassadors, positively impacting the organisation’s reputation and attracting top talent. Engaged employees are not only dedicated to their own work but also take pride in their organisation. As brand advocates, they are more likely to recommend their workplace to friends, family, and acquaintances. Employee referrals serve as a powerful and cost-effective recruitment tool, as referred candidates tend to align better with the company culture and requirements.
A survey by Glassdoor found that 84% of job seekers consider a company’s reputation as an employer before applying for a job. The power of word of mouth and the levels of research potential employees will do is increasing ever more so. Social media is a source of information that means the employees experience will always be public in some form or other. It is a long held principle that one person who is satisfied tells one person and when dissatisfied tells ten people. It is almost negligent to fail to appreciate the connection between employee engagement and increasing brand reputation and how essential that engagement is in creating the conditions for business growth. This aspect again touches upon why engagement is an important ingredient in being an employer of choice. In Corporate Rebels, the authors, Minnaar and Morree, identify across numerous businesses that engagement and transparency create a powerful cocktail for business growth.
(B) What Does Getting It Right Look Like?
Clients do not come first. Employees come first. If you take care of your employees, they will take care of the clients’
Richard Branson
Getting it right across all of our businesses cannot be a one size fits all approach and understanding the current state of engagement and what perceptions our people have of the way that they are communicated with and are empowered here and now in our businesses is important. That said, in understanding that we learn faster through the experience of others here are some examples that clearly demonstrate what can be done and what we can learn from them. The examples are global but I will begin here by namechecking some UK based businesses that have already built a significant reputation for good employee engagement. These UK based companies are consistently recognised for their commitment to employee engagement.
Admiral Group – This insurance company has consistently been recognised for its employee engagement efforts. It has been named as one of the best companies to work for in the UK by the Sunday Times’ “Best Companies to Work For” list multiple times.
BUPA – This healthcare organisation, has received recognition for its employee engagement initiatives. It has been featured in lists such as “Britain’s Healthiest Workplace” and has received awards for its employee wellbeing programs.
Jaguar Land Rover – This automotive business has been praised for its employee engagement efforts. It has received awards for its training and development programs, as well as its commitment to employee wellbeing also, it will not be lost on us that our ‘people’ and looking after them through appropriately scaled wellbeing programmes is vital, particularly post pandemic.
John Lewis Partnership – As a well-known employee-owned business, John Lewis Partnership often ranks highly in employee engagement surveys. It is famous for its partnership model, which allows employees to have a say in the company’s decisions and share in its profits. This again echoes not just the importance of engagement but also of empowerment.
Unilever – As a multinational consumer goods company, this business has been recognised for its focus on employee engagement. It has received awards for its diversity and inclusion initiatives and its commitment to sustainability, which resonates with so many employees and enables the other side of the job interview to be effective (the ‘do I like this company?’ test!).
World Class Examples of Employee Engagement
On the international business scene here are two fabulous case studies that demonstrate exactly what is possible in employee engagement programs for our people. They are also so clearly a part of the business brand, how the business treats and engages with its people is used as a part of not just ensuring that the best people stay and join those businesses, but also of selling the goods and services to their customers.
Zappos – California based online clothing provider
Zappos has developed its reputation for creating a unique and employee-centric culture. Here are some ways their employee engagement is next level:
Core Values – Zappos places a strong emphasis on its core values, which include delivering “WOW” through service, embracing and driving change, creating fun and a little weirdness, being adventurous and open-minded, and building a positive team and family spirit. These values guide decision-making and create a sense of purpose and engagement among employees.
Holacracy – Zappos implemented a self-management system called Holacracy, which promotes employee autonomy and empowerment. It eliminates hierarchical structures and encourages employees to take ownership of their roles, make decisions, and contribute to the company’s success.
Culture Fit – Zappos prioritises hiring for cultural fit and this is a much broader subject that will be covered in the third blog of this series. Zappos believe that if employees align with the company’s culture, they will be more engaged and motivated. During the hiring process, they assess candidates not only for their skills and qualifications but also for their fit with the company’s values and culture.
Continuous Learning – Zappos invests in employee development and growth. They offer various training programs, mentorship opportunities, and an internal learning platform called Zappos U, where employees can access resources and courses. This focus on continuous learning keeps employees engaged and helps them advance in their careers.
Making Work Fun – Zappos creates a fun and inclusive work environment. They organise regular team-building activities, events, and celebrations. They believe that having fun at work fosters creativity, collaboration, and engagement among its employees.
Transparent Communication – Zappos promotes open and transparent communication. They have regular “All Hands” meetings where employees receive updates on company performance, goals, and challenges. They also encourage employees to share their thoughts and ideas through feedback channels and provide opportunities for two-way communication.
Employee Wellbeing – Zappos prioritises employee wellbeing. They offer a range of wellness programs, including on-site fitness centres, yoga classes, and access to wellness coaches. They understand that when employees are physically and mentally well, they are more engaged and productive.
Employee Benefits – Zappos offers unique perks and benefits to its employees, such as free lunches, pet-friendly offices, and a relaxed dress code. These perks contribute to employee satisfaction and engagement. Not all of these are affordable or conducive to every business but a considered and deliberate plan can be created in businesses to scale and improve engagement on all levels.
Patagonia – US retailer of outdoor recreation clothing
To the hungry readers you will have spotted that in the first blog of this series that Patagonia again featured because they have created a unique company purpose and they are able to deliver that with the support and engagement of their people and they also make this a very clear part of their business USP with their customers. This sort of thinking again delineates the person centred business from the one that may be overly focused on products and profits alone. This approach across the business as a whole also inspires innovative and creative thinking as the engagement occurs from leadership to teams, from teams to each other and from the business to innovative collaborators and to the communities that enjoy the products and services that Patagonia provide.
The Patagonia DNA for engagement extends across a range of differing and key factors , the headlines of which are:-
Engaging People in the Mission and Values
Patagonia has a strong mission and set of values that employees connect with. The company’s mission is to “build the best product, cause no unnecessary harm, use business to inspire and implement solutions to the environmental crisis.” This purpose-driven approach helps engage employees who align with the company’s environmental and social values.
People Responsibility and Empowerment
Patagonia empowers its employees to make decisions and take action. They encourage employees to bring their whole selves to work and provide autonomy in decision-making processes. This empowerment creates a sense of ownership and engagement among employees.
People Being Looked After – Work-Life Balance
Patagonia places a strong emphasis on work-life balance and recognises the importance of personal wellbeing. They offer flexible work hours, encourage employees to pursue their passions outside of work, and provide generous time off policies, including paid sabbaticals.
People Looking After Their World – Environmental Stewardship
As an outdoor clothing and gear company, Patagonia actively engages employees in environmental stewardship. They organise volunteer programs, encourage employees to participate in environmental initiatives, and support activism through their “Employee Activism Program,” where employees can take paid time off to engage in environmental activism.
People Knowing The Truth and Being Involved
Patagonia promotes open and transparent communication throughout the organisation. They have regular company-wide meetings where employees receive updates on the company’s financial performance, environmental initiatives, and future plans. This transparency fosters trust and engagement among employees. This also includes ensuring that members of staff are given jargon busters so that they can more easily understand the accounts that are open to the staff.
People Being Developed As The Greatest Assets
Patagonia supports the growth and development of its employees. They provide opportunities for skill-building, offer educational assistance programs, and encourage employees to pursue their passions and interests within the company. This can include some very off-script interests but the overall view is that all development is good development.
People Benefits
Patagonia offers a range of employee benefits, including excellent healthcare coverage, on-site childcare facilities, access to fitness and wellness programs, and generous product discounts. These benefits contribute to employee satisfaction and engagement and their impact are measured and tracked by the organisation.
(C) Your Guide to How To Create An Excellent Employee Engagement Plan
So far we have examined the business case for why an employee engagement plan will take the business and company to the next level and also looked at some best practice examples of such work. This final part of the article considers some of the tools and techniques to either accelerate existing engagement programs or to embark on completely new and inspiring journeys to engage people in the business in such a way as to create the foundation for business growth and innovation that will very quickly outperform those rival businesses that fail to see the value of people.
The Four Core Themes Of Your Engagement Plans
1. Employee Enablement Theme
The Transparency Newsletter
This is something very consistent in the top engagement performers and has the ability to operate a transparent information cycle to all employees and this can include very simple tools such as explaining the business balance sheet with information that supports all employees to a better understanding of, and to share actively in, the real challenges of the business. Sometimes transparency on items such as budgets is carried through by the business leadership but it can go very wrong if the communication is issued too technically and without a glossary of terms and an explanation given.
This principle holds true to total transparency on key business processes such as client development, new production lines, product development, product diversification, quality standards and change management. Similarly, the findings of any employee consultations and the actions being taken with their results must also be transparently fed back to all employees.
An idea to consider here that will support the level of engagement from the transparency strategy is to develop a transparency driven newsletter in the best format for your teams that regularly includes all of the above items and makes the messages more personalised and relevant using relatable styling, words and images This prevents the confetti of information that could also have a negative impact of doing the right thing but turning off your staff through information overload.
The Truth Panel
This panel can be a combination of the real experiences of customers both internally and externally. There is irrefutable evidence that this helps employees to widen their thinking about how they supply products and services and puts them in direct contact with those that matter the most. The benefit of this is that the shaping of products and services and the feeling of engagement in the challenges of the business are also encouraged. This also prevents a situation whereby the business leadership are distrusted for conveying a customer’s true feedback due to their own agenda. Direct contact from the ‘horse’s mouth’ is legitimate, its is authentic and it is impactive! This panel can be formed to meet directly with employees and can include problem solving approaches to what works really well, what products and services are valued the most and also conversely, what would customers really appreciate that might make a difference for them as the most significant people in any business alongside employees.
2. Employee Empowerment Theme
The Role Description and Performance Expectation Process
The significance here links back to the processes of advertising and recruiting into roles within the business which immediately makes clear the core skills and attributes that are essential to the roles of the business that deliver the products and services that clients and customers enjoy. It is particularly important that the business is true and consistent to its employees and keeps the contract made with each worker.
To get a deeper approach and understanding for this engagement opportunity then business owners, company directors can consider how the teams themselves are a direct part of the development and finetuning of their role descriptions. This enables the teams to feel that they are shaping their workplace and able to include direct expertise into the role profile. There is some evidence that the workers themselves will set a high bar for what should be expected of them and this can myth bust what might take place if leaders define these role descriptions in isolation and impose them on their teams.
This process can be frequently repeated to keep the role definitions clear and accurate and will also support the accountability and engagement of leaders and deliverers all together. The process of direct involvement is very marketable in onboarding of new staff and also can be used as a part of what makes the business attractive employment, in so doing, selling the business to the best potential new employees and supporting the notion of an employer of choice.
The use of templates and planning can ensure that this process is very structured, does not become a free for all and really takes the status of employees further through empowerment.
A Continuous Communication Channel
Another successful way to engage all employees is through frequent and reliable communication channels pitched in a relatable way that enables a two way conversational flow. This has been achieved in a number of organisations through the creation of communications channels on numerous platforms such as ‘Slack’ on which conversations can be had that support newsletters and other more formal medium. The benefit of this approach is that the leader / business owner can host live chats on current issues of concern to the staff and as a result create immediate feedback to all.
This approach can also sit alongside engaging ideas with employees such as ‘ideas/suggestions’ boxes to increase good change activity and to get more change and innovation ideas from those most likely to have fears and concerns about such change and to benefit from it. I led change in an organisation where such a channel was set up enabling 2500 employees to engage with senior leaders during change entitled ‘The Grapevine’ which in turn generated huge engagement and focus.
Employee Reward and Recognition (R&R) Programmes
These have a long track record and can have a phased approach by employers recognising what will work in their particular business or industry but also the constraints of what is affordable. Not all of the initiatives proposed require funding and can be equally effective to incentivised reward initiatives. Gallup looked specifically at this element of employee engagement and the results from their research are startling and to a business owner or company director quickly become a no-brainer.
Leaders reported that 81% of their number did not see reward and recognition as an important area of company policy, 73% do not offer any support or guidance to their leaders about why R&R programmes are important to employees and over 66% of businesses have no budget allocation for R&R!
Yet the facts of the benefits are also stark:-
- Those receiving R&R are 73% less likely to burnout
- Those receiving R&R are 56% less likely to be looking to exit the team
- Those receiving R&R are 44% more likely to be thriving in life
- Those receiving R&R are 5x more likely to feel culture connected, 4x more engaged, 4x more likely to recommend their workplace to others
Reward and Recognition Events
These are a fabulous idea. A schedule of events where employees are recognised for their work ensures intentionality and follow-through. The outcomes are significant in the buy in of employees and can also enhance the connection to employee families which furthers the connection of the employee to the business.
Thank You Messages/ Cards or Ecards
This can often be done in person by the most appropriate leaders and it is proven to result in greater productivity as well as engagement.
The Celebration Wall
This can also be created where members of staff can comment on each other and the feedback is beneficial to create a broader sense of appreciation, of kindness and of connection to the purpose of the business.
Team Awards
A competitive edge can be introduced into this and when teams are such an integral part of how our businesses deliver products and services then appreciating teams as a whole can be very valuable. This not only recognises the team but also incentivises their performance and may encourage others to go the extra mile.
Bonus / Incentive Schemes
There are a wide range of these and some research into the wants and needs of employees is useful before deciding on how to do this, what the incentivisation should be and also the context of the business / sector and the economy. For instance, if a business had downsized this may not be the most ethical or appreciated way of demonstrating recognition to employees. Popular schemes include gift cards, volunteering days being awarded, donations to charities and local sponsorships and percentage salary bonuses, profit sharing, share and equity schemes and many others.
3 Employee Development Theme
Health and Wellbeing Schemes
These are vitally important, not merely to create high levels of employee engagement but also because they are particularly significant post covid when employee safety and psychological safety are so important to all. This therefore means that the best wellbeing schemes encompass not only physical health and wellbeing activity but also mental health care. These schemes are scalable from more minor access to out of hours GP advisory schemes and gym discount benefits all the way through to full on health and conditioning programmes accompanied by private healthcare treatment. For each business what is appropriate should be thought through, planned and engaged with employees and trade unions / staff associations. There are countless detailed and innovative examples of best practice in this arena and they will be covered in a dedicated blog to the theme as a whole.
Personal Coaching and Mentoring Schemes
These employee development themes not only directly benefit the individual and their current skills and abilities levels but they also help to grow the business itself through the delivery of development as a major business investment in people. A coaching scheme can be delivered through the recruitment of external coaches or it can be through the creation of a coaching and mentoring culture. In this case employees themselves become coaches and mentors and then co-coach or co-mentor their colleagues. There are great examples of both external and internal schemes. The employee may select their coach for either personal or professional development or a combination from an approved list of coaches. The company will consider an appropriate and affordable budget and a set number of sessions, but the coaching content is decided by the employee. Moreover, anything covered in the sessions remains confidential between the coach and the employee.
Holding People Engagement Interviews
These are sometimes termed ‘stay’ or ‘retention’ interviews. They are particularly common across the public and charity sector at this time where there has been a great attrition of staff in the aftermath of austerity programmes and more latterly due to the impact on individual’s and families of the covid crisis. The interviews are treated as a way to re-engage with employees who are at risk of leaving. Employees are encouraged to discuss career development and progression issues and of course some may be channelled into others aspects of development such as coaching and mentoring.
People Focused Learning Programs
There are a range of these and they sometimes include learning on non-work based subjects to encourage growth and learning and to demonstrate an investment in employees. Others are more academically or vocationally based and are used to positively encourage employees to learn from approved training and development schemes or these can be from one employee to another in a buddy scheme. This community-based style training can also engender greater collaboration and team support.
4. Leadership Based Engagement Themes
This engagement theme enhances the relationship of leaders to employees and can create a more self-sustaining engagement approach as it is a huge creator of trust. These schemes promote employee confidence in their leaders and may lead to them being inspired and engaged by them. These schemes also focus on the recognition of the importance of employees to the business, to the customer and to the leaders themselves.
Some really effective leadership led initiatives that stimulate engagement and ownership for employees are their involvement in and influence over key business development processes include:-
Bringing Company Mission/Purpose and Values to Life
This exercise can also be supported by individual coaching in which employees gain a better understanding of their own deeper purpose and values and then work collectively to understand what the mission and purpose of the business is. These discussions can include why the business operates, what the importance of its products and services are, how it is a part of its local community and then branch out to consider business mission, purpose and values and place definitions and understanding to each. In some organisations these can be supported by a signature of all employees to the newly devised or revised mission statements or in the signing of a concordat. Some of the more advanced businesses combine this with some customer / client / stakeholder input to help the process be developed in a way that inspires the business to draw closer to its lifeblood.
Conducting Formula 1 Engagement Sessions & Skip Meetings
These are a fabulous method of involving all employees in the future of the business and understanding what they value the most, what they would always wish to retain and what they believe should be changed. This can then be supported by regular meetings where several layers of management and supervision can be bypassed and candid discussions be had in ‘skip’ meetings. The flow of information in these is bi-directional and enhances understanding of each other. The outcomes of these processes must be regularly communicated in order to incentivise and encourage employees to engage in these processes and do so in a safe environment. These can also be cascaded into team meetings that are sometimes referred to as ‘synthesis sessions’. In the session a leader in each department discusses current challenges and successes and changes in market position / business development core issues. Time should be devoted to open discussion on any questions employees have about the team/ business and concerns that individuals may have about blockers to their ability to help the business to thrive and flourish.
(D) The Employee Engagement Verdict
The conclusion on the value of employee engagement programs to businesses is that they have a hugely significant and positive impact. Research consistently shows that engaged employees are more productive, more committed, and more likely to stay with the company. They are also more likely to go the extra mile, leading to higher customer satisfaction and increased business performance. Employee engagement programs can improve morale, foster teamwork, and create a positive work environment. Overall, investing in employee engagement programs can result in higher levels of employee satisfaction, productivity, and ultimately, business success. If these were on offer to any new business owner or to an aspiring growth business then they would be instantly claimed. They are not management speak, they demonstrate an authentic investment in people and a tried and trusted method to grow the business through people centred delivery.
In the following two blogs of this series people-centric business will be explored further through appreciating the benefits of hiring for culture and values rather than purely on skills and in the final article getting to the practicalities of tangibly measuring many of the people concepts.
If you are interested how coaching can support you in considering and implementing these people focused business change programmes then get in touch on the contact page or if you are interested in similar articles to this please click on Applebright Coaching below and at the base of the page you will be able to subscribe to receive the blog posts from me at Applebright Coaching.
Mark Bates,
Executive & Business Coach,