What is employee engagement.....

What is employee engagement.....

Employees are engaged in their day today work are connected their work roles. They are bursting with energy, dedicated to their work, and immersed in their work activities. This blog presents an overview of the concept of employee engagement.Engaged workers are mo reopen to new information, more productive, and more willing to go the extra mile. Moreover, engaged workers proactively change their work environment in order to stay engaged. The findings of previous studies are integrated in an overall model that can be used to develop work engagement and advance job performance in today’s workplace....

Employees Engagement from the pioneers Eyes................

‘‘Harnessing organizational members’ selves to their work roles’’Kahn (1990) 

H Gerard - University of western ontario, London....

Truly engaged employees are attracted to, and inspired by, their work (“I want to do this”), committed (“I am dedicated to the success of what I am doing”), and fascinated (“I love what I am doing”).Engaged employees care about the future of the company and are willing to invest the discretionary effort – exceeding duty’s call – to see that the organization succeeds. (Gerard,2006,p1)

Macey and Schneider...

An engaged employee is someone who feels involved, committed, passionate, and empowered
and demonstrates those feelings in work behavior. Employee engagement has been considered a trait (something that is characteristic of an employee’s personality),a state (a condition that an employee may be in for some period of time), and a behavior that an employee demonstrates..(Macey & Schneider,2008)

Ten C's Of employee engagement

How can leaders engage employees’ heads, hearts, and hands? The literature offers several avenues for action; we can summarize these as the Ten C’s of employee engagement....

1. Connect: Leaders must show that they value employees. In First, Break All the Rules, Marcus Buckingham and Curt Coffman argue that managers trump companies. Employee-focused initiatives such as profit sharing and implementing work–life balance initiatives are important. However, if employees’ relationship with their managers is fractured, then no amount of perks will persuade
employees to perform at top levels. Employee engagement is a direct reflection of how employees feel about their relationship with the boss. Employees look at whether organizations and their leader walk the talk when they proclaim that, “Our employees are our most valuable asset.

One anecdote illustrates the Connect dimension well. In November 2003, the CEO of WestJet Airlines, Clive Beddoe, was invited to give a presentation to the Canadian Club of London. Beddoe showed up late, a few minutes before he was to deliver his speech. He had met with
WestJet employees at the London Airport and had taken a few minutes to explain the corporate strategy and some new initiatives to them. He also answered employees’ questions. To paraphrase Beddoe, “We had a great discussion that took a bit longer than I had anticipated.” Beddoe’s actions showed that he cares about the employees. The employees, sensing that he is sincere, care about
Beddoe and the organization; they “reward” his behavior with engagement.

2. Career: Leaders should provide challenging and meaningful work with opportunities for career
advancement. Most people want to do new things in their job. For example, do organizations provide job rotation for their top talent? Are people assigned stretch goals? Do leaders hold people accountable for progress? Are jobs enriched in duties and responsibilities? Good leaders challenge employees; but at the same time, they must instill the confidence that the challenges can be met. Not giving people the knowledge and tools to be successful is unethical and de-motivating; it is also likely to lead to stress, frustration, and, ultimately, lack of engagement. In herthoughts with the players. The lesson here is that good leaders work daily to improve the skills of their people
and create small wins that help the team, unit, or organization perform at its best.

3. Clarity: Leaders must communicate a clear vision. People want to understand the vision that senior leadership has for the organization, and the goals that leaders or departmental heads have for the division, unit, or team. Success in life and organizations is, to a great extent, determined by how clear individuals are about their goals and what they really want to achieve. In sum, employees need to understand what the organization’s goals are, why they are important, and how the goals can best be attained. Clarity about what the organization stands for, what it wants to achieve, and how people can contribute to the organization’s success is not always evident. Consider, for example, what Jack Stack, CEO of SRC Holdings Corp., wrote about the importance of teaching the basics of business.

4. Convey: Leaders clarify their expectations about employees and provide feedback on their functioning in the organization. Good leaders establish processes and procedures that help people master important tasks and facilitate goal achievement. There is a great anecdote about the legendary UCLA basketball coach, John Wooden. He showed how important feedback – positive and
constructive – is in the pursuit of greatness. Among the secrets of his phenomenal success was that he kept detailed diaries on each of his players. He kept track of small improvements he felt the players could make and did make. At the end of each practice, he would share his thoughts with the players. The lesson here is that good leaders work daily to improve the skills of their people and create small wins that help the team, unit, or organization perform at its best.

5. Congratulate: Business leaders can learn a great deal from Wooden’s approach. Surveys show that, over and over, employees feel that they receive immediate feedback when their performance is poor, or below expectations. These same employees also report that praise and recognition for strong performance is much less common. Exceptional leaders give recognition, and they do so a lot; they coach and convey.

6. Contribute: People want to know that their input matters and that they are contributing to the organization’s success in a meaningful way. This might be easy to articulate in settings such as hospitals and educational institutions. But what about, say, the retail industry? Sears Roebuck & Co. started a turnaround in 1992. Part of the turnaround plan was the development of a set of measures – known as Total Performance Indicators – which gauged how well Sears was doing with its employees, customers, and investors. The implementation of the measurement system led to three startling conclusions. First, an employee’s understanding of the connection between her work – as
operationalized by specific job-relevant behaviors – and the strategic objectives of the company had a positive impact on job performance. Second, an employee’s attitude towards the job and the company had the greatest impact on loyalty and customer service than all the other employee factors combined. Third, improvements in employee attitude led to improvements in job-relevant behavior; this, in turn, increased customer satisfaction and an improvement in revenue growth. In sum, good leaders
help people see and feel how they are contributing to the organization’s success and future

7. Control: Employees value control over the flow and pace of their jobs and leaders can create opportunities for employees to exercise this control. Do leaders consult with their employees with regard to their needs? For example, is it possible to accommodate the needs of a mother or an employee infected with HIV so that they can attend to childcare concerns or a medical appointment?
Are leaders flexible and attuned to the needs of the employees as well as the organization? Do leaders involve employees in decision-making, particularly when employees will be directly affected by the decision? Do organization? Why do over 85 percent of them own shares in the company? Employees believe so strongly in what WestJet is trying to do and are so excited about its strong performance record that they commit their own money into shares.

8. Collaborate: Studies show that, when employees work in teams and have the trust and cooperation of their team members, they outperform individuals and teams which lack good relationships. Great leaders are team builders; they create an environment that fosters trust and collaboration. Surveys indicate that being cared about by colleagues is a strong predictor of employee engagement. Thus, a continuous challenge for leaders is to rally individuals to collaborate on organizational, departmental,
and group goals, while excluding individuals pursuing their self-interest.

9. Credibility: Leaders should strive to maintain a company’s reputation and demonstrate high ethical standards. People want to be proud of their jobs, their performance, and their organization. WestJet Airlines is among the most admired organizations in Canada. The company has achieved numerous awards. For example, in 2005, it earned the number one spot for best corporate culture in Canada. On September 26, 2005, WestJet launched the “Because We’re Owners!” campaign. Why do WestJet employees care so much about their organization? Why do over 85 percent of them own shares in the company? Employees believe so strongly in what WestJet is trying to do and are so excited about its strong performance record that they commit their own money into shares.

10. Confidence: Good leaders help create confidence in a company by being exemplars of high ethical and performance standards. To illustrate, consider what happened to Harry Stonecipher, the former CEO of Boeing. He made the restoration of corporate ethics in the organization a top priority but was soon after embarrassed by the disclosure of an extramarital affair with a female employee. His poor judgment impaired his ability to lead and he lost a key ingredient for success – credibility. Thus the board asked him to resign. Employees working at Qwest and Continental Airlines were so
embarrassed about working for their organizations that they would not wear their company’s uniform on their way to and from work. At WorldCom, most employees were shocked, horrified, and embarrassed when the accounting scandal broke at the company. New leadership was faced with the major challenges of regaining public trust and fostering employee engagement.

Practitioners and academics have argued that

competitive advantage can be gained by creating an

engaged workforce. The data and argument that that we

present above are a compelling case why leaders need to

make employee engagement one of their priorities.

Leaders should actively try to identify the level of

engagement in their organization, find the reasons behind

the lack of full engagement, strive to eliminate those reasons,

and implement behavioral strategies that will facilitate full

engagement. These efforts should be ongoing. Employee

engagement is hard to achieve and if not sustained by

leaders it can wither with relative ease.

Is Employee Engagement is two way street????

Employee engagement and customer service

Now days of intensive focus on customer satisfaction, employee engagement programs
are main component on the journey to ‘‘customer service through operational excellence’’. As an employee becomes more engaged, they becomes less likely to leave the organization and more willing to meet the customer’s needs. An engaged employee dedicating on giving the consumer a reason to return, thus building customer relationship over time. Even in a business where there is direct contact between employees and customers, engaged employees can be still indirectly affect to revenue growth – for instance, by helping other co-workers who do have direct contact with customers.

Key drivers of employee engagement 

Research shows that dedicated employees performing better. As many believe, that engagement is one step up from dedication, it is in the organization’s interests to understand the drivers of engagement.

Both salary and benefits can motivate employees – to an extent. But raising compensation and offering more benefits are not, by themselves, effective drivers of employee engagement. Corporate cultures characterized by teamwork, pleasant working conditions, the considerate treatment of employees, performance enhancement training opportunities all contribute to employee engagement. Employees’ thinking that they have a secure future with their employer is a pioneer driver of employee commitment, which is a recognized precursor to engagement.

It makes good business opportunity to provide good working opportunities and right policies for employees. It helps organizations to retain good employees.Organizations that help their employees to work in a suitable way which best supports them in balancing work life and home environments are more likely to have engaged employees.

The talent game is in constant flux as shifts take place in employee's work ethics, favored
means of good communication, career growth expectations and etc. Leaders and managers, in response, need rapidly to be adapting their approach to employees. Organizations’ efforts to engage employees will increasingly depend on organizations’ ability to cater to employees’ individual needs – perhaps, to the extent of creating a choose your own menu of motivation and retention programs. The drivers of engagement also seem to vary from one workplace to the next, necessitating a customized approach.

Conclusion

An organization having a 100% engaged employee is a win-win situation. Engaged employees stay longer period and contribute in a more successful way. The topic ‘‘employee engagement’’ may sound new, but it has long existed as a core management practice. In today’s competitive business
environment, organizations need to ensure that, in philosophy and practice, they acknowledge
the value of the manager in retaining engaged employees. A highly engaged workforce is the good
sign of a healthy organization, whatever its size, geographical location and economic sector

References
Axelrod, E.L., Handfield-Jones, H. and Welsh, T.A. (2001), ‘‘War for talent: Part 2’’, The McKinsey
Quarterly, Vol. 2, pp. 9-12.

Csikzentmihalyi, M. (1975), Beyond Boredom and Anxiety, Jossey-Bass, San Francisco, CA.
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Joel T. Nadler, Nicole L. Cundiff, Meghan R. Lowery, Stacy Jackson. 2010. Perceptions of organizational attractiveness. Management Research Review 33:9, 865-876.

Julie Evener. 2015. Innovation in the Library: How to Engage Employees, Cultivate Creativity, and Create Buy-In for New Ideas. College & Undergraduate Libraries 22:3-4, 296-311

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Macey,W. H., & Schneider, B. (2006). Employee experiences and customer satisfaction: Toward a framework for survey design with a focus on service climate. In A. I. Kraut (Ed.), Getting action from organizational surveys (pp. 53–75). San Francisco.