Wikipedia says – “Employee engagement is a property of the relationship between an organization and its employees. An “engaged employee” is defined as one who is fully absorbed by and enthusiastic about their work and so takes positive action to further the organization’s reputation and interests.
Employee engagement is the result of a symbiotic relationship based on trust, integrity, commitment, and communication between an organization and its employees. It is an important approach that can help increasing business success, contributing to organizational as well as individual performance and for the productivity of both entities.
Employee engagement is about:
- Employees having a role in the organization they are passionate about.
- The organization also needs to provide an opportunity to transition the employees to role changes that support the employee’s professional and organization’s growth.
- Employees contributing beyond normal responsibilities towards the success of the organization.
- Having mutually agreed, clear and focused goals.
- Receiving regular and constructive feedback from superiors and colleagues and work on them to achieve the desired results for the organization and one self.
- The organization providing adequate rewards and recognition to employees for the contribution to the organization.
Engaged employees will always try to understand the culture and values of their organization. They will adapt themselves easily and the same gets reflected when they interact internally with their colleagues and externally while dealing with clients.
Employee engagement is not the same as employee satisfaction!
Unlike employee engagement, employee satisfaction is one-way road. It reflects how happy or content employees are within the organization and is not based on commitment, motivation, or emotional commitment. Some employees are satisfied by collecting their monthly paychecks and contributing as less as possible.
What employee engagement is NOT?
It is vital to understand that employee engagement does not include mechanical approach, where employer tries to manipulate employees’ commitment and emotions. If employees get to know about this approach, they can become disillusioned and cynical.
Tips to improve employee engagement
Employee engagement is linked to various factors of the organization, such as productivity, profitability, and employee retention. Therefore, it is necessary that all employees be engaged in work to achieve the desired results. But how to achieve these targets?
Following are few tips of Employee Engagement Activity:
- Inform employees about the health of the organization and how they can contribute towards the betterment of it.
- Communicating transparently with employees on time is crucial because delaying it can damage the employee engagement.
- Involve staff by allowing them to share their own ideas about the planning they are doing to support organization strategies and its values.
- Show how genuinely you are concerned about the employee’s opinion. You can use social media to build engagement.
Conclusion
Employee engagement is a two-way street. While an engaged employee is expected to drive an organization’s growth, and organization too has to engage in creating avenues and opportunities for its employees to exercise their potential.