Engagement Drivers That Motivate Employees [Infographic]

Doug Brown http://www.engaged2perform.ca 4m 934 #engagement

The views of this article are the perspective of the author and may not be reflective of Confessions of the Professions.

Employee engagement can be difficult to define or describe and people have different views and opinions. If we had to use one word to define employee engagement it would be “CARING”! Caring about performance and results, about company goals and objectives, about clients, about colleagues and caring about the success of the business.

Engagement is “A strong, positive emotional connection between the employee and the organization that fuels employee motivation, pride, enthusiasm, passion and commitment to supporting their company. This translates into meaningful action items that drive performance and productivity and contribute to the success of the company.”

It has been said the number one driver of employee engagement is “…. The feeling by employees that their company ownership, executives and managers show interest and demonstrate support for employees as people and individuals. This includes their well being, goals and dreams, workplace culture and environment, families ….”
People often use the terms “employee engagement” and “employee satisfaction” interchangeably, as synonyms.

Although these terms have much in common there are important differences between employee engagement and employee satisfaction that have a significant effect on the success of an organization.

An engaged employee is always willing to “go the extra mile”, to put in the extra effort without being asked. These employees take pride in their work and are fully committed to the growth of the organization. When we talk about employee engagement, we are talking about employees who work hard, love their work, reach a level of satisfaction but are also actively involved and participating in the company goals and efforts to achieve success.

Most industries are extremely competitive and the difference between success and failure can be very small. At that same time many clients feel vendors and their products are similar in many regards with very little difference that results in many products, goods and services being treated like commodities.

We believe that people can make the difference by building strong relationships with clients, providing exemplary service as well as demonstrating high levels of productivity that control costs and enable competitive product pricing. However this can only be done effectively by employees that are committed and engaged.

The following is a list of a few employee engagement benefits:

• Higher Productivity through increased discretionary effort
• Cost Control from new innovations, ideas and new efficiencies generated by committed employees
• Higher team morale and enthusiasm which translates into more customer satisfaction
• Improved company loyalty and reduced turnover
• Increased employee commitment to improve and grow as individuals in order to meet the challenges and obstacles ahead
• A culture that supports efforts to attract qualified professionals who will advocate for the company.

Our infographic explores in depth the important engagement drivers that motivate employees.

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What Engagement Drivers Motivate Employees

Employee engagement does not mean employee happiness. Someone might be happy at work but that does not mean they are engaged and productive. Employee engagement doesn’t mean employee satisfaction. Many companies have employee satisfaction but the bar is set too low and satisfaction does not provide business organizations the benefits that engagement offers.

Characteristics Of An Engaged Employee

• Involved in decision making
• Voice their opinions and have interactive, healthy dialogue with managers
• Desire to work hard on behalf of the organization to make things better
• Loyal to the company
• Respect for and appreciation for their colleagues
• Willingness to go the extra mile
• Offer suggestions for improvements
• Belief in the organization’s missions and values
• An understanding of the big picture
• Have a spirit of camaraderie and teamwork

Employee Engagement: The Evidence

• Only a very small number of employees worldwide feel engaged. Just 13% of employees are engaged at work.
• 63% of employees worldwide are not engaged so they lack motivation and are less likely to invest discretionary effort. 24% are actively disengaged, unhappy, unproductive, and likely to spread negativity to co-workers.
• Cost of employee turnover can be 150% of salary, if average salary is $50,000, a company with 1,000 employees and annual turnover of 10% will spend $7.5 million on employee turnover.
• Employees working in not-for-profit organizations were most engaged at 72%. Employees working in government reported the lowest rate of engagement.
• 77% of senior managers want to raise their level of employee engagement, but only 41% of them communicate personally with employees about plans and goals on a regular basis.
• 84% of employees in the U.S. claim their relationship with their boss is the top determining factor for whether they try to move up in the company or find work elsewhere.
• One study found that 89% of managers believe that most employees are pulled away by better pay. This is a huge misconception.
• Companies with engaged employees outperform those without by up to 202%.

Trends in Employee Engagement

19 satisfaction drivers

ENGAGEMENT:

PEOPLE

• Senior Leadership
• Direct Manager
• Coworkers
• Valuing people

WORK

• Work Activities
• Sense of Accomplishment
• Autonomy
• Resources
• Processes

OPPORTUNITY

• Career Opportunities
• Training & Development

QUALITY OF LIFE

• Work / Life Balance
• Physical Work Environment

POLICIES AND PRACTICES

• Managing Performance
• Company Reputation
• Brand Alignment

REWARD

• Pay
• Benefits
• RECOGNITION

2012 Engagement Distribution

Global
Highly Engaged 20%
Moderately Engaged 40%
Passive 23%
Actively Disengaged 17%

Asia Pacific

Highly Engaged 16%
Moderately Engaged 42%
Passive 25%
Actively Disengaged 17%

Europe

Highly Engaged 18%
Moderately Engaged 39%
Passive 25%
Actively Disengaged 19%

Latin America

Highly Engaged 33%
Moderately Engaged 41%
Passive 17%
Actively Disengaged 10%

North America

Highly Engaged 24%
Moderately Engaged 39%
Passive 20%
Actively Disengaged 17%

Percentage of Respondents From Each Business Sector Who Identified Engagement as a Problem

Government 80.3%
Business 74.4%
Consulting 66.3%
Education 64.2%
Not for Profit 54.2%

How important is it for organizations to address employee engagement?

Very Important 82.3%
Important 13.8%
Somewhat Important 2.9%
Not Important 0.5%

engaged2perform
people, passion & profit

www.engaged2perform.ca

About the Author

Doug Brown
Engaged2Perform
519-656-1066
www.engaged2perform.ca
[email protected]

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