How Do You Keep Your Employees Engaged?
I was recently conducting some training with one of my clients and I was talking about emotional intelligence. Specifically, I was covering the ability of leaders to be empathetic and listen to their employees, picking up on their cues. Perhaps when people say they are “fine” in a less than convincing tone, things aren’t going well for them. One leader said that he walked around every morning and touched base with his team. When a project fell behind and over-budget, he told me that he checked in with people as I asked him to, and his team didn’t tell him about the problems with the project. He was frustrated thinking that he did as instructed without any results.
I prodded, asking what the rest of the team member’s responses were and found they all had the same “fine,” “good,” one-word answers in a tone that didn’t fit their words. I asked the man if he found that unusual. He said, “Well, if there was an issue, I expected them to tell me.”
But they didn’t.
Employee engagement isn’t just a drive-by experience, asking team members how things are going. It starts with building a trusting relationship, knowing what each of your employees is working on, listening between the lines, and building rapport.
I’ve assembled some past blog posts that will give you some foundational information on building employee engagement—the key to a healthy, profitable organization.
Employee Engagement: Are You Treating Them Like Customers?
I subscribe to the idea of treating employees as customers. Just as we would work with our customers to make sure we are providing products and services that exceed expectations, we should be looking at our employees and how we can empower them to do their best. These seven ways should serve as a roadmap to leadership to change the way they treat employees. After all, they are most likely why your customers choose your company over your competitors
7 Ways Employees Feel Appreciated at Work
Just like the boss who checks in with his team and is satisfied with one-word answers, a little more effort is required to make your team feel appreciated at work. We all want to be acknowledged and appreciated for our work contributions. How often do you feel appreciated when you go the extra mile? And when you think about it, saying “thank you” or “job well-done” doesn’t cost a thing and could bring loads of return in employee engagement and satisfaction. Print out the infographic to keep your efforts on track.
Think Empathy by Business Leaders Doesn’t Pay? Think Again
I started this blog talking about empathy, so I’m coming full circle to give you more insights about being an empathetic leader. Genuine empathy on the part of an organization’s leadership is a game changer for employees. When leaders seek to truly hear what their direct reports and other employees want to express, things change. The organization, along with individual employee performance, suffers when staff members feel their bosses continually miss what they are trying to communicate.
Need to Build Engagement with Your Employees? At Conover Consulting, we assess the triad of organizational success—Leadership, Culture and Compensation. We feel if you lead the right people the right way with the right rewards, your business will rise to a new level. Let me help you to understand your culture and where employee engagement can be improved. Contact me to build a cultural infrastructure that builds a solid bottom line.