Engaging Employees and making the case that there are some 'not-too-difficult' actions any manager can take to make headway here. These actions come right out of the 12 question Gallup Engagement Survey itself. The brief has the details! Let me know how I can help. Dave Fleck

1. Engaging Employees…it is NOT Rocket Science!
When I saw the results of Gallup's most recent global employee engagement
survey (administered to 230,000 full-time and part-time workers in 142 countries
in 2013) released in October, I immediately thought, "What the heck is going on?
If corporate management tried to disengage employees on purpose they
probably couldn't do it any better than they are currently doing it!!" I said this
because the results of the survey were most definitely NOT good! And, I have
worked with engaged teams and organizations and know how powerfully
engagement can lead to high performance and company results. In fact,
according to a study of 64 organizations by HR strategy firm Kenexa,
organizations with highly engaged employees achieve twice the annual net
income of organizations whose employees are less engaged.
Gallup Global Employee Engagement Survey Results
Have you had a chance to see the Gallup results? In case you haven't, here are
a few key findings as reported in Gallup and various other sources:
Unhappy employees outnumber happy ones by two to one worldwide.
There are twice as many "actively disengaged" workers in the world as there
are "engaged" workers.
The vast majority, 63% of employees, are "not engaged," meaning they are
unhappy but not severely so. In short, they're showing up without much
"umph" to get the job done. They go through the motions, putting little
energy into their work.
A full 24% are what Gallup calls "actively disengaged," meaning they really
abhor their jobs. They act out and actively work against what their coworkers
accomplish.
Add the last two categories and you get 87% of workers worldwide who, as
Gallup puts it, "are emotionally disconnected from their workplaces and less
likely to be productive." In other words, work is more often a necessary evil,
a source of ongoing disappointment than one of fulfillment for almost 90% of
the world's workforce.
“Employees who believe that
management is concerned
about them as a whole
person - not just an
employee - are more
productive, more satisfied,
more fulfilled. Satisfied
employees mean satisfied
customers, which leads to
profitability.”
… Anne M. Mulcahy, 'CEO
of the Year 2008' by Chief
Executive Magazine
What Creates an Engaged Workforce?
So, what are the key triggers to create an engaging work
environment? A quick and helpful way to answer this
question is to consider what you'd need to do to get high
scores on the very same statements that Gallup asks
employees in their engagement surveys. You may be
surprised to find out that Gallup bases their employee
engagement figures on responses to only 12 key
statements. Below are the statements along with my
informal interpretation of their meaning. Read through them
and assess whether corporate management has the ability
to influence the results of them for the better.
The Significance for Companies
What does this all mean? It means that workplaces are not by any
means leveraging their human resources effectively, which is
detrimental to a company's ability to perform and cuts short
financial results. It also means "that most workplaces are less
productive and less safe than they could be and employers are
less likely to create new jobs."
These companies are not the interesting, exciting, challenging
and enjoyable places to work we'd like them to be, which also
negatively impacts the engaged employees - those who are
happy and productive - over time. My informal way of determining
engagement level is to ask people, "when you're on the way to
work in the morning, are you excited anticipating the challenges,
opportunities and what you may be able to accomplish or are you
feeling burdened thinking of the obstacles, hassles and unfulfilling
tasks you're likely to encounter?"
LEADERSHIP BRIEFSEXPRESS
CENTER FOR ORGANIZATIONAL
SUCCESS, INC.
1201 N. Harrison Street
Wilmington, DE 19806
lbe@c4os.com

2. Gallup's 12 Key Statements
1. I know what is expected of me at work.
Meaning: Are expectations of my role, related
responsibilities and performance clear to me?
2. I have the material and equipment I need to do my
work right.
Meaning: Do I have the tools and necessary
resources to be able to accomplish what is expected
of me?
3. At work, I have the opportunity to do what I do best
every day.
Meaning: Am I able to use my talents at work or am I
bogged down in 'fire-fighting', procedures,
micromanagement, etc. that keep me from doing
what I'm good at?
4. In the last seven days, I have received recognition or
praise for doing good work.
Meaning: Does my management notice and
appreciate when I do a good job and make a
contribution?
5. My supervisor, or someone at work, seems to care
about me as a person.
Meaning: Does my boss and/or someone at work I
have regard for/show they care for me and that I'm
more than a number?
6. There is someone at work who encourages my
development.
Meaning: Does my boss and/or someone at work I
have regard for/support my aspirations to become
better than I am?
7. At work, my opinions seem to count.
Meaning: Does my boss and/or people I work with
take interest in and actually consider my input?
8. The mission or purpose of my company makes me
feel my job is important.
Meaning: Do I understand and feel good about what
my company is about and the contribution it makes
to society?
9. My associates or fellow employees are committed to
doing quality work.
Meaning: Do I work in an environment where people
care about the work they do and the output they
create?
LEADERSHIP BRIEFSEXPRESS
References:
10-10-13 Forbes Unhappy Employees Outnumber Happy Ones By Two To One
2013 Joris Claeys Change Cultivator @Econologics)
10. I have a best friend at work.
Meaning: Do I have at least one person at work I feel
close to, can be myself around and feel accepted by
for who I am?
11. In the last six months, someone at work has talked to
me about my progress.
Meaning: My boss and/or someone I have regard for
cares about and talks with me on how I'm doing on
the job.
12. This last year, I have had opportunities at work to
learn and grow.
Meaning: During the past year, have I been on
projects or assigned work which has challenged me
and helped me become a better employee?
It's Not Rocket Science
I think you'll agree that these key statements are pretty basic
and most can be addressed by management without a lot of
effort. Overall, Gallup recommends that companies give
employees the tools they need and the opportunity to feel
challenged. For workers, the trick is to find an employer that
is paying attention to the 12 statements listed above.
It's not difficult. Just a bit of effort can go a long way in
engaging employees and improving corporate performance.
Each manager will be best served to be aware of the key
influencers identified in the statements above and commit to
practice managing with these in mind.
Fall, 2013 Gallup Business Journal