This document provides 10 tips from HR experts on how small businesses can boost employee engagement. The tips include offering training and career development opportunities, providing constructive feedback to help employees improve, leading by example with positivity and enthusiasm, offering suitable and flexible benefits, recognizing good work with praise, empowering employees with autonomy, encouraging volunteering, involving staff in decision-making, allowing flexible working arrangements, and ensuring all employees understand the business goals.

1. 10 expert
small
business tips
to boost
employee
engagement

2. “Having opportunities to
progress, a chance to
contribute and being
able to extend skills with
training and career
development is a big
motivating factor for
employees.1
”
Simon Jones, Director
of HR consultancy
Ariadne Associates

3. “Never directly criticise
or correct. This doesn’t
mean you can’t look for
improvement, just try
an indirect approach
to help people learn
from their mistakes and
work out how to do it
better next time.2
”
Jonathan Richards,
Founder of Breathe HR

4. “A good leader needs to
lead by example, by role-
modelling the behaviours
that are expected of
staff. Be excited by new
challenges, show real
enthusiasm for projects
and demonstrate your
love of the job. Positivity
breeds positivity.3”
Adrian Moorhouse,
Managing Director of
Lane4

5. “Benefits have to be
suitable to each
employee’s personal
circumstances. The use of
flexible benefits can help
to address this need,
provided employees
thoroughly understand
their benefit options and
the value of their total
reward.”
Jonathan Underwood,
Director of JLT
Employee Benefits

6. “It sounds so simple, but
something as basic as
hearing 'great work on
that report' can be a real
boost to an employee’s
confidence and deliver a
sense of pride and
satisfaction.5
”
Charles Elvin,
Chief Executive of the
Institute of Leadership
and Management

7. “Try not to micromanage
your employees, allow
them the opportunity to
be able to perform the
job and make decisions
themselves;
empowerment can make
a difference.6
”
David Price,
Managing Director of
Health Assured

8. “Some of the most successful
organisations encourage their
staff to volunteer. Allowing
employees to help those less
fortunate than themselves will
surely improve employee
morale, while also allowing
your staff to build teams and
work towards a common goal
that is non-work-related.7
”
Mark Williams,
Head of Training for
the MTD Training
Group

9. “Ask your staff what they
think could be done to
improve the working
environment, systems and
processes. By encouraging
them to get involved and by
making them feel part of the
decision making process,
staff will feel recognised and
more valued.8
”
Gary Cattermole,
Co-founder of
The Survey Initiative

10. “People also really value being
allowed to have flexible
working arrangements and
being given time off, and these
can be far better motivators
than a bit more money in their
pay packet. Even small
gestures such as giving
employees the day off on their
birthday can go a very long
way.9
”
Rachel Bridge,
Small Business Journalist
for the Telegraph

11. “From experience,
taking the time to
ensure all employees
understand your goals
and the direction of the
business is a great way
of building a healthy and
positive culture.10
”
Guy Mucklow,
Co-founder of
Postcode Anywhere

12. Sources
1. http://bit.ly/EmployeeEngagem
entAriadne
2. http://bit.ly/EmployeeEngagem
entBreatheHR
3. http://bit.ly/EmployeeEngagem
entLane4
4. http://bit.ly/EmployeeEngagem
entJLT
5. http://bit.ly/EmployeeEngagem
entILM
6. http://bit.ly/EmployeeEngagem
entHealthAssured
7. http://bit.ly/EmployeeEngagem
entMDTraining
8. http://bit.ly/EmployeeEngagem
entSurveyInitiative
9. http://bit.ly/EmployeeEngagem
entRachelBridge
10.http://bit.ly/EmployeeEngagem
entPostcodeAnywhere