This document summarizes a presentation on leading and engaging a diverse workforce. It discusses trends in employee engagement across geographies, highlighting the need to move beyond satisfaction to holistic engagement. It also stresses adapting structures and leadership to be more collaborative and align employees to common goals. The presentation covers generational differences in the workplace and how an age-diverse workforce provides benefits but also challenges. New communication styles and the effects of technology on engagement are also addressed.

1. Madano
Inspire, inform, engage
Engage for Success Conference: Leading and
Engaging a Diverse Workforce
26th September 2016
Samantha Dawe

2. A diverse and multi-generational workplace
Observations from
recent Employee
Engagement Report,
published Sept 2016
Gen Y and the Changing
Communications
landscape,
research conducted
Some implications for
communications and
talent strategies

3. Employee Engagement
Inform. Engage. Empower.

4. Our Definition
Employee Engagement
changes culture, engages
employees in the overall
mission and vision
of the company, and
contributes to an increase
in commitment and
behaviour that helps the
company achieve its
overall business goals.
4

5. Audit highlights
5 Top Trends across different geographies and irrespective of
company size or sector
1. Satisfaction or Engagement?
2. Engagement is becoming more holistic
3. A one-size fits all approach no longer works
4. The importance of collaboration
5. Use of technology and social media

6. Fix what’s broken
• Structures
• “Relinquishing power”
• Aligning employees to a
common goal and
purpose
• Who owns culture?
6
Those models that worked in the
1960s or 1970s need to be
retooled and built to be more
functional. The dynamics of the
workplaces have to change

7. Collaborative
Leadership
Senior leadership
needs to
be visible and active
7
Employees will flourish with
good leaders

8. An age-diverse workforce – benefits
and challenges

9. Generational change – 5 generations in the workplace
Depression/War
Disciplined
Frugal
Commitment
Dependable
Directive
Hierarchical
Baby Boomers
Free-spirited
Profligate
Actualisation
Idealistic
Directive
Team players
Gen X
Serious
Rigorous
Hard-working
Pragmatic
Directive
Personal
Ownership
Gen Y
Networked
Collaborative
Self-reliant
Entrepreneurial
Non-directive
Collegial
Gen Z
Entitled
Enabled
Cynical
Competitive
Non-directive
Collegial
TV
letters
Laptop
phone
Tablet
email
Smartphone
text
Wearable tech
snapchat

10. Gen Y trends
Collaboration: the New Competitiveness Uncertainty is the New Certainty
Going Against the Grain – why the sand
in the oyster wins
The Brand New Me

11. The Gen Y effect
Speed of change and
uncertainty eroding
ability to plan
Command /control not
as useful now
Time-frame beyond 3
years problematic
Collaboration
increasingly key to
growth/ innovation
Key issues: partnerships
and sharing of
proprietary information
Customers more central
to production
distribution, marketing.
Values re-set -
authenticity, trust and
social currency
First cohort of Gen Y
about to enter senior
mgmt. Major
implications.
Conversation not
transaction is what’s
important. Business
untethered.
Emotion driving brand
positioning. Doing well
by doing good.
Emotional, random and
engaging - more
important for sales
Nimble, fast-reactive
prototype comms
better than deliberate,
pro-active and perfect
Strategic control
and planning
Growth, innovation
and business model
Values, employees
and engagement
Brand, customers,
communications

12. Different skills, everyone is an individual
Innovation relies on a number of different and
divergent perspectives. Each can learn from another
A mixed-generation and socially diverse team will
contain a range of views that if channelled can lead
to best solutions/products
Extremely important for increased insight into
different customer segments

13. Different skills, everyone is an individual
“Rigidity of thought
around what a
productive
employee looks like,
age discrimination
and unconscious
bias remain
widespread
problems in the UK
labour market. And
the way that
workplaces, work
and jobs are
designed also needs
a rethink.”

14. Use of technology to encourage
engagement?

15. Knowledge sharing
Face to face: reverse or reciprocal mentoring on
specific business issues
New channels for engagement
• Collaborative Learning Forums – self organising,
topic-based groups
• Webcasts and online coaching
• Online communities – with the look & feel of
social media platforms

16. Create a conversation

17. The digital opportunity
Collaboration + open sourcing is a norm = discussion
and engagement
Customisation is easier = treat people as individuals
approach
Technology should be an enabler for engagement
New learning and working styles are not the preserve
of the young!

18. Increased demand for organisations to be authentic
Reputational impacts
extend across a range of
diversity issues
In the digital world the story can remain even
though you may have moved on…

19. In the past 13
minutes we
have been
speaking…

20. THANK YOU
And any questions?