Build Engagement
In the last year and a half, millions of employees from multiple sectors around the world have joined a mass exodus from the workplace. Many have tried explaining the mass exodus, but reports indicate it may be due to inadequate salaries, limited career advancement, poor work-life balances, general unhappiness with management or the company and numerous other reasons.
This so-called Great Resignation, spurred by the COVID-19 pandemic, has turned employment into a worker’s market. TikTok users have coined phrases such as “quiet quitting” and “act your wage” as employees find community with others who don’t feel properly valued or appreciated by their workplaces.
As employees decide what’s right for them, employers are having to reconsider what makes their company worth working for. If you feel like your business may be at risk of losing top talent, or you have already begun losing your best workers to the Great Resignation, it is probably time to consider some employee retention strategies.
Here is number 7 out of 15 effective strategies to boost employee job satisfaction and help you hold on to your best workers.
Build Employee Engagement
One of the most important strategies for employee retention is to build up your workers’ engagement with your organisation. A disengaged employee may have lower morale, cause losses in productivity and generally bring down your company. Make sure to give your employees a voice by making them feel listened to, valued and appreciated, and by showing them that their opinions matter.
Try introducing opportunities for your employees to feel safe when giving candid feedback. It is likely that your workers may know more about the best ways to accomplish a given task than you do if they have been doing it longer, so giving them the opportunity to communicate and collaborate on improvements to workflow and the work environment will help employees feel like they had a hand in developing culture and ensure they remain engaged with the company.
Likewise, do not force unnecessary engagement or push activities designed to build engagement without a specific goal or solution in mind.
For those workers who do not wish to participate in any activities unrelated to the job you pay them to do, forced participation in social or other activities unrelated to work can be a reason to leave.
Every workplace is different and not every workplace requires the same types of employee engagement. One of the best ways to avoid this issue is to ask employees what they’d prefer and how they would like to be involved in achieving the corporate vision.
Their answers might surprise you.
Tony Delaney, CEO Brownie Points Software
