Employee Engagement | Hard Lessons

70% Benchwarmers

According to the Gallup organization only about 30% of employees in a typical American workplace are actively engaged in their job. The rest—70%—are benchwarmers taking up space, doing only what they are told to do and waiting for payday and Friday (my words, not Gallup’s).

Interestingly, the percentages don’t change much because of age, education, gender or even income. People making more than $90,000 per year are no more engaged than people making less than $36,000 per year. Imagine that. Gallup has proved once again that pay is not a long-term motivator for most people.

Is there something leaders can do to raise the engagement level? Yes. Employees will engage with their jobs when leaders engage with their employees. It’s that simple.

So if you are the leader, it’s up to you. Try this: sit down with one of your unengaged employees, ask how you can help him, listen (really listen), ask questions, act like you owe her as much as she owes you. Do it with somebody else tomorrow…and the day after…and the day after…. Is it worth the effort? Yes! Imagine your competitive advantage and improved productivity if you can increase your engagement level to 40% or even 50%. Why don’t you get started today?

If this post was interesting and useful to you, please forward it to a friend. Thanks.

70% Benchwarmers

According to the Gallup organization only about 30% of employees in a typical American workplace are actively engaged in their job. The rest—70%—are benchwarmers taking up space, doing only what they are told to do, and waiting for payday and Friday (my words, not Gallup’s).

Is there something leaders can do to raise the engagement level? Yes. Employees will engage with their jobs when leaders engage with their employees. It’s that simple.

[I became aware of the Gallup report at Wally Bock’s Three Star Leadership Blog, a daily read for me.]

If this post was interesting and useful to you, please forward it to a friend. Thanks.

Unplugged

As you start 2011, I’m sure you have a lot of goals for your organization. There are opportunities to seize and problems to fix; good things you want to make great and mediocre things you want to make good (or get rid of). But a big question for you is: do your associates have the same goals? Are they really plugged in—engaged—ready to give their all to make it happen? Or are they sitting on the sidelines watching, and waiting for you to tell them what to do?

Getting your employees to plug in to organizational aspirations is essential if you want to actually achieve your goals. Engaged employees perform at a much higher level. (There are mounds of supporting data, plus in your heart you know it’s true because you know how your own performance excels when you are plugged in.)

How to get your associates actively and positively engaged is a multi-faceted subject—too broad for a one page blog posting. But start with this:

Engagement is not drawing employees into your world; it only happens when you enter their world.
It is not them engaging with you; it is you engaging with them.

“People today demand personal relationships with their leaders
before they will give themselves fully to their jobs.”
Bill George
True North

Your employees will engage with you when you engage with them—not before. Why don’t you get started today?