How do I lead my team to hit the target? How do I derive maximum productivity and performance from my team? How to have loyal employees, which represent my brand authentically? How to boost creativity in my team?
As a top or mid level manager or a business owner always these questions keep our minds busy. Definitely, our main target is to manage resources efficiently to reach our goals, meet certain KPIs or OKRs and finally make profit. (Easy, Huh?)
Let’s see!
When I worked as a product manager, I used to manage several resources. Managing most of these resources such as machines, finances and money, tech & … FOLLOWED simple rules EXCEPT Human Resource. (Not like how Joker put it: the only sensible way to live in this world is to live without rules)
Managing human resources includes handling lots of sophistications, Why? Because human beings are sophisticated creatures. There is no 2x2=4 rule to manage them.
In my pursuit of a rule or set of rules to lead my team, I came across a concept in Garry Dessler’s “Human Resource Management” book, which was like a key to the unknown world of team leadership: ENGAGEMENT.
What is employee engagement? Let me give you some interesting info first:
According to Gallup’s Quarterly Survey on Employee Engagement from thousands of organizations in various industries:
- Companies with higher employee engagement rates, enjoy 83% higher productivity and performance, more creativity and self-motivation
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Every action that companies take to improve engagement ties directly to increased:
- Profitability
- Productivity
- Employee Retention
(I guess I don’t have to emphasize the importance of all of these elements in the bottom line. Yes, I am talking about real profit!)
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In many organizations:
- 29% of employees are fully engaged in their jobs: They are loyal to the company and psychologically committed and also they are more productive and have higher retention rates.
- 52% of employees are not engaged: They may be productive, but they are not psychologically connected with the company, they miss more workdays and they are more likely to leave.
- 19% are actively disengaged: They are physically present but psychologically absent. They are unhappy and insist on sharing this unhappiness with others in the company.
So what is this miraculous thing called “Engagement”?
Employee Engagement is a state or culture that you establish, in which:
- Employees share the vision of the organization with their personal goals and targets (They see company’s objectives in line with their own)
- Employees recognize their contribution in company’s success
- They are more effective team players and team leaders
- They enjoy a happy and positive work culture
- They go beyond their responsibilities and capabilities for co-workers and for the organization
- Employees trust their coworkers and leaders and enjoy working with them
- They love their jobs and believe in company’s values. They are proud of working in their companies
- They are loyal to their companies and act as brand ambassadors
Most of the successful modern companies lay their foundation on their most valuable asset: Human Resources and their engagement in their jobs. There is a huge academic research base, which supports this, and there are many practices applied based on employee engagement.
Google is one of the most acknowledged examples.
These companies don’t manage employees as just “a resource”. They lead people, create value-based cultures and invest in employee engagement, which enable people to flourish in their organizations; And as a result, they benefit from flourished and engaged team members and leaders.
Thanks for reading the first part of this article. In the next parts, we will figure out How we can foster engagement in the company and how psychology contributes to this mission.
What’s your idea? Leave comments please 😉