Introduction
Most businesses recognize the importance of engaged employees yet fail to realize their full potential. They micromanage them, limit their authority, destroy initiative, and treat them like cogs in a gear instead of thinking, creative individuals. And both the business and its customers suffer.
Note: I decided to look for Dilbert cartoons to see what Scott Adams had to say about each topic. I was not disappointed, so I decided to use a two-part approach to each section; my opinion and Dilbert’s. I hope you enjoy it, Sam.
How to generate employee engagement (Section headings from Wikipedia)
Employee Perceptions of job importance
Sam – It is nearly impossible to remain an engaged employee when you “know” it is not essential! If the supervisor frequently demonstrates to her employees how the team’s actions and performance impact both their customer’s success and the business’s performance, then people tend to operate in high gear; otherwise, they appear to be dragging an anchor.
Dilbert –
Employee clarity of job expectations
Sam – How can anyone do a good job unless they know what a good job looks like? (Maybe they can if they are lucky, but that should not count.) Having clear goals about the most important things to accomplish (see the prior post) and expectations about how to behave at work are prerequisites to being highly motivated.
Dilbert –
Career Advancement
Sam – Younger employees have been brought up to expect instant gratification. However, in today’s work environment, promotions are harder than ever because of downsizing and productivity gains. Progressive businesses still withhold “promotions” but give key employees challenging, high-visibility assignments that stretch their knowledge and allow them to grow professionally.
Dilbert –
Regular feedback and dialogue with superiors make engaged employees.
Sam – Remember the dreaded annual performance review? Both sides of the discussion hated it. Today, enlightened managers have a mini-review with each direct report weekly or bi-weekly. For example, my daughter talks with each of her direct reports sometime during the week (not pre-scheduled) and asks things like, “How are you doing on achieving your XYZ goal? Is there anything I can do to help you? Do you have time to help me do ABC? I’m running behind and can use your insights.” It’s hard to believe my kid is doing these kinds of things. It is also hard to believe she is effectively creating a department full of engaged employees. And she will never be the object of this kind of comment – “What I wanted to hear was ‘Thanks. You did a good job.’ But all my boss did was hand me a check.'”
Dilbert –
Quality of working relationships with peers, superiors, and subordinates
Sam – This says it all!
Dilbert –
Effective internal employee communications help create engaged employees
Sam – Today, employees want to participate in something exciting, so provide regular employee communications. And make it valuable, helpful, and, most of all, honest.
Dilbert –
Titles, offices, and other signs of power
Sam – The trend in start-ups and highly innovative companies is to allow employees to curate their titles and work remotely or have a table in a large open area. Here are two examples:
- Guy Kawasaki is the chief evangelist of Canva, an online graphic design tool. Formerly, he was an advisor to the Motorola business unit of Google and chief evangelist of Apple. Do you work with anyone with the title of an evangelist?
- At Amazon, conference room tables are a collection of blond-wood door desks shoved together side by side, and everyone, including CEO Jeff Bezos, uses the same door desk.
Dilbert –
Key Takeaway – Engaged Employees Create Win-win Situations
Keep your people motivated; they will make you look like a genius! And your customers will reward you with retention and growth.
About Middlesex Consulting
Middlesex Consulting is an experienced team of professionals with the primary goal of helping capital equipment companies create more value for their clients and stakeholders. Middlesex Consulting continues to provide superior solutions to meet the needs of its clients by focusing on our strengths in Services, Manufacturing, Customer Experience, and Engineering. If you want to learn more about how we can help your organization create more engaged employees, please contact us or check out some of our free articles and white papers here.