“EMPLOYEE ENGAGEMENT- A NEW APPROACH OF

MOTIVATING EMPLOYEES ”

By

Dr. Tanuj Kumar Mr. Amit Gupta

Principal Asst. Professor (MBA)

Shree Ram Institute of Mgt. & Technology RPIIT

Bibai, Bulandshahar (UP) Karnal – 132001 (Hr.)

(M) 094572-37979 (M) 094165-66650

e-mail: dr.tanuj_sharma@rediffmail.com e-mail:amitgupta_0878@yahoo.com

Intoduction

For several years now, 'employee engagement' has been a hot topic in corporate

circles. It's a buzz phrase that has captured the attention of workplace observers

and HR managers, as well as the executive suite. And it's a topic that employers

and employees alike think they understand, yet can't articulate very easily.

While interest in employee engagement has grown steadily during the last few

years, adoption of employee engagement principles and practices seems to have

skyrocketed as the recession drags on. This makes sense as true employee

engagement can help overcome the negative impacts of the recession as seen in

lower employee morale, productivity and focus.

Concept

Employee engagement is a positive attitude held by the employee towards the

organization and its values.An engaged employee is aware of business context, and

works with colleagues to improve performance within the job for the benefit of the
organization.The organization must work to develop and nurture engagement,

which requires a two-way relationship between employer and employee.

Features of employee engagement:

* Understanding of business context and the 'bigger picture'

* Respectful of, and helpful to, colleagues

* Willingness to 'go the extra mile'

* Belief in the organization

* Desire to work to make things better

* Keeping up to date with developments in the field.

Employee commitment and engagement is measured by three primary behaviours -

Say, Stay and Strive. 'Say' is evidently achieved if the employee consistently

speaks positively about the organisation to co-workers and refers potential

employees and customers. 'Stay' refers to the employee's intensive desire to be a

member of the organisation, despite opportunities to work elsewhere. 'Strive'

indicates an extra effort and behaviours that contribute to business success. A red

flag in either of the three behaviours engenders greater employee concerns.

Why Employee engagement?

Conditions that prevent employee engagement seldom alleviate themselves. They

should be assessed and addressed as soon as possible. Left to multiply, negative

employee satisfaction issues can result in:

* Higher employee turnover - Employees leave, taking their reservoir of

knowledge and experience to another workplace.

* Diminished performance - Competency of the workforce is reduced, at least

for short term, until new employees are trained .

* Lost training investment - Time and money invested in training and

development programs for departing workers is wasted.

* Lower morale - Remaining employees can be overburdened with new duties, in

addition the unresolved issues that already prevent their full engagement.

To counter the above problems, the firm must take relevant steps to engage their

employees in the work.

Engagement Drivers

Organizations that believe in increasing employee engagement levels focus on

1. Culture: It consists of a foundation of leadership, vision, values, effective

communication, a strategic plan, and HR policies that are focused on the employee.

2. Continuous Reinforcement of People-Focused Policies: Continuous

reinforcement exists when senior management provides staff with budgets and

resources to accomplish their work, and empowers them.

3. Meaningful Metrics: They measure the factors that are essential to the

organization's performance. Because so much of the organization's performance is

dependent on people, such metrics will naturally drive the people-focus of the

organization and lead to beneficial change.

4. Organizational Performance: It ultimately leads to high levels of trust, pride,

satisfaction, success, and believe it or not, fun.

Strategies of Employee engagement

Managers may take up following steps for creating and sustaining employee

engagement:

1) Let go off any negative opinions you may have about your employees

Approach each of them as a source of unique knowledge with something valuable

to contribute to the company. Remember that you are co-creating the achievement

of a vision with them.

2) Make sure employees have everything they need to do their jobs.

Why not build just such an opportunity into your department simply by asking

each staff member, or the team as a whole, "Do you have everything you need to

be as competent as you can be?" Remember, just as marketplace and customer

needs change at daily, so do your employees' needs change.

3) Clearly communicate what's expected of employees - What the company

values and vision are, and how the company defines success. Employees can't

perform well or be productive if they don't clearly know what it is they're there to

do – and the part they play in the overall success of the company. Be sure to

communicate your expectations - and to do it often.

4) Get to know your employees - Especially their goals, their stressors, what
excites them and how they each define 'success. Show an interest in their well

being and that, when appropriate, you do what it takes to enable them to feel more

fulfilled .

5) Make sure they are trained - and retrained - in problem solving and

conflict resolution skills.

These critical skills will help them interact better with you, their teammates,

customers and suppliers. It's common sense - better communication reduces stress

and increase positive outcomes.

6) Constantly ask how you are doing in your employees' eyes.

Although it can be difficult for managers to request employee feedback - and it can

be equally if not more challenging for an employee to give the person who

evaluates them an honest response. To get strong at this skill and to model it for

employees, begin dialogues with employees using conversation starters such as,

"It's one of my goals to constantly improve myself as a manager. What would you

like to see me do differently? What could I be doing to make your job easier?" Be

sure to accept feedback graciously and to express appreciation.

7) Pay attention to company stories and rituals.

Are people laughing at each other or with each other? Do they repeat stories of
success of moments of shame? Stay away from participating in discussions that are

destructive to people or the organization, and keep success stories alive.

8) Reward and recognize employees in ways that are meaningful to them

That's why getting to know your employees is so important. And remember to

celebrate both accomplishments and efforts to give employees working on long-

term goals a boost.

9) Be consistent for the long haul.

If you start an 'engagement initiative' and then drop it , your efforts will backfire,

creating employee estrangement. People are exhausted and exasperated from

'program du jour' initiatives that engage their passion and then fizzle out when the

manager gets bored, fired or moved to another department. There's a connection

between an employee's commitment to an initiative and a manager's commitment

to supporting it. A manager's ongoing commitment to keeping people engaged,

involved in and excited about the work they do and the challenges they face must

be a daily priority.

Conclusion
People are a key component of any company's ability to execute its strategies and

achieve its goals. Companies who are better able to engage their people also

deliver better business performance and return to shareholders. Thus, employee

engagement at all levels must not only be encouraged but also rewarded.

One must keep in mind that employees are a company's greatest assets. Their

collective ideas, feedback and enthusiasm for what they do can help the business

grow and succeed. Some people are naturally wired to give their all and do their

best no matter where they work. But the majority of people require the guidance of

skilled managers who welcome their ideas, ask for feedback and generate

enthusiasm in order to have a sense of purpose and energy about what they do.

References

Ashok Mukherjee – Engagement for the mind body, and soul – Human Capital,

Aug. 2005.

Christoffer Ellehuus,Piers Hudson-Driving Performance and Retention Through

Employee Engagement – Corporate leadership Council 2004,Employee

Enagegement Survey
Douglas R. May, Richard L Gilson – The Psychological conditions of

meaningfulness safety and availability and the engagement of the human spirit at

work – Journal of Occupational and Organisational Psychology (2004).

Gretcher Hoover – Maintaining employee engagement when communicating

difficult issues – Communication World, Nov / Dec 2005

Heskett, Jame L – Putting the service profit chain to work – Harvard Business

Review, Mar / Apr 94 Vol. 72 Issue 1