Different Approaches to Employee Engagement
Another approach to employee engagement that is often used is providing training and development. We know that this is a very strong motivator, particularly among early and mid-career employees. The opportunity to grow, to continue to learn, to be challenged, to be able to take relevant course work either through tuition reimbursement programs for education outside of the company, or through company sponsored training can be a strong motivator. Additionally, mentoring, various types of project work, and job rotation, are all different ways that companies can encourage the increasing knowledge and skills of their workers. This is often very effective portion of the employee engagement strategy.
However, there are challenges for this strategy as well. As companies have downsized, particularly in the latest economic downturn, they may be unable to afford the training budgets that they used to offer. Some companies are getting creative in this area, but again cost is a limiting factor.
Another concern around training and development is that sometimes employers will use training as a solution for other problems when, in fact, it may be a system or operational issue or other type of issue. Some companies will throw a training solution at a problem when training is not really the solution to the problem. So training and development can be misused as a method of employee engagement.
That leads us to the question, “What other strategies are there?”, What we’re finding which is really motivating and incredibly effective for increasing employee engagement, is meaningful work. Meaningful work, where employees are engaged in such a manner that aligns with their values, doing work, performing tasks, using knowledge and skills that really allow them to contribute. Not just their time and their experience, but in a form of work which somehow resonates with their personal values, their personal mission, their personal passions. Employees are seeking a way to express this in the workplace and I have seen this throughout my experience working with organizations.
The most admired leaders have a deep commitment to what they are doing. Not just how they contribute to the products and services of their company but the bigger picture. Their real vision for what they are accomplishing on a grander scale is a huge motivator for employees, especially those in a leadership role. In fact, Kelly Global Workforce conducted a study with over a hundred thousand people across 34 countries worldwide and 51% of the workers in this study said they would sacrifice status and pay to have more meaningful work. Just think about that – 51%, over half of the people in the study, would rather have meaningful work than more status and pay. For more information on this study go to: http://www.kellyservices.com/res/content/global/services/en/docs/kgwi_press_release_2_25_09.pdf
What is interesting to note about the study is that it was conducted during the worst of the recessionary time in late 2008, the beginning of 2009. So amidst a global economic crisis, workers were saying that meaning is more important than pay. I think therefore that this new approach to employee engagement should be what companies and organizations are looking at. How do we make sure that employees are really are aligned with what the company is doing and that the company is providing goods and services that contribute to society in a positive way? How do we insure that what workers are doing in their individual roles and responsibility taps in to what is personally meaningful for each of them?
