6 things leaders can do today to increase engagement

Arguably, it has never been more important to build employee engagement and yet it has never been so difficult. As employers seek to rebuild, many are struggling with pressures including ‘The Great Resignation’, financial strain, and an ever changing market.

When the front doors reopened, it was understandable that the priority needed to be on gaining business momentum and keeping the cash register ringing; but now it is time to refocus on employee engagement. It may feel like this is just another task on the ‘to do’ list, however an engaged workforce is the key ingredient to helping the business prosper.

As workplaces edge closer to ‘pre pandemic’ levels, it is expected that the labour market will become tighter and the war for talent will once again begin. Employers cannot become complacent as the winners will ultimately be the organisations that have a proactive strategy to generate an engaged workplace. Beyond fundamentals such as wellbeing strategies, workers are looking for inclusive leadership and a dynamic offering.

6 tips to build engagement

There is no question that employee engagement requires a well-structured strategy, however there are some things that leaders can start doing today. The following includes six key tips to boost employee engagement:

1. Notice the positives

Even in a coaching culture, it can become easy to only focus on where employees need to improve. In a desire to help the employee to be the best that they can be, leaders place emphasis on what is not going well; but even the most talented employee seeks validation from time to time.

Leaders are encouraged to:

• learn the art of balanced feedback;
• go out of their way to share with each team member what is going well;
• seek ways in which an employee ‘win’ can be shared with the team; and
• spend more time helping ‘the eagles to soar higher’.

2. Look beyond the position description

A common leader mistake is to make judgements on the skill of employees based on the role that they are hired to do. Today more than ever, employees are arriving at workplaces with a long and interesting list of experiences, qualifications and competencies waiting to be tapped into.

Leveraging talent is key to organisation success, so employers are encouraged to:

• start the conversation early about employee motivation and goals;
• create a skills matrix at organisation and team level to uncover the hidden talents and opportunities;
• get serious about talent mapping to identify high potential/high performing (HIPO) employees;
• identify business critical positions (BCPs) and ensure succession plans are in place; and
• lead the way with inclusive work practices that empower all employees to flourish.

3. Work out which buttons you are pressing

Despite every leader’s best attempts, they will undoubtedly be doing something that repeatedly ‘pushes the buttons’ of employees. Seeking to understand if there is an element of leadership that is disengaging takes courage, but success rewards the brave.

Be authentic and share with your team that you are seeking feedback to improve. Ask employees:

• What can I start/stop doing to better meet your needs?;
• Is there something missing from my leadership that you need from me?;
• If I could do one thing better each day to better meet your preferences, what would that be?; and
• Do you feel that I am utilising your skills and experiences to their full potential?.

4. Be authentically consistent

Sometimes leaders are hard to read and employees come to work not knowing ‘which leadership version’ to expect. An employee might have enjoyed a ten minute conversation about the weekend’s football one day and then the next day struggle to be acknowledged. Ultimately, employees seek authentic leadership that is consistently applied.

Leaders are encouraged to:

• decide on a preferred leadership style and consistently apply it each day;
• ask genuine questions to team members to learn about what is important;
• have ‘the employee’s back’ and be prepared to get into the trenches to get the job done;
• remember the ‘small stuff’ that shows employees you care; and
• always seek ways to lead inclusively and ask, “who have I forgotten?”, and “how can I best leverage the unique skills and talents of all my team?”.

5. Remove any traces of micromanagement

The last couple of years have seen employees enjoy more empowerment than ever before. For most, this has been exhilarating and something that is cherished as part of their Employee Value Proposition (EVP). Unfortunately, as the office lights begun to be switched back on, some leaders fell back into old ways and pulled the reigns tighter than ever.

Leaders are encouraged to:

• empower employees to reach their full potential by encouraging workers to think and operate outside of their traditional position boundary;
• use language like, “I trust you” or “I back that you will make the right decision”;
• resist the temptation to bring all of the answers to meetings; and
• ensure they have set up a safety net, but then step back and be amazed by the employee’s capability and resilience.

6. Learn the unique needs of each employee

Unfortunately for leaders, team members are not cut from the same cloth. Sometimes a leader can devise a world class flexibility program and be left scratching their head when not all employees are engaged. Each employee has their own unique EVP, so while flexibility might be a big tick for many, others are seeking involvement in national project teams or wanting the business to support them in formal training opportunities.

Leaders are encouraged to:

• sit down with each employee and discover their unique EVP;
• determine what can be easily achieved and what might need to be part of a longer term plan;
• seek alternative solutions where a need cannot be met; and
• be vulnerable enough to share their own EVP and be prepared to lead by example.

Engagement is a symptom of success

Low engagement will ultimately impact organisational performance and turnover, but the barriers are repairable. According to Forbes, employee engagement is a workplace that’s “designed, first and foremost, around its company values.” This in an invitation for employers to actively ensure that the company mission is aligned to the way in which employees work today and how they want to work tomorrow. So perhaps the real question is, what steps will you take to ensure your employees are valued, validated, and empowered?

Further information

Ai Group offers a course designed to introduce supervisors and managers, who have some practical experience, to the essential elements of leading people at work. This includes both the practical exploration of tools and techniques that every leader needs, as well as the critical aspects of being a leader. Here, participants will be asked to reflect on their own behaviours, and in doing so, establish a level of self-awareness needed to be successful in fostering employee engagement.

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