These are the 8 most important drivers for high employee engagement

The level of commitment of your employees is an important performance indicator for the success of your company. Committed employees perform better and are more loyal. What can your company do to increase employee engagement? Continue reading!

Find and keep engaged talents

Most companies have now realised that their employees are their greatest asset. The happier the employees, the better the company's performance, but most companies still see human capital as a challenge, namely finding and keeping the right talent that also fits the company culture. Truly outstanding candidates are rare to find, and companies have to go to great lengths to find and retain top talent. But the issue is more complex.

Why should employees commit themselves to a special degree when the next employer is already reaching out to them with even better offers and incentives? Often, however, even this need not be the case. It is often enough for average-performing employees to know that they can change companies as soon as things get unpleasant. And so many employees shimmy from job to job. So the challenge is to find people who identify with their own company, are loyal and therefore have a high level of commitment. Of course, employers also have to do a lot to create identification and thus stimulate commitment.

If you want to improve employee engagement, you need to understand the driving forces

Workplace research has alarming data on employee engagement. In fact, companies can lose up to $2.246 per year for each disengaged employee. Imagine your company has 1000 employees and according to a Gallup study 51% of your workforce is disengaged, then you have 510 employees who give your company a total of $1.145.560 per year. That's a huge number. So it's up to you to stimulate and keep the engagement of your workforce high.

These 8 drivers have a particular influence on employee engagement

1. Well-being

The well-being of employees at work is one of the most important driving forces. Employees who feel good concentrate better, perform better and therefore contribute significantly to the company's success. These are the employees who do not allow themselves to be distracted at work. It is your company's job to create an environment in which your workforce feels comfortable, without fear of making mistakes, bullying or unrealistic performance goals. Workplace culture plays an important role in improving employee engagement. And your employees are much more creative!

→ Creativity in the workplace!

2. Empowerment

There are actually companies that save every cent when it comes to training their employees. Or they fear that the work cannot be done during the time in which employees are training or, worse, that this time will also be paid for. Companies need to empower their employees to complete tasks rather than leaving them to their own devices or perhaps requiring them to spend time outside of working hours doing things they need for everyday work. When your employees are given tasks that cannot be completed or cannot be completed within a defined time, frustration arises. And frustration causes commitment to fall asleep. And if something doesn't work, people complain and criticize. Empowering employees leads to higher levels of engagement. Additionally, give your employees the opportunity to make their own decisions. Give them a certain amount of scope for personal responsibility. This not only strengthens their commitment but also their sense of responsibility.

3. Corporate culture

Company culture plays a very important role in driving engagement among your workforce. The average worker spends up to forty hours at work, not including breaks, and company culture largely defines who you are. Company culture has a huge impact on how employees view themselves as a whole. When you have an orderly company culture, your workforce feels comfortable when they come to work. Appreciation, respect, tolerance, diversity, leadership behavior, error culture, knowledge transfer, collaboration and flexible working hours also play a crucial role here.

4. Professional and personal growth

Companies need to understand that employees have both personal and professional goals and that the two are interconnected. If your employees don't see clear career progression within your company, they're unlikely to stay. And if your employees always have to work overtime or bring home worries from their working life so that any personal goals cannot be achieved as a result, these employees will sooner or later leave the company. A higher turnover rate means you are losing valuable resources and money! And when employees see colleagues quitting, their morale automatically drops.

5. Identification with the employer brand

When employees agree with the company's vision and goals, they feel in tune with their role and are committed to fulfilling it. When employees are committed, they don't mind working a little overtime here and there when the situation calls for it. You feel like an integral part of the company and take on responsibility. But if your company presents a “brand” to the outside world that has nothing to do with its inner workings, your employees will experience frustration. Companies that value the implementation of employer branding strategies clearly have the better cards here.

→ Employer Branding

6. Rewards & encouragement

Humans are wired to be happy when they receive a reward for good performance. A reward does not necessarily have to be in the form of material goods or financial donations to increase commitment. Recognition and encouragement for the listed work are often enough. This is the nature of human behavior. When employees consistently perform and this goes unnoticed, some employees begin to question the meaning. Because people are social creatures and want to be seen and noticed in their actions and actions.

7. Social relationships

As a company, allow social relationships in the workplace. Provide common areas and shared activities. As described in the previous paragraph, humans are social creatures. Create a social environment in the workplace where people meet and greet their colleagues as they would in the world outside the four walls of the company. Don't look at this with suspicion or try to stop it. This strict separation of “private” and “professional” is outdated. We spend so much time at work that it has a huge impact on our entire lives. Anyone who enjoys contact with their colleagues simply enjoys coming to work much better.

8. Fair compensation

Of course, fair remuneration for the service provided is also a driver for high employee engagement. Anyone who realizes that they earn far less than colleagues or acquaintances who do similar things is of course not satisfied. But of course there are also situations in which employees accept earning less, for example if the corporate culture suits them to a particular extent or if other soft factors are considered more important. This makes it even more important for every company to find out what motivates their employees. And the best way to do this is with regular employee surveys.

→ Conduct employee surveys.

Regularly measure the engagement of your employees

Employee engagement can be measured. And companies should do that regularly. In one of our specialist articles we have summarized for you what employee engagement is, how it can be measured and improved. You will also find valuable tips and best practices for increasing the engagement of your workforce. You can find the article here: Measure and increase employee engagement.

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KEYWORDS OF THIS BLOG POST

Commitment | Employee engagement | driver | Key factors | Suggestions