Most companies and employees today value a good workplace culture. When hiring and retaining employees, many employers will look at whether or not they believe those who work at the company fit with the established culture and mix well with their co-workers. Creating these cultures is all about finding ways to keep employees engaged in their work.
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Employee engagement is defined as the level that employees feel passionate about their work and are committed to the company they work for. Engagement is an essential element in the workplace and involves a variety of factors. While workplace culture is a significant contributor to engagement, other things like workload, management styles, benefits, and work policies can also have an impact. Managers within a company should work to create a workplace engagement strategy to retain good employees.
Here are some important aspects to consider when developing your engagement strategy:
Allow employee sponsored projects — Most employees don’t want to stay in the same position for their whole career. Thus, it’s crucial that you provide opportunities for your employees to grow in their careers. You can accomplish this by promoting and hiring within the company when you have a qualified candidate. Your company could also create mentorship programs so employees can gain knowledge through others in the workplace. Additionally, you should provide opportunities for managers to brush up on essential skills such as conflict resolution and emotional intelligence so that they can be better leaders
Recognize employees in formal and informal ways — Most employees respond well when provided with positive feedback and recognition for good things they’ve accomplished in their work. Providing genuine praise for employees in both formal and informal ways can help improve morale and create a positive work environment as a whole. When employees are happy with their work and are receiving more recognition, they are more likely to spread the love by recognizing their peers for the excellent work they are doing. This circle of positivity can help further strengthen workplace culture and engagement.
Promote work-life balance — One of the most important aspects of workplace culture and engagement is having work-life balance. One of the most significant ways to encourage balance is providing employees with time off, paid or unpaid. Not only does this help your employees feel rested and refreshed, but it also shows your employees that you value them and recognize that work isn’t the only thing in their life. Affording your employees a measure of scheduling flexibility helps them feel valued and improves employee retention within the company.
Keep teams fully staffed — If you know an employee is planning to move on to another job, don’t wait to hire someone new. When employees feel overworked, they are less likely to feel engaged in the workplace and less happy in general. If you find yourself in a situation where your employees are overworked, you should either hire more employees to take on the workload or distribute the work to other departments that may not have as much work on their plates.
Trust your employees — Generally, companies hire people because they have the qualifications to fulfill the role. This means that once employees are sufficiently trained, it’s vital that you don’t micro-manage them. Allowing your employees to do their work without standing over their shoulder the whole time shows that you trust them to perform their duties satisfactorily. Showing your employees that you trust them will give them confidence in their jobs, which will help improve their workplace engagement.
Creating an engaging workplace pays off handsomely with happier and more productive employees as well as greater employee retention.
