Employee Engagement – In Five Bullets

In a previous post, I wrote about the notion of employee engagement and what drives it. In defining engagement as a construct that has rational as well as emotional dimensions, I expanded on both its antecedents and consequences. Having just completed an employee survey for a academic research organisation, it struck me that some of the basic principles that underlie engagement are fairly independent of the actual sector. In fact, what makes employees tick can be summarized in 5 bullets. Here they are:

• Help them grow (mentor, train, communicate) while providing access to necessary resources.

• Make them feel that their work matters (by creating a line of sight between organizational goals and individual roles and responsibilities).

• Show appreciation for their ideas and work.

• Treat them with respect and fairness (create an environment of trust).

• Give them an opportunity to contribute to something meaningful (clear mission, vision, values).

Beyond these factors, of course, lies important contextual detail, both at the individual and organisational levels, but that is the subject of a follow-up post.