Hello current and future Leaders,
Quite a few of my clients are measured against an “employee engagement index” – a measure of how “engaged” their team members are. Measuring engagement as part of a manager’s KPI’s (Key Performance Indicators) makes a lot of sense as a high level of engagement generally translates into increased productivity and customer satisfaction, increased retention and a decrease in the number of sick days, etc.
But what is engagement? Wikipedia gives the definition as “an engaged employee is one who is fully absorbed by and enthusiastic about their work and so takes positive action to further the organization’s reputation and interests. An engaged employee has a positive attitude towards the organization and its values.” Note: Engagement is not defined as working long hours or working hard or even as employee satisfaction.
As a leader – what can you do to raise the level of engagement in your team? In fact, every day you can do many little things. Connect with others, ask their opinions, communicate your vision of the future and show how each team member can contribute to that vision.
You can start by asking yourself how engaged you are. How positive are you outside of work about your job, your team and the company you work for? Are you taking pride in delivering consistent, high-quality results and doing whatever it takes to deliver them?
In my management trainings I often ask participants to answer Gallup’s Q12*) for themselves so they can assess their own level of engagement. That way it becomes clear to them that they, as leaders, have major influence over the engagement levels of their teams and what they can do to raise that level. Gallup’s 12 questions are the following:
1. I know what is expected of me at work.
2. I have the materials and equipment I need to do my work right.
3. At work, I have the opportunity to do what I do best every day.
4. In the last seven days, I have received recognition or praise for doing good work.
5. My supervisor, or someone at work, seems to care about me as a person.
6. There is someone at work who encourages my development.
7. At work, my opinions seem to count.
8. The mission or purpose of my company makes me feel my job is important.
9. My associates or fellow employees are committed to doing quality work.
10. I have a best friend at work.
11. In the last six months, someone at work has talked to me about my progress.
12. This last year, I have had opportunities at work to learn and grow.
*) Gallup is a global analytics and advice firm who have designed the Q12 survey (12 simple and straight forward questions) to measure engagement. For over three decades they have been publishing engagement indices globally and regionally.
As an exercise I encourage you to answer the 12 questions above for yourself and give some thought to how your team members may respond to them. Make room in your day to reflect on your interactions with individuals on your team – you may be surprised about yourself.
Find my “Management Gold – Nuggets” useful? Then let me know and share with others.
If you find this inspiring and you would like to explore further, I am delighted to meet with you for a 30-minute-free-of-charge-info-session.