Did you know that happy workers are 13% more productive?
This information comes from an extensive study carried out by Said Business School, University of Oxford in contact centres run by BT over a 6-month period. The study found that when employees were happy, they worked faster and more productively with better overall outcomes from calls.
Here are some ways to drive employee engagement:
- Get to know them – Making people feel understood and appreciated will in turn make them care about the company and makes them want to be more productive employees.
- Communication must be clear and often – Make sure you are clear about expectations, set achievable goals and make it clear that communication is a two-way street and that they can talk to you if they have any concerns.
- Listen – Really listen actively. Make sure you are not just hearing the words they say but analysing the meaning behind them.
- Inspire them – You set the overall goals/vision/mission for the company, and you need to be able to inspire employees to want to achieve this goal not just for you but with you.
- Recognise good performance and offer praise – Make sure to celebrate the wins no matter how small this will reinstate that you care for and appreciate your employees.
- Request feedback on how you can better support them – Make it very clear that you are willing to grow and change with them.
- Trust your employees – You can delegate work to employees without micromanaging if people feel you trust them it is another thing that boosts morale and makes them care about the company.
- Include employees in the bigger picture – Keep your team informed, this is a big part of forming good communication and trust.
- Prioritise the work life balance – Do not just focus on the importance of working hard as everyone know what is expected of them but make sure to encourage a healthy life balance.
- Encourage wellness – Be an advocate for employee wellbeing and wellness.
- Invest in your work environment and tools to do the job – Even the best employee cannot get the job done to a high standard if you do not provide the correct tools and environment for the job.
- Discuss failures in a positive light –
Sure you failed. Why was that? What can we change to stop that happening again? Brush yourself off and try again. Sometimes you have to fail to succeed.
Employee engagement is about making sure employees feel fulfilled within their role. Businesses with top quartile engagement see 21% high profitability. When you improve staff engagement and keep your employees happy the business will reap the benefits of motivated employees and increased productivity.
Ultimately if you look after your employees, they will look after you!