Consider the radical changes that have taken place in the work environment: Employees operate in a transparent job market where in-demand staff find new positions in their inboxes. Organizations are flattened, giving people less time with their direct managers. Younger employees have increased the demand for rapid job rotation, accelerated leadership, and continuous feedback. Finally, where we once worked with a team in an office, we now work 24/7 with email, instant messages, conference calls, and mobile devices that have eliminated the barriers between our work and personal lives.
These changes to the workplace have altered the engagement equation, forcing us to rethink it.
So what matters today? How can you create an organization that is magnetic and attractive, creates a high level of performance and passion, and continuously monitors problems that need to be fixed? A refreshed model for engagement.
Research suggests that there are three issues to address:
1. Organizations need to expand their thinking about what “engagement” means today, giving managers and leaders specific practices they can adopt, and holding leaders accountable.
2. Companies need tools and methods that measure and capture employee feedback and sentiment on a real-time, local basis so they can continuously adjust management practices and the work environment at a local level.
3. Leaders in business and HR need to raise employee engagement from an HR program to a core business strategy.
I can word with your team to develop and implement people strategies and practices that enable your employees to foster an emotional connection to your organization and its mission and goals.