Playbook for Managers: Engaging and Retaining Employees in a Down Economy
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by Marty Jordan, Human Capital Consulting Partners
Times are Tough
The economy is
floundering. Companies, large and small, are struggling, and employees are
unhappy and worried. They are unhappy about their increased workload and the
longer hours required of them and worried about when the next layoff might
occur and whether or not their job is safe. There is little managers can do
about the economy or how well their companies are riding out the storm. However,
there are things they can do to maintain the morale and productivity of their
employees during these challenging times. It's called employee engagement, and it
matters more now than ever.
Employee Engagement Defined
Some employees barely make
it to work on time, mindlessly drift from task to task, doing only what is
required and showing little enthusiasm for their work. Meanwhile, other
employees are excited about coming to work and exude energy no matter the task,
going above and beyond minimum expectations and always looking for ways to get
the job done and satisfy customers. Experts use the term "employee engagement"
to describe the continuum between these two types of employees from disengaged
to highly engaged.
Engaged employees are committed to their organization and its
bottom line; have tremendous pride and job ownership; put forth more
discretionary effort in terms of time and energy; and, on average, demonstrate
significantly higher levels of performance and productivity than those who are
not engaged.The Gallup organization has collected data that
confirms this: engaged employees generate 38% higher customer satisfaction
scores, 22% higher productivity, and 27% higher profits for their
companies.
Simply put, employee engagement
is the emotional ties or connections employees have with their place of
employment and how well an employer is meeting its employees' needs for challenging
work, growth and opportunity, sense of belonging, motivating and caring
leadership, and being valued and rewarded for their contribution.
Managers
Matter Most
Managers are the linchpin to
employee engagement. They have an enormous impact on the climate in their group.
The items mentioned above--challenging work, growth and opportunity, sense of belonging,
etc.--are all within the control of the frontline manager. And keep in
mind...employee engagement is a contact
sport. Managers cannot engage their employees by sitting behind their desks
answering emails and taking phone calls. They have to get out in the workplace
and actively interact with their employees.
Read Marty's Playbook for Managers, including specific strategies for Knowing, Growing, Involving, Recognizing, and Inspiring your employees and other valuable articles in our Resource Center.
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My best wishes to you and your organization as you wrap up this challenging year.
Sincerely,
Jim Geier
Human Capital Consulting Partners
Helping companies grow by aligning human capital strategies with business strategies
email: jim.geier@hccpartners.com
phone: 215.244.8110
web: http://www.hccpartners.com
Human Capital Consulting Partners is a servicemark of Human Capital Consulting Partners LLC.
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We're Expanding!
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| As some of
you know we celebrated our fifth year anniversary in June 2009. This
anniversary could not have been achieved without the ongoing support and trust
from our clients as well as the guidance of some key advisors who have helped
me grow Human Capital Consulting Partners LLC into the consulting business it
is today. Like any business owner or CEO, I always need to be looking towards
the future and determining what should be the next step in growing the
business. That next step for Human Capital Consulting Partners is to expand
our consulting business to the west coast.
To help
develop our business on the west coast, I'm very pleased to introduce Marty Jordan as our new
Western Regional Director for Human Capital Consulting Partners. Marty brings
experience, expertise, and enthusiasm as she heads up our new West Coast office
in the San Francisco Bay Area.
Marty is a
seasoned HR executive, with a diverse background in energy, financial, technology,
healthcare, telecommunications, government, and non-profit. She's a highly
skilled facilitator, team builder, advisor, and coach, and has worked with
C-level executives and their teams to build and implement key programs and
processes needed to plan for, acquire, develop, and deploy the critical talent
needed to execute on their business strategies. |
Contact Us
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| Jim Geier
215.244.8110
Marty Jordan
650.241.3511
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