Employee engagement - Lua Leggett, Managing Director, Evolve Associates | Release Date Jan, 27 2010 |
| A recent survey of companies (18,000 employees) across Europe and the UK, published by the Corporate Executive Board, indicated that one in four high-performing employees say that they want to leave in the next 12 months. These are individuals that consistently perform at 21% better than their colleagues, and businesses can ill afford to lose them. When the economy does pick up 65% of the employees said they are most likely to leave, could actually do so. The challenge lies in how companies will handle their existing talent and manage to retain it even after the economic upturn. In a recent Wall Street Journal interview, Lua Leggett of Evolve Associates * says “...this is a volcano about to erupt: many workers have been sitting tight. They have watched how a lot of people have been made redundant or feel some of their former colleagues have been treated unfairly, so a lack of trust has been building up between the employer and the workforce. As soon as things improve they will be ready to leave - all they need is the opportunity”. So, what can employers do to stop their employees taking their talent elsewhere and suffering the double whammy of prohibitive replacement costs at the same time as their competitor is benefiting from the gain? Reward and benefits will attract an employee but will rarely, in isolation, keep an employee on board providing full discretionary effort. It is a sad dichotomy that poor benefits and salary will certainly encourage people to look elsewhere, but improving benefits or pay alone, without addressing some of the deeper relational elements, will not guarantee retention. So what does all this have to do with employee engagement? We believe that a combination of consultation and communication goes to the heart of the matter. These collective actions need to be supported by demonstrating strong and clear leadership. Encouraging employees to recognise the unique employee ‘signature’ that working for your organisation provides (assuming of course you know what it is!?) and to build a level of pride and trust in the employer brand: “this is a great place to work...”; “I really trust my manager and know he/she has my best interests at heart”. * Evolve Associates is an independent consultancy, working with corporate clients to drive their business strategy forward by improving levels of employee engagement. Typically evolve helps clients who are looking to leverage the discretionary effort of their workforce and improve performance whilst, at the same time, creating a workplace that attracts, develops and grows its people in a challenging and rewarding environment. If you would like to know more about how evolve can support your people strategy then speak to your Redbourne consultant or email us at info@evolveassociates.com | |