An engaged employee is one who feels a strong emotional and personal connection to their workplace. They’re enthusiastic and passionate about their work, consistently go above and beyond and always want to achieve the best possible results. They’re the people who are proud to work for you, they do their job properly and help the business grow and prosper.
In contrast, disengaged employees do the bare minimum and often without any conscientious effort. They can be loud complainers who bring moral down. There is also the risk they could be looking for another job.
In 2018 you would be hard pressed to find a manager that didn't acknowledge they are supposed to care about their staff and make their employees a priority, but the reality is that usually profits matter more, followed by customers, while employees end up last on the list. But this is the wrong approach because there is evidence that shows, as employees become more engaged companies thrive.
Here is a short list of the benefits to keep in mind:
1. Better staff retention
Highly engaged employees are 87 percent less likely to leave your company than disengaged employees, according to a Hay Group study. Turnover is not only disruptive it costs money in terms of recruiting a replacement, onboarding and training them, and the time needed for that person to become productive. The cost of losing an employee can be as much 1/5th of the employee’s salary according to a CAP study.
Turnover seems to vary by wage and role of employee:
- 16 percent of annual salary for high-turnover, low-paying jobs (earning under $30,000 a year). For example, the cost to replace a $10/hour retail employee would be $3,328.
- 20 percent of annual salary for midrange positions (earning $30,000 to $50,000 a year). For example, the cost to replace a $40k manager would be $8,000.
- Up to 213 percent of annual salary for highly educated executive positions. For example, the cost to replace a $100k CEO is $213,000.
2. Increased productivity
Happy people are productive and when employees are engaged at work, they are more committed to their company. Engaged employees believe the work they're doing is valued and they believe that what they give, they get back so there is a perception of reciprocity, fairness and respect. These people consistently go above and beyond. In fact, in times of economic recession disengaged employees wait around to see what is going to happen while engaged employees dig in and work to make a positive difference. In other words, they don’t give up in hard times. This difference is an important predictor of company performance in a tough economy according to Gallup.
3. Higher profits
Companies with engaged employees achieve much better profits: Alex Edmans, Assistant Professor of Finance at The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania has studied the relationship between job satisfaction and profits and found that, 'Companies listed in the “100 Best Companies to Work For in America” generated 2.3% to 3.8% higher stock returns per year than their peers from 1984 through 2011'.
4. Enhance your company's reputation
Engaged employees are great ambassadors for your company, and openly let friends and acquaintances know they are proud to work for you. Would your employees recommend working there to a friend? In an anonymous, confidential survey, employees are more likely to tell you the truth about what they tell their friends and how much they like working for you.
5. Increased customer satisfaction
Does anyone enjoy being served by a frustrated, distracted, uncaring employee? Richard Branson has said that, ‘Customers do not come first; employees come first. if the person who works at your company is 100% proud of the job they're doing, if you give them the tools to do a good job, they're proud of the brand, if they were looked after, if they're treated well, then they're gonna be smiling, they're gonna be happy and therefore the customer will have a nice experience’.
If you want happier and more satisfied customers, you need more satisfied and engaged teams. If you are committed to taking care of your employees, the first step should be to ask everyone where they stand and how they feel about their jobs and about you. Using an employee survey as a starting point, will give you a benchmark so you can see where you stand on key measures like job satisfaction and employee engagement. This knowledge is essential to understanding where you are and helping you to see where you are struggling and need to take action to improve those scores.
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About Insightlink:
Insightlink Communications is a leader in full service employee surveys and offers a range of employee survey products and services to fit their client's needs. With over 18 years of experience, Insightlink's reputation has been built on giving organizations the knowledge they need to create effective change using their acclaimed employee research, analytics, benchmarking and survey methodologies. Insightlink's expertise in data collection reporting and analytics takes the pressure off organizations that find data overwhelming and daunting creating reports that are digestible and understandable, simple and easy to understand for organizations of any size and experience level. For more information please contact us at 866-802-8095 ext 705 or visit our website here.
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