Introduction
Employees face mundane and everyday obstacles at work that are often avoidable. These range from communication and collaboration issues to training woes and a lack of appropriate technology. These challenges can put additional strain on employees, on top of dealing with the effects of external forces such as a global pandemic and an economic downturn. This cumulative pressure can stifle work progress and, in the end, hurt employee engagement.
Everyone has a lot on their plates, and it is your responsibility as an employer to come up with new ways to adapt to these changes and, overall, increase and maintain employee engagement.
What is employee engagement?
Employee engagement is a term that is frequently and casually thrown around in the corporate world, but many people have no idea what it is. Simply put, employee engagement refers to an employee’s emotional commitment to his or her organization and its goals. This emotional commitment is described as a worker’s level of enthusiasm, passion, and dedication to their job. It is premised on mutual respect, integrity, and two-way communication between an organization and its members.
Why Employee Engagement Matters
Employee engagement is important for overall employee satisfaction and experience. When employees are engaged, they are more likely to work with purpose. This means that they will be more energized at work and will go above and beyond what is expected of them. Moreover, an employee’s positive mental state and well-being influence those around them, such as colleagues and customers. This directly enhances company culture and ensures smooth sailing for the organization.
6 Ways to Boost Employee Engagement
These tips and tricks are a good starting point to get the most out of each employee and improve employee engagement.
Provide the Right Tools
One of the most important drivers of employee engagement is giving them access to the right tools that they need to adapt quickly in a fast-paced world. Whether it be a dedicated communication tool or a mobile training platform or both, the right tech tools can significantly bolster employee performance and will enable employees to be more productive at work.
Read to learn more about why better tech tools are vital for deskless workers.
Use Surveys and Quizzes
Gather and provide feedback from and to your team. Let employees know how important their feedback and opinions are to the company’s growth by incorporating interactive elements such as quizzes or surveys with pointed questions, multiple-choice answers, and open-field options. This will make your employees feel valued and heard which are necessary elements to avoid isolation and improve employee engagement.
Communicate With Employees Where They Already Are: Their Phones
Internal communication must be engaging and enjoyable. Using their phones to communicate with you gives the impression that you are more open to ideas, conversations, concerns, and questions, and willing to accommodate your employees. You can also use these to disseminate information in areas where employees are most at ease.
Offer a dedicated communication platform to your employees instead of relying on traditional messaging services such as SMS or WhatsApp, which can result in a lack of personalization and an intrusion into workers’ private lives. Choose a platform that promotes open communication and contributes to the development of a company culture that values employee engagement.
Learn more about why internal communication is important for your business.
Incorporate Gamification
Gamification has a significant impact on employee engagement and interaction. Utilizing a point system encourages your employees to participate, such as by watching a video and answering a surprise question at the end. If they get it right, they will receive some vouchers. At the same time, employees are also learning and having fun. As a result, your employees will feel more socially connected and engaged.
Create Easy-to-Digest Content
Building an engaged team takes time. However, once you start working to make your company a better place to work, you will be rewarded with employees who stay longer and give more while they are there. Microlearning is one technique for training your mobile employees. By creating bite-sized chunks of information, employees can process knowledge faster and retain information longer. Giving them new ways to learn about their task will help them develop a broader set of skills. This increases opportunities for advancement in one’s career.
Discover how you can boost any team performance in 10 minutes per day through microlearning.
Bring Your Employees’ Voices Into Your Communications
Communication for deskless employees is a necessity. Providing a communication tool can make it easier to stay in touch with your employees. Allowing them to share, voice out, and collaborate on common interests, or scheduling regular video meetings between team members so that everyone is on the same page with the tasks at hand. Employees feel valued and heard in this manner, and a sense of camaraderie is important for employee engagement.
Conclusion
Finally, be deliberate in your approach to increasing employee engagement, and you’ll reap the benefits of an engaged workforce as well as long-term benefits such as employee retention, increased employee satisfaction, and better customer service for years to come. Your genuine concern for your employee will be recognized. Keep in mind that employee engagement is not a one-time project. Engaging and retaining employees is a serious endeavor that requires your constant attention.
