Tag: employee engagement

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Engagement

Re-Charging Employee Morale: Organizational Tips

This wraps up my series of posts in which I feature coaching tips from business consultant-coach-authors Dawn Lennon, Phil Gerbyshak, and Michelle Gall, who graciously shared their suggestions for coping in this chaotic climate.

Leadership and Performance Improvement Coach, Dawn Lennon, who is the author of Business Fitness: The Power to Succeed – Your Way, gives us an organizational perspective in her response to my question:

In organizations where employees are experiencing low morale, low motivation, general malaise, etc. – due to workplace pressures and current economic conditions – what do you suggest to help people re-energize themselves and their co-workers? 

“Relentless negative messages are suffocating. When people hear or read nothing but discouraging news day after day in the media, at staff meetings, in company e-mails, and at the water cooler, they develop a feeling of powerlessness that can sap even the strongest spirit. The truth is that the glass is always half full and half empty at the same time. How we see the contents of the glass determines how we proceed. When the spirit of our employees flags, management needs to look at the messages it’s sending.

“Employees get energy, motivation, and optimism from a clear understanding of the state of the business (how it’s doing financially, what the market needs, how costs impact operations) and what the business needs them to do to make a difference.

“People want to feel in control of their work life. They don’t want to feel like they are sitting in wait for something awful to happen. They don’t want to live in dread of unseen inevitabilities. Employers owe their employees the information they need to make good choices each day about what they do, how they work, and what their options are.

“Businesses that see a pall falling over their employees need to do three things:

“Deliver a balanced (upside and downside) state of the business message face to face to employees—Use the existing leadership (executives, managers, and first line supervisors) to communicate these messages in ways that connect with employees and allow for candid questions and answers.

“Develop specific performance initiatives with each employee that aligns his/her work with the needs of the business—Give employees a clear understanding of how their contributions are helping to drive the success of the business by having each person meet with his/her supervisor to set priorities.

“Meet with work group employees together each week to review progress—Build a sense of team camaraderie where each person’s efforts are applauded in the context of the broader needs of the business. Reinforce the state of the business messages, showcasing how the positives are beginning to impact the negatives.

“The engagement of team effort around a central challenge is a strong antidote to malaise. It brings fresh air into the workplace, builds optimism through shared involvement, and helps people to focus less on their individual concerns and more on the power of the team. Together we generally feel stronger and safer than we do alone.”

 

Thanks, Dawn!

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Engagement

Re-charging Employee Morale: Team Tips

This is the second in a series of three posts in which I feature coaching tips from business consultant-coach-authors Michelle Gall, Dawn Lennon, and Phil Gerbyshak on how to cope in this chaotic climate.

Today I feature Michelle Gall, executive coach and the author of Keep Your WITS About You: Work Smart, Be Happy, Feel Great. Here’s what Michelle had to say in response to the question:

In organizations where employees are experiencing low morale, low motivation, general malaise, etc. – due to workplace pressures and current economic conditions – what do you suggest to help people re-energize themselves and their co-workers? 

“You’ve heard it all. The market value of everyone’s retirement savings has plummeted while insomnia has soared to new heights. The economic meltdown has ridden roughshod over college funds, nest eggs, and employee morale. Just a year ago, employees had their sights set on upward mobility and corner offices, but now they’re hanging on by their fingernails just to keep what they have. Everyone knows someone who has been fired or laid-off in the last year; if you don’t, you either travel in rarefied circles or you’re out-of-touch with the American workplace.

“It’s easy to have a good attitude when things are going well, but it takes someone special to stay positive during trying times. Not just anyone can turn lemons into lemonade. That’s why bad times call for good people. You don’t need a lot of money to have fun –– just the right people. Here are a few of my favorite tips for building camaraderie and improving workplace morale:

  • Cookie Exchange: Everyone brings in a plate of one dozen homemade cookies and a paper bag. Employees then fill their paper bags with one dozen different cookies (each cookie from a different plate). In this way, employees arrive with their own cookies, but they leave with an assortment of different cookies baked by their colleagues. Everyone gives and receives. The only rule: everyone leaves with a full bag so that there are no leftover cookies.
  • Thank You Notes: This team-building exercise is a more meaningful version of “Secret Santa,” where everyone ends up with positive feedback. Each employee writes his/her name on a piece of paper and drops it into a large manila envelope. Each person then reaches into the manila envelope and picks out a colleague’s name at random. The employee then has 24 hours to write a thank you note to the colleague for behaviors and actions that s/he appreciates in that person. It’s extra convenient and fun if a variety of blank note cards are available to employees for this exercise. The notes can be unsigned and typed if desired to preserve anonymity. The next day, all the thank you cards are placed in a large manila envelope, retrieved randomly, and distributed to each employee by name for their reading pleasure.
  • Catch ‘Em Doing Something Good: The two exercises described above reward everyone, but perhaps you prefer to reward only those employees who demonstrate a particular desired behavior. Cedars-Sinai Medical Center faced this challenge when it wanted to increase hand-washing among its doctors. Their solution? The hospital empowered a posse of nurses to award a $10 Starbucks card to every physician they caught in the act of hand-washing. It may be hard to believe, but this low-cost incentive increased hand-hygiene compliance from 65% to 80%. If a $10 Starbucks card can reinforce good behavior in high-paid doctors, just think how effective it could be with lesser-paid employees at your organization for whom a stop at Starbucks is now a rare treat. [Here’s more info about the Cedars-Sinai case.]

“There are lots of variations on the above team-building exercises, and you can adjust or tailor them easily to fit your particular industry or workplace norms. These morale-boosters deliver a big bang for the buck. They cost little or nothing, and they’re easy to implement. What’s more, they also offer employees the opportunity to be creative and have fun, which helps reduce stress and enhance morale. Bad times call for good people. Be one of the good guys.”

Thanks, Michelle!

I’ll have more tips in next week’s post …

 

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Engagement

Re-charging Employee Morale: Individual Tips

How can employees stay motivated in today’s chaotic business climate? I asked business consultant-coach-authors Phil Gerbyshak, Michelle Gall, and Dawn Lennon to share their suggestions for coping strategies in the workplace.

I’ll start with Phil Gerbyshak, management and identity consultant, who is also the author of 10 Ways to Make it Great! and the Slacker Manager blog. Following is his response to my question:

In organizations where employees are experiencing low morale, low motivation, general malaise, etc. – due to workplace pressures and current economic conditions – what do you suggest to help people re-energize themselves and their co-workers? 

“First, avoid commiserating with co-workers who are not energized. Negative people will suck the absolute life out of you. Instead, invest your time on the folks who lift you up, who breath life into you, and who are willing to lend a hand when you need it.

“Second, focus on what you can control and not what you can’t, and encourage others to do the same. You can’t fix the economy by yourself, you can’t make your 401(k) suddenly go up the 40% you lost last year, and you can’t make the news broadcast positive stuff instead of always focusing on the negative. What you can do is bring a lunch to work one more day a week to save a few dollars, you can bring coffee from home, you can contact a financial planner to make sure you are still investing the right way, and you can turn off the TV and stop buying the newspaper.

“Last but not least, find something new that you’ve always wanted to learn about and check out a book from the library about it. Dedicate one hour a week to learning more about this new thing, and at the end of the year, you’ll be 52 hours closer to being an expert in whatever you chose to study.

“Things may stink right now, but remember: it’s always darkest before the dawn. If you make a few small changes now, to your thinking, and to your life, when things get better, you’ll be well positioned to make your life GREAT!”

Thanks, Phil!

Stay tuned for more great advice in my next two posts …

 

 

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Engagement Marketing

Who is More Engaged: Nonprofit or Forprofit Employees?

An interesting question that I’m finding is a challenge to answer. My initial presumption was nonprofit staff would be more engaged because their work is mission-driven. However, I’ve also known nonprofit employees who are minimally engaged because their workplace situation turned out to be negative. So I started a quest to find research on nonprofit employment engagement and discovered there’s not much out there.

What I was able to find came from Gallup, and it surprised me. Jessica Tyler, Practice Manager in Employee Engagement, shared comparative data from Gallup’s global database with results showing employees in the nonprofit segment were actually less “engaged” and slightly more “actively disengaged” than employees in the overall database.

Commenting on this, Gallup consultant Bill McEwen noted: “It certainly appears that the employees of not-for-profit organizations, while perhaps attracted by a strong sense of mission, are often less (rather than more) engaged than the average employee. Of course, this varies by organization … as some of them are super in recognizing and energizing those who work for them, while others may pay great attention to their mission and relatively little attention to the people called upon to fulfill it.”

As Jessica aptly noted: “Connecting to the mission is just one of the [many] critical elements involved in a person or team’s engagement.” But it’s clearly not enough.

[Thanks, Jessica and Bill, for your help with this post.]

Special request

While most employee engagement research seems to include the healthcare and government sectors, I haven’t found data on other nonprofits that include social & human services, arts & cultural organizations, professional associations, education, and membership-based organizations. If you’re aware of any, please let me know.

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Engagement

Employee Engagement Levels & Segmentation

What’s the difference between employees who are engaged and those who are not?

” … engaged employees stay for what they give (they like their work) [whereas] disengaged employees stay for what they get (favorable job conditions, growth opportunities, job security).”

This excerpt is from research firm BlessingWhite’s  2008 Employee Engagement Report, specifically its North American findings. (Note: You can also find highlights of their global research in the UK/Ireland, Germany, Europe, and Asia-Pacific regions on their website.)

Levels of Engagement

BlessingWhite’s research also describes five employee segments that vary by the level of contribution to a company’s success and the employee’s job satisfaction:

  • The Engaged– high contribution & high satisfaction. A most desirable group, yet one that still needs attention. Employers must keep these workers engaged or risk them falling into one of the next three segments.
  • Almost Engaged– medium to high contribution & satisfaction. A valuable group within reach of full engagement.
  • Honeymooners and Hamsters– medium to high satisfaction, but low contribution. Being relatively new to the company, Honeymooners are happy to be there although they haven’t yet figured out how best to contribute. Hamsters, however, may be working hard, yet contribute little to the success of the company; i.e., spinning their wheels.
  • Crash & Burners– medium to high contribution, but low satisfaction. These workers perform well, but are disillusioned and dissatisfied with the company. They have the potential to become totally disengaged while negatively influencing other employees.
  • The Disengaged – low to medium contribution & satisfaction. This group is “the most disconnected from organizational priorities, often feel underutilized, and are clearly not getting what they need from work.” If these workers can’t be coached to higher levels of engagement, an exit strategy would benefit both employee and the company.

To learn more, check out BlessingWhite’s 2008 Employee Engagement Report that also contains management tips on how to effectively engage employees. My favorite is the one that asks managers to reflect where they find themselves on the engagement spectrum. It’s a fascinating question: how long can a manager continue to inspire and engage others when his/her own job satisfaction and contribution are below par?

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Engagement Marketing

Interview with Barry Nelson on Employee Communications & Commitment

Corporate communications expert Barry Nelson, retired founder of The Story Board, is a strong advocate of workplace journalism – a business communications approach that addresses employee concerns along with business concerns. With economic turmoil taking a toll on employee engagement, I wanted to get Barry’s perspective on how we can use employee communications to make a difference.

QSM: What’s the most important message that companies need to send to their employees to minimize disengagement?

Barry: The whole trick of getting through hard and trying change with your people still behind you emotionally is to establish a mutually caring human connection with them. Business reasoning and economic motivation aren’t unimportant, they’re just not the most powerful tools. To establish such a connection, the company can’t simply tell, but must show its staff that the company’s top management cares about them as human beings, not just work assets. That means a company must set up institutional infrastructure — policies, systems, programs — that average workers can recognize as promoting their welfare. This goodwill toward workers can’t be whimsical or dependent on the style of a boss who may be gone tomorrow — it has to emanate from and be embedded in the company itself.

A well validated body of research shows that companies where employees believe their organization (not just their direct supervisor) supports their best interests, are overwhelmingly more likely to enjoy high, across-the-board levels of employee loyalty and commitment than those where that perception is lacking. But for employees to get and maintain such a perception, they need a continuing stream of evidence that it’s so. This presents an opportunity for internal communication programs to systematically provide the needed evidence. That’s why I’ve always urged that at least a portion of the content in ongoing internal communications should be about issues employees experience in the work environment, and what the employer is doing to help. It can’t be all about management’s view of the world.

QSM: What internal communication trends do you see emerging in the coming year (or two)?

Barry: Really hard to say, but I would hope that the immensely more difficult job of maintaining employee commitment in these hard times, when work-force and perhaps pay reductions may be unavoidable, might drive our more resourceful colleagues toward more empathetic, less management-centric forms of communication. The rise of social media clearly offers that potential, as overall communication becomes more multi-directional and democratic. But without an underlying philosophy that management doesn’t have all the answers, that employee views matter greatly, even on issues not perceived from the top as central to the strategic agenda (but which could be disrupting efficiency and sapping worker vitality) — without this more humble institutional mindset, the mere implementation of new communication toys won’t do much good.

QSM: What advice do you have for smaller organizations who don’t have anyone formally responsible for employee communications?

Barry: Such an organization these days is almost surely one with a small enough work force that a high level of personal contact by the top leaders is either happening or at least possible. I’d advise those leaders, and the HR or administrative staff who support them, to remember that you lead people mainly by their feelings. And those feelings won’t run in your favor unless you show your people, often and sometimes very deliberately — going out of your way if necessary — that you genuinely care about them. There’s no more powerful communication, or one more likely to be repaid, than an act or expression of love. You don’t need a communication degree to send that message. But you do need to really feel it.

QSM: This is great advice for every manager and business communicator. Thank you, Barry!

 

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Engagement Marketing

Employee Recognition Backfires

As a follow up to my last post on Employee Appreciation Day, I was reminded of a positive-turned-negative recognition experience I had earlier in my career.

The positive recognition came from the American Marketing Association in appreciation of my service as a volunteer leader. AMA’s executive staff acknowledged its volunteer leaders (at both the national and chapter board levels) with a letter of thanks. In addition, staff asked for the name of the chief contact where the volunteer was employed so AMA could acknowledge the company’s support as well. (AMA was smart to realize that in many cases volunteers relied on company resources and/or were allowed time to be involved in such professional development activities.)

The message conveyed in this letter was basically: We appreciate the leadership contributions of your employee [name] who served as [volunteer leadership position] … and we appreciate your support of their efforts in advancing marketing practice.”

What did you say your name was?

The bank I worked for was undergoing a merger, so I gave AMA the name of the CEO of the merged bank. I even forgot about this recognition until several months later when my boss showed me a copy of AMA’s letter that had been sent to the bank CEO. Not knowing who I was (or even taking the time to find out and respond), he wrote a note across the top of the letter: “What’s this about?” The letter was sent to HR, forwarded to the senior VP in charge of the region where I worked, sent to my boss’s boss, and eventually landed on my boss’s desk. My boss then asked me to provide a write-up about my AMA involvement for the higher-ups … and I never heard about it again.

Come on, how difficult would it have been for the CEO or one of his regional officers to have followed up with a note or phone call? (Someone in the executive suite could have at least whited-out the “What’s this about?” at the top of the letter, scribbled “Nice job” in its place, and sent me a copy.)

My husband teased me as I wrote this post, “Get over it, already!” I did a long time ago. I just wanted to share this story because it reminded me that effective recognition doesn’t have to be expensive or extensive in terms of what it involves. The irony here is that AMA’s letter gave my employer an easy way to recognize an employee … but the CEO didn’t care. That was the message I took away from this experience.

Your turn

Have you ever been in a situation where employee recognition backfired? Would love to hear about it.

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Engagement Marketing

Employee Appreciation Day

What are your plans for celebrating Employee Appreciation Day coming up Friday, March 6, 2009?

Yes, Virginia, there is special day set aside for this. Given how stressed out many employees are these days, the event is worth considering.

You can find some great recognition ideas ranging from lunch with a mentor to a handwritten thank you note – ideas that are applicable at any time beyond this designated day.

And if you want to have fun recognizing employees, check out Funny Employee Awards’ gag trophies. (My personal favorites include “The Spammie Award” for an employee who excels in e-mail and “The Burning Rubber Award” to recognize the employee who’s out the door the fastest at closing time. You can also present this award to honor the team that helps the company speed past the competition or completes a project the fastest.)

I’m giving serious thought to personally celebrating this day. As a soloprenuer, I treat myself on Boss’s Day and Administrative Professionals Day, so why not Employee Appreciation Day? Especially since I qualify for my company’s Employee of the Month/Year award!

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Engagement Marketing

Engaging Talent

Before I get to the heart of this post, I’m thrilled to unveil my blog’s new look! I’ve been working on this for the past few months with graphic art designer Karin Choi, who’s extremely talented AND patient. Bless her and all creative design professionals who work with clients like me who know what we want, yet can’t articulate it. Thanks, Karin!

This week’s internal marketing message

Our current economic meltdown has given rise to a new urgency on engaging employees. Here are two perspectives on this issue.

In this month’s Tom Peters Times, consultant Valarie Willis reminds us that “the talent is the brand.”

“It is the talent in an organization that brings its brand to life. If the talent are no longer happy, if they are concerned about their own welfare, or they’ve hunkered down to stay out of sight, the brand may be on its last breath as well. And when the brand is struggling to survive, the impact is on the customer experience.”

To minimize brand dilution, she recommends organizations realign and reconnect the brand promise, employees [AKA “talent”], and customers.

In his white paper, Engagement and Appreciation in a Time of Crisis, Maritz employee engagement consultant Mel Van Dyke also acknowledges a growing number of employees are suffering from anxiety about job security and financial well-being. It’s hard to engage folks who find themselves on the lower rungs of Maslow’s hierarchy of needs. To address this challenge, Van Dyke offers employee-focused appreciation and recognition strategies.

“Thank you can never be said enough, especially now … Acknowledging not only the environment that key employees are now facing but also their individual contributions to success is a great way to keep employees focused on a positive work experience rather than an external labor market.”

Although their specific coping suggestions vary, both Willis and Van Dyke advocate the need to be more attentive and responsive to employees. We can’t afford to ignore our employees – those we’ve chosen to retain as well as those who’ve chosen to stay with us. We need their ideas, support, and perseverance to get through this financial mess.

 

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Engagement Marketing

Blog Milestone & Motivational Quote

This is truly a special week as it marks my 4th anniversary of blogging and my 250th post! Thanks to all my blog readers and fellow bloggers for your continued support and inspiration.

It’s time to refresh this blog’s looks, and I’m excited to announce my blog redesign is in the works and should be ready soon.

To honor the start of my 5th year blogging about internal marketing & communications, I chose to quote Frances Hesselbein about the underlying elements of an engaged workplace.

“Our behavior as well as our words build a climate of trust, a climate of respect, and a climate where mission, values, and equal access permeate the organization.

That is how we build the healthy, inclusive, and embracing relationships that unleash the human spirit. We can dismiss this as soft management and soft talk, but I challenge us to measure the performance of a team whose work is underscored by trust, civility, and good manners against a team where mistrust, disrespect, and lack of consideration are the rule of the day. No contest. Spirit, motivation, respect, and appreciation win every time. Dispirited, unmotivated, unappreciated workers cannot compete in a highly competitive world.”

This excerpt is from her 1992 book Hesselbein on Leadership, and her message is as relevant as ever.