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September 1, 2009

Is Employee Engagement Passé?

By Peter Barron Stark and Jane Flaherty

1. Stay Positive

Your team is looking to you for hope, support, and confidence. For your success, and the morale of your team, it is important that you keep a positive vision and remain upbeat by using strategies like these:

• Choose your words carefully. Use positive language.
• Learn something new. Teach someone else.
• Set new professional goals for the week, month, and year.
• Hang out with positive people.
• Show support for senior leadership’s strategic goals and direction.
• Fix a problem.
• Forbid whining and gossip.
• Do something you love each day.
• Be grateful for what you have.

2. Communicate, Communicate, Communicate

During these troubled times, communicate more, not less. Employees are hungry for information, even when the news is not good. It is important to hold regular meetings and keep employees updated. Withholding information, for fear that things will change, or feeling that employees do not need to know all the details, erodes trust with employees. They always know when something is up. Help them understand the challenging circumstances the business is facing and why certain decisions are being made.

Share the company plans for persevering and your confidence in successfully navigating these difficult times. Keep employees in the loop and provide frequent updates. Employees who are on the front line have good ideas about streamlining processes, cutting costs, or raising customer satisfaction. Ask for insights, and act upon them. If you don’t keep employees updated, they will keep themselves updated, with gossip, which is always richer than reality.

Regular meetings with employees are important. So are one-on-one conversations. Ask employees how they are doing. Find out what they need from you to be successful. Ask for any ideas that they may have to help the company survive during the economic downturn. Asking questions and listening to your employees’ responses shows your concern and helps build trust and confidence in leadership.