Research and insights can play a key role in uncovering where the issues lie regarding unengaged employees within your business. By finding the issues, you can begin developing an exciting and perhaps even ground-breaking strategy to improve the workplace for your employees and boost engagement.
Here are five ways to use R&I to increase employee engagement.
Changing perspective
Look at how your workplace appears to an external audience. If you were a consumer and the employees appear to be unhappy, unmotivated or disengaged - or if the workplace as a whole appears to be a negative experience - then imagine how the employees feel experiencing this situation 9-5, five days a week? First see if there are obvious solutions that can be made, do they need an extra 15-minute break? Better computers or equipment to get the task done? Perhaps even a good coffee machine might fix some of the minor issues. Then it is important to dig deeper and see where the real issues lie that are causing this obvious disengagement. No stone should be left unturned if it means a happier, engaged and rewarding experience for your employees.
Surveys and feedback
Surveys are a great way to gain insight into the general attitude of your employees. Tailor your questions so that you will receive clear and detailed answers; make them interesting and pointed towards each area of the business where improvement could be made. However, make sure these surveys aren’t long or boring, otherwise those partaking will rush through and click the answer they think you want to hear in order to get it over with. It’s also a good idea, if possible, to allow those partaking to remain anonymous so that they’re more likely to be truthful and less reserved with their answers.
The data collected from surveys can also be pretty handy for measuring the success of your engagement solutions too! You’re able to see whether the action you have taken has increased opinion or, resulted in a decline; you might even have responses that highlight issues that you hadn’t noticed. This data gives you the tools to tailor future campaigns or actions so that they directly respond to the issues put forward to you by employees.
A total of 89% of HR leaders believe on-going peer feedback and regular check-ins are essential for engaging employees. (Society for Human Resource Management and Globoforce)
Have that conversation
Don’t be afraid to start a conversation with your employees about how they’re feeling. Personal conversations allow people to open up more than they perhaps would over a survey – it might even make them feel more confident in expressing their feelings to you. Engaging with and actively listening to your employees results in some interesting insights into how they feel working for your company – and can even result in an increase in engagement knowing that they’re being listened to!
Apps/ notice boards
Following on from the above point, communication is an important part in keeping your employees engaged, but it can also be a great way to pinpoint areas that could benefit from improvement. Utilising an employee app or hub removes any disconnect and is a great way to keep conversation flowing throughout the business, especially with many employees now working from home during the COVID-19 pandemic. Take a look at our blog on how employee apps can help boost engagement.
Research is key!
Look for new ways to boost employee engagement and get creative. Twitter, blogs, word of mouth, finding and introducing new and exciting methods to keep employees engaged keeps you ahead of your competitors, and actively shows your team that you’re serious about putting their needs and workplace improvement at the forefront.
Want to delve deeper into employee satisfaction in your workplace? Drop us an email at anythingspossible@drpgroup.com or call us on 0844 682 5989 to discuss how we can find and produce the perfect solution for you. In the meantime, take a look at our latest blog on 6 methods to help you better engage your employees.