According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the number of employees who left their jobs pursuing new opportunities increased in 2021. This wave of resignations is in full swing as many employees consider leaving their jobs. It is why many businesses today are trying to figure out the best ways to keep their teams intact.
The most effective strategy for increasing employee retention rates and retaining top talent is to improve employee engagement and create a company culture that encourages and supports it. Higher salaries aren’t enough to prevent your employees from making a switch.
You must also develop good employee engagement ideas and activities to promote employee engagement at your company and keep your employees satisfied and happy. It will encourage them to stay and work for your company.
Set Clear Goals That Employees Are a Part of
Make sure that everyone fully understands the purpose of what you’re doing. The more you focus on the benefits for customers and society, the easier it is to do a good job. Also, set clear and relevant short- and medium-term goals and break down the goals to the level where the employee can directly influence them.
Good goals must be concrete, realistic and measurable – and they must be followed up often. Also, remember always to celebrate when goals and milestones have been achieved, so your employees feel appreciated and valued.
Include Employees in Development and Change
Ask your employees how they would like to develop the business to achieve the set goals together. A plan of change developed by the top management risks encountering resistance, while the same plan developed with staff participation is more likely to succeed.
For positive changes to occur, you must be a dynamic role model, remove barriers, ensure learning, provide resources to your employees, and support your staff through change. Take advantage of the creativity born in meetings between different perspectives and between employees’ diverse backgrounds and interests.
Develop Skills in the Business
Countless studies show that our performance is greatly affected by our expectations of ourselves and each other. Assume that every team member always gives their all and takes full responsibility for their actions.
Also, trust that everyone can develop new skills and become so much more than they are today. Look for hidden talents and encourage colleagues to use each other’s knowledge. Don’t miss an opportunity to commend them on meeting the high expectations and generously give them praise and a company-wide shoutout.
Give Feedback and Praise Actions and Behaviors
Praise is an effective spreader of joy and a powerful tool for impacting. The thing you praise often will be reinforced, mainly if you focus on concrete actions and behaviors. It can also be important to be clear about things that do not work well but let criticism be a fraction of your feedback.
Only raise issues that the individual or group has the opportunity to influence, and never criticize an individual employee in front of other colleagues. In addition, it is a good idea to encourage employees to provide each other feedback on their performance.
Prioritize Workplace Safety
Although this might not sound like a topic that will inspire many amusing activities, the workplace is vital. Safety measures in specific industries are required by law because of the inherent dangers and hazards.
However, even when working in traditional workplaces and offices, people are still concerned about their overall safety, especially amid the Covid-19 pandemic. If your employees can finish their work assignments and projects from anywhere, you might want to rethink calling everyone back to the office as this could negatively impact you.
Develop the Organization by Learning From Each Other
Organizations and companies that succeed in incorporating learning into their daily work have a greater opportunity to succeed in the long run. Make sure that there is room in the planning to learn from each other and evaluate completed projects and other efforts. Encourage employees to share their special skills, perhaps in the form of a mini-lecture over a coffee or during the lunch break.
Together with each employee, try to set which long-term goals and responsibilities they should strive for. Also, document strengths and areas for development and support the employee wants.
Have more comfortable spaces in the workplace
Comfort is a big factor in why many employees want to continue working from home. So if you want to keep your team intact, you may want to build spaces that provide comfort and encourage social time between your employees.
A simple example is an employee lounge with a dedicated coffee area. After all, teams love a good coffee break. Take it the extra mile by having fancier accessories. You can let your employees use a Burr grinder, an espresso machine, or a high-tech coffee maker. Additionally, keep a good variety of coffees in stock.
With spaces like these, you can increase motivation and build a positive workplace culture.
Final Thoughts
Applying these actionable employee engagement ideas and activities will retain employees increase productivity and your company’s success. The steps to improving employee engagement don’t have to be complicated, but they must certainly be prioritized. Simply said, it must be at the core of your business operations, and this way, everything else will fall into place.