How to Get Employee Engagement Right: What Works, What Doesn t, and Why Brandon Sullivan, Ph.D. Director of Organizational Effectiveness Colleen Manchester, Ph.D. Professor, Carlson School of Management
Introductions Brandon Sullivan, Ph.D. Director of Organizational Effectiveness at the University of Minnesota. Blends scientific expertise and Fortune 500 experience in employee engagement and leadership assessment. Prof. Colleen Manchester Joined Carlson faculty in 2007. Investigates firm incentives for provision of workplace practices and how they affect careers of employees.
Agenda The science of employee engagement What is it? Does it matter? Where does it come from? Common failure points that undermine engagement efforts How to assess and address existing programs
WHAT IS EMPLOYEE ENGAGEMENT? What does it look like? How do I recognized it?
We know Disengagement Disengagement Symptom-Checker Employees grudgingly invest extra time and energy in work The most talented people leave for new opportunities Leaders often have to nag to keep things moving When working together, progress is slow and frustrating Work quality meets minimum standards, but little more Group productivity is slipping or never really got going People sit back and wait for leaders to take action when faced with obstacles Important needs of key partners and stakeholders are not met Goals are scaled back and some are seen as overly ambitious
Popular Characterizations of Employee Engagement Employee engagement is a property of the relationship between an organization and its employees (Wikipedia) Employee engagement is the emotional commitment the employee has to the organization and its goals (Forbes) To avoid platitudes, every organization should define employee engagement to ensure that the information it is gathering from the workforce on can be put into practice. (Workforce.com) Instead of trying to define employee engagement, I want to know what an engaged employee looks like, how they behave while at work, and how to replicate that in the organization. (Businessweek.com)
Research on Employee Engagement Invested physically, cognitively, and emotionally at work (Kahn, 1990; Rich et al. 2010) Vigor Absorption Dedication
Does Engagement Matter? Strong connection between employee engagement and a wide range of outcomes, including employee turnover and firm financial performance (e.g., Harter, Schmidt, & Hayes, 2002) Why does it influence outcomes? Engagement shapes the quality of experiences and outcomes touched by employees Resilience and wellbeing Collaboration and innovation Sustaining a high-level of performance
What Creates Engagement? Think about a time when you were highly engaged Did any of these play a role? Your own personal approach to your work? A leader who helped you rise to the challenge? A work environment conducive to getting your work done? Feeling of urgency for completing the work? Absence of constraints or red tape? 13
Drivers of Engagement KEY DRIVERS Individual Characteristics Leadership Behaviors Job Hindrance Job Challenges Job Resources Vigor Absorption Dedication
A Closer Look at Drivers Sources: Christian et al., 2011, Crawford et al., 2010, Macey & Schneider, 2008, Shuck, 2011
Does Engagement Really Work? What is the ROI of doing a survey?
Does Engagement Really Work? What is the ROI of taking action to increase engagement?
Pros and Cons of Engagement Surveys Pros Communicates consistent expectations Efficient way to assess the work environment Provides useful data to people who can take action Future survey administrations assess change and progress Can be integrated into goal-setting, performance appraisal, leadership development, and other talent management processes Cons Common mistakes can undermine engagement and feed cynicism Requires sustained support and commitment from leaders Requires support from HR professionals with focus, interest, and expertise in this area Cost in time, money, staffing 9
The Challenge Many common engagement survey practices actually undermine engagement and do not advance business priorities and outcomes
Common Framework Identify business needs Evaluate outcomes Design survey Take action Administer survey Distribute reports
Common Mistake #1 Treating engagement as an HR tool rather than a business goal 10
Key to Success: Engagement is a way to get results Strategic priorities and goals: What are we trying to do? Goals and objectives of the organization Talent and culture practices: How will we succeed? Shared values, assumptions, and beliefs How people see, think about, and react to each other and events Behaviors that are expected, valued, and rewarded Results: Did we deliver? Degree and speed of success in delivering on strategic priorities depends on alignment of talent and culture practices 11
Common Mistake #2 Designing the process behind-the-scenes 22
Key to Success: Engage stakeholders from the start Stakeholders Senior leaders Mid-level and Front-Line Leaders HR professionals Employee engagement SMEs All employees Role Driving accountability for action Visibly supporting engagement as a business priority Modeling behaviors that build engagement Providing insight into business and culture priorities Sharing survey results with their teams Leading an inclusive action-planning process Addressing people and process issues that undermine engagement Understand engagement and how it relates to business objectives Inform the development of tools and resources for action-planning Provide guidance, support, and education to leaders Define and maintain roles and responsibilities among stakeholders Develop and articulate the business case for engagement Integrate multiple competing considerations to avoid common mistakes Respond to the survey with candor Hold leaders accountable for sharing results and taking action Provide productive, creative ideas and suggestions 23
Common Mistake #3 Lack of focus a survey that is too long, too complex, tries to do too much 16
Keep in mind that a camel is a horse designed by a committee 17
Key to Success: Focus on a small number of important, actionable items How to design a focused survey Treat survey space as very expensive real estate The goal is to get information to guide action, not to do a comprehensive, precise assessment For each item, identify a person or group empowered and willing to take action on the results Eliminate items that are relevant for a small number of people Ask two questions about each item: 1) is it aligned with research and 2) is it relevant for your organization s goals? Tailor the language so it resonates 18
Common Mistake #4 Treating engagement as a way to get employees to do more with less 19
Key to Success: Identify how you will invest in people Yes, discretionary effort, productivity, and performance are key benefits Also consider the employee perspective Prioritize engagement and create accountability for followthrough on action-plans Give employees good leaders and managers through careful selection and development Ensure that recognition and rewards are closely tied to the right behaviors and outcomes Consider your employment value proposition and align this with your engagement efforts 21
Common Mistake #5 Designing survey reports to focus on data 16
Key to Success: Design reports to focus on action Keep reports clean, simple, and straightforward Reports should help leaders identify key issues and begin discussions about how to address them Be careful of analysis paralysis 21
Common Mistake #6 Forgetting to focus on local action and accountability 12
Key to Success: Local action and accountability Engagement is a result of timely, meaningful action at the local level that creates a sense of purpose, trust, and support 80% Gallup findings (Lopez, 2013) Does your leader at work make you enthusiastic about the future? 60% 40% 20% 0% 69% Yes 1% No Engaged 14
Key to Success: Local action and accountability Methods for encouraging action and accountability Provide reports to leaders at all levels Make survey results transparent Integrate into goal-setting Include action-planning success in performance reviews Be careful of tying performance to engagement scores Provide useful, practical tools and resources Do not let leaders delegate engagement to HR If leaders do not think they own engagement, the most important thing to do is to change this mindset! 15
Is Your Organization Ready? Assess single points of failure in implementing employee engagement 24
Is Your Organization Ready? Five critical failure-points Can your senior leaders articulate why engagement is important for your organization? Do your mid-level and front-line leaders have the skills, motivation, and tools to take action on survey results? Are your HR professionals willing and able to champion engagement in the face of push-back from influential leaders? Do you have engagement SMEs who can make the business case to executives and integrate best-practices with the unique needs and culture of the organization? Do employees trust that their responses will be confidential and that their voices will be heard? 25
Assessing Your Engagement Program Definition of engagement How well does your definition align with scientific findings (vigor, dedication, absorption)? What is missing from your definition? What is in your definition that isn t really engagement? Do your survey items align with your definition?
Assessing Your Engagement Program Drivers of engagement What have you defined as drivers of engagement? Are these drivers supported by scientific research? How do they align with industry practices? What is missing from your model?
Assessing Your Engagement Program Engagement survey performance How well does your survey predict key outcomes? Financial performance Productivity Retention of top talent How does your survey s performance compare to scientific findings and industry practices?
Assessing Your Engagement Program Reporting and action-planning Do local leaders and teams get the data they need in a timely and user-friendly manner? Are local leaders and teams empowered and expected to take action on results?
Closing Thoughts A well-designed and implemented engagement process can drive organizational transformation and effectiveness Provides data, tools, and guidance for aligning talent, culture, and strategic priorities Enhances the quality and consistency of management Is embraced by leaders facing challenge and change Creates a more agile, efficient, productive workforce 27