Extending the quick “Good Morning” exchange at the office may be the key to a more productive workforce.
It may seem counter-intuitive to encourage personal conversation at the office, but it may be the solution to increased productivity and innovation. Over the past few weeks we’ve focused our posts on information from Gallup’s State of the American Workforce report. In regard to employee engagement and the bottom line, a common theme emerges: the modern workplace is changing.
Improving the bottom line for most businesses still depends on improving performance, but this only happens by meeting the changing needs of the workforce. Amidst this change, Gallup’s 12 Elements of Employee Engagement remain constant because they repeatedly “improve individual, team and organizational performance”.
First Things First: The 12 Elements of Employee Engagement:
- I know what is expected of me at work.
- I have the materials and equipment I need to do my work right.
- At work, I have the opportunity to do what I do best every day.
- In the last seven days, I have received recognition or praise for doing good work.
- My supervisor, or someone at work, seems to care about me as a person.
- There is someone at work who encourages my development.
- At work, my opinions seem to count.
- The mission or purpose of my company makes me feel my job is important.
- My associates or fellow employees are committed to doing quality work.
- I have a best friend at work.
- In the last six months, someone at work has talked to me about my progress.
- This last year, I have had opportunities at work to learn and grow.
How can such subjective statements affect the success of your business? Where are the questions that measure job performance and completion? Organic growth is a result of the innovation and productivity of fulfilled employees. Through our research into the topic, employee engagement and the bottom line, it’s become increasingly evident that meeting human desires to learn and grow is “required to keep employees motivated and progressing”.
By increasing the ratio of workers who strongly agree that their opinions seem to count at work from 30% to 60%, organizations could see:
- a 12% increase in productivity
- a 27% reduction in turnover
- a 40% reduction in safety incidents
By increasing the ratio of people who feel fellow employees are committed to doing quality work from 30% to 60%, organizations could see:
- a 11% improvement in profit
- a 29% reduction in turnover and absenteeism
- a 6% increase in engaged customers
The 12 elements give insight for answering four fundamental questions of employee satisfaction.
- Do I get what I need?
- How do I contribute?
- Do I belong here?
- How can I grow?
By making sure your employees have positive answers to these questions using the 12 elements as a starting point for discussion, you cultivate an environment of growth and development for your company.
For more information on the 12 elements check out Gallup’s Q12 Employee Engagement web page.
Talencio has been the preferred provider of vetted, accomplished professionals to the Life Sciences community for over nine years. To learn more about how other medical device, bio-pharma, health IT and healthcare companies have partnered with us and tapped into our skilled professional talent pool, contact us at 612.703.4236 or email.
Source:
Gallup State of the American Workforce Report