In addition to employee satisfaction employee engagement plays an important role in every organisation. Involved employees are up to 43% more productive. In addition, these employees are more loyal, which means they are less likely to leave the organisation and think further than the average employee. Thanks to employee engagement, the competitive edge of organisations can grow.

Definition employee involvement

An engaged employee shows positive behaviour towards the organisation and its values. This involvement strongly determines the motivation, enthusiasm, pride and emotional commitment of employees. As a result, engaged employees are more likely to go the extra mile when needed. This shows that engaged employees are more aware of the context of the organisation and work with colleagues to improve individual performance for the benefit of the organisation. This results in higher productivity and less undesirable staff turnover.

Key factors of employee involvement

As shown above, a higher level of involvement leads to improved performance. But how can involvement be encouraged or even created? You can find the main factors of employee involvement below:

1. Perception of significance

When employees understand that their work content and organisation have an impact on the environment, this will lead to higher involvement. That is why it is important for employees not to lose sight of the final product that is being created, even when they are not directly responsible for it.

2. Fulfilled expectations

Without a clear objective and the right resources, employees are more focused on "surviving" than they are on adding value to the organisation. It is important to manage expectations and to communicate transparantly at all times.

3. Opportunities for development

Both at the individual level and department level, opportunity for development is very important. Employees want to be able to make their mark and to be part of improvements. When they are left out of important decisions, involvement will decrease.

4. Feedback and dialogue

It's only human for employees to need confirmation every once in a while. Not every end product is physical, which means that employees need feedback in order to know how they did. The yearly performance review is not sufficient here. A simple "well done!" when someone did a good job is at least as important.

5. Inspiring leadership

Without a clear vision or values, it is very difficult for employees to be involved in the organisational interest.

Apparently, sometimes a change in behaviour is needed in order to have more involvement and that takes time. Often this change is about communication between departments and employees. Sometimes managers are not aware that they forget to give a compliment or start a dialogue. Awareness is therefore perhaps even more important than the actual involvement itself.

Literature

Bockerman, Petri; Ilmakunnas, Pekka (2012). "The Job Satisfaction Productivity Nexus: A Study Using Matched Survey and Register Data". Industrial and Labor Relations Review. 65 (2): 244–262.

Crim, Dan; Gerard H. Seijts (2006). "What Engages Employees the Most or, The Ten Cs of Employee Engagement.". Ivey Business Journal. Retrieved 2013-01-24.

Lockwood, Nancy R. "Leveraging Employee Engagement for Competitive Advantage: HR's Strategic Role." HRM magazine Mar. 2007: 1-11.

7 September 2016