OR (workscouncil), make everyone an ambassador!
Everyone an ambassador! Works Council members, together with your executive board, make your colleagues ambassadors for your own employer.
If you understand what happens at parties, in stores, and in all other social moments that you and your colleagues experience, then you’ll know what you need to do to make colleagues stay longer or come to you.
Many employees I speak with are not always direct fans or ambassadors of their employer. That means they don’t invite people to come and work with them when there is an opportunity. It’s actually a disappointing thought, isn’t it? Because if all colleagues were ambassadors, it would surely be easier to retain and attract people.
So, here’s a question for you as a reader: How is it with you and your colleagues?
Making colleagues ambassadors together is a wonderful shared goal. Who could be against that? It opens the door to good conversations to address various issues and make improvements. You will notice that it also energizes your Works Council because many of the topics you can address are appealing and genuinely improve the experience of your colleagues and, of course, the organization’s results. In the healthcare and welfare sector, working becomes more enjoyable when you have a better time because you feel more valued by your employer and your colleagues.
An important factor in taking employees on a positive journey is preventing stress among colleagues. Stress may sound heavy, but it can be caused by small things like leaving dirty cups, working sloppily, delivering poor quality work, being unkind to each other, ignoring each other, arriving late to meetings or responding slowly, speaking loudly, and so on. It is difficult for people to work pleasantly and relax if they are not stress-free. Therefore, it is essential for organizational leadership to pay attention to these stressors, some of which are influenced by factors within their control and others that are not. Sometimes, simply giving attention to these issues is enough for employees to accept them or deal with them neutrally or positively. Moreover, focusing on connection or autonomy can also bring peace. Many people believe that many stressors they face are beyond their control. Apart from the fact that the source of stress is often different from what is thought, a solution is often easily found when it is made discussable. Knowing what bothers you about others or what disturbs others about you can have a strongly positive influence on collaboration. Giving employees the attention they deserve.
If your employees are your greatest asset, investing in such matters is definitely not excessive. In my search for other information, I came across the following, sometimes supplemented or made more specific by me, but certainly worth considering.
Take it with you to your meeting after making an agreement that you want to turn your employees into ambassadors for your organization. This way, you have some concrete tips to work on.
To help you, here is a list of tips to make employees more engaged.
25 tips to increase employee engagement:
Engaged employees are the best ambassadors and the most valued asset of any organization. Employee engagement is the natural result of a culture that puts people at the center. However, people don’t usually engage on their own. Increasing engagement requires action at all levels, from leadership to every individual contributor.
It’s a comprehensive task, made a bit more challenging by the fact that many employees prefer (partially) working from home. In a recent survey by TNO, as many as one in three employees expressed their desire to work fully remotely. How is it in your organization? How do you know how many people want to work from home regularly and are well facilitated, and who definitely don’t?
In this piece, I have compiled our top tips for employee engagement. These tips will help you get everyone on board and keep them engaged, increase productivity, and, in short, boost engagement. Choose a few to start with and gradually integrate more and more ideas to increase employee engagement. Investing in employees pays off with a more dedicated and productive team.
1. It starts with onboarding (how you welcome and train new people)
Thoughtful onboarding ensures that people become engaged from day one or even earlier. A good onboarding experience is the first step toward engagement throughout their career with the organization. Use elements that help build relationships, create a welcoming atmosphere, clearly communicate expectations, and quickly provide important sources of information.
2. Empower people in their own work
Implement a “managing up” culture where people take control of their workload and their relationship with managers. When you give people the opportunity to shape their own careers, you encourage them to play a more active role in their career development and care more about what they do on a daily basis. A performance management plan with frequent performance reviews can help with this.
3. Foster a sense of community
Encourage people to connect with each other through affinity groups. Help employees discover what makes them as a group special and encourage them to deepen their bond with each other and the organization.
4. Provide benefits that employees truly want
And make sure they are aware of them. Tailor secondary employment packages to their interests (and to the secondary benefits offered by competitors) so that employees have another reason to stay.
5. Encourage top-down transparency
Regular team, departmental, and company-wide updates or meetings involving all employees keep them informed and engaged at all levels of the organization. One-on-one conversations between managers and team members also contribute to this. This brings employees closer to decision-makers, making them feel more empathy for leadership even in difficult times.
6. Discover and showcase employees’ strengths
Encourage people to share their unique talents and use them in the workplace. Whether it’s hosting a concert or talent show or translating an email into Japanese.
7. Create traditions
As strange as it may sound, creating team and company-wide traditions is a great way to build loyalty and connection throughout the year. Whether it’s a birthday treat, a Thursday afternoon beer, or an annual Halloween costume contest with a theme, traditions give people something to look forward to.
8. Communicate as much as possible
Effective internal communication motivates 85% of professionals to become more engaged in the workplace, according to Trade Press Services. See this as an opportunity to communicate openly about goals, news, mission, and vision.
9. Invest in learning and development
Offer training and development opportunities. After all, 70% of modern professionals would leave their current job to work for an organization known for its investments in employee development and training.
10. Offer flexible work structures
Remote work and flexible hours are top priorities for the modern workforce. That’s why people who work remotely 60% to 80% of the time are most likely to strongly agree that their engagement needs are being met.
11. Build trust
Relationships are strengthened when you respond to your own mistakes with authenticity, vulnerability, and honesty instead of shifting blame or, worse, pretending the mistake never happened. Create a culture where mistakes are allowed. This enables the organization to learn much more. Additionally, as a leader, regularly ask employees for advice and act on it. This shows trust, appreciation, and respect. Moreover, it can help find a solution that you hadn’t thought of yourself.
12. Prioritize health
There’s a reason why workplace well-being programs have been growing in popularity recently. People who report a higher sense of well-being enjoy their work more, are more likely to recommend their workplace to others, are less likely to leave, and are more loyal to their teams. Actively prioritize work-life balance as well. Ensure
that employees need to spend as little time as possible on work-related tasks during their personal time and communicate that to them. This way, your intention and behavior are congruent, which builds trust.
13. Create an inclusive environment for everyone
A workplace with true trust and open communication allows even the newest junior employee to feel comfortable giving constructive feedback to the CEO. That is true openness – when there is no fear of repercussions and employees are honest about difficult things.
14. Commit to a diverse and inclusive workplace
A truly diverse and inclusive organization can play a significant role in engagement, especially among younger generations. According to Deloitte, 83% of millennials feel actively engaged when they believe their organization fosters an inclusive culture.
15. Automate, automate, automate
Is there anything more tedious than repetitive work? Fortunately, modern software can automate a lot of tasks, such as HR administration, paperwork, reporting, and approvals. This allows employees to focus on the work they are passionate about and leaves room for creativity.
16. Measure engagement effectively
Engagement may be qualitative, but that doesn’t mean it’s impossible to measure. If you really want to get an idea of employee engagement, data needs to be collected. There are various options for this, including employee engagement surveys and initiatives, the Employee Net Promoter Score, Glassdoor reviews, and voluntary employee turnover, to name a few.
17. Be transparent in decision-making
According to Glassdoor, 96% of job seekers say it’s essential to work for a company that is transparent. Make decision-making considerations, strategic thinking, goals, and vision public. Ensure everyone has easy access to information about secondary benefits, development, and performance.
18. Show empathy
When executives, managers, and HR professionals show empathy, it can have a tremendous impact on people’s experiences in the workplace. It is so crucial that 80% of people say they are willing to quit their job if they can find an employer who shows more empathy.
19. Set the cultural tone from the top: lead by example
Teaching by doing is not just a principle in parenting; it is also relevant to organizations. If the top people in your organization do not actively embody the company’s values and culture, those further down the chain will not take them seriously. A positive and engaging company culture starts from the top.
20. Assess strengths
Employees thrive when they focus on their strengths. To help them, it is important to recognize those strengths early on so they can fully utilize their potential throughout their career with the organization.
21. Provide (personal) coaching: a worthwhile investment
To thrive, people need more than just management; they also need coaching. Setting up a coaching or mentoring program can engage people in their work and help them bring out their best. It prevents them from becoming unbalanced, they appreciate it as a “gift” from the employer, and they often become more valuable individuals for the organization, both professionally and personally. Investments at this level often prevent burnout or stress-related absences.
22. Get out of the office
Looking for another way to prevent the energy and culture in your company from becoming stale? Take every opportunity to get up and leave the office. Seize every opportunity, from external company events to conferences, from working remotely to team lunches or happy hours. This keeps things exciting and helps relationships grow, strengthening employees’ appreciation for the organization.
23. Celebrate success and failure
Rewarding people for their hard work and accomplishments is a proven way to ensure they feel recognized, valued, and engaged. Additionally, make it a priority to create a company culture that encourages people to try even their wildest ideas, as long as they quickly learn from their mistakes and move forward.
24. Have a purpose as an organization
According to McKinsey research, 70% of professionals say their work largely determines their sense of purpose. Giving employees a meaningful mission to work towards and the feeling of making positive changes for the organization and society is key to genuine engagement.
25. Don’t forget offboarding
Offboarding is a valuable opportunity to engage employees, even when they are leaving. Organizing a farewell party helps maintain strong connections, show gratitude, and indicate that all employees are valued, regardless of where their path takes them.
Need help developing this proposal for your own Works Council or for the executive board?
Hielke is happy to help you shape it:
Call or email for a free initial advice.
hielke@hbuor.nl
06 151 89 257
Customized training for the Works Council
If you would like personal advice on destressing as a chairperson or secretary, I would also be happy to hear from you by email or phone.
These tips are adapted from Frankwatching.
Original title: “25 ideas for increasing employee engagement”
Author: Yoss Perl, who works at Hibob.
