The Great Resignation has taught employers everywhere how difficult it is to attract and retain talent. So, how can employers achieve this goal that may seem out of reach?
Successful talent attraction and employee retention come down to employee engagement and happiness. For more perspective, here are a few key stats that highlight the importance of employee engagement in the workplace:
- Companies with high employee engagement are 21% more profitable.
- Low employee engagement costs companies between $450-$550 billion each year.
- Business units with high engagement levels and engaged employees increase productivity by 17%, sales by 20%, and customer ratings by 10%.
Your organization can build a sustainable path to helping your employees feel a meaningful connection between their work and your organization by implementing employee engagement strategies. Whether your company is fully functioning in-office, remote, or hybrid settings, below are four ideas to improve employee engagement.
Seamless Onboarding
Making sure your employees start on the right foot with a seamless onboarding process is integral to their engagement down the road. This is especially important in a remote environment. Successful onboarding should begin before your new hire’s first day. Providing resources through an onboarding portal soon after your new employee receives a job offer is ideal for setting employees up for success. This portal can include a welcoming message to the new hire, an employee handbook, information to expect on the first day, and a list of beneficial resources to read through.
Practice Your Vision, Mission, and Values
Your organization may have a set of values or a vision statement, but how is your company putting that into practice? How are you showing your employees that the work they do is incorporated into your vision, mission, and values? Listing your company values on your website or company handbook isn’t enough. Suppose your company is heavily invested in a philanthropic effort, such as helping the environment like Nike. In that case, your company should strive to show how you’re an active participant in leading this cause. Sharing your purpose with your employees will help employees feel highly engaged and connected to you as an employer.
Know the Difference Between Communicating the Right and Wrong Way
Effective employee communication is powerful. Yet, many employers don’t take the time to do it correctly. 86% of employees and executives cite the lack of effective collaboration and communication as the leading causes of workplace failures. Building a healthy, collaborative culture that fosters meaningful communication is essential for employee engagement. So, what does this mean for employers? It starts with creating an open communication channel for employees and their direct reports, so employees can feel comfortable sharing their honest feedback. Trust and regular check-ins are valuable ways to build regular, transparent communication. In return, employees will seek out regular feedback and have the resources to excel at work.
Encourage Healthy Work Habits
Healthy work habits are critical to productivity, employee happiness, and productivity. Promote a healthy work-life balance actively for your employees. This can mean checking up on your employees’ well-being, encouraging breaks, and a flexible work schedule. Ensuring your employees are cared for will increase retention and success.
For employers looking to avoid the dangerous pitfalls of the Great Resignation, whether it’s the loss of employees or potential brand reputational damage or simply boosting employee retention efforts, practicing employee engagement will remain essential for long-term success.
At Accurate, we take pride in investing in our employees, ensuring they are given the right tools for success, and creating an environment where each person can thrive. It’s why Accurate Background has dozens of employees who have been with us from the very start.
We invite you to hear our employees share their Accurate stories of how they’ve continued to grow with our company for several years and counting.
