A focus on holistic systems, not targeted programs

Engaging employees is hard work. There, I’ve said it. After 25 years dedicated to employee engagement and leading conversations globally, I know that there is no magic bullet. There is no one-time quick fix to driving engagement that leads consistently to an organization’s performance. 

Let’s be clear. When a leader is asking for employee engagement, they are not talking about happy employees, they are talking about productive employees who deliver with pride and passion. 

When searching Employee Engagement on the world wide web, what often comes up are lists of engagement programs…the top 15, 25, 49 employee engagement ideas. They include program ideas like volunteering, celebrations, taking team photos, conduct team building sessions, create a magazine, and have fun! Passionate HR professionals take these ideas, choose a few that fit into their budgets, and start party planning. Not too long after, they are working on the next program or event to keep up the momentum when real work sets in and the excitement starts to fade. 

People leaders need to be challenged to think beyond programs and instead focus on holistic systems that create the culture and environment where engagement lives and thrives. A system is a set of interacting or interdependent component parts forming a complex or intricate whole.1 Every system is delineated by its spatial and temporal boundaries, surrounded and influenced by its environment, described by its structure and purpose and expressed in its functioning.

So what does that mean exactly?

An Engagement plan must begin by clearly articulating the right measurable goals. Inner Strength Communication helps clients set goals against the following four Ps2:

• Performance – What are the business goals that signal success?

• Participation – What do employees need to do (and by when) to deliver those business goals?

• Promotion – What should managers and employees say to customers, friends and family?

• Proud – What about the organization or initiatives will make employees feel proud? 

It is not by accident that the goals are linked to the business results. This can set the stage for a different engagement conversation and much different solutions. 

Once goals are set, components of the system need to be considered.

Every engagement system has foundational elements that must exist. What is the strategic plan? Does the organization have a vision, mission, values, culture and beliefs? Are their policies and directions in place to guide behavior? Without clearly articulated foundations in place, it is difficult to define what successful engagement looks like.

Training and communication are key elements of engagement. It surprising how many organizations believe that once a plan is built, employees will instinctively be aware it exists; understand its intention; respond appropriately; and rally behind it. When the plan involves change, the truth is that it is more likely to be met with resistance versus support that can often derail an organization’s efforts.

Recognition is core to engagement system and needs to be reviewed thoroughly. Whether it is a simple thank you or rewards for individual and team efforts, organizations must ensure there are alignments versus disconnects. Recognizing the wrong behavior can have devastating consequences.

Successful organizations with engaged employees are accountable for results. They encourage transparent conversation and dialogue and benefit from the trust that is needed to drive the discretionary effort they are looking for from employees. They are also experts at helping employees share their stories. 

In North America, it has been interesting to see technology companies and start-ups shift their focus from customer-focused system development to employee-focused systems that help organizations drive productivity. Initial operational systems focused on building information and enterprise resources systems to create foundational data bases for customer relationship management, supplier management and transportation management. Added to them were a variety of one-off plug-ins to manage learning (Learning Management Systems), recognition (recognition and rewards systems), communication (intranets, websites, mobile apps), research (Survey Monkey) and social sharing (yammer and Jive).

Today’s developers are looking at integrated systems to drive engagement that is focused on creating consistent employee experiences. Finally! A holistic focus on people and the processes to help them perform, participate, promote and be proud. 

What does this mean for those passionate about people? Be ready to collaborate.  Understand how processes and systems work together to drive engagement or disengagement. Set clear goals to ensure everyone involved is working together and going in the same direction. 

The future of engagement is not about a quick fix to make people happy but about taking a step back and imagining what is truly possible when people, processes, and systems work together to accomplish great things. 

1, 2   Priya Bates, Inner Strength Communication Inc.

www.innerstrengthcommunication.com/priya.bates@innerstrengthcommunication.com