Employee Engagement Employee Engagement Programme

Question: Discuss about the Employee Engagement for Employee Engagement Programme. Answer: Introduction Human Resource Management is an important factor for any company's success. Managers are of the agreement that the modern business need more efficiency and higher productivity. One way of gaining competitive advantage is through developing satisfied and talented employees. Satisfied employees always want to work for an organization for a longer period, contribute to high productivity and workforce stability. However, things have changed, and employees' satisfaction does not guarantee productivity and high profitability (Abraham, 2012, p. 28). The employer should motivate the employees to apply their full capabilities and potential to their jobs. Employees need to be valued and recognized so as to be available for the company. One method of employees' recognition is known as employee engagement in company operations. Employee engagement is defined as a tool used by company's gain competitiveness and maintains it (Dernovsek, 2008, p. 42). This paper provides an overview of employee engagement and its effects on the company's operations. More specifically, the paper investigates different methods used by companies to promote engagement among its workforce. The Frishco Company is one of such organizations that has implemented different methods of engagement as discussed in the paper. The study also elaborates on the symptoms, causes, and consequences of employee disengagement on companies. Lastly, the most effective engagement methods based on the current level of competition, technological advancement, and economic issues have been discussed (Attridge, 2009, p. 384). The Frishco's success can be attributed to several engagement methods that it has employed in its operations. Following a study conducted by the organization to identify the best ways of engaging its employees, Frishco has so far implemented the methods discussed below: Changing the organizational culture and communication style to fit the employees Frishco developed an employee-centred culture that focussed on effective engagement. The company gives its employees an opportunity to air their voices about the necessary changes that ought to the made. The employees are always encouraged to present their feedback on either their satisfaction or dissatisfaction the firm's operations (Gallup, 2006, p. 43). Frishco has implemented the following ways to enhance sharing information between the management and the employees. The release of internal employee magazine known as the "Your Frishco" which is used to familiarize the employees with the company's leadership style, organizational structure, and culture as well as employees views about the company. Morning briefing which informs the shop floor teams about their daily operations in additional to the latest sale statistics. Intranet which allows sharing of information between the management and the employees as well as among the employees themselves. The intranet enables the employees the operational aspects to focus on instead of information being pushed on them. Employee forums which allow the employees to present their opinions, issues affecting them to the management. The forum is also used to gather the employees' ideas on the company's strategies. Frishco has created a scheme known as the (Bright Ideas" that motivates employees on sharing their innovative and creative ideas aimed at improving the organization. Based on the views collected from the employees, the approaches have been proved to be effective. Frishco has focused on the democratic style of leadership where the employees are allowed to make decisions and share their views as well. The ideas presented by the employees are used to make continuous firm's improvement (Bakker, A Schaufeli, 2008, p. 153). Frishco has developed a culture that encourages respect and trust among its stakeholders. The management has embarked on internal leadership development to encourage employees, company's and stakeholders' development in the following ways: Talent plotting where the management spots talented employees and develops them into leaders. Coaching and mentoring where coaches and mentors guide junior employees through face-to-face interaction and structured feedback. The strategy has enabled building strong and positive relationships, reinforce trust and develop managerial skills at Frishco (Price, 2011, p. 67). Support networks: managers from different departments meet on a monthly basis to share views and ideas on improving the company's performance. The decisions made during the meetings are then shared with the employees to gather their views. Frishco Company recognizes the importance of promoting the employees' intrinsic values. For the purpose of career development, the company encourages job enrichment, job enlargement, and job rotation (Armstrong, 2010, p. 111). Through cross-departmental experiences, the employees are developed personally. Likewise, the management encourages its employees to undertake new and challenging yet achievable tasks through a process known as job enlargement. The company has conducted four surveys to determine the impact of employees' engagement in its general operations. The results showed that there is increased sales volume, effective decision making and customers' satisfaction which are attributed to improvement performance by the employees (Torrington, et al., 2008, p. 132). Likewise, the employees have become aware of their roles and responsibilities in the organization. 91% of the employees who took part in the surveys stated that they were happy with the company because their efforts are high recognized and appreciated. The Frishco's employee turnover has reduced by half over the last five years (Wellins, 2005, p. 98). The findings from the research show that employee engagement has a positive impact on both the employees and organizational performance. Frishco has recognized that employees are an asset it cannot do without. Employees' disengagement is attributed to increased cost, loss of productivity, and hindered efficiency. Some symptoms of employee disengagement include high employee turnover, lack of passion and undermining the operating guidelines offered by the management (Kahn, 1990, pp. 693-712). Disengaged employees have the following commonalities; The jobs are not personally purposeful and meaningful. The employees lack the sense of self-autonomy and determination. The employees believe that the rules are applied partially and unfairly. The management does not provide useful and constructive feedback on the queries raised by the employees. There is no supportive relationship between the management and the employees as well as among the employees. The job lacks opportunities for personal development. Some of the causes of employee disengagement are; Lack of adequate training and development for the employees. Reduced compensation benefits for the employees Existence of employee-management conflicts Consequences of employee disengagement Kills employees' morale Actively disengaged workforce is more likely to cause dissatisfaction and disruption in the company compared to the actively engaged employees. Dissatisfaction of employees leads to lack of morale to perform their duties. Demoralized employees have a negative impact on the organization's performance (Karsan, 2011, p. 54). Disengagement decreases productivity There is a correlation between the level of employees' engagement and their productivity. As compared to actively engaged employees who use fewer resources to earn more money for their firms, disengaged employees earn less revenue for their companies (Graen, 2008, p. 74). The level of engagement among the employees is used as a pivot to measure the success of any organization in meeting its goals and objectives. In this regards, a company experiencing employee disengagement would fail in meeting its organizational goals. Employee disengagement negatively affects customers Discontent among the employees does not stop at the business' front line. Customers have become more sensitive to the issue affecting organizational and are more likely to respond accordingly. Excellent customer services lead to brand loyalty and consumer loyalty. Employee engagement creates a positive bond between the employees and the customers. However, disengaged employees lack the pride and enthusiasm to increase/ improve the customer satisfaction (Karsan, 2011, p. 55). When customers sense that employees' are unhappy with the general operations of the company, they tend to switch to other companies to enhance their satisfaction. Therefore, when examining employee disengagement, it is important to identify the correlation between customer satisfaction and employee engagement (Leiter Bakker , 2010, p. 108). Disengaged employees are full of excuses Disengaged employees will always look for false excuses to leave an organization. For example, they are likely to pretend that they are sick but in a real sense, they are busy looking for greener pastures. The points explain why there is a direct correlation between dissatisfaction and high rates of employee turnover. When employees feel that their personal development is not catered for, they won't put more effort in meeting the organizational goals but instead, look for exit strategies (Cartwright Holmes, 2006, pp. 199-203). Disengaged employees are associated with health problems and experiencing negative feelings. Employee disengagement is linked to depression and anxieties. The employees are emotionally exhausted, unhappy with their employers and cynical (Robison, 2010). With the lack of stress management mechanisms, work related stresses are likely to be transferred into homes leading to social problems. Disengaged employees are not good ambassadors for their companies. They do not recommend their company as the best place to work in. Likewise, they do not urge their friends and family members to use the company's products or services (Abraham, 2012, p. 30). Conversely, the employees are less creative and innovative and share new production ideas with other employees. Disengaged employees are not committed towards meets the customer and organizational needs. The impact of employee disengagement shows that the phenomenon brings more harm to an organization. The methods of employee engagement are dynamic, and any organization should be alert to such changes and invent new strategies aimed at making irresistible to the worker for. In the case of Frishco Company, the following, methods should be involved in employee engagement. Improved compensation benefits A lot of surveys have shown that compensation and benefits package are important drivers of employee satisfaction. Although compensation is not an engagement factor but rather a hygiene factor, employees are more likely to leave a company with poor compensation packages (Dernovsek, 2008, p. 88). Compensation improves the engagement level of employees in meeting the organizational needs. Making jobs look meaningful Frishco should ensure that the jobs fit personal development. Jobs should provide the employees with the autonomy and tools to succeed. The company should select the right people to perform the right jobs (Bakker, A Schaufeli, 2008, p. 121). The organization should recognize that jobs are transformed by technological advancement and align its jobs requirements with the current technology. Technology contributes to less expense in human input and more productivity. Studies have shown that when jobs are enriched, offering the employees more autonomy, the power and liberty to make decisions, support, and time, the firm earns more money. Frishco will have a higher profitability level when the employees are given more power to control their jobs (Karsan, 2011, p. 55). Aligning jobs to employee needs increases engagement rates, high level of employee retention and productivity level. Fostering great management Management refers to the continuous activities used by the managers to support, align and guide their employees. Managers have the responsibility to develop internal processes, build products, serve clients and guide the employees. To improve the employee engagement, the Frishco's management should set achievable goals, support the employees, listen to the employees' opinion, coach them for higher performances and offer feedback for continuous performance improvement. Fostering excellent management practice has a positive impact on employee engagement, retention, and performance (Price, 2011, p. 148). Establishing a humane, flexible, and inclusive workplace Employees have complicated lives and therefore needs a supportive and flexible work environment. Open and flexible workplaces encourage trust between the management and the employees. Likewise, employee engagement should be an ongoing and continuous recognition process. The key to active engagement is created through a social environment that encourages smooth relationship between the stakeholders and making managers be team players rather than judges of the employees (Attridge, 2009). Other engagement factors that Frishco should implement are; a) creating ample growth opportunities; b) establishing purposeful, visionary, and transparency leadership; and c) providing timely feedback to the employees. Conclusion Companies, like Frishco that engage their employees through training both do create stronger feelings of loyalty and trust in their employees. Even though employee engagement cannot fully eliminate the employees' dissatisfaction with the overall operations of an organization, it helps in cutting down on the loss of business and resources, which ultimately assist in fuelling company growth (Dernovsek, 2008). Although many companies consider employee engagement as an unimportant concept, it has a real effect on Frisch's bottom line. For customer satisfaction, better productivity, and profit, implementing active employee engagement and employee-driven leadership is a necessity. Employee disengagement leads to a drain on time and resources that are not required for the success of companies operating in the today's competitive economy (Torrington, et al., 2008). Some of the noticeable warning symptoms of disengaged employees are tardiness absenteeism, withdrawal behaviour, and increased negativity. The signs of employee disengagement can also be witnessed through lack of energy to perform, unnecessary mistakes, lack of attachment, and low morale (Cartwright Holmes, 2006). By establishing the impact of engagement or disengagement, we have established that employee engagement comes with a positive effect on the company's performance while employee disengagement causes a lot of harm to the company. The most feasible way of protecting the company from the different impact of employee disengagement is by implementing engagement techniques such as improved compensation benefits, making jobs look meaningful, fostering excellent management, establishing a humane, flexible, and inclusive workplace, training and development and coaching (Armstrong, 2010). References List Abraham, S., 2012. Development of Employee Engagement Programme on the basis of Employee Satisfaction Survey. Journal ofEconomic Development, Management, IT, Finance and Marketing, 4(1), pp. 27-37. Armstrong, M., 2010. Hand book of Human Resource Management Practice. 12th edition ed. s.l.:Kogan Page ltd. Attridge, M., 2009. Measuring and Managing Employee Work Engagement: A Review of the Research and Business Literature. Journal ofWorkplace Behavioral Health, 24(4), p. 383 398. Bakker, A Schaufeli, W., 2008. Positive organizational behavior: Engaged employees in flourishing organizations. 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