The Power & Value of Employee Engagement

There are several definitions of employee engagement. However, it can be said that in broad terms, employee engagement brings together job satisfaction, motivation, work effort, organisational commitment, shared purpose, energy and ‘flow’.

In this way, employee engagement describes an internal state of being – physical, mental and emotional – and can also include behaviour, such as commitment and ‘going the extra mile’.

Gathering and measuring engagement

You may have come across employee attitude surveys or focus groups, employee boards and other ways in which engagement is recorded and measured. The advantage of a survey is that it provides a representative sample from across the whole organisation and scores can be tracked over time to see if actions are improving engagement. However, whether or not it is anonymous will have some influence on the way in which people respond.

Focus groups may have a similar challenge; however, by being open forums for discussion they allow organisations to get more qualitative data, and if necessary ask further questions to explore responses in more depth.

When measuring employee engagement by whichever means you choose, it is important that employees feel they can respond honestly without fear of repercussion, and that they feel any issues they raise will be responded to. This isn’t telling them that any reasons for dissatisfaction will necessarily be fixed, but that they will be heard and responded to.

Employee engagement is a workplace approach designed to ensure that employees are committed to their organization's goals, objectives and values, encouraged to contribute to organizational success, and are able at the same time to enhance their own sense of well-being. The importance of employee engagement can't be overstated – employee engagement strategies have been proven to reduce staff turnover, improve productivity and efficiency, retain customers at a higher rate, and make more profits. Most importantly, engaged employees are happier, both at work and in their lives. Employee engagement is a property of the relationship between an organization and its employees. An “engaged employee” is one who is fully absorbed by and enthusiastic about their work and so takes positive action to further the organization's reputation and interests. Employees could appear contented at work but this does not necessarily mean that they are engaged in the true sense. These employees may turn up at work without complaining and get along to doing their tasks of the day. However, making them happy is far different from making them engaged.

Top 5 Things HR Can Do to Improve Employee Engagement:

• Create a Proper Strategy to Start Educating and Supporting Your Workforce.
• Establish Strong Leadership Progression for Business Goals.
• Close the Perceived Gap Between HR and Other Employees.
• Organizational Design & Change Management.
• Driving the Change to Digital Business Transformation.

Engaged employees are happier and therefore typically provide better service to their colleagues and customers, as a result of being positive and proactive. Ensuring great customer service is a huge win for the company, ensuring happy customers into the future. The more engaged your employees are the more efficient and productive they become, and that certainly can't be a bad thing! A study by Wyatt Watson found that companies that have highly engaged employees produce 26% higher revenue per employee. A different study by the World Economic Forum and the Harvard School of Public Health reports employees with healthy habits are 3.1 times more productive than their unhealthy peers. While there are a lot of factors that contribute to productivity in the workplace, healthy employees set the bar high. Managers often mistake employees that are happy while they are taking part in staff meetings or company events, as being engaged employees. An engaged employee cares about their work and about the performance of the company, and they want to feel that their efforts could make a difference. It is generally seen as an internal state of mind; physically, mentally and emotionally that binds together the work effort, commitment and satisfaction in an employee.

How to manage difficult conversations at workplace?

What is a difficult conversation?

A difficult conversation is any situation where the needs/wants, opinions or perceptions of the involved parties are diverse, with their feelings and emotions running strong. Usually the reason behind such strong feelings and emotions is that they have a lot at stake and they dread the consequences such as a conflict. Difficult conversations — whether you’re telling a client the project is delayed or presiding over an unenthusiastic performance review — are an inevitable part of management. How should you prepare for this kind of discussion? How do you find the right words in the moment? And, how can you manage the exchange so that it goes as smoothly as possible?

Sometimes we face uncomfortable situations. For example, give or receive negative feedback, deal with a hostile colleague or customer, handle a bitter complaint, raise performance issues, or even ask the boss for a raise. Sharp differences of opinions may be unnerving, and make us feel fearful, anxious or angry. While the stakes may be high, issues may be complex, so we feel unsure and avoid these conversations. Negative feelings may be bottled up, but may erupt like a volcano at the wrong time and precipitate a major crisis. As a leader, it is important for you to learn to effectively deal with difficult conversations. Despite differing opinions, and strong emotions, how do you communicate in a manner that does not leave the listeners feeling defensive and angry? 

Let's work with a concrete example. Gayatri, a senior programmer, had joined the company two years earlier. She had received the performance rating of adequate in her first year. It was just an average rating. As a newcomer, she had spent the initial period learning the ropes and so she accepted her performance rating. In the second year, she made significant efforts, two key initiatives, and felt that she had made solid contributions to the team's success. But to her utter surprise and disappointment, she was again given the performance rating of adequate in her second year. A co-worker who did not do as much as she did receive a superior rating of good. Gayatri felt really disheartened. She wanted to talk to her manager but had nagging questions. 

Will she be able to constructively resolve the issue? 

Will her bitterness affect her performance? 

By raising the issue, will she antagonize her boss? 

Let us deal with Gayatri's dilemma using the Harvard framework. The framework is built around four key insights. 

First insight, in every difficult conversation, there are actually three conversations going on. The first one is the content conversation. It deals with what happened. For example, the intents of people involved or who is responsible. The second conversation is the feelings conversation. This deals with what emotions are involved. And the third conversation is the identity conversation. This concerns the issue of what does this say about me. The mistake that we make is that we tend to deal only with the content but don't recognize how this is affecting both the parties emotionally and fail to identify what is at stake for individuals about their own self-image. 

Second insight, often we get caught up with the battle of messages. We try to prove that we are right and they are wrong. For effectiveness in dealing with difficult conversations, we must move from the battle of messages to learning conversation. Learning conversation is characterized by curiosity. It is not that Gayatri has to give up her point of view but she has to try to understand the boss's perspective for the satisfactory resolution of the issue. 

Third insight, impact is not intention. Gayatri felt hurt by the boss's rating but it does not automatically imply that the boss intended to hurt Gayatri. It is quite possible that there were other compulsions that drove the boss to give the adequate rating, which Gayatri is not aware of at the moment. 

Fourth and final insight. Often, it is not content or emotions, but the issue of identity that is the most hidden and left unsaid, but the most dominant. Gayatri may be most bothered, whether she's seen as a competent, effective performer, and liked as a member of the team. We tend to look at issues in black and white terms. Gayatri may feel incompetent, disliked and not a part of the in group of favored members of the team. That makes difficult conversations really challenging. 

What specific steps should Gayatri take? 

Step one is to prepare by walking through the three conversations. Gayatri should avoid the battle of messages and get into a learning frame. She has to understand how the situation may have unfolded, address feelings without blaming and get into a problem solving mode. She has to think through with the following illustrative questions. 

What is my perspective? 

What elements am I missing? 

What do I think has been the impact of my work?

My guess about how I or boss may have contributed to the present rating? 

What do I think is the boss's perspective? 

What is my guess about the boss's intention? 

Is it possible that the boss has acted unintentionally or from multiple and conflicting intentions?

At the feelings level, what feelings underline my judgments? 

What might the boss feel? 

And at the identity level, how does the situation affect my self-image and identity? 

Step two is to raise issues as a learning conversation. To avoid the battle of messages, and foster a learning conversation, Gayatri has to carefully set the stage in terms of time and place for the interaction. In an amicable tone, Gayatri may ask for one-on-one meeting. 

Step three involves starting from the objective third story. The issue is raised in an impartial manner, just as a third person would. The third story is the most objective and unbiased, and helps informing a common ground for Gayatri and her boss to work together as partners in jointly sorting out the situation. 

Step four involves exploring their story and yours. Gayatri should describe the behavior or situation concretely, and specifically without blaming or negative judgement. She may also describe the impact of the behavior or situation on her and the reasons for the impact. It would usually include feelings. In sharing her perspective, Gayatri will discuss specific tasks or projects that she had taken on during her tenure in that position with a clear focus of performance in the previous 12 months. Then Gayatri may ask open questions, such as what's your perspective on this? And actively listens.

 

Step five involves problem solving. For effective problem solving, it is important to have a mindset of learning and problem solving. This requires openness, curiosity, a non-judgemental and caring mindset. Gayatri will acknowledge the boss's views by paraphrasing the message to make sure she has clearly understood it. She will acknowledge feelings, ask open questions, check interpretations, expand the story to include other's comments, probe for and reinforce counter examples, reframe complaints as desire for improvement and arrive at a concrete plan of action. 

As the author, Douglas Stone writes, difficult conversations are almost never about getting the facts right. They are about conflicting perceptions Interpretations, and values.

Principles to Remember while having unfavourable conversation
Do:

1. Take regular breaks during the day; the more calm and centered you are, the better you are at handling tough conversations when they arise.
2. Slow down the pace of the conversation — it helps you find the right words and it signals to your counterpart that you’re listening.
3. Find ways to be constructive by suggesting other solutions or alternatives.

Don’t:

1. Label the news you need to deliver as a “difficult conversation” in your mind; instead frame the discussion in a positive or neutral light.
2. Bother writing a script for how you want the discussion to go; jot down notes if it helps, but be open and flexible.
3. Ignore the other person’s point of view — ask your counterpart how he sees the problem and then look for overlaps between your perspectives.

Thank you so much Guys.

Stay Fit, Take Care & Keep Smiling

God Bless !!

अनोखी साइकिल रेस

अनोखी साइकिल रेस Importance of Teamwork

टीम के साथ मिलकर काम करने की महत्ता बताती हिंदी कहानी 

अमर एक multi national company का ग्रुप लीडर था। काम करते-करते उसे अचानक ऐसा लगा की उसके टीम में मतभेद बढने लगे हैं। और सभी एक-दूसरे को नीचा दिखाने में लगे हुए हैं। इससे निबटने के लिए उसने एक तरकीब सोची।

उसने एक meeting बुलाई और team members से कहा –

Sunday को आप सभी के लिए एक साइकिल race का आयोजन किया जा रहा है। कृपया सब लोग सुबह सात बजे अशोक नगर चौराहे पर इकठ्ठा हो जाइएगा।

तय समय पर सभी अपनी-अपनी साइकलों पर इकठ्ठा हो गए।

अमर ने एक-एक करके सभी को अपने पास बुलाया और उन्हें उनका लक्ष्य बता कर स्टार्टिंग लाइन पर तैयार रहने को कहा। कुछ ही देर में पूरी टीम रेस के लिए तैयार थी, सभी काफी उत्साहित थे और रूटीन से कुछ अलग करने के लिए अमर को थैंक्स कर रहे थे।

अमर ने सीटी बजायी और रेस शुरू हो गयी।

Boss को impress करने के लिए हर कोई किसी भी कीमत पर रेस जीतना चाहता था। रेस शुरू होते ही सड़क पर अफरा-तफरी मच गयी… कोई दाएं से निकल रहा था तो कोई बाएँ से… कई तो आगे निकलने की होड़ में दूसरों को गिराने से भी नहीं चूक रहे थे।

इस हो-हल्ले में किसी ने अमर के निर्देशों का ध्यान ही नहीं रखा और भेड़ चाल चलते हुए सबसे आगे वाले साइकिलिस्ट के पीछे-पीछे भागने लगे।

पांच मिनट बाद अमर ने फिर से सीटी बजायी और रेस ख़त्म करने का निर्देश दिया। एका -एक सभी को रेस से पहले दिए हुए निर्देशों का ध्यान आया और सब इधर-उधर भागने लगे। लेकिन अमर ने उन्हें रोकते हुए अपने पास आने का इशारा किया।

सभी बॉस के सामने मुंह लटकाए खड़े थे और रेस पूरी ना कर पाने के कारण एक-दूसरे को दोष दे रहे थे।

अमर ने मुस्कुराते हुए अपनी टीम की ओर देखा और कहा-

“अरे क्या हुआ? इस टीम में तो एक से एक चैंपियन थे पर भला क्यों कोई भी व्यक्ति इस अनोखी साइकिल  रेस को पूरा नहीं कर सका?”

अमर ने बोलना जारी रखा- “मैं बताता हूँ क्या हुआ….दरअसल आप में से किसी ने भी अपने लक्ष्य की तरफ ध्यान ही नही दिया। अगर आप सभी ने सिर्फ अपने लक्ष्य पर ध्यान दिया होता तो आप सभी विजेता बन गये होते , क्योंकि सभी व्यक्ति का target अलग-अलग था। सभी को अलग-अलग गलियों में जाना था। हर किसी का लक्ष्य भिन्न था। आपस में कोई मुकाबला था ही नही।

लेकिन आप लोग सिर्फ एक दूसरे को नीचा दिखाने में लगे रहे, जबकि आपने अपने लक्ष्य को तो ठीक से समझा ही नही। ठीक यही माहौल हमारी टीम का हो गया है। आप सभी के अंदर वह अनोखी बात है, जिसकी वजह से टीम को आप की जरुरत है। लेकिन आपसी unhealthy competition के कारण ना ही टीम और ना ही आप का विकास हो पा रहा है। आने वाला आपका कल, आपके हाथ में है। हम या तो एक-दूसरे की ताकत बन कर एक-दूसरे को विकास के पथ पर ले जा सकते है या आपसी competition के चक्कर में अपना और दूसरों का समय व्यर्थ कर सकते है।

मेरी आप सबसे यही request है कि एक individual की तरह नहीं बल्कि एक team की तरह काम करिए…याद रखिये individual performer बनने से कहीं ज्यादा ज़रूरी एक team-player बनना है।” 

Office Office - A Short Motivational Story to Inspire Great Teamwork

A team of about 35 employees had come together for a team building event. They were a young, bright and enthusiastic team.

However, one big problem this team had was they wouldn’t share information or solutions with each other. The leader felt they were too focused on self and not enough on team.

So she started off with a fun team activity that would allow her to teach the importance of each team member working together and sharing more.

She brought the team into the cafeteria. All of the tables and chairs had been stacked and put away. Placed around the room were fun decorations and hundreds of different colored balloons.

Everyone was excited, but not sure what it was all about. In the center of the room was a big box of balloons that had not been blown up yet.

The team leader asked each person to pick a balloon, blow it up and write their name on it. But they were instructed to be careful because the balloon could pop!

A few balloons did indeed pop and those members of the team were given another chance, but were told that if the balloon popped again they were out of the game.

About 30 team members were able to get their name on a balloon without it popping. Those 30 were asked to leave their balloons and exit the room. They were told they had qualified for the second round.

Five minutes later the leader brought the team back into the room and announced that their next challenge was to find the balloon they had left behind with their name on it among the hundreds of other balloons scattered in the large cafeteria. She warned them however to be very careful and not to pop any of the balloons. If they did, they would be disqualified.

While being very careful, but also trying to go as quickly as they could, each team member looked for the balloon with their name. After 15 minutes not one single person was able to find their balloon. The team was told that the second round of the game was over and they were moving onto the third round.

In this next round the leader told the team members to find any balloon in the room with a name on it and give it to the person whose name was on it. Within a couple of minutes every member of the team had their balloon with their own name on it.

The team leader made the following point: “We are much more efficient when we are willing to share with each other. And we are better problem solvers when we are working together, not individually.”

Often times members of teams create obstacles that get in the way of teamwork by solely focusing on their own pursuits and goals. They hoard information, avoid collaboration and distance themselves. It is bad for the team and it is bad for that individual.

Every member of a team should ask themselves on a regular basis what they are doing for the team  and can do for the team my dear Friends.

Stay Fit, Take Care & Keep Smiling :-)

God Bless !!