5 tips to keep your employees engaged in 2020

Gallup found that just 34% of employees in the United States were considered “engaged” in their job role which means they are excited about and committed to their work.

Almost half of the workers (around 50%, according to Gallup) simply clocked in, did the bare minimum, and went home. These employees are actively “not engaged”. While around 17% of employees were “actively disengaged” which means they were just going through the motions.

All of these findings by Gallup are cause for alarm for managers of all business sizes and industries. Employee engagement is crucial as you have employees on the payroll who don’t just care about the paycheck, they’re dedicated to their job role and helping the company succeed. Engaged employees perform better and when it comes to company growth, you need engaged employees.

We share five tips to help you do so.

1. Ask employees what they want

If you’re wondering how you can best engage your employees, there is a simple solution staring you in the face. Ask them. What do your employees need to stay engaged? Longer lunch breaks? An option to work from home? More team building games?

Sure, everyone will have a different option, however, just by talking to your team, you are showing them that you care. That alone will cause them to feel better about the company.

“Asking people for their insights tells them that you like and respect them,” said Jennifer Martin, founder of Zest Business Consulting. “And that gets them engaged.”

2. Use advanced and affordable tools

There are numerous tools available that your company can benefit from using when it comes to boosting employee engagement. The best solution in the market is Connecteam, an employee engagement app that makes it so easy to engage your employees from the second they start onboarding until they walk out your company doors.

Here are some of the advantages of using Connecteam for team collaboration, employee engagement, and internal communication needs.

• Publish company news, updates, and documents and get actionable feedback with comments and likes.
• Real-time collaboration with group chat, private chat, channels, etc.
• Add content, share files, videos, GIFS, & pictures.
• Facilitate two-way communication & boost employee engagement, morale & productivity.
• Directory for work contacts.
• In-app suggestion box and customizable surveys to share and gain feedback, ideas, and thoughts.
• Send push notifications to make sure everyone gets the message.
• Be customized with your company branding.

In terms of pricing, it doesn’t get any better than a free for life plan. Keep your team engaged with Connecteam’s engagement app today!

3. Feedback is a two-way street

More often than not, employees are hesitant to approach their manager(s) when they hit a roadblock or have a problem. Instead, they simply hold it back and continue working like nothing is the matter. Unfortunately, this leads to unresolved grievances that progressively get worse over time. What started off as a small, manageable problem just turned into an avalanche. However, you can prevent this by asking for feedback from your team at every turn.

Talk to your employees and ask for their honest feedback about their job and work environment. Use this information to create an even healthier company culture.

On the flip side, your employees may not enjoy the annual review, but that doesn’t mean they don’t like feedback.

ADP’s study on Employee Engagement found that employees really want updates on how they’re doing and they want to receive recognition for their hard work. They want this because it can help them grow and develop in the organization.

“You’ve seen a kind of resurgence around the manager touchpoint,” said Dr. Susan Hanold, vice president of HCM Strategic Advisory Services at ADP. “Managers want a better connection, a tighter relationship, and better-quality conversations with their employees. [Plus] Growth and development matters to employees.”

4. Be transparent and communicate well

Keep your employees in the loop about what’s going on at the company. They shouldn’t find out from a third-party about where the company is going. If there is a new product launch, someone is retiring, downsizing is happening, a buyout is in the pipeline, and more – all of this should be communicated to your employees.

Your employees will feel way more engaged and connected to the company when they feel like you’re keeping them in the loop. Managers and company owners must be honest and direct with top-down communication.

Being transparent also means that managers need to be fair and open-minded so that they can establish and build trust with their employees.

5. Offer recognition

Your employees like, and even love, to be recognized for their hard work. Receiving little things like gift cards, a handwritten note, or a day off, helps to excite your employees. The Global Business Travel Association found that some companies even allow their team members to add extra days onto business trips or vacation time.

Other companies go even further by offering pet insurance and gifts, tuition reimbursement, health memberships to gyms, and so on. However, make sure you’re not offering recognition and perks to employees who don’t want it. Pet insurance is irrelevant to someone who is allergic to pets.

Keeping employees engaged is a must

By creating a company culture that actively engages employees, you are positively benefiting the bottom line. By implementing the tips we shared above, this is an easier process.