The idea of employee engagement has always been a contentious subject among corporate leaders. It is fairly obvious that companies with a highly engaged workforce have a better probability of succeeding than their competitors. Many companies, on the other hand, have failed to get employee engagement right.
Establishing an intimate connection between an employee, their workspace, and the firm is what employee engagement is all about. Without employee engagement, companies struggle to accomplish their long–term goals, and business suffers the consequences.
Many businesses are putting plans in place to increase employee engagement, which is causing new industry trends. Today, you’ll learn about a few trends that will dominate in 2022.
A Superior Employee Experience
Wanting your employees to leave individual issues at home is unrealistic, especially for remote employees who work and live in the same place. Many of the former job perks may no longer be available due to drastic changes in the work model.
Although it is a massive responsibility, HR leaders must rethink the overall employee experience in order to bolster every individual in the organization.
Organizations just cannot afford to ignore low engagement levels in 2018.
Employees will become like customers, and their overall happiness will matter as much as customer satisfaction. Current trends will make leaders focus on examining their current employee journey map, and optimize it for their employees.
This will lead to deeper analysis and understanding of talent and what keeps them engaged in a digital age and beyond.
Continuous Learning
Research by Tiny Pulse shows that a lack of career direction is a great source of employee disengagement. If an employee does not see avenues for growth or reasons to have a long-term association with a company, he/she will likely be leaving soon.
This likelihood of employees leaving the company due to lack of learning opportunities is getting recognized by companies.
2018 hence, should see companies invest in the career development of their employees to make them feel fulfilled and worthwhile. Remote working is a reality of today’s work environment and companies have to leverage on the talent that likes to work from distributed locations.
However, employees who primarily work out of the office have complained about being paid less attention to when it comes to their career development.
Even companies with a remote workforce will start paying more attention to their staff and execute strategies that will help them engage their workforce through career development plans.
95% of millennials are willing to pay for their own professional development and training.
Investment in professional development of candidates is critical to retaining them. Organizations in 2018 will be providing their employees engaging learning opportunities that fits their lifestyle, along with regular coaching, mentoring and feedback that will give employees the direction to become what they aspire to be.
Improved work-life balance
According to research, 88 percent of employers have compelled their employees to work from home since the pandemic began.
While remote work provides employees with the flexibility they need to stay productive, we must consider the impact on their personal lives. According to a new McKinsey survey, parents see the benefits of remote work in different ways.
According to the data, 63.2 percent of remote-working fathers are engaged, compared to 38.5 percent of remote-working mothers.
Culture over Compensation
Company culture has never been more important from an engagement perspective. It is no longer a topic discussed in closed conference rooms or only known to people working in it.
Glossy terms on the career page of the company’s website are also not enough. Today, culture is a global phenomenon and known to everyone.
According to Andrew Chamberlain, chief economist at Glassdoor, the top predictor of workplace satisfaction is not pay. It is the culture and the values of the organization, closely followed by the quality of the senior leadership and career opportunities for the employees within the company.
Once that is made, the next question to ask is what steps can improve employee engagement, morale, and productivity.
The behavior and interactions of employees within a company on a daily basis can change a company’s culture. Even a small issue like an email or the phrases used while conducting a meeting can drive or hamper employee engagement levels.
Politics or gossip are bound to make businesses fail, and cannot go ignored. Employee behavior and reactions to daily activities need to be tracked to understand what is going on.
A good way to do this could be to use new tools for employee engagement and feedback in order to track and measure daily interactions. 2018 will take culture way more seriously by understanding these issues.
Diversity and Inclusion
In such cases, it is very evident to feel isolated and disconnected from the team, and if this takes place, your employees will leave quickly.
Companies are attempting to foster an inclusive workplace culture by hosting informal gatherings, shifting toward diversity and inclusivity, and treating all employees equally.
Latest Trends in Employee Engagement.
Re-looking At Performance Management
The present situation compels that companies make performance management a holistic process.
Employees will be engaged and compelled to grow if they have a data-driven, real-time, and transparent picture of their performance.
Furthermore, an advanced performance management system would provide managers with precise information and statistical insights to help them make informed decisions.
All of this is crucial for enhancing employee satisfaction.
Rewards and Recognition
Organizations must recognise that each employee is unique, as are his or her goals and what makes him or her feel valued.
The competence from both of these approaches helps organisations identify and retain potential talent.
Furthermore, we anticipate that leaders will use more technology-driven reward and recognition notions to praise and empower employees. More businesses will use employee recognition platforms to provide digital rewards and incentives to their employees.
Quality of Senior Leadership
People are increasingly losing faith in their political systems, and shifting their focus to business leaders. Large organizations are expected to do them but and contribute to social causes such as income inequality, health care, diversity, gender disparity and the like.
Such expectations are causing tremendous pressure on organizations, but also creating opportunities.
People First Culture
People First culture characterizes a company’s culture that prioritizes people before the profits.
Many employees are aware of the void between the skills they possess and the skills they need to possess to perform best in their jobs.
Social distancing and remote-work models have made employees crave togetherness, priorities appraisal, and more compassion.
Management should be persistent and cooperative in breaking the language barrier and distance, to ensure employees feel involved and make it easy to build relationships. This can assure employees do not have to feel left out.
As it is more evident that the well-being of employees will be playing a major role in the organization’s future plans.
Inundation of ML and AI in the Workplace
The major requirement of HR management in the present situation is AI and ML technologies. Challenges during the remote recruitment, interviewing and on-boarding process can become easy to resolve.
Already many organizations have started to use AL and ML-driven software to screen resumes for compatible candidates’ selection.
Today’s Millennial workforce believes in constant and real-time feedback as well as long-term connectivity.
AI has the ability to greatly improve the employee experience.
Opportunities for Career Growth
Organizations should frequently focus on the career growth of employees. Individuals feel career development allows developing one’s skills and knowledge, boosting one’s talent, and embracing accomplishment.
Employees who continue to stay with the company to engage and develop more in their careers are more likely to achieve higher levels of performance.
Mental Health Wellbeing
For the past 2 years, employees, as well as employers, have been through a roller-coaster ride, both physically and mentally.
The pandemic has shown just how important it is to support not only the physical health but also the mental health of every employee.
The organization has to consider the well-being of an employee as the primary significance to achieve better productivity.
There are many ways to help employees overcome mental and physical struggles:
Initiate programs and workshops that can provide the employees with ways to balance their lifestyles.
Conduct weekly or biweekly physical fitness programs like ZUMBA, YOGA, or palates, either by hiring professional trainers to enhance employees’ physical strength. You can also offer monthly or yearly subscriptions to join fitness centres.
Guiding them during their difficult times can boost one’s confidence and mental wellness.
This will create a healthy and carefree environment that makes the employees feel valued in the company. Investing in employees’ happiness will reflect highly in terms of engagement, productivity, and of course, attrition.
Final Thoughts!
The pandemic’s long-term effects have created an unpredictable work environment, astounding in recent memory. The unusual series of events that occurred in workplaces over the last 18 months induced an understanding of the significance of employee engagement. Use our knowledge to navigate the ever-changing modern workplace.
