HR professionals and leaders have always been concerned with employee engagement and retention.
But the shift to remote work in the last few years has shone a new light on just how important it is to organizational success.
Today, employees have more options for work than ever before. The pandemic also shifted people’s priorities and caused many to reevaluate their career goals.
So, in order to retain employees, leaders need to rethink their people strategies.
One way to do so is through the Say, Stay, and Strive framework. Here we’ll explore what it means and eight strategies you can use to boost employee engagement and retention in your organization.
Say, Stay, and Strive: Evaluating Employee Engagement
There are many ideas surrounding employee engagement. But it really boils down to a few simple things: Are employees happy? Do they work hard? And do they speak positively about your company?
This is the core of the Say, Stay, and Strive model:
- Say: Engaged employees are champions for your business, positively speaking about the workplace and their role to other people around them.
- Stay: Engaged employees stick around for the long haul and are invested in professional development and advancement opportunities.
- Strive: Engaged employees give it their all and work hard at their roles—not just because they “have to” but because they’re engaged and excited by their work.
Each of these three elements is important. If you just have one—stay, for example—you may have long-term employees who are underperforming. Or, maybe they strive for success and work hard, but burn out quickly and move on to a new role.
Fostering these three elements in your organization can have a number of powerful benefits for your business:
- Employee retention: Higher retention rates are more cost-effective and less disruptive to business operations.
- Talent acquisition: Positive word-of-mouth referrals and a good reputation will attract quality talent to your organization.
- Business outcomes: Engaged, hard-working employees will achieve more for your company by reaching KPIs and driving revenue.
- Innovation and growth: An engaged and excited workforce is better positioned for innovation and creativity, which can propel your organization forward.
In a time where remote work is making it harder to both recruit and retain employees, focusing on Say, Stay, and Strive can transform your organization. Next, we’ll cover eight tips on how to prioritize and increase employee engagement in your workplace.
8 Tips to Increase Employee Engagement
There’s no one thing that will increase employee engagement in every organization—it’s likely a combination of multiple factors that will make a difference.
Start by considering areas you see lacking in your own organization, including which piece of the Say, Stay, and Strive framework is suffering most. You may consider seeking feedback from your team members as well to help understand what areas of employee engagement are lacking.
From there, you can implement some of these tips to increase employee engagement in the workplace.
1. Encourage Communication and Feedback
Open communication between employees and management is a cornerstone for better engagement and performance. If an employee is feeling disconnected from their work or unhappy with something, there should be an open platform to discuss it and seek help.
Along with open communication, a culture of constructive feedback can also positively support engagement. Many professionals desire feedback on their work so they can feel like they’re on the right track and connected to what they’re doing.
Effective employee check-in meetings can be a great way to promote communication and constructive feedback.
2. Recognize and Reward Good Performance
Acknowledging and rewarding employees for their hard work and achievements is a great way to increase engagement. It shows their efforts are valued and encourages them to continue performing well.
This can be through generous incentives or bonus programs. It can even be through the simple act of recognizing accomplishments during a team meeting.
3. Provide Opportunities for Development
Employees want to feel like they are progressing in their careers. This fosters engagement in the work as well as long-term retention.
Offering opportunities for advancement provides a clear path forward for employees in your company. Some options include upskilling training, management track programs, mentorship, or professional development days.
Professional development is also one key feature of your EVP (employee value proposition). EVP is the experience offered to an employee in exchange for their skills and experience and is another area that leaders concerned with employee retention can pay attention to.
4. Embrace Flexibility
In the post-pandemic world, flexibility is expected by many employees. Most people value the choice of where and when to work because they’re more productive and can better balance their work and personal life.
Whenever possible, consult with your team about their desires for a flexible work schedule. This helps ensure everyone is happy and has autonomy over their work and schedule.
5. Prioritize Connection
Collaboration between employees can foster a sense of community and belonging which, in turn, increases engagement and creates a positive work environment.
This piece needs even more attention in workplaces that operate on remote or hybrid schedules as there’s less natural in-person connection. Employers can foster connection by providing social opportunities, utilizing bookable meeting rooms for in-person collaboration, or investing in coworking space memberships.
6. Invest in Employee Wellness
Investing in employee wellness programs can help increase engagement by supporting the well-being of your employees.
People work better when they care for their physical and mental health. So, things like access to gyms, access to healthy meals, mental health support, or movement incentives can all help employees feel better—personally and professionally.
7. Foster a Sense of Purpose
Employee engagement is directly connected with a sense of meaning and purpose. All people want to feel like what they do in life matters or has an impact.
To foster this amongst team members, make sure you’re communicating your company’s mission, vision, and values. Paint the bigger picture of what you’re trying to accomplish so that employees are aligned with their work and connected to a broader vision.
8. Provide Autonomy
For employees to be truly engaged in their work, they need a strong sense of autonomy and control over it. By fostering this in the workplace, you allow employees to invest in their work at a deeper level because they have a strong sense of ownership over it.
Autonomy can be in the form of choosing projects or tasks, deciding your own work schedule, or a simple sense of trust between employees and their employer to do the job well.
These eight areas can help build a strong sense of employee engagement in your organization. This, in turn, creates stronger employee retention and ensures your team members are vocal champions of your business.
If you’re looking for a workspace that helps you connect with your staff and keep them engaged, book a tour of your local Launch Workplace today.
