Are Employees Becoming Less Engaged?

For any business looking to grow in 2023 and beyond, this process can either be hampered or accelerated by the engagement of employees. According to recent research, engaged employees are over 21% more productive than less engaged employees.

Bearing in mind that ultra-productive employees lead to higher efficiency and revenue, it is important for every business to have engagement on their mind and not forget their employees in the smoke of the trail that they are blazing.

If you are a business owner, however, you might be thinking that you are safe. If your sales are strong and your targets are being reached, it can be easy to think your employees are already engaged, and any problems down the road will not be sourced back to disengagement. But engagement should be a living, breathing process for businesses – a tactic that spans the entirety of an employee’s business lifetime. If your employees are engaged now, who’s to say they will be engaged tomorrow?

Employee Engagement In 2023

This is demonstrated by the recent reports that were released by Gallup’s State Of The Global Workplace. According to these reports, as many as 85% of employees are not actively engaged in the workplace. Looking a little closer, it was reported that 33% of US employees are engaged, while only 10% are engaged in Western Europe and, concerningly, only 8% in the UK.

When employees are not engaged, they are not as productive, and the revenue of your company will be suffering as a result – even if you don’t recognise it yet. As well as this, 73% of unengaged employees consider leaving their jobs, while companies with higher employee engagement have a far lower turnover rate and are 21% more profitable on average.

How To Engage Employees

When it comes to engaging employees, one of the best ways of doing so is by setting up a specific employee engagement programme. This includes celebrating successes, recognising great behaviour and actively rewarding employees for their commitment to the company – visit incentivesmart.com to download a full guide on employee engagement programmes and how they work.

Outside of a programme, it is also important to communicate with employees and show them that they matter. According to another survey, as many as 69% of employees said they would work harder if they felt more appreciated in the workplace, and this comes down to bad recognition and poor communication.

In 2023, especially, more and more companies will be working in a remote space, away from the office environment. While there are benefits and negatives to remote working, one of the main concerns is a poor state of mental health and a drastic decline in communication. If you make sure that you are constantly talking to employees, listening to their issues, being respectful, and supporting their development, then you will find them to be far more engaged in the company itself.

Employee engagement is not hard to attain, but it is crucial if you want your business to grow into the future. Make sure you have a solid engagement programme and you put in the effort to keep your employees in your line of vision at all times.