Improving Employee Engagement – The Missing Link!
Wednesday, March 28, 2018 - Joe Kiedinger
Employee engagement has become the buzzword for establishing better employee morale and a self-initiating workforce. There are literally thousands of articles on the subject. Many have suggested benefits like the list below:
Flexible Work Time
Workout Facilities
Added Amenities: Massages, Chiropractors, Ping pong tables, games, etc.
Open Concepts
Bringing your Pets to Work
Work at Home Options
They all touch on the physical leading to the emotional. I would like to offer a different point of view in hopes of simplifying your efforts. Please note: I have been studying and real-time practicing engagement for over fifteen years. What was discovered won’t surprise you, but it may glare at you as super obvious. To increase engagement one must reduce stress.
Stress is defined as: a state of mental or emotional strain or tension resulting from adverse or very demanding circumstances.
Most people will say their job is stressful. However, they don’t identify clearly why. It’s proven that productive people are happy. Productive people will gladly work more hours if they choose to because they are passionate and purpose-driven. Most stress comes from people, not duties. Please note: I didn’t say all stress comes from people, but most.
Therefore, if people are the cause of most stress, what is it about people that causes stress? Our studies have found that dignity violations occur through casual conversation and across thousands of meetings per day. In other words, you say or do something that directly violates my dignity.
To improve employee engagement, the leader must understand the driving dignity traits that frame a person’s perceptions of actions and words. Imagine what your work environment would be like if the people who lead and work along side you knew exactly how you prefer to work. For example, if you are on organized person (one of the 56 dignity traits discovered), and you are needing to rely on another person’s organizational structure, you will be emotionally stressed. What if everyone recognized your need for self-organization? How would that increase your engagement?
Indeed it would. Our research has shown that when people in your immediate work group understand the other’s rules for dignity engagement, productivity and creativity increase. This allows for self-initiating individuals and work teams.
If you would like to understand the 56 dignity traits and discover your own, visit www.dignify.com. A pragmatic and proven system for improving communication across the workplace.
Joe Kiedinger
ACTION PLAN: Ask about our free 90-minute class on dignity!