Imagine the NFL fan reaction to a team where 4 players are playing their hearts out, 5 are just watching the game and 2 are actively working at moving the ball in the opposite direction.
No, it’s no joke this is happening today – in companies across the nation.
Last month Gallup’s ‘State of the American Workplace’ found that 30% of our workforce claim to be fully engaged at work, 52% are disengaged and a staggering 18% are actively disengaged and intentionally impede progress. This in a survey of 150,000 interviews across all industries and levels
A decade on, there is little disagreement that engagement is a crucial element of company success – and just to drive the point home, Gallup also cite “Organizations in the top decile of engagement outperform their peers by 147% in earnings per share, and have 90% better growth trend than their competition.”
I believe it’s a quality issue. A workplace quality issue. We know that we measure what we care about and for the leading companies like Stryker, Hyatt Hotels and many more lead the way with engagement metrics down to the individual level. They know that their leaders must have demonstrably mastered workplace engagement and they design their selections and promotions around the metrics.
It isn’t rocket science ether. In an interview by Mark C Crowley for Fast Company, Dr. Jim Harter, Gallup’s chief scientist of workplace management laid out the four basics:
– Get people in the right job
– Set clear expectations with metrics that match.
– Give people what they need to do their job
– Be extremely generous with praise and recognition
“The data proves it,” asserts Harter, “doing what’s right for people proves to be right for the organization.”
If you are a team member that hates your job and yearns to be fully engaged then actively look for the right fit company. And if you are truly stuck, reach out for career help
If you are a company leader you owe it to everyone and to yourself to begin learning what it takes from a professional Organizational Development partner – then start with the basics and build momentum.
Make no mistake, the upside is huge, for careers and for companies – and the early adopters will be the real winners.
