You can’t blame people for being a little jaded. Every few months there seems to be a new silver bullet for business success. Fads like Six Sigma and matrix management drained oceans of time and resources out of the companies that tried them while generating ROI that you couldn’t find with a microscope.
That’s why after capturing lots of initial attention in the business world, both of these fads now show up mostly on lists of bad business ideas.
But what about employee engagement? It seems like everyone’s talking about it now. Is it just another flavor of the month—or is this something with real staying power?
As a recipe for success, employee engagement is now well beyond the proving stage. Years of solid research stand behind the claim that employee engagement is a crucial key to productivity.
For example:
- 70% of engaged employees say they have a good understanding of how to meet customer needs – but only 17% of disengaged employees say that.
- 78% of engaged employees would recommend their company’s products or services, but only 13% of the disengaged.
- 59% of engaged employees say that their job brings out their most creative ideas, but only 3% of disengaged employees.
Gallup estimates that the lost productivity of actively disengaged employees costs the US economy $370 billion annually.
Here’s the best part: If you’re one who is disengaged, you can change that in a New York minute. Engagement is a choice. Everywhere you go, there you are. If you’re not happy in this job, you’re not going to like the next one or the one after that. Hold up the mirror and decide to see a person who cares in it. Life goes better that way!