3 4Apparel Online SEPTEMBER 16-30, 2010 E ngagement is a bout motiv ating employ ees t o do their bes t. This is what makes the difference in an industry where the most valuable resource of a corporation walks out of the door every eveni ng. “Thi s is of particular importance in an export-import industry. The eminence of output a nd competitiv e a dvantage of a company depends on t he quality of its people,” says Samidha Bhatnagar, Manager, HR, at Sha hi Exports . “It has been proved that there is an inherent li nk between employ ee e ngagement, cust omer loyalty , and profita bility ,” elucidates Anil Sharma , HR Head, Nahar Spinning Mills Ltd. “When employees ar e effectively and optimistically engaged with their organ ization, they f orm an emotional connection with the organization. This influences their attitude towards the company’s clients, and thereby develops customer satisfaction and service levels,” reasons Sharma who points out tha t a successful employee engagement program helps create a community at the workplace and not just a workforce. Nee d to Conne ct Global studies r ecommend three ba sic aspects of empl oyee engagement – The employees a nd their own distinctiv e psychol ogi cal makeup and experience; the employers a nd their capa bil ity to crea te the condi tions tha t pr omote employ ee engagement; and interact ion between employees at all ranks . Virtua l work pra ctices being the flavour in businesses today , one of the grea test organizational benefits than pers onal goals. This consequently reduces feel ings of acrimony and inter nal rivalries. “They also project a positive image to new recruits and this motiv ates t he latter t o perform better and a ssimilate them in the off ice culture. Research also shows that engaged employees in customer-facing rol es a re more likely to treat customers in ways that positively influence customer satisfaction,” adds Samidha. Orga niza tion I nitiatives Most organizat ions have a ra nge of programs to perk u p the enga gement level of their employees. One of the most upfront initiativ es ha s been ma de by Bangalore- based Integr a, which esta bli sh ‘right’ at the select ion sta ge i tse lf. Some of the initiatives made by the organization include choosing the r ight fi t an d giv ing a pra gmatic job preview , str ong induction a nd orienta tion EMPLOYEE ENGAGEMENT ONLY W A Y TO R ET A IN T H E M TO D A Y H RSTOR Y challenges for gl obal organizations ha s been engaging a dispers ed workforce. Samidha focuses on the significance: “As businesses globalize and become more dependent on technology, there is a greater need to connect and e ngage with employ ees t o provi de them with an organizational ‘identity’. Especially in Indian culture, this becomes more relevant given the community feeling which organizations provide in our society.” Al l companies ar e awar e that the y need to do a bet ter job of managing their people. According to S. Kothanda pani, Manager HR at SP Apparels ,“ A grea ter number of loy al employees ens ure low recruitment and tra ining costs, in eff ect enha ncing the productivity of the organization. They ar e also more willi ng to put in ext ra eff ort when the organizat ion needs it. ” Their impact on t he working envi ronment is also signif icant a s they ar e more focused on Most apparel & textile organizations today are realizing that a ‘satisfied’ employee is not necessarily the ‘best’ em ployee in terms of l oya lt y and p roductivi ty. It i s only an ‘engag ed e mp l oye e’ who is i ntell ectually and e mo ti ona ll y bound with the organization and feels passionately about its goals. He goes the extra mile beyond the basic job responsibility and is associated with the actions that drive the business. Moreover, in times when loyalty is losing ground, employee engagement is a powerful retention strategy, the fact that it has a strong impact on the bottom-line, adds to its significance.
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8/8/2019 Employee Engagement Only Way to Retain Them Today
Samidha, is of the opinion that employeeengagement is a partners hip between a
company and its e mployees where e veryone
works together to achieve the business
objectives of the company a nd the pe rsona l
aspira tions of the employees. It is therefore
largely the orga nization’s r esponsibility to
create a n environment and culture
conducive to this partnership, and a
win-win equation. She sta tes, “Employee
engagement is a barometer that decides the
ass ociation of a pers on with the
organization. It is about creating the pa ssion
among ass ociates to do things beyond what
is expected of them. A highly engaged
employee will consistently deliver beyond
expectations. A productive employee who
has a sense of belonging and a stu rdy bond
with the company and its br and will crea te a
ripple effect tha t r esults in a positively
charged atmosphere in the organization.”
The Loyalty Factor
The key to employee engagement is
crea ting grea ter motivation for their work
and commitment to their organization.
S. Kothandapa ni admits tha t it is not
possible to retain professionals only by paying
high salaries a nd offering attra ctive benefits.
“We need to cre ate e nthusias m for the irroles, their work and the organiza tion, and
make sure they are well integrated.
Employee engagement relat es to the
employee’s commitment to the
organization’s s uccess. Engaged employees
who are inspired a nd guided by the
leaders hip, equipped with the r ight tools a nd
managed by the right systems and processes
deliver superior per forman ce.” Employee
engagement today encompasses training,
development, work en vironment, lea dership,
performance ma nagement, work/life balance,
communication, compensa tion, benefits,
commitment, fun a nd social a ctivities. This,
asser ts Kothandapani, enhances the
bonding between e mployees a nd
commitment to the company.
Partha views employee engagement a s a
psychological association. According to him
employees want to work for an organization
that is success ful and legal; provides
opportunities to grow, has ma nager s who
help employees and is socially responsible.
Measu ring EmployeeEngagement
Employee engagement ca n be exposed in
several ways, including ‘pulse’ to annua l
surveys, tracking changes in the attrition
ra te, increase in the number of employee
referr als, and growth in productivity
and business.
In many or ganizations, the age-old Employee
Satisfaction Surveys were considered the
most popular method for measuring how
happy an employee was in the or ganization.
Shahi Exports measures employee
engagement from two dimensions: how
employees feel (their emotions towar d the
company, the leade rship, the work
environment, etc.) and/or how they intend to
act in the future (will they stay, give extra
effort, etc.). This is conducted regular ly
through a questionnaire and is measured on
various parameters pre-defined by the HR
Team. Samidha asserts that employee
engagement needs to be measured at r egular
intervals in order to tr ack its contribution to
the success of the organization.
“Conducting a s urvey without plan ning and
how to handle the res ult can lead employees
to disengage. It is ther efore not en ough to
feel the pulse – the action plan is just a s
essential,” concludes Samidha.
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