Every organization needs good people to be successful. In short, that’s what employee engagement is all about. At Modern Survey, we think of engagement in terms of the degree to which employees are psychologically motivated to contribute to the success of the organization. With all of the autonomy being handed to employees in a tailored workplace, will they still see their efforts as fitting into the big picture, will they still be motivated to help the organization succeed?
In the first three parts of this series, we looked at the overall concept of the tailored workplace and what’s causing the trend (
Part 1), then dove into how a tailored workplace will change recruitment and hiring (
Part 2) as well as the on-boarding stage (
Part 3). In this fourth installment, it’s time to dig into what drives engagement and which drivers are most likely to be affected by the shift to a tailored workplace.
Engagement
The benefits of having a highly engaged workforce are enormous. But we all know that a highly engaged workforce is a better workforce; the real question is how can you get one? Do you have to hire the right people? Well, sure, that’s a great way, but what about the people that you’ve already got? Luckily, amid all the discussion here of attending to individual preferences, research shows that the same things drive engagement for employees of any age: recognition/appreciation, personal accomplishment, career development, belief in the future of the organization and compensation. The trick is that each individual defines these things differently, so while a team email about a job well done might count as recognition for one employee, it simply won’t for another.
Recognition and Appreciation
Time and time again recognition and appreciation has proven to be one of the strongest drivers of employee engagement. We all want to feel like our hard work gets noticed. The big difference is in the way we want to be recognized and shown appreciation. There is some evidence to suggest that employees of different generations tend to want different levels and kinds of recognition/appreciation. Some of it may be perception, fed by pervasive exaggerations. For example, in a recent episode of the the hit TV show “30 Rock,” senior executive Jack Donaghy became disgusted by the younger employees he was interviewing to be his mentee. One nameless young individual pops in and says,
Hey, are you Jack? Sorry I'm late. B.T.Dubs, I gotta leave for my ironic kickball league in about ten. Also I'm not interested in this position unless I'm going to be constantly praised. And I won't cut my hair.
While this general perception of Millennial workers may be unfair, the truth is,
Millennials do have different expectations for praise than Generation Xers or Boomers. Most Millenials, through parenting and the evolution of technology, have grown accustomed to a high-touch approach, so the annual performance review or award banquet may not satisfy what they’re looking for. They’re likely looking for much more frequent feedback and validation. Some may want to be recognized in front of their peers, some may want to keep it just between them and their manager. But the point is, in a tailored workplace, you can have it both ways, giving each employee the kind of positive feedback they crave without setting an uncomfortable precedent.The key is to approach employees as individuals, seek out their preferences and work to develop a relationship which takes them into account.
Personal Accomplishment
Nothing feels better than knowing that what you do matters. That’s why personal accomplishment is such an effective driver of engagement. It connects the dots from your contribution to a larger result. One of the most effective ways to do this is to give employees more freedom, and therefore more accountability. It’s tough to feel like you matter when you don’t have the ability to do something original. Luckily, the tailored workplace is a great way to give employees an opportunity to demonstrate what they can do. Giving employees the freedom to set their own work schedule, choose where they work, and to some extent the processes they use to get the job done, empowers them with responsibility. And when they succeed, they know it’s because of something they personally brought to the table. But best of all,
research shows that with increased personal responsibility, you can expect better performance.
Career Development
Where do you want to go in this company? What do you mean “You’re happy where you are?” Everyone wants to get ahead, you know, become a leader? It’s called being motivated. You say you just want to do graphic design? So you’re just going to keep doing the same thing day in and day out, never trying to get anywhere? Wait, you want to learn? You want to take on new challenges, better your skills and become the best graphic designer around? Okay, maybe I do get that. Many of us think of career development in terms of upward trajectory, a path to higher pay, more responsibility, a bigger office with a more prestigious title. But not everybody wants that. Some of us just want new challenges. All of this makes the traditional hierarchical structure an outdated way of looking at development. These days, more organizations are thinking in terms of lattice, rather than ladder. Offering more horizontal movement, more flexibility and connectivity, the lattice structure is designed to accommodate the preferences of an individual. For a good look at the contrast between these two models, take a look at this handy chart from a recent article in Talent Management Magazine:
Ladder or lattice, the most important thing is to know what your employees expectations are for career development, where they want to go, what they want to do, and what they expect of you as their manager in helping them to achieve these goals. A clear understanding of expectations will help you hold each other accountable and on the path toward more effective teamwork, heightened engagement, and better performance.
As you can see, the name of the game in terms of engagement is understanding what your employees want. Not in aggregate, but individually. And while it may seem like a lot of extra work to develop those personal relationships, the payoff is in higher engagement and better performance, something that all leaders are likely to covet, regardless of their individual preferences.
