Signs of Low Employee Engagement
Indicators of a lack of staff commitment and job satisfaction
Aug 5, 2007
If you are wondering if employee engagement is a problem in your workplace, consider the following list of indicators of low employee engagement.
The turn over rate is high
Whether staff is volunteering to leave or is being dismissed, only a small percentage of turn over is due to factors unrelated to employee engagement. The simple truth is that if employees are engaged and have high job satisfaction, they stay.
Productivity is down
The stats have been slipping for awhile now. If you were to chart the decline it would be a slope downward.
Deadlines are being missed
When employees are unmotivated and they are not working effectively as a team, deadlines get missed.
Morale is low
Employees rarely walk around with a smile on their face. They are not interested in planning or being a part of social activities.
Conflicts are happening frequently
You feel like a parent at times as their leader. One is complaining about another, so and so did this to that and so on. The conflicts are over small things but the emotions around them are magnified. The maturity level has dropped to a high school level.
Lack of cooperation between staff or other departments
They complain about other departments and are blatant in their non-cooperation. It is to the point that the managers of other departments complain.
Employees leave the minute the clock turns 5:00
As soon as they can, they are out of there. They arrive when they must and leave when they can.
Absenteeism is up
They call in sick, seem to be going to the doctor a lot, plan their vacation days carefully and use up all personal days.
Punctuality is a problem
You may be seeing a problem with staff arriving late. It started off with one employee arriving late and now you are seeing others arriving late.
Miscommunication is happening frequently
Miscommunications happen when staff are not listening carefully to each other and not taking the time to deliver their messages clearly and carefully.
Theft is a problem
You may be experiencing problems with theft. This is a problem that needs serious attention and can be a sign of lack of employee engagement.
Solutions
- Hire a team building expert and arrange a one day retreat
- Host a meeting where you listen to feedback and ideas. Promise to implement at least one of the recommendations – the one that is chosen as the most critical and there is a clear, reasonable solution that can be implemented without putting a high demand on resources.
- Create an anonymous feedback mechanism
- Meet daily for very short meetings (10 minutes maximum) and share daily priorities and news. Keep the agenda the same every day – 5-6 items.
- Create a code of conduct and a set of values as a team and reward staff for demonstrating the code or the values.
- Create an incentive plan to encourage positive behaviour
If you have comments or suggestions on this article, please start a discussion
If you liked this article, try:
Motivating Positive Performance
Copyright © 2007 Joni Rose and Suite 101. All rights reserved. Any unauthorized use will constitute an infringement of copyright.
 |
