According to Gallup, managers account for at least 70% of the variance in employee engagement scores.
Of course, employee engagement is all the buzz right now but it is not one that you can afford to ignore. How engaged people in your business are will impact everything from productivity to the number of safety incidents. Employee engagement is not just the latest fad; it will impact your bottom line. So, it makes sense to consider how your senior team, your managers and team leaders are doing when it comes to enabling people to engage with the business.
When you break it down there are three things your managers and team leaders need to create and maintain engaged teams.
The first, and most obvious is, they need to understand the business. That is not to say they need to know everything there is to know. A manager or team leader needs a clear view of the big picture. They need to understand what it is the business is trying to achieve and why it is important. They need to understand and buy-in to the values of the business. Finally, they need to a clear understanding of what their team(s) are responsible for delivering and how that is to be done, including all relevant policies and procedures.
If the conversations I have with people are anything to go by, the second key ingredient to engaging management is far less common. To enable people to engage with the business a manager/ team leader needs to understand people. This skill comes more naturally to some than others. One thing, though, is clear – people are different and one size does not fit all. Understanding the different ways people think and the needs and preferences of people with different personality styles enables a manager/ team leader to adapt their leadership style to get the best out of each individual. This is not to say that every manager/ team leader needs an in-depth knowledge of psychology, they just need to recognise some basic traits and have eyes to see people as individuals.
The third, and final, piece to the jigsaw is the ability to enable others to be their best. People often end up in management or leadership positions because they are good at doing stuff. Management requires a new outlook. No longer is your job about being good at doing the stuff your team does. Now the job is about enabling others to do a great job. We define ‘enabling’ as the sill of working with others in such a way that they are able to bring all of themselves, their knowledge and skills to bear in the workplace. This involves giving people clarity on three things:
- why their work is important
- what is expected of them
- how they as an individual can add value
We call this model of communication ‘The Enabling Leader Model.” When managers and leaders use the model they are able to develop and maintain higher levels of engagement. To use it successfully requires those three key ingredients:
- understand the business
- understand people
- the ability to enable others to be their best.
If you would like to know more about the enabling leader model, or would just like a conversation about improving employee engagement, then contact us. we would love to speak with you.