Targeting The Wrong Audience

A nice post on employee engagement from systematicHR brings together some of the various opinions and survey results on what engages employees.  What hit me was the fact that most clients want performance programs for their employees to increase engagement and worry almost exclusively about the award and structure for the employee.  However, if you look at the list that systematicHR put together after reviewing various studies – most of the impact on employee engagement comes from the managers. 

In other words – the people that need the performance program are the managers – not the rank and file.

The chart below lists the eight (8) elements developed by systematicHR that drive employee engagement and I added my opinion on who has the most impact on positive engagement outcome. 

See the pattern?

If we want to impact employee engagement we need to impact the manager’s performance.  Start with the root cause – don’t just attack the symptom.

Naturally, there are a few areas where employees have a responsibility in mix – they have to grow and learn and be adaptable as opportunities arise.  Managers can provide the appropriate room for growth and engagement but the employee still has to make the effort to walk to the door.

When developing your engagement plan – start with your managers.