Employee engagement is a common topic that is talked by every HR in the company. Of course, increased profitability, improved quality, reduced turnover, and many other benefits were an important part of employee engagement, and we do know good employee engagement increases organization performance. So, how do we measure and what we can get out of employee engagement

How is employee engagement measured?

Employee engagement is typically measured using an employee engagement survey that has been developed specifically for this purpose. Employee engagement surveys must be statistically validated and benchmarked against other organizations if they are going to provide useful results. Without these things, it is difficult to know what you are measuring and whether the results are good or bad.

Engagement can be accurately measured with short surveys that contain just a few questions, but such short surveys can only provide an indication of whether employees are engaged. They have a hard time explaining why employees are engaged or disengaged because they lack detail. In order to get a complete picture of employee engagement, a survey needs to include about 50 to 80 questions that cover a complete range of topics related to employee engagement.              

Components of employee engagement

There are two primary factors that drive employee engagement. These factors are based on statistical analysis and widely supported by industry research.

Engagement with the organization measures how engaged employees are with the organization as a whole, and by extension, how they feel about senior management. This factor has to do with confidence in organizational leadership as well as trust, fairness, values, and respect - i.e. how people like to be treated by others, both at work and outside of work.

Engagement with "My Manager" is a more specific measure of how employees feel about their direct supervisors. Topics include feeling valued, being treated fairly, receiving feedback and direction, and generally, having a strong working relationship between employee and manager based on mutual respect.

Strategic Alignment: Does the organization have a clear strategy and set of goals? Do employees understand the strategy and goals? Do employees understand how the work they do contributes to the organization's success? 

Competency: Do managers have the skills needed to get the job done? Do they display the behaviors needed to motivate employees? 

What does the employee get out of engagement?

Clearly the organization benefits from engagement, but what about the individual? What’s in it for me? As an employee, why would l care about being more engaged if it only means I have to work harder and the company reaps all of the rewards?

Fortunately, employee engagement is a win-win for the both the employee and employer. Here are a few reasons why we, as employees, should choose to be engaged in our work.

Safety

Research show that engaged employees have a decreased chance of experiencing an accident at work. Engaged employees were five times less likely than non-engaged employees to have a safety incident and seven times less likely to have a lost-time safety incident (Source: Effective practice guidelines: Employee engagement and commitment. SHRM)If you work in a manufacturing or heavy equipment environment, this is especially important.

When we are engaged in what we do we tend to follow safety procedures more diligently and don’t lose focus as often, thus leading to fewer safety incidents.

Better Health

Want to improve your health? One study monitored a group of 168 engaged and disengaged workers multiple times during a day to measure stress, as well as other health indicators.

Those that were engaged reported lower stress and higher interest levels throughout the day. They also showed improvements in cholesterol and blood pressure readings.

Conversely, disengaged employees were twice as likely to be diagnosed as depressed than those who were engaged (Source: Well Being: The Five Essential Elements, by Tom Rath & Jim Harter).

Happiness

Employee engagement and happiness may be closely related, but they’re not the same. Employees can be happy but not fully engaged in their work. But those who are fully engaged in what they do are much more likely to also be happy.

Employee engagement is based on fulfilling five basic human needs in our work: meaning, autonomy, growth, impact, and connection. Decision Wise research shows that when these needs are met, our overall level of happiness increases.

Superior performance

Much of the research on employee engagement shows that engaged employees perform better than their peers.

Engaged employees not only work harder, but also work smarter and are able to produce better results. This helps them to earn higher wages, receive faster promotions, and market themselves for better career opportunities.

This doesn’t mean devoting oneself entirely to a job and sacrificing work-life balance. Many people describe being engaged as “having a great day at work,” or “being in the zone.” Being fully engaged allows you to get more out of your workday while feeling energized and committed to your work.

Better home life

 “I have my work life and my home life. They don’t mix.”

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