Why bother creating a culture of engagement?

What does engagement mean to an organization that's growing?

The Oxford dictionary defines engagement as the agreement to do something for a fixed time AND as the act of being engaged. So, when we think about engagement at work there's 2 things to focus on:

1. 1. The employee and employer have both agreed that the employee will execute on activities at work in exchange for compensation.
   


2. 2. The employee will be engaged in his/her tasks if there is something to occupy or attract his attention.
   

When an organization is growing quickly, it can be very easy to focus on the bottom line and how quickly you can hire the talent to deliver profitable results. But I would argue that the CULTURE inherently will be focused on the bottom line if that is the sole focus of leadership. 

While the bottom line is important, a culture driven by it can lead to poor behavior by:

• Rewarding results that focus on profit even if the manager is driving the staff with excessive and consistent overtime to meet a deadline. People leave Managers.
• Creating high turnover
• Employees no longer feeling engaged by their work at the sole focus of profit.
• Not having values of meaning to the employees nor a mission that is a higher vision of good that employees will want to rally around.

By shifting the perspective to a company Mission and Values statement that have meaning and rewarding behavior that supports them, creates a winning value proposition for the employee to stay engaged. Engaged employees are more productive & creative and this has a direct impact on the growth of the company.

For example, Millennial's value work- life balance and meaningful work over career progression as noted in Forbes.com. It is not enough to simply create Mission and Values; Leadership and managers need to walk the talk of both to demonstrate their importance, so others will follow and be inspired to action individually.

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By building the spirit of collaboration that aligns with the Mission and Values, a winning Culture of Engagement that ultimately leads to growth within a company will begin to emerge. It is no longer a question of why bother, but rather a question how fast can we create this.

Leave a comment to share your feedback or schedule a call with Christine Bedalow to learn more at www.talentconscious.com/contact.html.

#cultureofengagement, #collaboration, #

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