Would you have imagined that we are where we are now? Just over a year ago, the pandemic swept over continents and changed the way we lived.
Lockdowns resulted in a new way of working that was unprecedented before that. Lots of firms could not keep up with the needed IT capabilities. The result? Skype without video, non-existing tools for collaboration, and a dissatisfied workforce. Although all of this is true, how are companies able to measure it in the first place? This is evident for IT-related concerns, but not so for people-related difficulties.
An employee engagement survey can help
Understanding what your employees think and need is of utmost importance. Especially when it comes to a remote working environment. The use of an employee engagement survey is a good start to understand the current state. These surveys are tailored to understand and challenge the needs of employees. There are even special surveys available that focus on the COVID-19 pandemic and the impact on the work environment.
Leverage the analytical outputs
Using these employee engagement surveys help you to understand the needs. It does not matter how many of them you send out: a dashboard can help you drill-down and create the relevant insights. Based on the situation of other companies, there are follow-up actions that can help you mitigate the challenges. Hereby, you effectively improve employee satisfaction where it hurts most.
Other methods are available
Employee engagement is not limited to a survey. An effective and proven method is the one-on-one conversation. This can be done with a team leader and individual members of a team. In this way, you can pinpoint the issues and act accordingly. Although proven, this becomes a more difficult method when the team and organisation size increases.
Employee listening
In the end, it all comes down to one thing: listening to your employees. When you take the time to understand them, you will be able to support them. In turn, this will increase employee satisfaction and with it, its productivity. You could see it as a win-win. Do note that it requires investment, sometimes from two angles. First, you need to take the time to engage with your employees. Second, if there are any significant issues it often requires an investment to mitigate them. The upside? In general, these investments are well worth it as productivity is a key measure for most (service-oriented) organisations.
Want to learn more about employee engagement and the effects it has on an organisation? Many websites provide information on the subject or provide relevant tools. One of these well-known websites is Effectory employee engagement. This is a company active in the engagement space that provides a wide range of services that can be used. Interested to learn more? Visit their website and see the tools available and the actions you can take to increase the satisfaction of your employees.
