Why Employee Engagement Gives You a Competitive Advantage

First, let’s start with a definition: Employee engagement is a measure of how involved and committed an employee is to their workplace — it’s the discretionary effort they put into their work.

Engagement can be measured through quantitative data and/or qualitative variables such as emotions, loyalty, satisfaction and productivity.

Sure, the workplace experience has recently shifted and altered unexpectedly, but exceptional employee engagement still puts any business at a competitive advantage. From recruitment to profit, the profound results of employee engagement are not something a company can afford to put on the back burner.

Simply put, employee engagement matters.

In today’s competitive talent market, businesses must differentiate themselves. Research shows companies that put people, company culture and engagement first have a greater ability to attract and retain the best talent.

Investing in Employee Engagement

Making the shift from perceiving employee engagement as an expense to understanding it as an investment is the key to unlocking potential talent and exclusive employee immersion. Investing in engagement is an efficient strategy. Research shows that the results are measurable and the tangible success can be showcased. So perhaps investing in your employees is a compassionate yet considerable path to reach and retain the best in everyone.

Take a look at the following to better understand the overall impact at the forefront of employee engagement:

• Employers with highly engaged employees experience a 59% decrease in turnover

As one would hypothesize, employees who are engaged are more likely to stay with their organizations, reducing overall turnover and the costs associated with it. Strong company culture is not built in a day. Entrenched company values and beliefs are built upon over time. With less turnover, the path to a stronger bond to their organization’s purpose and mission becomes clearer. Over time, these traits manifest into stronger relationships with customers and can increase sales and profitability.

• $550 billion per year is what disengagement costs companies in the U.S. alone

Read that statistic — and then read it again. Now ask yourself, is your organization contributing to this financial pit? Disengagement is often silent, but it costs more than you think. Now, imagine where that money could be allocated at your own organization. By chiseling away at disengagement, companies could be saving funds, and then reinvesting them into beneficial and forward-thinking ways to improve the employee experience.

• Employers with highly engaged employees experience 41% lower absentee rates

There’s no surprise in today’s workforce that simply showing up is half the battle. If your company is struggling with low attendance rates, then engagement is the key solution to slamming the brakes on absences. With higher attendance, productivity is driven, company culture is further cemented, and chances are if workers are engaged, they are also motivated.

• Only 12% of employees who leave an organization do so for more money

Turnover is not correlated to salary. That means only about 12 out of 100 employees who leave a company are seeking more money. Stop and ask yourself why the other 88 are doing so if not to further their income. In today’s dynamic workforce, people don’t come to work just for a paycheck. What perks are your employees getting beyond standard health benefits? Most of the time we see our coworkers more than we do our own families, so making sure employees are excited to come to work is essential. If your employees are dreading the workday, then chances are they are heading towards being one of those 88 people. This excludes Mondays; there’s a universal rule — Mondays are not welcomed by everyone.

• 21% higher profitability reported from businesses with highly engaged employees

Disengaged employees can be detrimental to the success of a company. The equation is simple — when both work-life balance and the particular values of that work are aligned, engagement grows. And when work-life balance is respected, the quality of work is respected as well. Profitability is the outcome as a result of positive engagement through quality of enhanced work, bringing out the best in top talent across the board.

Our Employee-Owner Experts Make It Easy

GO2 Partners activates and enables your workforce by driving enthusiastic adoption of the products, technology and processes that impact your bottom line. When we build solutions or communicate change, our goal is simple: consider employees first, every time.

Asking your workforce to feel passionate about their jobs, commit to the organization’s mission and put discretionary effort into their work can be a challenging endeavor, but it’s also a highly sought-after competitive advantage.

If you’d like to learn more about how GO2 Partners can positively impact employee engagement at your organization — now and in the future — don’t hesitate to reach out.

Key Takeaways

• Employees are the backbone of every organization.
• Engagement is not just impacted by variables related to progress and productivity; there are also moral aspects such as passion for the company’s cause, values, beliefs and manifests.
• High engagement and quality performance lead to higher profitability and less turnover.
• Investing in engaging employees can be beneficial to the success of the company.
• Research shows time and again employee engagement matters; it has a real, tangible impact.
• GO2 Partners creates opportunities for enhanced employee engagement; we’re committed to its purposefulness and ultimate success.

Sources

1. https://www.gallup.com/workplace/238085/ state-american-workplace-report-2017.aspx

2. https://www.achievers.com/resources/analyst-insight/the-impact-of-employee-engagement-on-performance-by-Harvard-business-review-analytic-services/

3. https://www.hrdive.com/news/study-disengaged-employees-can-cost-companies-up-to-550b-a-year/437606/

4. https://www.achievers.com/resources/white-papers/workforce-institute-2021-engagement-and-retention-report/

5. https://www.gallup.com/workplace/238085/state-american-workplace-report-2017.aspx

6. https://www.achievers.com/resources/white-papers/pulse-surveys-employee-engagement/

7. https://news.gallup.com/businessjournal/182792/managers-account-variance-employee-engagement.aspx

8. https://www.ehstoday.com/safety/article/21919203/how-engaged-workers-are-safe-employees

9. https://officevibe.com/blog/disengaged-employees-infographic

10. https://news.gallup.com/poll/241649/employee-engagement-rise.aspx