Non-engagement of Employees

Introduction

Employee engagement regards the extent to which the staffs make complete utilization of their cognitive, emotional, and corporeal wherewithal to carry out their task-associated job. The engaged employees are always active, pleasant, and have sentimental correlation with their work at all instances. Besides the humanistic rationales for chasing dedication, the higher echelons of worker engagement are in association with augmented return on resources, elevated earning for each staff, minor absenteeism, greater increase of sales, and even better performance (Xu and Thomas 3). The notion of employee engagement first came about through Kahn in his ethnographic work at architecture organization and summer campsite staff and put forth its definition as the emotional commitment of the employee to the organization and its set objectives. The paper therefore, endeavors to analyze the problem of employee disengagement in the workplace and the possible solutions to make the employees more devoted to their tasks.

Affirmative Impact and Repercussions of Engagement

Both the practitioners and the academics have come to an agreement that the outcomes of employee engagement are constructive. Moreover, much study in the civic and private zones has shown that the labor force rendezvous is significantly in correspondence with various positive organizational results such as lower degrees of attrition, increased profitability, lesser complaints, and augmented levels of client satisfaction (Zajkowska 106). There is a general belief from research that there is an interrelation between employee contentment and engagement to meaningful business upshots at an extent that is imperative to different organizations. Nevertheless, engagement is a personal-degree construct and incase it does result in business outcomes, then it must first affect the personal-degree outcomes. For that reason, there is a rationale to anticipate that worker commitment is in association with the personal attitudes, intents, and conducts. Even though not even Kahn included results in his research, he eventually proposed that high degrees of engagement result in both constructive outcomes for the individuals as well as the positive advancement and productivity of the organizations.

There is a great facilitation of the high organizational performance when there is the engagement of the staffs at every echelon, and that is inclusive of even the top management. The non-engaged workforce does not commend the interest and effort necessary to perform at their level best. Two workers, one committed and the other disengaged but with the same abilities and familiarity will naturally contribute to their organization at dissimilar degrees: the one engaged will invest discretionary effort in the task to give the best outcome, while the other one will put less effort. The workers, who don’t attain the results as a result of non-involvement, usually influence, taint, and eventually affect the group, section, or the organization in various negative ways. First and foremost, such staffs express themselves in a negative manner as regards the company and focuses mostly on criticizing and gossiping thus affecting the morale of the other workers. Furthermore, the uninvolved individuals unfavorably impact productivity given that they simply demand more time in performing their duties, and yet time is money.

There are various ways through which the organization can improve or even solve completely, the issue of employee disengagement as outlined below.

Measure Engagement

Common knowledge indicates that merely testing the degrees of engagement through a survey is insufficient; if all a manager does is asking how engaged the workforce is, but no affirmative, visible action taken, then there is high probability of having an unconstructive overall outcome. One has to take a vigilant look at how the business responds to the answers it receives from the yearly review. Usually, it is simple to get into the cognitive entrap of posing questions that only underpin senior management’s views of how well the institution is thriving, and to evade inquiring about the issues that may extract less favorable feedback. A good engagement apparatus not merely measure, but will analyze, and assist in diagnosing the key issues and identifying the opportunities for change and improvement. It has to go past simply asking queries leading to the practical steps that will result in augmented engagement scores in the subsequent survey (Head Light 6).

Promotion Opportunity

The employee promotion chance transfers the workers to the senior position in the organizational configuration hence resulting in more performance at their working stations. The employee attentiveness to their task at whatever level depends on the position progress opportunities within the business. Additionally, the career progression of the employees offers a positive influence on their performance, indeed, when the workers are aware that they will get a timely promotion, they will always have an inner drive to work extra hard and in an efficient way. No worker would like to just be in the same position for a longer duration but rather would like to move to the next higher level; as a result, when the firm offers the promotional opportunities, then the staff will get mental attachment with the company.

Employee Recruitment

The message that the organization puts across while looking to attract the job candidates also influences the future engagement and commitment of the employees. If the firm has devised jobs exclusively to engage the workforce, then the management must guarantee that the recruiting advertisements eulogize the striking features of those positions such as a greatly trained team milieu, nominal administration, and challenging labor assignments. The aspirants who observe and respond to the ads have higher chances of getting engaged to the organization due to the motivation that the features provide (Vance 11). When it comes to the selection process, the organization must identify the individuals who are most-suitable for the job and the culture of the company. Besides, the human resources should also utilize the candidate-assessment strategies that have palpable significance to the post in query, for instance, they can do that through asking the candidates what they know as regards the position and even letting them to present samples of work. The majority of applicants will perceive such strategies more optimistically than trials without enough obvious importance such as the traits and integrity assessments. The successful individuals then feel good for having passed the test and view the organization as vigilant and competent of for having chosen them. In most cases, a positive preliminary impression of the organization encourages advancement of the long-term engagement.

Also, a company has to consider how it can best hunt for candidates from within. When there is the recruitment of the existing staff for the enviable positions, the organization enhances their engagement through the maximizing the individual-job fit and commitment by offering growth and progress prospects in return to their devotion to the company. If the organization conscripts from outside whereas competent internal contenders are present, then it may inadvertently imply to the existing employees that the firm is not eager to counter their loyalty, and they may even start inquiring their dedication to the company.

Training and Development

The training and development of employees can serve as added levers for the enhancement of engagement and dedication. For the fresh hires, training always starts with orientation which presents various significant opportunities such as pay explanations, work plans, and company guidelines. Most significantly, it offers the management a chance to promote employee engagement through the explanation of how the appointee’s job adds to the company’s mission. Through orientation, the administration can also describe the structure of the company, introduce the new staff to the co-workers, offer an individual an excursion to the work station, and explanation of the security regulations among other practical issues. In other words, the management endeavors to cultivate individual-company fit which is usually vital when it comes to the development of the dynamic and dedicated employees.

Furthermore, through training, the company assists both the new and existing employees to attain the knowledge and skills necessary as regards the performance of their duties. In most cases, the workers who develop their abilities through training have higher chances of engaging fully in their duties given that they originate contentment from mastering novel tasks. Besides, training also enhances the value of employees to the business together with their employability in the profession bazaar. Certainly, most organizations nowadays provide higher wages for the skilled staff to recompense them for their greater worth and also to daunt their turnover and in the process, ends up increasing their engagement (Vance 13).

If the corporation is reluctant as concerns the investment in training, one should consider signifying to the senior management the correlation existing between training investments, worker engagement, and the quantifiable production results. The business also has to explore how it can pull the digital know-how and the internet to attain most from its training investment. While corporations used to give training to the staff in the same venue and at the same period, they can presently employ technology to give self-paced and personalized tutoring for the employees in the remote flung-localities. Such training not merely decreases the travelling expenditures of the organization but also assists the workers in managing their other commitments, for instance family compulsion, and accordingly, their engagement to the organization escalates.

Compensation

Compensation is also a powerful tool that can influence the employee commitment and engagement. Whereas some reward components promote assurance to managers, others inspire dedication to the job; however it is always better to cultivate them mutually, even if it is possible to stimulate just one and not the other. For instance, a corporation that provides a strong performance inducement scheme without a retirement system will most likely apprehend outstanding rendezvous from the workers. Conversely, they might ultimately entrust themselves to a different organization that offers an excellent retirement scheme. When it comes to a company that gives munificent retirement reimbursements yet a conventional rank-based reimburse rating structure might get committed workforce, though they may convey pedestrian performance as they bide the moment till they retire. The company, therefore, must take into consideration the strategic engagement and commitment of the employee when scheming the recompense plans.

The employee compensation usually comprises the financial elements such as pay and benefits though it may also be inclusive of the nonfinancial perks such as the assistance plans for the workforce, subsidized canteens, commuting allowances, and even picnics among others. The most valuable reward plans should sustain the premeditated goals of the organization, for instance, if it centers on innovation, then the compensation system has to support and recompense risk-taking. A well-planned compensation scheme should give the company a viable advantage; in other words it should help in attracting the best job applicants, motivates them to give their best abilities, and also keep them for the long duration without the issue of turnover.

The incentives disburse, or the pay-for-performance can directly influence the production of workers and hence their engagement as well their assurance to the institution as they trust that there will be a reward for the high-quality performance. The management can also join the incentive pay to the team and company-wide outcomes through the allotment of proceeds, gain-sharing, and member of staff stock tenure policies. The financial incentives always motivate the majority of employees and make them put more effort in their duties so long as they find it worthwhile to do so.

The admonition with the motivation procedures, of course, is that the management ought to first characterize and evaluate performance before deciding on its features to connect to recompense. Indeed, most organizations opt to reward the easiest quantifiable performance given that the incentive-plan agendas can at times present a profound organizational burden. However, the approach can result in unintentional and detrimental outcomes; for instance, if the company pays individuals based on the number of units assembled daily, then it may end up encouraging quantity at the cost of eminence. For that reason, the challenge in applying the incentive plans is that it rewards the outcomes most significant to the company even if such results are comparatively hard to enumerate. The management hence needs to promote the enthusiasm of the workers to give their best instead of just doing the least to garner a reward. Therefore, to that extent, an organization may need to amalgamate the financial incentives and the gratitude-based honors to cultivate the full array of performance that the firm wants to stay viable in the industry.

The company can also consider the know-how-based pay which many have resorted to in the recent times. Through the system, the company rewards the staff not just for mastering the work-relevant acquaintance and proficiencies but also for employing such capabilities to produce outcome that the corporation values. The skill-based pay can augment the workforce engagement by nurturing the satisfaction of human resources in their fresh mastery, and can also promote commitment as the staff come to terms that the business is enthusiastic to assist them buff their employability. Furthermore, various companies also give retirement strategies as module of their recompense package, even if they are usually accessible to the entire permanent workers, and the precise plans provided may perhaps depend on the duty, duration served, and greatest salary among others. Therefore, the well-planned and safe retirement tactics can support the long term engagement of employees.                               

Conclusion

The organizations should always endeavor to promote the engagement and commitment of the employees given that through it they can attain the set goals and objectives. They must define and evaluate engagement and come up with the appropriate ways that brings more value to both the staff and the organization.

Works Cited

Head Light. “10 actions to increase Employee Engagement.” Leading Talent Management Software from Head Light, 2019, head-light.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2013/12/PS-Ten-actions-to-increase-employee-engagement.pdf.

In the process, Head light includes where to instigate the three perspectives of engagement and also gives various ways to increase the employee engagement.

Vance, Robert J. “Employee Engagement and Commitment.” SHRM – The Voice of All Things Work, SHRM FOUNDATION, www.shrm.org/hr-today/trends-and-forecasting/special-reports-and-expert-views/Documents/Employee-Engagement-Commitment.pdf.

Vance’s work offers a systematic examination of employee engagement and commitment and even going as far as designing the engagement initiatives.

Xu, Jessica, and Helena C. Thomas. “How can leaders achieve high employee engagement?” Leadership & Organization Development Journal, vol. 32, no. 4, 2011, pp. 399-416, www.researchgate.net/publication/235284718_How_can_leaders_achieve_high_employee_engagement.

The chapter analyzes the meaning of employee engagement and also looks into how the leaders can attain greater employee engagement

Zajkowska, Monika. “EMPLOYEE ENGAGEMENT: HOW TO IMPROVE IT THROUGH INTERNAL COMMUNICATION.” Stránka Presmerovaná, 2012, frcatel.fri.uniza.sk/hrme/files/2012/2012_1_09.pdf.

The page attempts to describe and identify the major aspects of the employee engagement and also looks into the affirmative impact and repercussions of engagement.