Humans are what makes a workplace.

It’s not the office premises or the luxurious facilities; it’s your engaged workers that drive the quality of your workplace up.  

But what exactly does employee engagement mean?

In this article, discover: 

• Why employee engagement is important
• What the three Cs of engagement are
• How to increase employee engagement

Ready to dive in? 

What Is Employee Engagement?

Engaged employees care about their performance at a company and are in for more than just a paycheck. 

There are three main drivers of employee engagement: 

1. Comprehensive onboarding process: When done right, onboarding can create a positive first impression, increase retention rates, and improve productivity. 
2. Great company culture: A welcoming space where people are inclusive, kind, and respectful will create a positive work environment, leading to better job satisfaction. 
3. Awesome leadership: Strong leaders who care about their employee’s work-life balance are more likely to create a satisfying work environment. 

Let’s learn more about this concept with some examples. 

Three examples of high employee engagement

While employee surveys or performance reviews play a big role in measuring engagement, things are not that simple. 

Measuring employee engagement can be challenging because it’s not a concrete concept. Engagement is a state of mind or emotion that’s not easy to quantify. 

In addition, measuring remote employee engagement is another challenge you have to deal with. Virtually, it’s harder to measure satisfaction than noticing someone’s dissatisfaction through body language. 

So, what does an engaged employee look like? Here are some examples: 

• An engaged employee is highly enthusiastic about their work. An engaged worker is committed to the company and is invested emotionally. For enthusiastic employees, work is not just a task on their to-do list. They stay late to finish their work or talk positively about their job. 
• An engaged employee has a clear sense of purpose. Engaged employees have a clear sense of purpose and their values align with the company’s mission. They talk about their performance with managers and feel empowered to provide feedback to their peers.
• An engaged employee shows up. They don’t come to work because they need to; they come because they want to. Engaged employees get to work on time and they are present. While they don’t necessarily work longer, they work better and are healthier. 

What is the difference between employee engagement and employee satisfaction?

The main difference between employee engagement and employee satisfaction is that engagement is a strong indicator of satisfaction, while satisfaction indicates that employees are engaged. 

However, employee satisfaction refers to employees being content with their job, but not necessarily engaged with it. 

On the other hand, an engaged worker is motivated to show up to work and do everything within their power to help the business succeed. 

What is the difference between employee engagement and the employee experience?

The main difference between employee engagement and the employee experience is that a worker’s engagement level influences their experience during the employee life cycle. 

In other words, an organization’s employee experience is the entire journey an employee takes with the company. 

Think of employee engagement as the end goal while employee experience is the means to that end. 

Now that you have an idea of what employee engagement is, let’s see why it’s so important.

Why Is Employee Engagement Important?

The benefits of employee engagement are:

• Lower turnover: Simply put, disengaged employees will look for new jobs, which means costly onboarding processes to replace lost members. Not to mention that it affects staff morale and productivity. 
• Less burnout: Low engagement can lead to burnout, characterized by a lack of motivation and absenteeism. According to McKinsey & Company, 49% of workers reported some level of burnout that affects their ability to connect with their work.
• Increased profitability: Happy workers are more productive and build stronger customer relationships, which can translate into higher sales. 

Engaged employees are more energized and efficient—and go beyond what’s expected of them. As a result, this increases productivity and helps create a better culture and a positive work environment. 

Employee engagement also helps management understand employee needs, as well as identify ways to improve employee morale. 

Since engagement is so important, how do you make sure you create a successful employee engagement program? 

Find out in the next section. 

What Are The Three Cs of Employee Engagement?

Let’s face it: work may be boring for some employees out there.

That’s why so many HR departments struggle to create successful employee engagement programs. 

A shortcut to employee engagement? Preparing an action plan based on the three Cs of employee engagement: culture, care, and career. 

Culture is defined as how a company does things and how it guides an individual’s behavior. 

Care is about making employees feel like an indispensable part of the company, while management needs to be empathetic toward their personal problems. 

Career is what every employee expects to build at an organization—a fulfilling professional journey. When employees receive support from management, it raises their levels of engagement. 

Bonus: Additional Cs

We have additional Cs for you that are relevant and need to be taken into consideration:

• Coaching: Management affects employee engagement, so managers need to become effective team coaches and mentors who the employees look up to. 
• Communication: Always keep your employees in the loop, from business performance to professional development. 
• Creativity: Seek out new ways to bring employees together and inspire them to go beyond their limitations. 

Armed with the Cs of employee engagement, let’s take a look at some good employee engagement models.

Four Employee Engagement Models

An employee engagement model is a blueprint that outlines how a company can make people productive, satisfied, valued, and respected in the workplace. 

It treats employees like human beings who value a healthy work-life balance—and goes beyond the usual work perks. 

The best part is, you don’t have to design your employee engagement model from scratch. 

Here are some models that can help you inspire to create your own.

The Zinger Model

This is a strategy that focuses on leveraging connections between team members and the importance of employee needs such as well-being and meaningful work. 

Built like a pyramid, they value: 

• Connection
• Authentic relationships
• Recognition for an employee’s efforts
• Engagement

Best for: Workplaces that focus on spiritual, emotional, and mental energy levels. 

The AON-Hewitt Model

This model is all about business outcomes as a driver of employee engagement. The drivers are: 

• Say: employees speak positively about the company, team members, etc.
• Stay: employees have a strong sense of belonging and desire to work at the company. 
• Strive: employees are motivated and put their efforts into succeeding in their roles. 

It understands that high levels of employee engagement directly impact metrics across the business, from employee satisfaction and beyond. 

Best for: Larger companies with a Say, Stay, and Strive mission. 

The JD-R Model

The JD-R model aims to balance job demands and job resources so that workers feel challenged and valued while receiving the necessary support to avoid burnout.

Managers are encouraged to have plenty of resources that help employees achieve their potential and perform well. 

Best for: High-pressure or physically demanding workplaces that focus on employee development.

The Deloitte Model

Deloitte’s aim is to create an ‘irresistible’ environment: a workplace where the day-to-day operation encourages employees to want to work.

After intense employee interviews, they discovered the following five core elements as the pillars of engagement:

1. Meaningful work
2. Hands-on management
3. Positive work environment
4. Opportunity for growth
5. Trust in leadership

Best for: Companies that focus heavily on culture and want to forge strong emotional connections. 

How to Increase Employee Engagement

It’s no secret that engaged employees yield better business outcomes. 

In order to boost your employee engagement efforts, here are the best employee engagement ideas to achieve this feat: 

Conduct an employee engagement survey

Effective management pays close attention to what employees have to say and engages in frequent check-ins.

More than 33% of employees want more feedback from their superiors. 

While it’s tempting to do company-wide pulse surveys, employee feedback should be one-on-one to engage employees in a way that’s meaningful for them. 

Provide purpose

Employees don’t want to do meaningless work that leads to nothing. 

They want to engage in projects that empower them and which positively impact the business.

Employees will feel more engaged when there’s a goal they can get behind and when they have a purpose to inspire them. You can start by creating mission statements and a clear list of core values. 

Invest in personal development

Employees need to see opportunities for personal growth and development. 

A lack of opportunities can influence someone’s decision to leave, so it’s important to invest in coaching or training programs that help them build the skills they need to do the job.

This way, you boost employee retention and keep top talent engaged. 

Hire caring managers

One of the three Cs we’ve discussed is care. 

Managers who inspire employees are what your company needs to increase employee performance and engagement. 

Not only will their motivation increase under strong leadership, but employees will also feel recognized and rewarded for their contributions. 

One great way to boost morale is by investing in quality employee swag. 

Giving high-quality gifts can show new and existing employees that the management cares about them and values their hard work. 

It also helps create great connections with team members, which all contribute to a stronger corporate culture. 

Support ongoing communication

Two-way communication is a must in any company. In other words, it allows business professionals to interact with others and build stronger relationships.

Effective communication influences the way things are done at work and makes life easier for everyone, which leads to stronger employee engagement. 

It’s important to adjust to the way each person communicates and always encourage employees to socialize through various team-building activities. 

Focus on employee strengths

Each employee is unique, with their own strengths and weaknesses.

Focusing on employee strengths is key to their overall happiness and leads to better results and performance. 

It’s wise to create an employee recognition program where good work is rewarded, even if it’s just a few words or a corporate branded gift. 

Over to You

Employee engagement is vital to an organization’s mission and success.

Avoid having disengaged employees by investing in strategies that keep your employees happy with their work and continuously productive. 

Want to learn more about how to make your company a better place to work in? 

Check out our other HR guides in our HR Glossary.