Employee engagement? The real challenge is disengagement

Do you consider yourself to be an engaged employee? A staggering 85% of people are either not engaged, or worse, actively disengaged at work according to Gallup. That’s only 15% of employees worldwide working with passion, driving innovation and moving their organisation forward.

While the impact of disengagement on employee wellbeing is significant (more about this in my previous blog on mental health in the workplace), employee disengagement is also responsible for $7 trillion in lost productivity globally.

Causes of disengagement

While leading a workshop with leaders and managers from airport ground handling at a recent conference in Istanbul, it became very apparent that there are many similarities in the challenges we face to engage our teams, whatever industry we work in. Whether it’s manufacturing, engineering, automation – or indeed ground handling. 

Research shows that factors influencing disengagement include a lack of investment in training & development, poor leaders & managers, poor communication, poor change management and poor cultures. The list goes on. And when we shared our experiences in the workshop, all of the above came up. Along with a lack of fairness, not being appreciated and a lack of clarity about direction and business goals.

Importance of alignment

In order to feel engaged, your people need to be aligned to the needs of your organisation. And, as I have previously touched on, this has to work both ways. Your organisation must also be aligned with the needs of your people.

Put it this way and it sounds fairly simple, but there are multiple variables that can positively affect alignment. Visible, capable and empowering leaders, as well as managers who are engaged. Employees who have a voice that is challenged, but also valued and respected. And organisational integrity in values that are reflected by all employees, all of the time. 

Engaging factors

As you can see from some of the photos of the day, the fantastic workshop participants in Istanbul were highly engaged – but what factors affect engagement?

Working as a group, here are some of the key elements that we discussed, and a lot of them were around development – learning new skills, training opportunities, future prospects and potential for progression. Similarly, leadership, culture, team, trust, belonging and feeling a sense of empowerment or being heard were all seen as vital.

Why bother?

That might seem like a lot of things to get right, but the rewards are proven – and potentially huge. Research from Korn Ferry reveals that engaged employees are 32% more productive and generate 43% more revenue than those who are not engaged. What’s more, organisations in the top quartile of engaged employees achieve 10% higher customer metrics, 20% higher sales and 21% higher profitability.

The business case is clear – employee engagement is a crucial link between investment and the bottom line. It is the organisations that make the effort to find out how their employees feel about them, and then act on this feedback, who will enjoy the highest returns.

The problem of disengagement won’t go away on its own. Run a training workshop for your team to increase engagement, wellbeing, productivity and profitability.

This blog is based on an interactive workshop led by Mark Hemming at Ground Handling International Leader’s Academy Conference in February 2020.

Meet the three fundamental needs for employee engagement

It’s a universal truth that the world is changing. Every industry is affected and Ground Handling is no different. Legislation, climate change and technology are all having an impact and the pace of change will only increase.

When passengers are able to order shopping, stream movies and buy tickets online without queuing, they won’t be satisfied with outdated process that involve standing in line. And when 5G technology supports a virtual meeting with participants attending as holograms, there will be less demand for business travel.

In order to be change ready, organisations need engaged and adaptable teams. People that are comfortable with flexing and adapting. Individuals who anticipate change and offer innovative solutions. This is only possible if your employees are engaged.

Firm foundations

Gallup’s State of the Global Workforce report is an exhaustive breakdown of data accrued from employees across 155 countries. Researchers found that globally, just 15% of workers were actively engaged in their jobs. What’s more, highly engaged teams show 21% greater profitability, and research links engagement to improved productivity, safety, customer service, turnover, wellbeing and more.

We are programmed to resist change, it’s perfectly normal. That’s why, when change projects fail, it’s rarely the strategy, systems or processes that are at fault. More often than not it’s the human factor. There isn’t a one size fits all solution, but the good news is that if you are meeting three fundamental needs, your team is far more likely to be engaged with any change process:

1.    Am I satisfied in my role?

We are all unique, with different strengths and weaknesses. So it’s worth investing the time to get to know your team. It makes sense to put your people in the roles they are best suited for and train them in areas where they – and the business – will most benefit. Talk to your team and give them a voice, and they will feel valued, trusted and engaged.

Find out about every individual using tools such as DiSC to explore if they have a personality type based on dominance, influence, steadiness or conscientiousness. This will affect how they work and interact with colleagues. Equally, a SWOT analysis will reveal Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats.

2.    Am I aligned with the business – and vice versa?

Your company values need to be clear, authentic and visibly demonstrated. Increase alignment with your values by getting everyone involved in Strategy Mapping and organisational goal setting as early as possible in the process. Provide objectives rather than solutions or directives, to give your people ownership and gain buy-in.

Alignment has to be two way. Your team members also need to know that you see them as individuals and recognise their personal situation. In conversations with Ground Handling staff during a recent international airport visit, this was the primary reason individuals gave for feeling engaged with their employer.

3.    How does what I do contribute to the vision?

If you don’t already use them, introducing Balanced Scorecards is a great way of breaking down your organisation’s strategy into big-picture and then individual goals. So every individual understands how what they do contributes to the integration and growth of the company as a whole.

Effective feedback, monitoring and measuring is then vital to motivate teams and support them to focus on the shared goals. By conducting effective appraisals, you will be able to recognise and reward in a way that is individually meaningful.

Fit for the future

Engaged employees are key to success. An engaged team will recognise the need to be flexible and adapt, and see the value in change. That’s why, in order to survive and prosper into the future, your business must meet the fundamental needs of your people.

Come along to our second interactive event Are you an ostrich or an eagle? on Wednesday 4th March 2020 at the Hawk Conservancy Trust in Hampshire, to explore what engagement means for your business, the link between engagement and change management, and what good engagement looks like.

This article first appeared in the Ground Handling International Leader’s Academy Conference Guide, February 2020.

How to manage change by Dr James Briscoe, Consultant Psychiatrist

In my last blog post, I talked about the need to address work related stress before it becomes an illness. While more people are experiencing stress at work, it is encouraging to know that interventions that promote mental wellbeing in the workplace have been found to reduce the rate of absenteeism due to work-related stress, depression or anxiety by between 5% and 46%[1].

Importance of engagement
Research shows that 71% of the global workforce is not engaged[2]. Engagement and wellbeing are inextricably linked, and we know that a disengaged team member is less likely to be productive and connected to their employer, as well as more likely to miss workdays and to leave. 

However, there are some practical steps that you can take to engage your workforce and avoid sickness absence from stress:

·      Identify the disengaged and explore why they are feeling this way.

·      Ensure a regular rotation of challenge and performance recognition & reward.

·      Identify individual differences and adapt your approach to them.

·      Appreciate different character traits and work with, not against, them.

·      Match the attributes of your team to the demands you make on them.

In an ideal world, these steps will address any problem before it’s too late. But ensuring that an employee is able to access the services they need, such as a GP, psychologist or psychiatrist is the responsibility of every organisation.

Macro and micro management
There are ways that organisations can manage change earlier in the process that make it less likely that stress will lead to illness. On a macro level, this means always assuming that change will have an impact on employee engagement, and trying to quantify the likely impact. Equally, assess overall employee loyalty and resilience before introducing any change project, and before being seduced by the latest tech or gadgets make sure you consider the impact these changes might have on the people who use them.

On a micro level, increased individual participation in decision making and change adoption has been shown to have a positive impact on mental health and wellbeing at work. And make sure you pay attention to the engaged as well as the disengaged employees, particularly the thinking and feeling types who may not be vocal but still have concerns.

Perhaps the most important step that organisations can take to help their people cope and even thrive in the current change climate is to give them as much control as possible. I agree with Mark Hemming that we can learn a lot from nature but we are, after all, only human and we are programmed to want to feel in control.

This blog is based on James’ presentation at our recent ‘Are you an ostrich or an eagle?’ experience at the Hawk Conservancy Trust in Hampshire. To hear more from James, register for our next event in March 2020.

[1] An Economic Analysis of Workplace Interventions that Promote Mental Wellbeing in the Workplace. Institute of Occupational Medicine, 2013.

[2] Western Europe findings in Gallup State of the Global Workplace 2017.

How the mind copes with change By Dr James Briscoe, Consultant Psychiatrist

We are experiencing change at an incredible pace. The statistics around the effect this is having on mental health in the workplace are shocking. But what is the human impact that sits behind those statistics? And how and why does change make us ill?

Humans are animals with a complex physiology dedicated to keeping things the same. Breathing, sleep, hormones, temperature – our biorhythms and homeostasis are all about biofeedback and keeping things stable. In short, programmed into the very essence of our biology is one fact. Human beings don’t like change.

Unfortunately, at the same time, it’s impossible to avoid change. Whether it’s evolutionary progress or change that’s inflicted on us by our external environment, imposed change brings tremendous psychological impact. Particularly when it is happening at breakneck speed.

The lesson of four monkeys
There’s a story about monkeys that demonstrates how change impacts culture (as well as raising some concerns about animal cruelty…). Researchers put four monkeys in a room containing a tall pole with bananas on top. Every time a monkey tried to climb the pole and reach the bananas, the whole group was showered with cold water.

After a while, a new monkey was introduced to the room. It immediately tried to clamber up the pole to reach the bananas but was forcibly stopped by the rest of the group. Over time, all of the monkeys were replaced and the cold shower was removed. But not a single one of the new monkeys tried to reach the bananas. This shows what happens when you don’t challenge the status quo. Concrete thinking and an attitude of “it’s how we’ve always done things round here”. And it can needlessly prevent us from getting the bananas.

Individual perception
Of course, we are all different and how we react to change depends on personality. However, it is very common to get stuck in a fixed mindset when change is imposed on us, and it is equally common to find this stressful. So much so that a UK-wide survey found that 74% of adults have been so stressed in the past year that they have felt overwhelmed and unable to cope[1].

It’s important for organisations and managers to remember that perception of stress is individual. What one person finds exhilarating another might consider to be deeply unpleasant. Just think about rollercoasters and horror movies! A team manager may thrive under high levels of pressure, but not every member of their team will be able to cope with the same demands – and that’s okay.

Signs of stress
Organisations have a duty of care to their employees, but we all need to look out for each other at work and notice signs of stress in our colleagues – ill health, absence, presenteeism, aggression, poor performance, lethargy, demotivation, inadequacy and loss of self-esteem. I often get asked how to identify when stress becomes an illness. The answer is when an individual defines it as such and adopts the sick role, or when a doctor makes a diagnosis.

Before it’s too late
If your work related stress is addressed and identified early on, it is far more likely that you will be able to stay in work. On the other hand, if it isn’t dealt with then you are likely to slide into illness and absence.  

In my next guest blog for MH4.0, I’ll be talking about steps that managers and employers can take to stop stress from becoming an illness. As well as some micro and macro ways to manage change in line with how our minds work. 

This blog is based on James’ presentation at our recent ‘Are you an ostrich or an eagle?’ experience at the Hawk Conservancy Trust in Hampshire. To hear more from James, register for our next event in March 2020.

[1] Mental Health Foundation, 2018.

We need to talk about well-being and mental health

Our awareness of the need for good mental health is quickly increasing. At the same time, many of us are challenging the stigma and discrimination that has for too long been associated with mental health problems. And speaking from personal experience, I think this is long overdue.

The number of people struggling with mental health issues is growing. Look around your office. New figures from the Royal College of Psychiatrists show that it’s now 1 in 7 people who experience mental health issues at work. There will be someone at your workplace who needs support.

Although employers have a duty of care to their employees, it’s not just about staying compliant. It’s about doing the right thing and what’s more, the evidence suggests it pays dividends. Despite the increase in recorded cases, mental health support in the workplace is reported to save UK businesses up to £8 billion per year (Sainsbury Centre for Mental Health). So it’s not all disturbing news…..

Time to Change has some really useful advice about what to do if you are concerned about a colleague or friend. You don’t have to be an expert and we can all help by opening up about mental health. Including asking twice if someone says they’re fine when they are clearly not. As well as taking it seriously, listening, asking questions and not always trying to fix it.

Are you interested in tackling the growing issue of mental health problems in the workplace? Do you play a role in the well-being and development of your team? Join us at one of our forthcoming events, Are you an ostrich or an eagle?, where we’ll be looking at how employers can support their people through current challenges.

We’re hosting a series of 4 hour workshops at the Hawk Conservancy in Andover, Hampshire where you can learn a little more about the need to adapt to and navigate these uncharted waters. Find out more here.

MH4.0 at the Hawk Conservancy

MH4.0 Training & Consulting was launched to deliver original, bespoke, cost effective training and development. Join us on the 29th October 2019 or 4th March 2020, from 08:00 until 12:00 for an original and interactive ‘lessons from nature’ experience that includes flying birds-of-prey, at the Hawk Conservancy Trust, Andover, Hampshire.

We’ll be exploring current challenges, in particular, those affecting the engagement and well-being of managers and their people. Engaging employees, preparing your team and optimising people in times of uncertainty requires individual and holistic understanding. So, not only will you be flying the birds, you’ll work with Consultant Psychiatrist and expert on mental health in the workplace, Dr James Briscoe, MB ChB, MRCPsych, MMedSci.

Book a session

Date:             Tuesday 29th October 2019

Where:          The Hawk Conservancy, Sarson Lane, Weyhill, Andover, SP11 8DY

When:            8am to 12pm (breakfast included + option to stay for lunch)

BOOK HERE https://mh4pointzero.eventbrite.co.uk

Date:             Wednesday 4th March 2019

Where:          The Hawk Conservancy, Sarson Lane, Weyhill, Andover, SP11 8DY

When:            8am to 12pm (breakfast included + option to stay for lunch)

BOOK HERE https://mh4pointzeromarch2020.eventbrite.co.uk