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3 Factors That Throws Employee Engagement down the Drain

Category: Blogs
Posted: 11/02/2015 03:46 PM
Views: 494
Synopsis:
Bestselling author, Daniel Pink, provides a solution on one of the basic problems in the American workforce, disengagement. The talk will be held at Avaya Engages Silicon Valley.

December 10, 2014 at Avaya Engages Silicon Valley- Daniel Pink, Wall Street Journal and New York Times bestselling author, addressed one of the most basic problems which has been afflicting the American workforce since time immemorial. Disengagement continuous to be a thorn in the side of the American workforce, which according to Pink, is an epidemic that must be stopped. Check out our store for Avaya products you can use against this epidemic.

Costing the U.S. economy an estimate of $550 billion annually, disengagement covers up to 70% of the American workers, according to the Gallup poll. By prioritizing employee engagement, a lot of positive outcomes can be expected, which can lead to the improvement of companies and industry in general.

One of the effects of having engaged employees is that they have higher points of satisfaction and commitment to the companies. Since these employees are able to form a value for their own work and the company they belong to, they have the tendency to improve more in specific aspects of work which includes:

  • Quality
  • Productivity
  • Retention

And according to Pink, this could only benefit the companies all in profits, margins and revenues. This is also the reason why one of the ways to push the company forward is by being wary about the factors that could lead to disengagement. Pink provided three factors or what he calls “deadly sins” to look out for and avoid.

Paying your workers too little can lead people to be disengaged from work.

“Pay people enough to take the issue of money off the table.” Pink said. Employees get disengaged from work even when not in working hours and even when not at work at all.  They need to have a control over their inherent motivators to increase their engagement and productivity, which is why outdated motivational techniques like carrot-and-stick motivator and “if/then” rewards system won’t work anymore. Carrot-and-stick motivator involves money for rewards for the employees while the “if/the” reward system involves giving out rewards if a specific condition has been met. The latter technique could work but only for those job descriptions with simple tasks. It will never work for people who have conceptual, complex, and creative job descriptions. 

Controlling your employees too much can also lead to disengagement, said Pink.

For him, management is only a technology which helps people to improve and expand their productivity capabilities. This is why Pink advises everyone to look at management as what it really is and take it down from the pedestal.

The most effective style of management is that which inspires self-direction and not the micro type of management. “If you’re truly engaged in something, you get there under your own power.” Said Pink.

Keeping everything business-oriented can be harmful.

Pink provided threefold solutions which will cure the disengagement epidemic and these are autonomy, purpose and mastery. Employees all have the desire to be better. They want grow and level their skills up with their own hands but they also want to do something important for the world which makes the threefold solution effective. But these qualities of the employees also leads to disengagement if not handled properly, which is why the third deadly sin should not be made, which pertains to keeping everything business-oriented.

“Business is business.” has been a cliché that existed since way down in history and the truth is, this mindset actually harms the business itself.

People need a sense of fulfilment and self-realization of their purpose and something bigger than life itself, which means that if companies are not able to provide that sense in their employees, their tendency is to be disengaged from both the job and the company.

The engagement between companies and employees founded on values and purpose is like a beautiful enchantment. Bring people together, have environment goals and consider public service, like Avaya does. One of Avaya's effort in accordance to this is the Avaya Engagement Development Platform. Understand what this is all about in this website

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