We’re all slaves to our personal routines, and need different things to perform well at work. But it’s not just about performance – it’s about how confident and comfortable you feel when you do things your way. So what’s this got to do with employee engagement?
Let’s take my routine as an example. Every Monday, I arrive at the office an hour before everyone else, and spend that first blissfully quiet hour of the day writing an incredibly anal list of tasks for the week ahead. I always list more than I know I’ll be able to do – as day to day, unforeseen jobs pop up and I’m forced to deviate from my beloved itinerary.
I do this every week for a number of reasons. It inspires me for the week ahead, and also means that nothing is forgotten. I find this exercise really useful for improving my productivity, as every Friday I look back over the list and ask myself why I didn’t manage to complete certain tasks, and what I can do to move things along. And on those sacred occasions that every item is crossed off, I’ll ask the opposite – what else could I have achieved this week if I’d pushed myself a little harder? Did I manage my workload in the best possible way?
Looking at my work in this way seems horrifying to some. I’ve been ribbed by colleagues in the past for my (ok, slightly obsessive) lists and time management. Some people take a more relaxed approach, and the idea of printed lists and allocated time slots seems like the work of a militant maniac. But the important thing is that it works for me and helps me to see things clearly.
And that’s the point, isn’t it? We all need different things to do our jobs well – in the same way that employee engagement is different for everyone.
We’re all inspired and engaged by different things. My top engagement elements would be being trusted to do my job well, and having the freedom and flexibility to find my way. Of course, there’s a vast number of things I need to feel happy and engaged at work – and the things you need are likely to be entirely different to me.
You know what would disengage me? Being forced out of the routine I’m so fond of. I’ve worked in organisations in the past where managers are so obsessed that their way is the right way, that they’ll do pretty much anything to goad you into submission.
Asking you politely to complete a task, but hovering over you until you drop everything and do it. Allowing you so little freedom to make decisions that you wonder why you bothered training for the role you work in. Basically wanting to do their job and yours, so your achievements aren’t really yours.
These kinds of managers spell trouble for employee engagement. It’s impossible to be engaged at work if you constantly feel like you’re an automated to do list for someone else, as they churn the horrible jobs that they don’t fancy doing your way. Everyone has varying engagement needs, and so if you’re finding yourself replicating the actions of your manager to keep them happy, the chances are you won’t feel engaged or happy at work any time soon.
At People Lab, we believe that team employee engagement doesn’t start with the team leader. It’s absolutely integral that opinions, ideas and insights are sought from every individual employee, and that they’re allowed the freedom to express the things that engage them. Don’t pressure your employees to behave in the same way you do because you’re productive – everyone has a different approach to getting the job done. Micro management is a thing of the past, and employee engagement is the future of successful organisations.
