Good people management is not difficult. However, research confirms that the large majority of employees are disengaged and increasingly cynical about the commitment of their employer to provide a great place to work. According to recent research conducted by employee engagement consultants Infogroup, Australia is placed seventh globally in terms of employee engagement, narrowly behind the United States and Germany. The research surveyed the views of 9,300 employees across the globe.

There are five highly effective strategies that can be adopted by any manager to significantly increase employee engagement by more than fifty percent. This article provides a brief overview on each of these strategies.

Some years ago I worked for a large manufacturing company, with the typical entry points where all staff had to clock in for their next shift. As is usual, staff would change into their work clothes and store their personal belongings in their locker. One of the production managers would often remark that it was such a shame that staff are leaving their initiative locked away as well, as they change into human robots, going through another boring twelve hour shift.

Role Clarity

Most employees go to work to do their best, though somehow it seems as if employers are making it as difficult as possible for an employee to do their job well. It all starts with having a clear job description of what is expected from them. Every manager has their specific expectations and standards, which needs to be shared with every new employee, or whenever there are any substantial changes. Employees are not mind readers and managers need to discuss and explore with employees what is expected of them. The key here is to focus on outputs or outcomes, not tasks or activities, as employees will become more engaged if they understand what is required, but have the opportunity to decide the best way to achieve the desired outcome.

Agreed Goals

Most jobs incorporate a long list of requirements. Some of these actions include daily actions, others weekly or monthly outputs, and others may be more project based or one-off assignments. Having a clear and agreed list goals is a very powerful way to hold employees accountable, provided they have been involved in developing the list of goals, which also makes it easier to get agreement. Too often, managers confuse KPIs or target measurements with goals that encapsulate the key priorities for the business, creating a strong alignment and making it more meaningful for the employee to see how they contribute to the business.

Regular Feedback

We all enjoy feedback, hearing that we are on track and doing a good job. Feedback should always be timely and regular, rather than creating a list which is only discussed every quarter or annually. Most managers dread giving feedback as they are used to a very formal process, rather than using role clarity and agreed goals as signposts that guide the feedback process, taking away the risk of becoming a very subjective discussion.

Learning Plan

Personal growth is often top of the list of motivators, reinforcing how all employees, and in particular Gen Y employees highly value any investment by their manager and the company to develop their skills and make them more employable. Having a highly developed structure of the role and how the employee is performing ensures that any training and development is of mutual benefit.

Career Discussion

No employee wants to be in a dead-end job, without any prospects of career progression. Once the employee has proved their performance and competence in their current role, it is essential to discuss how the learning plan is assisting the employee to be appointed into their next role, where role clarity kick-start the next cycle, in a virtuous cycle of employee engagement. The opportunity to rotate staff into other roles often creates new enthusiasm and also adds fresh skills, providing the employee with new career opportunities.

Increasing employee engagement is a major HR strategy for most organisations, and critical to make the employer a preferred employer of choice. If manager can nurture, develop and recognise the talents of employees, employees will be highly engaged and more likely to be retained. By using these five strategies, companies have been able to significantly increase their levels of employee engagement, by more than fifty percent, through better people management.