The Science Behind Employee Engagement

Employee engagement goes above and beyond having employees who are committed to their company’s goals and motivated to contribute to its success. It’s also about having employees who feel they are able to achieve their own professional and personal objectives through their engagement with the company.

The fact that employee engagement is a top concern for organizations was demonstrated by the enthusiastic turnout at our breakfast seminar on “The Science of Employee Engagement” early this spring. It was hosted by Craig Dowden, Ph.D., Verity Executive Advisor, Coach, Author and Keynote Speaker.

Craig presented an overview of scientific research to showcase the most effective strategies to motivate employees. He also provided attendees with practical and evidence-informed ideas and strategies which they could apply within their workplaces to enhance employee engagement and performance.

According to Craig, while the traditional approach to engagement has focused on financial incentives, research indicates that increasing monetary rewards can negatively impact performance and impair our ability to make ethical decisions. If employees receive what they perceive as an equitable wage, non-financial factors become more important to maintaining or improving their engagement. At the top of the list, people need an emotional attachment to their work.

Craig highlighted the “Progress Principle” which suggests that a manager’s primary function is to remove the barriers to progress that their employees and team members face when completing their work. Based on an analysis of nearly 12,000 diary entries provided by 238 people working on 26 project teams in seven companies, the “Progress Principle” was developed as a way to explain how managers can foster progress by enhancing the “inner work life” of employees every day: Teresa M. Amabile and Steven J. Kramer, The Progress Principle: Using Small Wins to Ignite Joy, Engagement, and Creativity at Work, Harvard Business Review Press, 2011.

When you have an environment that nurtures positive emotions, favourable perceptions of colleagues and rewarding work, research concludes that people will be more productive, committed to their work, and constructive in their relationships with co-workers. Managers must remove obstacles which impede employees from feeling that they are making headway in their work. Without these barriers, employees can optimize their inner work life and experience the highest engagement.

Arguably, the most powerful motivational factor for many employees is to see meaning and purpose in their work. People need to understand the “why”. With this understanding, employees feel more connected to the organization and to its goals. Leaders and organizations should create a strong sense of “why” within their teams and ensure that this is top of mind when people are working on core projects and meeting their responsibilities.

Another key engagement factor Craig identified was maintaining a positive outlook or approach. While most leaders and organizations focus their attention and resources on dealing with problems, the research suggests that more gains can be achieved by leveraging successes. Emphasizing the positive within an organization also helps to unlock creativity and enhance performance.

Employee engagement, with its many aspects, is a complex topic that will be addressed again in future blogs. Here, we have just started to scratch the surface. We look forward to continuing to share our knowledge and expertise on the topic.

For those of you who missed Craig’s breakfast seminar back in April, we are pleased to provide another opportunity to participate at our upcoming Science of Employee Engagement Breakfast Seminar on September 15, 2015. Please reach out to us at verityview@verityintl.com for more information.