Engage your employees to enable your growth

Ensuring loyalty is about thinking beyond remuneration and figuring out how to get employees to genuinely engage in the business, says Chaitrali Singh

Every organisation is in a race to hire the brightest minds from the top colleges in the country. But more often than not, these hires are in for a short stint. The HR personnel’s job does not end once the hiring is confirmed. It is only the beginning of their responsibility to ensure talent retention. Most employees nowadays are more concerned about various factors that have taken precedence over their paychecks. A few are elaborated below:

Well-defined career path

Employees within the organisation need to not only understand that there is room to grow, but also be assured that efforts will be made from the top down to facilitate their career growth. Ensuring loyalty is about thinking beyond remuneration and figuring out how to get employees to genuinely engage in the business. Having a career development plan in place makes the employees feel valued for their work and for the skills they can bring to the table. A well-defined career path also empowers employees and provides achievable objectives for their growth.

Keeping them engaged

HR professionals often joke that more than half the employees have usually mentally ‘checked-out’ of their current jobs. On a more serious note, this is an area of concern that can hold back the leaders from achieving their long-term business objectives. An engaged employee is one who is enthusiastic about work, is highly productive and is always willing to go the extra mile to further the organisations interests. Organisations should focus on coming up with best practices to engage employees rather than only the methods of measuring it. 

Work-life balance

It is not easy for employees to prioritise between their job demands and personal goals. A lot of employees wake up and rush to work, which leads to fatigue and leaves no room for productivity after office hours. This can be addressed by encouraging employees to develop effective time-management skills to pursue their hobbies outside work without compromising on their efforts at work. A quick jog or a lap around a pool in the wee hours of the morning or wrapping work up early to have dinner with family is what most of us need. Encouraging employees to set aside dedicated time or ‘Me-Time’ to follow their passion is a great practice.

Recognition & feedback

Employees often feel that their bosses never miss a chance to give feedback whenever their performance is below par. However, a word of appreciation is rarely forthcoming from the upper levels when a job is well done. Letting employees know their effort is appreciated is a great way to boost their confidence and build engagement. Allowing employees to submit feedback anonymously and accordingly addressing their concerns should be a priority.

Accessibility and collaboration

Chaitrali Singh, Director of HR (India), ZS

Structures are important in organisations. But doing away with hierarchy on projects with small teams and firm-wide recreational events is also a great way for employees to engage with upper management and collaborate directly with the leaders. When employees know they can set up time on calendars of leaders, they trust the system better. 

Transparent and fair reviews

A transparent and clear review and appraisal process boosts productivity. When employees trust the organisation to review their performance fairly and not take decisions on the basis of any bias, they work to the best of their ability. The review process should not be as that at school. It should be projected as a key milestone in an employee’s career with the organisation where the focus is on highlighting key achievements, strengths and development areas. There should always be scope for discussion. 

Company culture

Culture plays a big part in an employee’s decision to remain with a firm and is also crucial to attract new hires. A culture true to the organisation’s core values needs to be fun, innovative and adaptable to change. Workplace culture is definitely at the top of the priority list for job seekers. An ideal atmosphere for employees to thrive in is one where they can see the result of their efforts, the feedback process is regular and clear, tangible recognition programs are in place and best practices are encouraged and followed - such as the simple act of thanking someone for their support.
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Chaitrali Singh is the director of human resources (India) at ZS