Economics of Public Private Partnerships
Introduction Public Private Partnerships or the PPP Projects are the answer to the development of countries like India that are starved of resources where the government finds itself unable to commit massive funds for infrastructure development and yet, needs such projects for economic growth. This article examines the economic aspects of the PPP projects by […]
How HR Managers can Make the On-boarding Process more Pleasant and Effective
Love at First Sight and First Impressions are Best Impressions On-boarding is an important and critical part of the overall employee experience in organizations. It would not be remiss to say that it is perhaps the best way to make incoming employees more engaged and tuned in to the needs of the organizations. Indeed, as […]
Racial Equality at Workplace
How do you define social exclusion sometimes practiced at workplace with people of color or minorities which technically falls within the ambit of individual preferences? So if the manager does not extend an invitation to go golfing to all members of the team, how can you conclude it is a matter of discrimination rather than […]
How the Armed Forces Actualize Management Excellence
The Reason why the Military Pioneers Innovations It has often been said that the Military and the Armed Forces in the developed West pioneered many technological and managerial innovations that subsequently helped the corporate sector in those countries. For instance, the Internet was initially a Department of Defense project in the United States that was […]
Ways to Improve Employee Satisfaction
Employee satisfaction plays an essential role in motivating the employees to deliver their level best and also leads to a positive ambience at the workplace. Employee satisfaction is no rocket science and trust me; it does not take much to satisfy your employees. Small but sincere efforts are enough to satisfy employees so that they […]
Organizations have come to realize that in today’s constantly changing business scenario, the most valuable resource that needs to be leveraged is human resource. This means not just attracting the creme-de-la-creme and retaining them but keeping them motivated and committed to achieving the organization goals.
Though Employee Engagement (EE) as a business buzzword has generated research and steam since the new economy service industries like IT (Information Technology) and ITES (IT enables services) have taken off, the origins of engagement are as old as mankind itself.
We shall try and decode and define employee engagement as used and implemented by organizations today by looking at the very origins of engagement practices.
History records that about 2300 years ago, Alexander (356 BC – 323 BC) was able to march ahead and conquer unknown lands by battling for years across continents, miles away from home, because he had an engaged army that was willing to abide by its commander.
Alexander is known to have achieved the engaged workforce by ensuring that he spent face time with his men, listening and addressing grievance, ensuring on time payment of salary, dressing like the rest of his army and most importantly by leading from front.
More recently, in World War II, Americans funded a lot of money for researching the behaviour of its soldiers to be able to predict their battle readiness.
History is dotted with examples of leaders who have led their men by building a psychological commitment between their men and their ideology to achieve greatness. In this psychological contract lies the roots of today’s Employee Engagement theories propounded by organizations.
An engaged workforce produces better business results, does not hop jobs and more importantly is an ambassador of the organization at all points of time. This engagement is achieved when people consider their organization respects their work, their work contributes to the organization goals and more importantly their personal aspirations of growth, rewards and pay are met.
The Hay Group defines enagaged performance as “a result that is achieved by stimulating employees’ enthusiasm for their work and directing it toward organization success. This result can only be achieved when employers offer an implicit contract to their employees that elicits specific positive behaviours aligned with organization’s goals...”
Lanphear defines EE as “the bond employees have with their organization” Lanphear further espouses that “when employees really care about the business, they are more likely to go the extra mile.”
The definitions, as seen, focus on employer as well as the employee. Today’s millennial workforce is more informed, connected, willing to work given learning opportunities. Personal growth, opportunities to learn and explore is becoming a primary driver. Equity more then pay is a driving force. Catering to the changing needs to foster engaged employees is the need of the hour.
In conclusion, understanding employee engagement drivers, measuring and enhancing engagement offers promise of better business performance by ambassadors of the organization who work like entrepreneurs and help sustain organization growth through innovation and lower employee turnover.
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