To increase productivity among employees, employee engagement is necessary. Engaged employees are more successful driven and they are focused on building sustainable goals that guarantee long-lasting success for a business or a company. Eric Manzi, Managing Director at a local construction firm, says that increasing employee engagement starts with managers. “Managers are different in companies and organisations, there are managers that are good at interacting with employees, good at creating relationships and trust. And there are managers who don’t know anything about all those let alone having a simple conversation with an employee. When a manager is engaging and not that strict, employees feel confident with engaging too because if their manager can be why not them,” he says. Manzi, explains that managers need to evaluate themselves and receive training on how to improve employee engagement, and what they should be doing to help employees to engage more at work. Also, for employees to engage more and never fear engagement, managers need to let them feel valued and they need to learn how to manage teams effectively. Alice Munyana, a career coach, says that constant feedback also pushes employees to not fear engagement and increases their engagement. “Managers are the ones that manage teams, and make sure employees are doing their work as required, managers need to understand that feedback even if it is one per day can change an employee’s perspective on their job, preferably constructive feedback. A manager can also find a way to make negative feedback constructive. Feedback is feedback, so if managers provide feedback to teams, or an employee it can definitely increase their engagement,” she says. Munyana also adds that regular feedback can be accompanied by suggestions on how to improve and what to change. According to an article by HR Daily Advisor, an online business news website, managers need to survey employees about motivators to boost employee engagement. “Of course, employees value money, but there are other motivators for good performance, too. Employees may also be motivated by recognition, performance rewards, empowerment, a visible career path, and more. You can survey employees to find out what is or is not currently working for motivation. Employee surveys may boost engagement, yet HR departments must craft the right questions in order to persuade workers to give straight answers. Also, these questionnaires must be anonymous—companies shouldn’t care who said what; they should focus on assessing the data and performing meaningful changes that will inspire and keep employees engaged,” the article notes. The article also suggests to empower employees, “Let all employees share their ideas and suggestions so that everyone can feel that they have a stake in the success of the team and the organisation. Wherever possible, let employees work without micromanagement, so that they can take responsibility for their own work and feel that their knowledge and skills are recognized and appreciated. It’s OK to let them make important decisions, as they shouldn’t fear failure”.
