Susan is a business owner who bought her business from her dad 10 years ago. Her business has been successful and has been profitable most years. However, she has not been able to achieve the growth she had hoped, is spending way too much time working, and does not have the balance in her life she desires. She is often stressed out about what could happen and has more sleepless (or at least sleep deprived) nights, than she would like to admit, worrying about the business.
Susan will tell you, I have good employees who do care and usually do their jobs well. But, they basically only do what they are told. Recently, I lost some good employees to a new competitor across town who offered them a slight increase in salary. That was really hard to take as the labor market is tight and a lot of knowledge walked out the door with them.
When I was talking about this with a fellow business owner Ralph, he asked, “Are your employees engaged?” I did not know how to answer. I stumbled through an answer saying they have been with me a long time so they must be engaged. Ralph gave me a look that told me he saw right through my answer and thankfully dropped it.
This question has been bothering me since he asked it. I wonder, is employee engagement really important? Has what people want from work changed dramatically? Am I out of touch with what my employees really want? Have I asked my employees what they want? What does the literature say about this topic?
I began to explore this question and I was surprised by what I found.
When my Dad was in the business, change happened much more slowly and it was very common for the leader to know everything about the business. They were able to manage change, set strategy, and set direction for those under them. Nothing happened without their day to day direction and everyone looked to the leader for approval. Managers just implemented what they were told to do.
The research says that this leadership model no longer works and those still using it are struggling to keep up. The new workforce is not interested in working in an environment where they are not able to have control over what they do. As a result, companies still using the old model are not attracting the best talent and if they do attract them, they are not able to retain this talent.
Employees today desire collaboration, effective communication, and want to work together more closely. There is a strong emphasis on working for a higher purpose, accomplishing goals, and having a compelling reason for what they do. They want to control their own destiny, have flexibility in work hours, job tasks, and responsibilities. They want to be recognized and rewarded for what they accomplish. This requires leaders who are leader coaches.
The winners are the organizations whose leaders have been able to pivot and give their employees what they are looking for in a way that also improves their business results. I am beginning to see that getting employees more involved has benefits. How do I do this successfully and in a way that has a positive impact on my business? Can this ultimately result in the business being able to meet goals I have failed to accomplish?
Continue to Part 2 of Susan's Story
This is what we do at Lead Engage Agency. We thrive in partnering with leaders to create companies that trust and engage their employees, creating outstanding places to work, and achieving great results. We can be reached at ray@leadengageagency.com or (586) 747-6803.
