Great Resignation. Record Inflation. Possible Recession and market drops. Virtual, hybrid or mandatory returns to the office. Rising Mental Health challenges. These headlines dominate the press, social media and employee discussions at work, at home and with their friends. But what still drives business is employee engagement.
According to the latest Gallup survey, which is based on responses from February 2022, engagement levels fell for the first time in 2021 with further declines in early 2022. Engagement levels peaked in 2020 at 36% but have since declined to 32% in 2022. During the same comparison period, actively disengaged levels rose from 13% to 17%.
There were some interesting additional findings in the Gallup report. These reinforce what we have been hearing from MEA Members.
Additional Findings:
- Gallup found an 8% decline in the percentage of employees extremely satisfied with their employer
- While hybrid or completely virtual have higher overall engagement levels than fully onsite, the decline was higher for completely virtual workers. Issues identified include clarity of expectations, recognition, development and connection to the mission and purpose.
- Gallup identified a sharp drop in the percentage of employees who strongly agreed that employers care about their overall wellbeing.
Recommendations to improve engagement include:
- Using and communicating business decisions based on the organization’s values and mission.
- Focus on flexible work environments based on the type of work and what is important to different employees. Stay nimble.
- Focus on employee wellbeing support, including managers support.
- Improve manager skills so that they can manage effectively through times of change.
MEA is here to support you on your path through this very challenging period with the following services:
- Engagement surveys which allows employees to be heard and for you to use data to make decisions to improve engagement and employee satisfaction.
- Foundational and Advanced Leadership training certifications and classes to upskill your managers with the tools needed to meet these challenges. The MEA certificate programs include group coaching to immerse managers in the skill development.
- The new LifeSpeak platform which is the global leader in confidential information on wellbeing topics for employees and their families.
- HR Consulting Projects to help you develop key programs like performance review, mentoring and coaching, onboarding practices or any other area where you would like to improve.
To learn more, get in touch with one of MEA’s Senior Member Consultants. Link to get in touch: https://www.meainfo.org/contact