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Writer's pictureSAMUEL CHIBUNNA

Totally Awesome Employee Engagement Ideas for 2019

For every company, it is important to ensure that employees are always motivated. Without motivation, the company would lose its prized talents. There is also the fact that employee turnovers can be very expensive, especially if you cannot replace the vacant spot at once.

To keep employees happy, several employee engagement strategies created and applied by companies.

If you need some ideas for your company, here are 10 totally awesome employee engagement ideas you can introduce this year:

  1. Move with a purpose

A good way to motivate your employees and inspire them to grow is by identifying your company’s purpose. Let your employees know that your company is not just here to provide a product or service. Let them know you opened the company to make a difference.

People feel good if they know that they made a difference in the world even it is through their work in the company. So not just a mission statement plaque at the door if the company is committed to making changes, it should show in the daily processes as well.

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  1. Provide Health and Wellness Programs

One reason many employees resign is because of work-related stress and illness. By offering health benefits and wellness options, your employees will feel that you care for their well-being. They would then show their appreciation by working hard and produce high-quality service.

Go beyond the usual health insurance. Some companies offer once-a-year meditation retreat or mobile massages services at the workplace and most Fortune 500 companies have their own ergonomic departments overseeing wellness in the office.

  1. Support work-life balance

For any employee, work-life balance is hard to maintain. But, as the manager or boss, you can speak to your team about how you can help meet it in some way. You can introduce flexible working hours, work from home options and open collaboration.

Each employee may have a different perspective on work-life balance so speak to them regularly. New parents will definitely appreciate if more time-off can be given to help adjust the new addition in the family. Those with chronic illness will benefit more if medical leave can be extended.

  1. Praise your employees

Praise can go a long way for employees because it shows you recognize their work. When they managed to do a good job on the task you gave them or if they reached an important milestone, congratulate them personally. They are likely to do the same to you when you succeed in something.

The key word is sincerity. Don’t do it out of the blue. Neither should you pile compliments excessively. When someone does a good job, he or she deserves to be acknowledged for their efforts.

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  1. Hold motivational speaking events

If you want to help your workers grow and explore their career further, you can invite a motivational speaker to come and speak to your employees. Your team will definitely enjoy listening to these speakers because of the knowledge they can impart can help your employees to grow.

It can be related to work or personal growth, either way, it will uplift your team spirits. Best time to do these events when your company hits a dull moment.

  1. Bring in Fun

Constantly working without any stop can burn employees out. To get them to cool off and unwind, hold no-work events and fun activities for your employees to take part in. These events will help build good relationships between employees and build a sense of community.

Not just the usual end of the year dinner parties for the whole company. Events can be held within the team and it makes easier planning when the numbers are small. A simple dinner outing to a team member’s favourite restaurant or a cycling outing with your team members’ families on the weekend.

  1. Know more about your employees

Take some time to get to know more about your employees and find out what interests are. Knowing their interests can help you find ways on how to integrate these interests in the office. For example, if one likes to play sports, you can launch a sports fest.

Understanding their culture will help you bond faster with your team and know why they behave a certain way at work. One company I used to work in met all my family members because they held quarterly family events so everyone can meet everyone.

  1. Change Workspace

If you want motivation to be present all the time in the office, better means for collaboration is key. One way in doing this is by changing your office workspace and make it more open.

If your company has cubicle workspaces, why not replace it with open desks? This will not just make the space more spacious, but also ensure your employees can collaborate better.

One more tip: try swapping workspaces with another team or department once a year. One of my ex-companies used to do that and we love it! We also get to do a Marie Kondo to our overstuffed pedestal and throw out any leftover (snacks/paper/rubbish) stuck at the bottom of our drawers.

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  1. Create learning opportunities

Employees welcome any opportunities they can get to improve in their chosen career. Offering coaching and training opportunities can help them grow and improve on their roles. It would also open opportunities for employees to discuss strategies to make work fun.

Allow sponsorships to night classes for employees who want to improve themselves and don’t put in too many restrictions. You want to encourage them to study, not bound them with penalties before they even started.

  1. Build trust

Finally, employees do not appreciate having an overbearing boss always on their heels. It creates distrust and disengagement, causing many to lose interest in the company. Allow your employees to do their work without checking them regularly. When they are not always monitored, they would feel encouraged to do better and go beyond what is asked.

In Summary

Ensuring employee engagement is important to keep employees happy and motivated. With these tips above, you can make your workspace more welcoming to your employees and give them something to look forward to each day.

Any ideas or examples from your workplace you can share with us? Love to hear from you!

To create a better workplace environment, you may also find these interesting:

 

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