employee engagement only way to retain them today
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8/8/2019 Employee Engagement Only Way to Retain Them Today
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34 Appare lOnline SEPTEMBER 16-30, 2010
Engagement is a bout motivating
employees t o do their bes t. This is
what makes the difference in an
industry where the most valuable resource
of a corporation walks out of the door every
evening. “This is of particular importance in
an export-import industry. The eminence of
output a nd competitive a dvantage of a
company depends on t he quality of its
people,” says Samidha Bhatnagar,
Manager, HR, at Sha hi Exports .
“It has been proved that there is an inherent
link between employee e ngagement,
cust omer loyalty, and profita bility,”
elucidates Anil Sharma , HR Head, Nahar
Spinning Mills Ltd. “When employees ar e
effectively and optimistically engaged with
their organ ization, they form an emotional
connection with the organization. This
influences their attitude towards the
company’s clients, and thereby develops
customer satisfaction and service levels,”
reasons Sharma who points out tha t a
successful employee engagement program
helps create a community at the workplace
and not just a workforce.
Nee d to Connect
Global studies r ecommend three ba sic
aspects of employee engagement – The
employees a nd their own distinctive
psychological makeup and experience; the
employers a nd their capa bility to crea te the
conditions tha t pr omote employee
engagement; and interact ion between
employees at all ranks .
Virtua l work pra ctices being the flavour in
businesses today, one of the grea test
organizational benefits than pers onal goals.
This consequently reduces feelings of
acrimony and inter nal rivalries. “They also
project a positive image to new recruits and
this motivates t he latter t o perform better
and a ssimilate them in the office culture .Research also shows that engaged employees
in customer-facing roles a re more likely to
treat customers in ways that positively
influence customer satisfaction,” adds Samidha.
Organiza tion Initiatives
Most organizat ions have a ra nge of programs
to perk u p the enga gement level of their
employees. One of the most upfront
initiatives ha s been ma de by Bangalore-
based Integr a, which esta blish ‘right’ at the
select ion sta ge itse lf. Some of the initiatives
made by the organization include choosing
the r ight fit an d giving a pra gmatic job
preview, str ong induction a nd orienta tion
EMPLOYEE
ENGAGEMENT ONLYWAY TORETAINTHEM TODAY
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challenges for global organizations ha s been
engaging a dispers ed workforce. Samidha
focuses on the significance: “As businesses
globalize and become more dependent on
technology, there is a greater need to connect
and e ngage with employees t o provide themwith an organizational ‘identity’. Especially
in Indian culture, this becomes more
relevant given the community feeling which
organizations provide in our society.”
All companies ar e awar e that the y need to do
a bet ter job of managing their people.
According to S. Kothanda pani, Manager
HR at SP Apparels , “A grea ter number of
loyal employees ens ure low recruitment and
tra ining costs, in effect enha ncing the
productivity of the organization. They ar e
also more willing to put in ext ra effort when
the organizat ion needs it.”
Their impact on t he working environment is
also significant a s they ar e more focused on
Most apparel & textile organizations today are realizing that a ‘satisfied’ employee is not necessarily the ‘best’
employee in terms of loyalty and productivity. It is only an ‘engaged employee’ who is intellectually and emotionally
bound with the organization and feels passionately about its goals. He goes the extra mile beyond the basic job
responsibility and is associated with the actions that drive the business. Moreover, in times when loyalty is
losing ground, employee engagement is a powerful retention strategy, the fact that it has a strong impact on thebottom-line, adds to its significance.
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program, meticulous tra ining & development
– from technical to soft skills to leader ship
development programs . Apar t from this,
there are other events like community meet,
HR meet, etc. which has regular industry
updates . Integra a lso has a certification
program for s ix sigma, which empowers
young employees.
To keep up t he mora le of group a nd drive
them towards excellent performance,
Integra has various incentives such as
recognition awards, family involvement,
regular feedback to all employees,
communication forums like the in-house
magazine One Voi ce@APG (Ashok Pir amil
Group), and regular surveys and conferences.
Further, to uphold the quality of work-life
and a balance between personal/professional
lives, ther e ar e re crea tional activities like
festivities, get-togethers, sports, e tc. There
is also an open and clear cultur e to empower
its people and develop entrepreneurs. “The
upshot of these practices is evident
through the re gular feedback from our
employees collected thr ough conferences
and surveys; apart from the employee
engagement survey conducted. The proof
is the latest increa se in employee
engagement and decrease in attrition,”
informs Partha Sarath i Bhat tacharya,
General Mana ger, HRD, Integra .
A Mat ter of Part ner sh ip
Samidha, is of the opinion that employeeengagement is a partners hip between a
company and its e mployees where e veryone
works together to achieve the business
objectives of the company a nd the pe rsona l
aspira tions of the employees. It is therefore
largely the orga nization’s r esponsibility to
create a n environment and culture
conducive to this partnership, and a
win-win equation. She sta tes, “Employee
engagement is a barometer that decides the
ass ociation of a pers on with the
organization. It is about creating the pa ssion
among ass ociates to do things beyond what
is expected of them. A highly engaged
employee will consistently deliver beyond
expectations. A productive employee who
has a sense of belonging and a stu rdy bond
with the company and its br and will crea te a
ripple effect tha t r esults in a positively
charged atmosphere in the organization.”
The Loyalty Factor
The key to employee engagement is
crea ting grea ter motivation for their work
and commitment to their organization.
S. Kothandapa ni admits tha t it is not
possible to retain professionals only by paying
high salaries a nd offering attra ctive benefits.
“We need to cre ate e nthusias m for the irroles, their work and the organiza tion, and
make sure they are well integrated.
Employee engagement relat es to the
employee’s commitment to the
organization’s s uccess. Engaged employees
who are inspired a nd guided by the
leaders hip, equipped with the r ight tools a nd
managed by the right systems and processes
deliver superior per forman ce.” Employee
engagement today encompasses training,
development, work en vironment, lea dership,
performance ma nagement, work/life balance,
communication, compensa tion, benefits,
commitment, fun a nd social a ctivities. This,
asser ts Kothandapani, enhances the
bonding between e mployees a nd
commitment to the company.
Partha views employee engagement a s a
psychological association. According to him
employees want to work for an organization
that is success ful and legal; provides
opportunities to grow, has ma nager s who
help employees and is socially responsible.
Measu ring EmployeeEngagement
Employee engagement ca n be exposed in
several ways, including ‘pulse’ to annua l
surveys, tracking changes in the attrition
ra te, increase in the number of employee
referr als, and growth in productivity
and business.
In many or ganizations, the age-old Employee
Satisfaction Surveys were considered the
most popular method for measuring how
happy an employee was in the or ganization.
Shahi Exports measures employee
engagement from two dimensions: how
employees feel (their emotions towar d the
company, the leade rship, the work
environment, etc.) and/or how they intend to
act in the future (will they stay, give extra
effort, etc.). This is conducted regular ly
through a questionnaire and is measured on
various parameters pre-defined by the HR
Team. Samidha asserts that employee
engagement needs to be measured at r egular
intervals in order to tr ack its contribution to
the success of the organization.
“Conducting a s urvey without plan ning and
how to handle the res ult can lead employees
to disengage. It is ther efore not en ough to
feel the pulse – the action plan is just a s
essential,” concludes Samidha.
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