Many of my clients are struggling with "employee engagement" right now... What it means and what on earth to do about improving it - especially when the demand for doing less with more is ever-increasing and budgets are not.
Many years ago I discovered this clever twist on a simple two-by-two matrix from BlessingWhite that has proved a useful frame of reference and provocative conversation starter. It's particularly useful when thinking about how to define employee engagement and what organisations can do to keep employees both happy and productive.
The model suggests engagement happens when maximum contribution to the organisation intersects with maximum satisfaction for the employee. It’s a good explanation for why those who are high contributors might seek work elsewhere and why those who are satisfied employees might not contribute much.
This short video provides an overview of BlessingWhites' categories of employees across a spectrum of engagement - from "honeymooners and hamsters" and "crash and burners" to "The engaged" and "The disengaged.
Take a look and see what you think...