Working remotely can be lonely and isolating for some employees, particularly more reliant team members such as new hires and junior executives. Maintaining employee engagement in 2022 will require ensuring that employees are supported
Fremont, CA: Employee engagement is defined as an employee's commitment and emotional connection to their organization and work, which ultimately determines business unit performance. Employees are engaged when their work and the culture of their company align with their motivations and values, which motivates them to exert discretionary effort.
Employee engagement will be a top priority for business and HR leaders in 2022, as many companies will continue operating remotely for the foreseeable future. Here are a few things one should know about increasing employee engagement when leading remote teams.
Leadership is Crucial to Improve Engagement
Working remotely can be lonely and isolating for some employees, particularly more reliant team members such as new hires and junior executives. Maintaining employee engagement in 2022 will require ensuring that employees are supported and set up for success while working remotely.
Employee engagement is primarily influenced by leadership effectiveness, with effective leaders defined as those who can lead a high-performing and engaged team. Companies must focus on how their managers behave in order to increase engagement, whether in "normal" times or in our current situation. Ineffective – or emergent – leaders will waste their time building political capital and promoting their own accomplishments, whereas effective leaders will devote their time to supporting their team and developing trusting relationships with employees.
When organizations are experiencing low employee engagement, the first place to look is at their managers and how they are behaving. In other words, are they acting like emerging or effective leaders? Companies must pay closer attention to personality in order to determine this.
Personality is Important
Companies must consider personality when identifying effective leaders who support team members and improve employee engagement. Decades of research have shown that well-validated measures of personality predict every significant life outcome, including leadership effectiveness. Personality outperforms all other alternative indicators, including IQ, in predicting leadership performance. Because valid personality assessments promote fairness in selection and do not discriminate – that is, women perform the same as men, ethnic minorities perform the same as ethnic majorities – companies that utilize personality science can find great leadership from a diverse pool of talent.
To improve employee engagement and keep high-performing teams in 2021, business and HR leaders must be strategic from the start, using valid personality assessments to select better leaders who are well-adjusted, strong communicators, as well as deeply empathetic when it comes to supporting employees.
