The Water Trough- We can't make you drink, but we will make you think!
The Water Trough- We can't make you drink, but we will make you think!
Boosting Business Success Through Employee Engagement and Commitment
In times of uncertainty, employee engagement and commitment are essential to ensure business viability. Anchor your business by fostering a dedicated workforce! Learn how employee engagement and commitment can transform productivity and loyalty in our new podcast episode.
Welcome to The Water Trough, where we can't make you drink, but we will make you think. My name is Ed Drozda, the Small Business Doctor, and I'm really excited you chose to join me here as we discuss topics that are important for small business folks just like you. If you're looking for ideas, inspiration, and possibility, you've come to the right place. Join us as we take steps to help you create the healthy business that you've always wanted.
Microphone (Yeti Stereo Microphone)-1:This is Ed Drozda, the small business doctor. Welcome back to the water trough.
Today I'd like to talk about employee engagement and employee commitment.
Microphone (Yeti Stereo Microphone)-2:How much do you know about employee engagement and employee commitment? When you think of them, what comes to mind? Do they sound like they're one and the same?
Microphone (Yeti Stereo Microphone)-3:Employee engagement is an intrinsic attitude and it's related to the enthusiasm that an employee has for his or her job. How excited am I about the job that I have, about the job I'm performing? On the other hand, employee commitment, while it's also an intrinsic attitude, refers to how enthusiastic I am about the company for which I work.
So as you can see, both engagement and commitment are very important in the workplace. An employee who is engaged is one who is going to perform at their best when doing their job. They're enthusiastic about what they. they're able to derive pleasure, they're able to derive value, they're able to derive a sense of purpose and perhaps the feeling that they can be more than what they are being engaged is being present, being actively involved in what the employee is doing, and this is extremely. On the other hand, employee engagement is also something that the business owner, manager, and such has little control over. That is to say it's a personal way of looking at things. The employee is the one who is or is not enthusiastic about the job that they're perform. it's not our place to get into the heads of the employee to make them enjoy the job. We can certainly have an impact on the way that they look at their job. We can certainly inspire them by giving them certain, benefits to go along with the job. That might make it more attractive. But fundamentally, employee engagement is a very personal. And it stems from our ability to find people that fit the jobs that we have to fill in business. We do not create jobs for people. Let me step back. Yes. Sometimes we do create a job for a person, but more often. We create a job to fulfill a need within the organization. The job is designed to reach a certain expectation. It might be a cog in the wheel that leads to something else. It might be an end stage situation, but we create the jobs with the expectation, having a positive impact on the business as a. And so when we are seeking people to fill these roles, this is where we actually can have an impact on employee engagement. We have to look diligently for people that are not only talented and capable of doing the job. People who are a good fit for the job and for whom the job is a good. the latter part of that again, and people for whom the job is a good fit. If we can marry up the two. If we can bring an employee into a job that's a good fit for them and they are served well by the job, we are able to develop the beginning of employee. We should aspire to have engaged employees, but again, we are only able to set the stage. We cannot tell them to be engaged. We cannot engage them per se, but we can try to match them up with a job that's going to have the. To engage them. On the other hand, we have employee commitment. Now, employee commitment is that which is directed at the company itself. A committed employee is one who is enthusiastic about the company for which they work. one who was engaged may not be committed. I might be very engaged. as in enthusiastic about the job that I'm performing, but I don't really much care for the place that I'm doing it. I could take that experience, those skills and such to another location with the same or similar job where I would be more committed. But employee commitment is really important too in order to get things done in our businesses. we need to have the support of all of our employees. Oh, fine. We can't satisfy each and every one. We know that. But we have to aspire to have committed employees in our organization, and this is something over which we do have control in organiz. that is populated with committed employees is one that is openly enthusiastic about what they're doing. The company itself, the leadership, is enthusiastic about the mission and they willingly share information with the employees. They don't settle for keeping things quiet and ambiguous. They treat their employees as trusted partners in the business operation, and this is critical. The employee that feels as if they are a part of the operation, no matter what level their job might be, are more inclined to be enthusiastic because in this space, they're able to determine, they're able to sense they have a value, a purpose here. And to feel valued and have purpose within a business is the first step to being committed. Committed to the organization, to be excited about the organization. And so as business owners, business leaders, business managers, it's critical for us to create the environ. in which committed employees can flourish is something that we have to actively engage in. So then what is the value of having employees who are engaged and committed? Well, those who are engaged are going to be much more productive in their assigned tasks. And not only. they're gonna be more inclined to go above and beyond in the way that they process the information they're given. They become sources of knowledge and insight that we would not otherwise have. If they're enthusiastic about their jobs, they're more inclined to learn about their jobs, what makes them tick, what could make them better, and they will share that with their employer, the committed. despite the circumstances that the business is operating in, we'll stand by them. You could say the committed employee is a loyal employee. Loyalty, not something that we hear a lot about these days.
Microphone (Yeti Stereo Microphone)-4:During the COVID pandemic, many people lost their jobs, and still others, their jobs were redefined. Yet committed employees stuck by their businesses because they're enthusiastic about that business. They know the mission they're part of, and they're valued as part of the ability to achieve that mission.
During the Covid Pandemic, which of course still continues, many people lost. Their jobs Committed employees stuck by their businesses because they are enthusiastic about that business. They know the mission they are part of and valued as part of the ability to achieve that mission. The committed employee is one who will be there when the going gets. So the takeaway from this is employee engagement and employee commitment are something we should strive for, and my challenge to you is this. Take an inventory of your employees and of yourself. Ask questions pertaining to engagement and commitment. Are you engaged? Are you not? what would you need to be more so what's lacking? The potential here to identify and to amplify engagement and commitment is extraordinary. The effect that it can have on the success and the longevity of your business is unheralded.
Microphone (Yeti Stereo Microphone)-5:Once again, this is Ed Drozda, the Small Business Doctor, and here from the Water Trough, I want to wish you a healthy business.