We need to be clear about what we mean by engagement and alignment.
Employee engagement can be defined as an emotional commitment an employee has to their work and organisation. An engaged employee cares about their work and their role in the organisation – and they will go above and beyond to meet business objectives. Employee happiness or satisfaction in the workplace does not equate to employee engagement. Employees can be happy and satisfied in their role, but not productive. An engaged (and aligned) employee is one who aligns their behaviours and actions in the workplace, to meet their role requirements, as well as wider team and business goals and strategy. An engaged employee wants the organisation to succeed. AHRI research indicates that 23% of the Australian workforce are engaged.
The inference from the AHRI research is that the remaining 77% of the Australian workforce are either disengaged or actively disengaged. In terms of company performance and profit this also suggests that businesses are potentially paying 77% of their workforce to be present, and at worst, to actively work against the interests of the business. These are labour costs that are not sustainable for any business.
Download the Employee Satisfaction Doesn’t Mean Profit White Paper if:
- You are a business owner keen to maximise your business performance and profitability
- You are responsible for the people aspects in your business and you want to improve the business outcomes
- You have invested heavily in employee satisfaction initiatives and now want to generate a greater return for the business