{"id":8059,"date":"2013-11-18T07:00:09","date_gmt":"2013-11-18T14:00:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/tested-neuron.flywheelsites.com\/?p=8059"},"modified":"2015-02-17T13:26:27","modified_gmt":"2015-02-17T20:26:27","slug":"workforce-engagement-series-are-you-courting-your-employees","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/unreasonablegroup.com\/articles\/workforce-engagement-series-are-you-courting-your-employees\/","title":{"rendered":"Workforce Engagement Series: Are You Courting Your Employees?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Why Give a Damn:<\/h3>\n

If you don\u2019t understand an employee\u2019s personal motivations, then you\u2019re probably not engaging them in a way that brings maximum value to either party. <\/em><\/p>\n

\n

The author of this post, Wendy Lea<\/a>, is CEO of Get Satisfaction<\/a>, a leading customer engagement platform. Wendy serves as an angel investor, strategic advisor, and board member for a long list of startup companies. She has been recognized as a Top 100 Woman of Influence in Silicon Valley.<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

\n

This is the second blog in a three-part series by Wendy on employee engagement. Click here<\/a> to read the first post. <\/p>\n

Over the course of my career, the concept of \u201cemployee engagement\u201d has changed \u2013 a lot. Looking back, the hiring profession was all about finding an individual whose experience was aligned as closely as possible to the skill requirements of the job – plain and simple. All the cards were in the hiring company\u2019s hand, and it was up to prospective employees to prove they had what it takes to contribute to a business\u2019 success.<\/p>\n

The hiring holy trinity = engagement, loyalty and retention <\/p><\/blockquote>\n

In contrast, people today consider their own actualization and individualization vis-\u00e0-vis work. A job is an extension \u2013 and expression \u2013 of who they are as an individual. As a result, the main approach to filling a job opening is no longer limited to skill sets; it\u2019s about personal motivation, relationship skills, and the connections that person brings to the table.<\/p>\n

Finding a \u201cMatch Made in Heaven\u201d<\/h3>\n

I believe that social is the primary enabler for this major shift. We all create publicly accessible profiles that showcase who we are, what our interests are, and who we know \u2013 in addition to the job skills we\u2019ve developed. <\/p>\n

A job is an extension \u2013 and expression \u2013 of who you are as an individual<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

As a consequence, the new focus is on relationships. More specifically, it\u2019s all about finding commonalities that create the right chemistry and fit between employer and employee. Much like online dating profiles, we\u2019re looking for a \u201cmatch made in heaven\u201d that better serves both parties\u2019 needs. At the very root of this shift is one golden kernel of a concept: <\/p>\n

If you don\u2019t understand an employee\u2019s personal motivations, then you\u2019re probably not engaging them in a way that brings maximum value to either party. <\/p>\n

Understanding them \u2013 and making sure they understand you \u2013 is the most effective way to achieve the hiring holy trinity: engagement, loyalty and retention (not to mentioned that they will share their excitement about the company and its culture with others).<\/p>\n

Wooing Your Hires with Collaboration<\/h3>\n

Ultimately, it\u2019s about the language you use to effectively convey that you\u2019re a company who wants to develop collaborative relationships with employees. At the risk of sounding like I\u2019m giving \u201cdating\u201d advice, I\u2019ll share a communication tip to use with prospective employees:<\/p>\n

Focus on creating an emotional connection<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Back in the day, we\u2019d woo hires with a rather formulaic proposal, something that sounded much like: \u201cI\u2019m giving you A so that I can get B.\u201d For example: \u201cI\u2019m giving you salary X, flex time, Y number of vacation days, so that I can get skill sets A, B, & C from you.\u201d This approach is outdated, primarily because it turns the company-employee relationship into something transactional and limited. Instead, focus on creating an emotional connection (ie. alignment with the companies\u2019 mission\/vision) and co-create an understanding of how the employee can support the company and the company can support the employee. <\/p>\n

Lead with an \u201call boats rise together\u201d conversation, where it\u2019s understood that everyone is investing together for maximum and mutual success. This fundamentally different mindset makes a world of difference in terms of buy in \u2013 and as a result, long-term employee engagement.<\/p>\n

What language or tactics have you used to foster a culture of engagement with new hires?<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

If you don\u2019t understand an employee\u2019s personal motivations, then you\u2019re probably not engaging them in a way that brings maximum value to either party. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":22,"featured_media":8116,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"spay_email":"","footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[476,1510,1515,1557,1513,1558],"tags":[2247,450,498,290,418,278,156,435,119,365,245,1427],"class_list":["post-8059","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-article","category-career","category-leadership","category-management","category-productivity","category-team","tag-article","tag-career","tag-culture","tag-leadership","tag-management","tag-productivity","tag-relationships","tag-skills-2","tag-success","tag-team","tag-values","tag-lea"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nWorkforce Engagement Series: Are You Courting Your Employees? 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