Over educated and unappreciative?

Shazamme System User • Jun 15, 2023

News

A study in the US by Gallup found that whilst educational attainment was at an all-time high, employee engagement was in decline. Fast forward to 2018 and we’re still only sitting at 24% of employees classified as “engaged” in Australia.

Historically, gaining a qualification beyond a high school diploma/certificate was deemed a necessity for professional success, and yet individuals with a high school diploma/certificate or less were found on average to be more engaged in the workplace.

These findings raise a number of challenges for the HR profession. Although an increase in formal education provides opportunity for businesses, how do you engage with this workforce to keep them motivated and productive?

Formal education is an expensive venture with a significant investment of both time and money required when attaining University level qualifications, therefore expectations when entering the workforce are often high and, in some cases, unrealistic. HR plays a key role in developing targeted engagement programs that encourage all employees to fully engage in their workplaces.

There are a number of actions you can take to improve engagement in your team – here are a few steps to get you started:

Place people in the roles that are right for them

Just hiring good talent for your business isn’t enough. To get the most out of employees and drive organisational performance, you need to make sure they’re in the roles that are right for them and their skill set.

Training and development

Setting the team up for success means taking training and development seriously and proving them with all the tools they need to excel in their roles. It also shows individuals that you’re willing to invest in them as a person.

Have a clear career path

Employees that have a good understanding of how they contribute to the organisation, with a clear path of progression. There should also be open lines of communications in terms of how far they can potentially go, and where employees themselves actually want to go. Managing expectations around career trajectory during the interview process and on boarding will also help set all employees up for success.

Check in strategies

The days of simply using mid-year and annual reviews for providing feedback are gone – by this stage, it is often too late. Today’s workforce craves regular feedback, which allows you to drive any changes, faster.

Promote engagement within the team

Being transparent in your approach to engagement means talking about it with the team often, holding meetings to discuss engagement and including everyone. Use every opportunity and touchpoint available to reinforce the organisation’s commitment to engagement.

Final thoughts

Engaging employees across the board is key to organisational performance, as well as keeping hold of talent. Together, the actions discussed here can improve employee engagement and drive your staff to perform at their best. If you would like more advice on the employee engagement, or for support with your HR recruitment needs, get in touch with us today.

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Tandem Partners acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of the land on which we live and work. We recognise their continuing connection to land, water and community and pay respect to Elders past, present and emerging.