Top 8 Ways to Increase Employee Engagement In The UK

Different Types Of Employee Engagement

Just as your business has certain needs that need to be met in order to be successful, so do your employees. As Maslow stated in his theory of human motivation, people have five sets of needs they need to fulfil:

• Physiological (Water, food, shelter)
• Safety (Personal security, employment, health)
• Social (Friends, family, sense of connection)
• Esteem (Respect, recognition, strength)
• Self-actualisation (Achieving their full potential).

Individuals start at level one, fulfilling their immediate, physiological needs. As they begin to satisfy each need, the desire to then fulfil the next arises.

Maslow’s Hierarchy Of Needs & Employee Engagement

Maslow’s hierarchy can also be applied when it comes to employee engagement. Just like the different levels of human needs, there are different levels of engagement. As individuals satisfy each of their engagement needs, they move onto the next level.

• Not Committed
  At the bottom of the pyramid is the worst-case scenario – an employee who is not committed. You’ll find that these people are the clock watchers. Instead of having any interest in the business aims and goals, they are there for the money.
• Not Engaged
  These employees will typically do what is required of them and nothing more. They are not interested in going the extra mile or contributing to the success of the business.
• Almost Engaged
  Typically, an almost engaged employee is good at their work. However, they lack understanding of their impact on bigger company goals.
• Engaged
  Engaged employees become an important part of the company that they work for. As well as being high performing, they are likely to feel stressed as they are busy in their role.
• Highly Engaged
  A highly engaged employee goes above and beyond. They question how they can help others and inspire them to do their best. They are the people who help to create a good workplace culture.

Ways To Improve Employee Engagement

Nowadays, many business owners realise the importance of improving employee engagement. Disengaged staff can lead to a negative company culture and low business performance.

Luckily, there are many things you can do to ensure you have engaged employees. From recognition to employee benefits, we’ve picked the top ways to increase employee engagement.

You may need to try a few employee engagement strategies to see which ones work best for your company. There are plenty to try, and you’re sure to find a solution to improving engagement within your team.

1. Improve Communication 💬

Effective communication is a great way to increase employee engagement. It also boosts productivity levels and allows your business to grow.

When staff are aware of your organisation’s mission, and their part in it, they can feel a strong sense of purpose. So, you can drive employee engagement by being clear about your goals and challenges.

Make sure you’re using several channels to communicate with your staff, such as:

• Company intranet
• One on one meetings
• Email communications
• Webinars
• Training sessions.

2. Give Recognition 🙌

Too many employers fail to give their staff recognition, resulting in employee disengagement. Celebrating important goals or milestones can make a huge difference. In fact, 42% of employees said that recognition for their efforts is what makes them feel happy.

Recognition helps to motivate your staff and provides a sense of accomplishment. Employees can feel appreciated, resulting in a substantial increase in productivity and loyalty. This often leads to higher retention.

Different Ways To Give Recognition

You can give employees recognition in several different ways:

• Reward employees with prizes
• Give shout-outs in team meetings
• Offer financial incentives for achieving targets

3. Offer Desirable Employee Benefits 🌟

An employee benefits package can be a great way to show your team you appreciate them and get them more engaged. However, it’s vital to understand what benefits your employees really want.

Offering staff valuable benefits has a range of advantages. They can boost staff morale, lower stress levels and improve productivity. Most importantly, they can help to create a more engaged workforce.

Employee Benefits To Help Engagement

• Group Health & Risk Benefits
  Insurance policies that protect employees and their loved ones are seen as the most attractive employee benefits. With this in mind, Group Life, Company Health Insurance, Group Income Protection and Group Critical Illness are great options to think about.
• Workplace Pension
  Additional workplace pension contributions are the third most sought after benefit, with 40% of employees saying they wanted their employer to offer them. Investing in your employees’ financial future can be a great way to show you value them.
• Financial Education
  This is another great benefit to engage staff with. By helping them to become more money-savvy, they can make more informed decisions. This can lead them to feeling more financially secure, which can help to reduce stress levels and make them feel happier.
• Discount Schemes
  These schemes enable employees to save money on a range of everyday costs, helping to make their monthly income go further. This has never been more important, with 1 in 5 employees saying their performance at work had been impacted by the cost of living crisis.
• Electric Car Schemes
  This can be a great way of engaging staff, particularly if they are looking at ways of being more environmentally friendly. Electric vehicles are expensive to buy, however by offering an electric car scheme, you can provide your staff with an affordable way of going green.

4. Encourage Interaction 😊

Good interaction between team members can help to reduce errors while increasing productivity. As well as improving teamwork, interaction can also alleviate stress during high-pressured situations.

Luckily, if your team needs better interaction, there are several things that you can do to help. Team building activities are popular in workplaces throughout the UK. Not only do they engage employees, they also build trust and encourage collaboration.

It can also help your business to hold regular social meetings outside work. These allow your employees to switch off from work and get to know each other better on a personal level. Friendly interactions like this can lead to stronger team bonds and increased loyalty. In turn, this can reduce employee turnover.

5. Offer Flexible Working ⏰

Flexible working became the norm during the Coronavirus pandemic, and doesn’t seem to be going away anytime soon. In fact, in flexible working and work-from-home options are two of the most sought after employee benefits. 

If you provide employees with a choice over their hours and where they work, it can help them get a better work life balance. This can improve their focus, reduce levels of stress and increase happiness, which can lead to higher levels of engagement.

6. Good Recruitment & Onboarding 💼

Part of making sure you have engaged employees is getting the right candidates in the first place. If you employ people who aren’t aligned with your company goals or values, they’re unlikely to become engaged employees. When hiring, try not to just look at a candidate’s skills but also question if they would fit into your workplace culture.

Onboarding

Once you have the right candidates, it’s vital to get the onboarding process right. Doing so will help employees to integrate quickly into your company and clearly understand what is expected. This will set the stage for a positive employee experience.

When developing or reviewing your onboarding process, you need to think about:

• What a “successfully onboarded” employee looks like
• What topics / content needs to be covered in an employee’s first few weeks
• How you will support employees
• Which existing team members need to be involved.

Employees will also want to know what they can expect when it comes to training and development, so it’s important to set this out from the start.

It’s likely they’ll be excited to learn new skills and keen to perform well. You need to be clear about what their progression looks like and manage any expectations.

7. Promote Well-being 🧘

Employee wellbeing should be a top priority. Employees’ engagement depends heavily on their health and wellbeing. Nowadays, employees worldwide are facing issues with stress and poor physical and mental health.

In fact, our 2023 Employee Benefits Survey found that stress impacts almost 50% of workers. Not only that, but 1 in 5 felt their performance at work was affected by causes of stress. This has a knock-on impact on employees’ ability to perform their role.

Encourage Healthy Habits

One way to support your team’s overall wellbeing is to encourage a healthy lifestyle. There are a number of ways you can do this as an employer.

• Provide healthy food options in the office
• Encourage staff to take regular breaks
• Offer wellness and mental health programmes
• Provide company Health Insurance
• Give access to an Employee Assistance Programme (EAP)
• Provide access to exercise programmes or discounted gym memberships.

Prioritising employee health and wellness is essential for improving employee engagement. When employees feel supported and cared for, they’re more likely to be motivated, productive, and committed to their work.

8. Encourage Feedback 📋

Feedback is an essential part of communication. In fact, many employees crave feedback. It plays an essential part in them achieving their own goals and progressing the company’s mission.

In order for employees to self-actualise and benefit from career growth, they need to understand and develop their skills. As a result, it’s important to provide staff with regular review sessions.

When it comes to feedback, management should lead by example. Managers need to encourage regular feedback as part of their everyday role.

Positive feedback celebrates success, motivates your team, and helps employees feel valued. Staff can use constructive criticism to set goals, learn new skills, and work on their career development.

We recently found that 22% of workers felt unhappy because they didn’t feel they had a voice at work. So, it’s important to empower employees by listening to their ideas and concerns.

Joseph Toft
Senior Consultant, Employee Benefits

Compare Employee Benefits Quotes And Get Expert Advice

Here at Drewberry, we understand the importance of employee engagement and how it can affect business. In this article, we have discussed the importance of employee benefits and how they can have a positive impact on employee engagement.

Our team of experts at Drewberry can help you clearly communicate employee benefits and make the process of accessing them easy and straightforward.

With the help of our employee benefits dashboard, both employees and their staff have a clear overview of the benefits that they have access too, helping them to really make the most of the free additional benefits which come with cover such as Group Life, Group Income Protection and Group Health Insurance

Why Speak to Us?

We started Drewberry™ because we were tired of being treated like a number.

We all deserve a first class service when it comes to things as important as protecting our health and our finances. Below are just a few reasons why it makes sense to talk to us.

• We are award winning 🏆 independent insurance advisers who work with all the leading UK insurers
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If you need help reviewing or setting up an employee benefits programme for your team, email help@drewberry.co.uk or call us today on 02074425880 and speak to one of our friendly expert advisers.