Putting the ‘I’ into engagement survey report March 2014.pdf · Putting the ‘I’ into engagement Line manager relationships Line managers play a significant role in employee

survey report

Putting the ‘I’ into engagement

Effective employee engagement starts with the individual

March 2014

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Table of contents

Executive summary 2

Survey findings 3Who is motivated? 3

Treat employees as individuals 3

What really motivates employees? 4

Why do employees leave? 5

Age differences in levels of motivation 6

Sector differences in levels of motivation 6

Line manager relationships 7

Conclusions and recommendations 9Re-address your engagement strategy to achieve ROI 9

Understand you’re an organisation of individuals 10

Embrace and support line managers as facilitators of engagement 10Our five-step approach to employee engagement 11


Survey background

In January 2014, we conducted a survey of 1,255 employees across a variety of industries, sectors and job roles, asking them about their individual attitudes and concerns around employee engagement.

To find out more about our survey, or to discuss how we can help you improve individual employee engagement within your organisation, please contact us:

+44 (0)1844 218980 | [email protected] | www.talentqgroup.com

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Executive summary

As organisations start to recognise the severity and impact of disengaged employees on their bottom line, customer service ratings and employee turnover rates, we have conducted research to investigate how organisations can really address disengagement by understanding the individual. We surveyed 1,255 individuals across industries, sectors and job roles to gain insight into post-recession employee attitudes and individual concerns.

This report presents the findings of our survey and offers practical advice as to what organisations can do to engage and retain individuals and realise the business potential.

We believe that the key to an engaged workforce is motivating people at an individual level. Our research findings demonstrate that clear understanding and meaningful response to individual dissatisfaction are the most effective solutions to disengagement, and the most powerful means towards retaining and motivating employees.

Our findings also paint a very real and urgent cry for help from employees who appear to be shouting ‘what about me?’:

• Nearly 50% of employees surveyed feel they are ignored as individuals when it comes to what motivates them. This suggests that managers and organisations treat them as homogenous groups, ignoring individual needs and identity.

• 81% told us that if their employer did understand them as an individual they would be more energised and engaged with their job.

Line managers were found to be a key factor in the motivation levels of individuals:

• Employees generally described their relationship with their line managers as ‘professional’ or ‘amiable’ and only 11% described their relationship as ‘personal’.

• More worryingly, nearly half (47%) of all respondents felt neglected, as they reported that their line managers had either insufficient time or resources, or both, to dedicate to managing them.

However, individual indicators suggested that the most common factors for considering leaving an employer were the demands of work and/or the future success of the employer, rather than bad management. This is in stark contrast with pre-recession thinking, which generally indicated that ‘people leave managers not jobs’. These latest findings confirm that the recession has changed individual attitudes and a change of focus is now expected from employers.

The people who met the demands of the business during the toughest economic recession in decades are the same people who have the skills and experience to take the business forward to new levels. Unfortunately, while businesses have been pre-occupied with their economic survival, employee motivation and the importance of individual identity within the organisation may have been forgotten. If organisations want to retain skills and experience, it is vital to understand and act on the individual drivers of employees that may well be looking to move elsewhere right now.

❝ I’m an individual, what motivates me is personal and different to what motivates my colleagues… please

understand this about me! ❞

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Survey findings

Who is motivated? Only 2 in 10 employees are driving the business forward.

With nearly 30% of employees reported as being unmotivated, 10% of whom are very unmotivated, and a further 49% only fairly motivated, the responsibility for driving business performance forwards falls to just one fifth of your employees.

Treat employees as individuals

This finding shows clear room for improvement for organisations wanting to increase motivation and get the best from their employees. Our findings demonstrate this point very clearly, with 8 out of 10 respondents stating that if their organisation understood them as individuals they would be more energised and engaged with their job. By treating all employees as homogenous groups who are all motivated by the same thing, organisations are actually creating disengagement. This reduces the discretionary effort employees would be willing to put in, and inevitably results in driving talent out the door.

Employees believe

that treating them as individuals

would lead to higher engagement and motivation.

Do you understand the individual drives and motivations of your employees?

Half-heartedlypaddling

Enjoyingthe view

Drivingforward

Sinkingthe

boat

21% 20% 10%49%

Only 53% of employees believe they are treated as individuals.

80% believe that treating them as individuals would increase their motivation and engagement.

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1st

36% Authority

36% Professionalism

36% Personal Growth

39% Learning

36% Security

34% Positive Impact

35% Supporting

34% Well-being

Pioneering 33%

Recognition 33%

Achieving 33%

Acquistion 33%

Service 33%

Stimulation 27%

Af�liation 32%

Autonomy 32%

Personal

Challenge Esteem

Connection

Percentage of working population motivated by each scale

Achieving my

targets

Building a rapport with customers A

thank you

Colleagues

Feedback

Challenging

Flexibility

Diversity

Being left alone to workWorking from home

Delivering products on time

My personal success

Fixing problems

for customers

Customer happiness

Great team

work Having an

impact

Development of team

Training others

It’s exciting

Doing a good job

Being in charge

Always learning

new things

NothingNothing

Nothing

Nothing

It’s for charity

It’s fun

Learning

new skills Creativity

Making a difference

Respect

What really motivates employees?Employees reported a broad range of factors that they found motivating about their current job:

This range of responses clearly demonstrates the human nature of motivation and the fact that we really are all different. Unfortunately, the most common response was ‘nothing’, highlighting that for many employees, organisations are getting it wrong and that motivation at work is a luxury.

Our Drives motivation questionnaire measures 16 factors that motivate and engage people at work. Data from our Drives assessment demonstrates that only around a third of the population has a strong need for any one of the 16 factors relating to workplace motivation. This means that implementing generic engagement activities across the organisation will only have a chance of engaging one third of the organisation, leaving the other two thirds thinking ‘what about me?’.

Data from our Drives assessment demonstrates that only around a third of the population has a strong need for any one of the 16 factors relating to workplace motivation. This means that implementing generic engagement activities across the organisation will only have a chance of engaging one third of the organisation, leaving the other two thirds thinking ‘what about me?

Percentage of working population motivated by each scale

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Organisations that recognise that people are individuals, and that what motivates them is going to be different from their colleagues, are those that will achieve business success. Yet many employers still deploy common initiatives across the organisation, without understanding what is actually going to increase the engagement of individual employees.

Why do employees leave?People leave jobs and organisations not their managers

Alarmingly, 37% of employees are planning to leave their jobs. Of those who are looking to leave, 33% attributed their decision to the organisation and 29% attributed it to the job, with only 20% saying they are leaving because of their line manager. This suggests that the tide has changed post recession and that the old adage of ‘people leave managers not jobs’ is no longer true. So, whilst line managers clearly continue to play a vital role in employees’ intention to leave or stay, it appears that this has been superseded by the impact of the organisation and the job. This is not surprising in the context of the recession in which employees have had to endure cutbacks, redundancies and few alternative opportunities.

The irony is that the solution to save employees from exiting will probably be in the hands of the managers!

We also invited respondents to leave free comments in relation to their intention to leave and their current outlook on their job roles. Here are a few responses:

Employees are more likely to leave due to

the organisation or the job, than they are

their manager.

What are you doing to address this ?

...have been very unfairly overlooked for promotion as

it is in my organisation’s best interest to keep me in my current

post – which before me had a very high turnover rate...

...treated like a number...

...favoured employees...

...he reduces me and others to

tears a lot...

...I want to find my own fulfilment...

...been doing it for a while and got

bored...

29% JOB

ORGANISATION33%

THEIR REASONS FOR LEAVING

20%MANAGER

18%OTHER

37% of employees are planning to leave

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Age differences in levels of motivationMidlife crisis fuelled by unhappy workers

Our research has demonstrated that 35–54 year olds feel the least motivated at work, suggesting that these employees are likely to be disengaged and not realising their full potential. The most motivated age group was 16–24 year olds, with 75% describing themselves as ‘very’ or ‘fairly’ motivated. This is compared with 69% of 35–54 year olds reporting the same.

This is particularly interesting in light of the current focus on Gen Y employees (those born between the early 1980s and late 1990s). Our research shows that employers are wrongly dedicating resources to motivate and engaging this generation, when in fact the 35–54 year olds require the most attention. With the continuing retirement of the ‘baby boomers’, this age group should be considered as the natural successors to retiring senior leaders.

Sector differences in levels of motivationFinance sector tops the charts for most unmotivated sector

A terrifying 46% of employees in the finance sector reported being either ‘very’ or ‘fairly’ unmotivated in their current role, the lowest of any sector. By comparison, those working in architecture, engineering and building were found to be the most motivated, with 79% saying they are ‘fairly’ or ‘very’ motivated. Professional services runs close behind with 78% of employees being motivated.

With constant press coverage, the financial services face an ongoing struggle to change their image and offer an improved service to customers. This survey finding indicates that the finance sector may need to focus their attention on getting employees energised and on board first, if they want to engage their customers.

Employees working

in the finance sector are the most disengaged of all

employees.

By understanding what engages these individuals you can increase their motivation and performance !

72%Motivated

69%Motivated

69%Motivated

71%Motivated

75%Motivated

69%Motivated

69%Motivated

71%Motivated

72%Motivated

How motivated are you feeling?

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Line manager relationshipsLine managers play a significant role in employee engagement, indicating that the type of relationship employees have with their managers can have a considerable impact on employees’ levels of motivation. The results of our survey demonstrate that most individuals have a ‘professional’ (33%) or ‘amiable’ (32%) relationship with their managers, whilst 5% report a ‘tense’ relationship. Only 11% reported a ‘personal’ relationship.

How would you best describe your relationship with your line manager?

Professional Amiable Indifferent Personal Other (please specify) Tense

Only 11% of

employees report

having a ‘personal’ relationship with their

line manager.

How do employees in your organisation perceive their relationship with their managers?

Arts and culture 77%

Healthcare 75%

HR 71%

Legal 71%

Education 67%

Finance 54%

78% Professional services

76% Sales, media and marketing

73% IT and telecoms

71% Retail, catering and leisure

69% Travel and transport

62% Manufacturing

Architecture, engineering and

building 79%

0%

100%

90

80

70

60

50

40

30

20

10

Untitled-1 1 10/03/2014 12:44

0%

100%

90

80

70

60

50

40

30

20

10

Untitled-1 1 10/03/2014 12:44

33% 32% 12% 11% 7% 5%

How motivated are employees across sectors?

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Just over half of all respondents (51%) do not think that their manager adapts their working style to suit them:

How strongly do you agree with the following statement? ‘My line manager adapts their working styles to suit me’

Further findings show that employees believe managers provide different treatment to different individuals within the team, with 16% suggesting that this caused ill-feeling. 25% of respondents reported that their manager shows favouritism towards certain members of the team, whilst 37% said that their manager treated individuals equally.

What do you think about the relationship between your line manager and other members of staff in your workplace?

It is perhaps not surprising to find that employees feel they are not all treated equally, as only 30% of respondents believe their manager has both the time and resources to devote to managing them:

Do you feel your line manager has the time and resources to devote to managing you?

Strongly agree 16% Slightly agree 33% Slightly disagree 26% Strongly disagree 25%

My line manager is impartial and treats everyone equally

There is favourability towards certain members of staff by my line manager

My line manager treats some employees as individuals more than others

The way my line manager treats other members of staff can cause ill-feeling between the workforce

The way my line manager treats other members of staff brings positivity amongst the workforce

Other (please specify)

37%

25%

22%

16%

10%

8%

Yes, they have the time and resources to devote to managing me

No, they do not have the time to devote to managing me

No, they do not have the time and resources to devote to managing me

Yes, they have the time to devote to managing me

Yes, they have the resources to devote to managing me

No, they do not have the resources to devote to managing me

30%

25%

18%

15%

8%

4%

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Conclusions and recommendations

The global economic recession has proved a challenging time for organisations and employees alike. Our survey findings are published in the context of the significant and damaging impact that the recession has had on employees. The findings testify to the pressures that the recession has put on both employees and line managers; with employees not being treated like individuals and consequently looking for ways out, and line managers not having the time or the resources to focus on trying to engage and retain them.

The findings also provide some clear signposts for employers wanting to increase engagement levels. The overriding message is that employees do not currently feel valued or engaged within the business, and that doing so would lead to a more energised and motivated workforce. It’s time to understand the individual’s personal motivation and to treat them accordingly.

The relationship between engagement and business outcomes has been long established, with revenue, employee turnover and performance all known to be key factors relating to engagement. The findings of this research and recommendations below can be used by organisations who want to address employee engagement and receive real business benefits.

Re-address your engagement strategy to achieve ROIMany organisations have an engagement strategy in place and deploy engagement activities consistently and efficiently. Commonly, strategies involve some sort of engagement survey conducted on a regular basis, followed by analysis of findings, focus groups to understand these findings and then deployment of organisation-wide initiatives to address these findings. Heavy resource and time is involved in such activities, which give insight at a macro-level, however the general trends indicate they result in lower overall engagement levels. This is because such strategies do not address engagement at an individual level.

Engagement surveys provide a great measure of levels of engagement within an organisation, but don’t tend to provide insight to effective solutions. As such, they are often set up for failure. Drives, our online motivation questionnaire, is designed to measure the factors that motivate individuals and provide helpful information for managing individuals and increasing their engagement. Data from Drives demonstrates that only around a third of the working population are engaged by any one motivator. This means that any initiatives taken across the organisation are likely to have an impact on just one third of employees at the most. However, by using Drives to measure individual motivation, employers can incorporate activities that focus on understanding how to increase engagement for individuals within the organisation.

❝ The invisible bullying that continually goes on, it’s a dog-eat-dog

situation, no one wants to help anyone as taking

time to do so would cut down their productivity! ❞

❝ After 3 years of giving 100% effort in my current job I now feel it is time to move on and

give this 100% effort to a new company as I no

longer feel motivated in my role. ❞

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This does not mean that you need to change your process completely; engagement surveys still provide a useful measurement of engagement allowing you to benchmark changes over time. If you do have an engagement strategy in place similar to the one described above, here is an example of how you can add value to this process:

This process allows you to measure engagement levels, understand what would motivate each individual, and plan for that individual accordingly, before re-measuring to identify success.

With 33% of employees who want to leave their current job blaming the organisation for this decision, it’s time for organisations to take a fresh look at their engagement strategies and focus on the individual.

Understand you’re an organisation of individuals Our research clearly indicates that people not only want to be treated as individuals, but also shows that people are all motivated by different things – from money and recognition to supporting others and mastering new skills. Realising this and treating employees as individuals when it comes to motivation will drive engagement up across the business. Indeed 8 out of 10 respondents felt that being treated as an individual would make them more energised and engaged.

Yet how can an organisation really understand what truly motivates individuals? The answer is that it’s pretty much impossible to guess, and the only way to find out is by asking the individual. Our self-report motivation questionnaire, Drives, does just this. It has been designed to understand what factors really motivate an individual and encompasses a broad and inclusive range of factors known to motivate people at work.

By using a motivation questionnaire designed specifically to understand what engages and what disengages an individual, organisations can take the guesswork out of motivation and focus on increasing engagement at an individual level.

Embrace and support line managers as facilitators of engagementOur research shows that increasingly employees are leaving due to the organisation and the job, with only 20% of those wanting to leave blaming their managers. However, managers are in a unique position of having the greatest opportunity to increase or decrease motivation of the employees they manage. Yet, only 30% of respondents believe that managers are given both the time and resources to devote to managing them. Similarly, managers often feel frustration as they don’t know how to engage and motivate their team, despite their best intentions.

❝ I’m not overly happy but my manager is trying to change to make me

stay. ❞

❝ No shift rotation. People who have been there the longest get the best shifts all the time. The newbies get what’s left. Funny the only ones to

have quit recently have all been new staff. I wonder why? ❞

Only by understanding

employees’ individual needs and motivations can

you increase employee

engagement.

Do you understand what motivates your employees ?

2 3Measure: Engagement survey

Take action: Drives motivation questionnaire & individual action plans

Re-measure: Engagement survey1

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Organisations committed to increasing engagement need to put line managers at the centre of the engagement strategy. They need to provide them with information and training about why engagement is so important. And they need to offer them the means to understand what motivates their direct reports and how they can turn this insight into action.

Our five-step approach to employee engagement

Find out more

To find out more about our survey, or to discuss how we can help you improve individual employee engagement within your organisation, please contact us:

+44 (0)1844 218980 | [email protected] | www.talentqgroup.com 03R

1203

2014

Start with engaging managers

Hold short, practical workshops for all managers. These should cover what motivation/engagement is and the impacts that an engaged team can have on performance. Highlight the benefits for managers of an engaged team.

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Create engagement plans for team members

It’s important to create engagement plans which include regular one-to-one sessions and use Drives to identify the individual’s key motivators. Open communication and regular catch-ups will allow for greater engagement and will show employees that their manager cares.

3

Set engagement targets or KPIs

Whilst managers may be central to increasing engagement, support to do so must come from the top. By making engagement a target or KPI, managers can understand that this is a business priority and not a luxury.

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2 Provide managers with practical resources and knowledge

Being able to understand what actually motivates the people in their team is the first step – provide them with access to Drives and explain how to use the Management Report. This offers clear tips about the best way to manage individuals, and the ideal environments to put them in. With more than half (51%) of respondents reporting that their manager doesn’t adapt their style to suit them, this is a great way for managers to understand how they can do just that and get the best from their team.

5 Ensure managers have the resources and time

Given the current economic climate, it may not be surprising that most employees don’t think their managers have the time to devote to them – but this isn’t forgivable. Engaged employees represent a clear business advantage that drives the bottom line, yet only businesses that acknowledge this and dedicate resources to the people within the company will realise the benefits.

Documents

Putting the ‘I’ into engagement survey report March 2014.pdf · Putting the ‘I’ into engagement Line manager relationships Line managers play a significant role in employee