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What Will Employee Engagement Look Like in 2022?

October 28, 2021

Young professional at work shaking coworkers hand and engaging in a conversation.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, many employers faced obstacles with employee engagement as well as employee satisfaction. Ideas, solutions, and creative hacks circled the interest as everyone tried to maintain engagement virtually. What employers didn’t know was how their office culture and employee engagement would be impacted—the office world changed indefinitely. But what is the future of employee engagement?

Many employers had to decide if they were going to bring people back into the office full-time, continue to work remotely or develop a hybrid schedule that provides for a mix of in-office and remote work. Terryberry surveyed HR leaders in November of 2020 as a way to gain insight into how employee recognition was being affected while working remotely. We learned that over a third (35%) of those HR professionals agree that the biggest challenge with recognizing remote workers is administrative logistics and program limitations.

Terryberry views these limitations as opportunities to strengthen office environments, engagement, and employee satisfaction with solutions that employees will truly enjoy, and it begins with excellent recognition. Did you know that organizations that have strong recognition programs and engaging environments can bring significant improvements to the business such as increased performance and productivity?

Despite your position, whether it’s C-suite executives or front-line blue-collar employees, everyone appreciates being recognized for their hard work, loyalty, and dedication. With flourishing employee engagement, companies can see how a fun and collaborative culture can increase overall employee satisfaction while mitigating productivity barriers and miscommunication faux pas.

Social Recognition Programs

Whether you have an entirely remote workforce, hybrid schedules, or in-office employees, social recognition programs can help organizations build a connected culture where all employees can maintain healthy and productive workplace relationships. One of the best ways to accomplish team engagement is through a social recognition program like Terryberry’s Give a WOW platform.

In this type of program, everyone in the organization can give and receive recognition when they see good work being done. Recognition moments are posted on a shared feed where coworkers can applaud and comment, allowing employees to interact with each other throughout the workweek. Consistent and visible recognition builds a sense of connection among teams. Although some employees may be physically disconnected, they can stay connected with each other through work accomplishments and expressions of support for personal occasions like birthdays and other big life moments.

Previous Client Engagement

For example, one of Terryberry’s clients—Tidelands Health—implemented Terryberry’s 360 Recognition Platform throughout the health system to provide employees with an engaging recognition experience. Tidelands Health implemented four modules of the 360 Recognition Platform: Service AwardsAwardPointsAward Your Team (manager-driven recognition) and Give a WOW (social recognition). By implementing and using these tools, Tidelands Health was able to consolidate many of its recognition initiatives into one single platform. They were able to eliminate administrative logistical issues and see an increase in employee engagement.

Tidelands Health saw an overall engagement increase by nearly 10%, year after year. They saw a particularly dramatic increase in engagement levels for evening and night shift staff. In part, this increase is attributed to the notes of appreciation that day shift staff regularly post on the Recognition Wall for their night shift counterparts.

2021_AwardChoice_Hero

So, how can you better engage your employees in 2022? Easy. Develop and implement strategies that will work best for your employees. Here are some ideas to get you started:

Employee Engagement Strategies for Your Team

Implement An Employee Recognition Program

Doesn’t everyone like to be recognized for their accomplishments and hard work? We believe that employees will feel more valued if their organizations are more vocal about their appreciation for their employees’ efforts. Ensuring employees feel valued is close to our hearts. In fact, recognition is our bread and butter! The easiest strategy for employee engagement is to implement an employee recognition program to keep your teams engaged. Whether it’s by giving employees shout-outs during Zoom meetings or mentioning their accomplishments in a company newsletter, your employee recognition process is key to making your team feel valued and engaged.

Connect with Your Teams

It’s an easy strategy—just talk to your employees. Remote or not, it’s imperative to connect with your team. So, make sure that you check in on your employees regularly to see how they are doing (professionally and personally). This could be a one-on-one meeting, a team lunch, or even just a quick email. Don’t be afraid to share some of your own thoughts too, open communication often creates opportunities to support one another. Always remind them that requesting and receiving support is a sign of strength, as it reflects their trust in themselves and you. You’ll find it’s one of the simplest ways to engage with employees!

Take Advantage of Technology

Technology will never replace genuine connections, but it can provide an avenue to improve those connections! Software infrastructure is your best bet for enabling those connections among employees working in the office or remotely. Tech tools should be used to accompany your engagement strategies. But technology shouldn’t replace human connection. Utilizing tools like Microsoft Teams, Zoom, and Slack can be very helpful in making sure employee engagement and connection are prioritized. Not only do we use similar tools, but Terryberry also uses the Red e App to help build better connections with our awesome manufacturing employees.

So, are you ready for the future of employee engagement?

Exceptional employee engagement strategies will ensure that your employees are productive and perform better than ever. If you can cultivate a workplace culture that allows your employees to flourish and stay connected to their work, you see that happy employees make the best employees. Take your time to invest in engagement strategies such as employee recognition programs. You’ll see the ROI sooner rather than later.

Interested in learning how employee recognition and engagement can impact your business? Contact us today to get started!

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