Top 5 Ways to Engage your Employees in Company Initiatives

Your employees have a lot going on, both in and out of work. They are constantly being bombarded with new initiatives and asked for their participation and commitment. If you want to get your employees on board with programs you’’re offering in the workplace, keep these five tips in mind to get the maximum engagement from your workforce.

1. Start with executive support – Employees take their cues from leadership, so make sure your message starts at the top. Senior leadership should set the tone and expectation of employees and explain why the initiative is important and how it benefits everyone. Encouragement from a manger helps an employee feel like they are spending their time in the right place.
2. Keep your message simple – Communicate to your employees with one clear, consistent message. Don’t leave it to them to muddle through a long description about what it is and why they should use it.  Instead, describe the program or product in simple terms and point out the top value propositions. Use one call to action in the message telling employees what to do next so they are not confused about expectations.
3. Use a multi-channel, multi-touch approach – When you’re delivering your simple message, you need to reach employees where they spend time and listen. This will be different for everyone so the best way to accomplish it is through a multi-channel, multi-touch approach. This means use different modes of communications, such as print, email and web content, both at home and work. A broad strategy allows you communicate with employees how and where they prefer.
4. Offer incentives – Incentives are a way to show employees that the action you are asking them to take is important to the company. Incentives are proven motivators and drive employees towards goals. In order for incentives to be effective, they must all be meaningful to the employee. If you’re not sure what works for your population, this is a good opportunity to get direct feedback from employees on what they prefer.
5. Remove barriers – If employees are asked for participation but met with obstacles they are going to get frustrated and move on to the next task. Make sure you’re giving employees the time and tools to achieve the goals and take advantage of the product or service you’re offering.

Employees appreciate having services from their employer, just make sure you’re delivering them in a compelling way that showcases their value and always be conscious of the employee’s time. Tell us other tips that keep your employees engaged in the comments.

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