There has been an increase in the amount of attention given to employee engagement in a response to the continued uncertainty during these difficult economic times. Executive leaders and human resources (HR) practitioners are recognizing the importance of an engaged workforce and its potential to drive business results. Engaged employees are highly motivated and vested in the success of their organizations.

Research by Gallup and others shows that engaged employees are more productive. They are more profitable, more customer focused and more likely to withstand temptations to leave. The best-performing companies know that an employee engagement improvement strategy linked to the achievement of corporate goals has a direct effect on a company’s bottom line.

• Gallup’s recent analysis of 199 surveys found that business units scoring in the top half on employee engagement double their odds of delivering high performance compared to those in the bottom half. Those at the 99th percentile are nearly five times more likely to deliver high performance than those at the 1st percentile.
• Companies in the top 10 percent on employee engagement bested their competition by 72 percent in earnings per share. For companies that scored beneath the top quartile, earnings fell 9.4 percent below their competition.
• Gallup researchers, who base the Employee Engagement Index on a survey of nearly 42,000 randomly selected adults, estimate that disengaged workers cost U.S. businesses as much as $350 billion a year.

Companies are realizing that employees are their most important asset and the living embodiment of their brand. If employees are engaged and energized, they will bring the brand to life and deliver exceptional work and positive experiences that impact business performance. Today it is imperative that company leaders are committed to providing formal engagement opportunities with all of their employees. Employees need to be engaged in the corporate vision, mission, strategy and goals. One way to do this is to develop an employee brand message platform based on their business mission and communicate it consistently within all employee communication vehicles. Examples of employee communication vehicles include videos, push emails, employee surveys, employee games and recognition of employees who are demonstrating the corporate mission. Domus and its network of resources have the expertise to help companies develop and execute fully integrated employee engagement plans. Let us show you how we can help you drive your bottom line through greater employee engagement.

Joanne Michael is an Executive Vice President at Domus, Inc., a marketing communications agency based in Philadelphia. For more information, visit http://www.domusinc.com. For new business inquiries, please contact CEO and founder of Domus, Inc. Betty Tuppeny at betty.tuppeny@domusinc.com or 215-772-2805.