Big bank failures. A shaky economy. Political disruption. Big tech layoffs. Now may seem like a good time to cut spending and keep a close eye on budgets. While fiscal responsibility is always a good idea, one area business leaders should not cut corners is employee engagement. In fact, we recommend investing more on keeping your employees happy, engaged, informed, and on board with your company culture.

The state of employee engagement shows much room for improvement. According to Gallup’s 2022 State of the Workplace report, only 21% of employees worldwide are engaged in their work. Another 60% of workers report feeling emotionally detached at work and 19% say they feel “miserable” at their jobs. Focusing on employee engagement leads to healthier, happier employees who are more likely to recommend their organization as a good place to work and to trust their employers to treat them fairly. It also leads to a healthier bottom line for the organization: a 2020 Gallup study shows companies with more engaged employees reported 23% higher profits, not to mention greater productivity and lower turnover rates.

What can you do to drive successful employee engagement at your organization? Here are a few ideas:

• Clearly define and consistently communicate your organizational culture and let these values guide all of your business decisions; then check in regularly to make sure every team member understands and feels like a part of the company’s mission.
• Embrace flexible and hybrid work while maintaining strong connections between managers and employees.
• When times are challenging, place more emphasis on keeping teams informed, involved and motivated. During budget cuts, employee communication and engagement are often the first to go. However, this is the time to focus more resources on these initiatives.
• Make communication a two-way process between leaders and employees by encouraging feedback and offering a safe space for different points of view.

Establishing and encouraging a strong corporate culture is not always easy but it pays dividends in the long run. Employees know when a company has their best interests at heart and reward their employers with loyalty, hard work, and results. At Domus we are experts in helping companies such as Epson, Lutron, Merck, and Ralph Lauren. Reach out and let us assess your corporate culture to see how to increase employee engagement and keep your employees productive and more importantly, happy.