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THE ESSENTIAL GUIDE
HR’S ROLE IN EMPLOYEE ENGAGEMENT

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mployee engagement adds value to any organization. It can make a difference to the individual employee as well as the business as
a whole. Get it right and the rewards on offer are significant: increased productivity, improved customer service, reduced staff
turnover and fewer problems with staff sickness and absence.
There’s a wealth of research data to support this, but despite the overwhelming evidence, according to Gallup only 15 percent of
employees worldwide are engaged in the workplace. Human resources are uniquely placed to do something about this. Traditionally, HR
has occupied a mediating role between management and workers. This means that HR can act as a conduit between management
and staff in facilitating, supporting and measuring the impact of employee engagement.
HR also has a significant role to play in promoting the organization’s culture and in ensuring direct linkages between the company’s
leadership, business objectives and its employees.
And so, when it comes to improving employee engagement, HR has a major contribution to make.
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The starting point for any discussion on employee engagement
is a clear definition of what exactly it means:
Employee engagement is the emotional connection
employees feel to the company, its mission and values.
It’s what drives the employee to go above and beyond
the basic requirements of the job.
Please check our blog for a series on examining various facets
of employee engagement.
WHAT IS EMPLOYEE ENGAGEMENT?

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BENEFITS
OF EMPLOYEE ENGAGEMENT
As we’ve seen, do it well and employee
engagement can have a major impact on
your companies profit. After all, it’s logical
that a happy, contented and engaged
workforce will deliver increased
productivity and enhanced customer
service.
In addition, engaged employees take
fewer absences and display greater
loyalty to their employer by staying
longer in the job.

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Engaged members of the
workforce feel motivated
and inspired by their
managers.
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Engaged employees
understand how the work of
their team contributes to
the organization’s success.
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So, when it comes to enhancing employee engagement, what are
the key drivers that have the biggest influence on staff members?
It will probably come as no surprise to learn that there are a number
of drivers influencing employee engagement. However, research tells
us that the following factors are probably the most important.
The individual staff member
has a clear sense of how
they fit into the company.
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The individual employee
feels appreciated and
valued by the organization.
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EMPLOYEE ENGAGEMENT
DRIVERS

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HR AND
EMPLOYEE ENGAGEMENT
Employee engagement should be a key
responsibility of every stakeholder, leader and
manager within the business. However, HR has
oversight of multiple areas that directly impact
employee engagement and so has a pivotal
role to play in ensuring the key drivers are
addressed.
Its people focus and mediating role make HR
the mainspring for employee engagement in all
the top-performing companies.
So, let’s find out more about the tangible and
easily actionable ways HR can influence the
key drivers of employee engagement.

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HR INITIATIVES
FOR
EMPLOYEE ENGAGEMENT

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Simple steps that managers could take include the
following:
• Personally thanking staff for a job well done.
• Actively listening to team members and responding to
their concerns.
• Providing constructive feedback on the individual’s
performance in the job.
• Delegating tasks and responsibilities and encouraging
the employee to take ownership and use their initiative.
• Keeping team members up to date and informed about
the latest company news and developments.
ABOUT
The first key driver is that employees feel motivated and inspired by their
managers. HR can contribute to the achievement of this goal by empowering
managers and providing them with the tools and resources they need to motivate and
inspire.
According to research cited in Forbes, managers account for a whopping 70 percent
of the variance in workforce engagement. So, if you are serious about employee
engagement, then you need to make sure that managers and leaders are signed up
and equipped for the task.
An HR-led onboarding program for newly appointed managers is an important first
step. The program can help to develop a company culture that promotes and supports
employee engagement as a clear expectation. Managers learn the techniques needed
to motivate and inspire team members.
01 MOTIVATE AND INSPIRE EMPLOYEES

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As well as being a vehicle for managing staff performance and identifying
training and development needs, the performance review process is
the perfect means of ensuring staff understand the bigger picture. Ideally,
there should be a clear link between the company’s overall business
objectives, team targets and the individual staff member’s goals.
Aligning the company’s entire workforce with over-arching strategic
business goals in this way sets clear priorities and direction at the
departmental, team and individual level. This, in turn, ensures employees
feel ownership in the business through their individual objectives while
having a strong sense of their contribution to the organization’s
overall success.
HR’s position as the leader of the performance appraisal process means
it can influence how it is being used in practice.
02 UNDERSTANDING COMPANY
OBJECTIVES AND THE
INDIVIDUAL’S CONTRIBUTION

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The second way in which HR acts as the custodian of
company culture is by regularly communicating to
staff members the organization’s values and what
they stand for.
All employees and managers need to have a common
understanding. What’s more, the company’s vision
and values need to remain center stage if they are to
guide operations on a daily basis.
It’s the responsibility of HR to provide organizational
leadership and champion employee engagement as a
core value.
ABOUT
One important way that HR can facilitate employee
engagement is by safeguarding the company culture.
This can be achieved on two levels.
The first is by ensuring that new employees recruited
are a good cultural fit with the organization.
New skills can be taught, but a mismatch between the
prospective employee’s vision and values and the
organization is not so easy to rectify. HR has a duty,
therefore, to ensure that within the hiring process, the
company culture is clearly communicated and
safeguarded.
03 SAFEGUARDING
COMPANY CULTURE

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HR is ideally placed to take the lead by introducing a corporate formal
employee recognition scheme. It sends an essential message to staff
about how much the company values the workforce.
What’s more, the scheme doesn’t need to involve expensive rewards. A
shout out on the staff newsletter or company intranet along with a free
coffee or pizza lunch is often all it takes.
And while you’re at it, why not recognize and celebrate the achievements
of employees outside work too? Acknowledge that Bruce in Marketing has
just completed the New York Marathon. Celebrate the birth of Jenny in
Accounts first baby and congratulate Arun in Finance for qualifying as a
volunteer firefighter.
Simple steps like this can make a big difference in promoting a company
culture that celebrates success and acknowledges the achievements
of employees both inside and outside the workplace.
04 APPRECIATING STAFF AND
THEIR CONTRIBUTION

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There is a strong correlation between the level of employee engagement and recruitment, retention, absenteeism and sickness rates. These
statistics provide an indication of the health of employee engagement within the business. HR needs to keep a close watch on these
statistics and regularly report to management on progress as well as any underlying trends.
HR Statistics
A regular staff survey that seeks employees’ views on a whole range of issues and not just employee engagement is a useful starting point.
As well as providing longitudinal data that can be used to assess the impact of engagement activities over time, survey results can also be
used to benchmark performance against the competition. HR is ideally placed to take the lead on developing and implementing an
organization-wide staff engagement survey.
Staff Engagement Survey
HR’S ROLE IN MEASURING EMPLOYEE ENGAGEMENT
HR is often responsible for conducting exit interviews with departing staff members. These can provide rich qualitative data on sources of
dissatisfaction and the reasons why employees are leaving. Exit interviews can reveal much about employee engagement’s state of health.
Unencumbered by the fear of repercussions, a departing staff member will provide honest, unbiased feedback in a way that a current
member of staff cannot.
Analysis Of Exit Interviews
HR can make a practical difference in other ways too. Here are some ways that HR can contribute to measuring the impact of engagement
initiatives within the business:

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Providing employees with a voice and means through which they can express their views, share insights or bright ideas and ask
questions of management is a useful employee engagement tool. What’s more, such company blogs and forums can also provide
important insights as to what’s happening on the shop floor.
HR has a role to play in not only ensuring that employees have a voice within the organization through these media, but also in providing
a clear set of operating guidelines so that they don’t become a mouthpiece for the disgruntled and disengaged. And once they are up
and running, HR has a responsibility to ensure they are adequately monitored. As well as being a source of good ideas, these staff
blogs will also provide an indication of how well the business is doing on the employee morale front.
Intranet Blogs And Company Forums
Finally, HR has a vital role to play in feeding back to staff and keeping them updated on issues that are important to them. A regular
grumble from disengaged employees is that companies fail to engage in genuine and ongoing two-way conversations with staff. And
so it’s essential that HR leads the way in updating the workforce on the results of the staff survey, for example, as well as the outcomes
of any employee engagement initiatives.
Communicating To Staff
HR’S ROLE IN MEASURING EMPLOYEE ENGAGEMENT

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The bottom line is that HR is uniquely placed to have a significant impact on employee
engagement. In fact, the success of any program of staff engagement is largely dependent on the
active support of HR. Positive engagement starts with HR so if you’re serious about employee
engagement, make sure that HR champions any initiatives to maximize your chances of success.
MyHub’s easy to install intranet software can support employee engagement in your
organization. Our pre-built intranet templates come with a number of tools and features that can
form part of a wider program of employee engagement.
Take your pick from the following: news blogs and staff forums, team and project pages, online
surveys and polls, staff profiles and biographies, and social intranet features including site and
individual activity walls as well as follow-me functionality.
You’ll also find plenty of other great features that will support improved operations across the
board.
Get in touch today for a free demo or take advantage of our no-obligation 14-day trial.
HR ROLE IN EMPLOYEE ENGAGEMENT