#1 Driver of Employee Engagement!

        According to a Towers Perrin study, “The Number One driver of Employee Engagement is the belief that senior leadership is sincerely interested in my well-being.”  And an engaged employee, studies confirm, is at least 20% more effective than one who is only partially so.
        CARING:  The Fundamental Relationship Question is:  “Do You Care About Me?”  John Maxwell, leadership guru:  “People don’t care what you know until they know how much you care.”  Usually the leader does, but often FAILS TO DEMONSTRATE IT!
        How do you do that?  What’s expected by employees?  Says one:  Be available to employees, and when they ask for job-related help, get involved.  Get in the trenches.  Show you care that they are able to do their job effectively.  The word spreads quickly.  Also, LISTEN attentively, with intent.  Too often, “we don’t listen to understand.  We only listen to reply.”  David Oxberg:  “Being listened to is so close to being loved, it’s often hard to tell the difference.”  Hawthorne Effect:  It’s not about the reward.  It’s about reacting, in showing you value the person.
        Remember BOSS-PHOBIA:  No matter what, you’re the power figure; you can diminish and fire at whim;  you have to create TRUST, which you do by consistently meeting expectations of treatment.
        Also, you can NEVER just be yourself.  Employees are noticing EVERYTHING that you are, say and do.  EVERYTHING.  You’re ALWAYS on stage, so you have to ALWAYS PLAY YOUR CEO ROLE!
        -- Portions of the above were stimulated by TEC resource Jack Altschuler's presentation, "Fully Alive Leadership."

        •  Design an organization where people can flourish as themselves.  Know what a person is FIT for, which is a Mindset.  When a person’s daily tasks are NOT aligned with their core values, they will create drama by:  Re-defining their position, being disruptive, failing and/or leaving.
        •  Reminder:  Once you have eliminated your time-consuming and ineffective D Players, which impresses the organization, you will feel inclined to work more closely with the C Players, who are the bulk of your workforce.  But all that effort will result in only marginal improvement.  Instead, spend time with the A’s and B’s; when C’s see you doing that, they will improve on their own.

        -- The above was stimulated by TEC resource and group chair David Belden, in his presentation on "Core Values Alignment."