What are the most effective ways to measure employee engagement?

You don't need to wait for employee engagement survey to tell the environment for the place, you can get from pulse and vibes when you move around the place. It's the reflection of the employees who would indicate the true characteristic of the organisation. It will reflect in the hygiene at the shop floor, the way employees would interact and most importantly the deliverables or the results will tell it's story. The comfort of employees would also reflect in the overall environment. This are initial dipstick methods, however to validate the same and also understand more attributes to it a detailed impersonal survey would help. Details can cross validated against leadership feedback.

Employee engagement is measured in the balance sheet. It's return on employee. My company measures this for our clients with 5 measures, it's the cleanest Opex metric we've found yet. The humans are paid to create output: increase revenue and/or reduce expense. Gross revenue / total cost of humans in the measurement time period Gets you the per minute cost and per minute output. It's an efficiency measure. Keep the Gallup study, show me the balance sheet and I'll show you how engaged the team is. CEOs love the clarity HR usually gets panicked CFO, the good ones, understand better how to allocate the team to the opportunity needed.

Pay attention to your "show up" rate. Are they coming to work, attending meetings, volunteering for additional responsibilities, bringing compelling questions and conversations to decision makers, helping onboard peers, speaking well about their role and the company outside of work, and are they delivering on their expected outcomes consistently? You don't need to launch a big survey program, instead hold your leadership team accountable to build relationships with those they are responsible to and track their own level of individuals who "show up" on a weekly basis. Have them take it one step further and learn to understand why there's any kind of drift off center -- meaning ramped up engagement or dips in engagement.

Pulse surveys are a quick and easy way to get immediate feedback on timely topics. Keep them short and request a quick turn around time.

Get the employees a focused perspective to approach their regular job with a sense of purpose & ownership. Therefore the interest of all stakeholders are poised together with the common objectives and the dual motivation of incentives & achieving success

Apart form survey and tracking survey metrics and other things, tracking employees productivity could be a way since it is directly related to employee engagement. Productivity could mean different things for different people. For sales it could # of deals signed or amount of revenue added, for marketing it could be how many new leads are generated and converted to Opportunities etc.

The metrics measurements can be very effective. The rider being that it needs to be done with a very open mind. The involvement of a person in his duty depends on motivation, this in turn is dependent on the communication skills of the leadership. Normally when issues get out of control, the solution emerges, however by then damage is done. Ofcourse patching up at this stage is the way out, but had better systems been in place the losses would not occur. Like customer satisfaction is best exhibited by repeat order and minimal complaint, in many cases the employee is requesting the client repeatedly for say 10/10 feedback. This I feel is just fudging the system, all such leaderships should wonder if 9/10,10/10 prevails is it real?.

Tracking metrics should be the first method of measuring employees because it provides objective and quantifiable data to evaluate their performance. Metrics help in assessing productivity, efficiency, and goal attainment, allowing employers to make informed decisions and provide feedback for improvement. It ensures fairness and transparency in the evaluation process by focusing on measurable outcomes rather than subjective judgments. Additionally, tracking metrics enables the identification of trends, patterns, and areas for growth, leading to better resource allocation and strategic decision-making.

Tracking metrics is essential and tricky. It is essential because to grow, we must understand where our weaknesses lie. Looking at our metrics and understanding what to focus on can be a big driver for growth. It’s tricky, because having your weaknesses on display can lead to a whole host of consequences. Having a manager focused on growth eliminates the risks and allows organisations to reap the benefits.

Also, you can also measure employee engagement by looking at productivity levels, employee feedback and suggestions, participation in company events and activities, and even analyzing the usage of employee recognition programs. These additional measures can provide valuable insights into the overall engagement of your team.

Small committees on a variety of things i.e. benefits, communication, etc. give employees buy in on decisions. Know your audience and include people that will help get the message out to the group.

Culture of any organisation is key pillar for employees engagement. Culture define a atmosphere, a environment, synergy, clear growth path , every employee to freely speak with their senior, adoption of new technology, new idea for development....

To measure employee engagement by observing culture, focus on tangible indicators. Assess team collaboration through project success and cross-functional interactions. Monitor participation in company events and initiatives as a measure of enthusiasm. Gauge morale through informal interactions and feedback channels. High engagement often correlates with a positive, inclusive culture, evident in employees' pride in their work. Conduct regular pulse surveys to capture real-time sentiments. Ultimately, an engaged culture reflects in productivity, retention rates, and employees advocating for the organization, serving as reliable indicators of overall engagement.

This is SO critical to success for an organisation that it deserves way more attention than it gets. The culture is the sum total of how people feel when they come to work and what they do while they are there. Noticing things like; how much people talk to or sit with peers in the lunch room, how many sick days get logged monthly, how many ideas are contributed to the innovation/suggestion box, how many and how well people complete their personal performance reviews on time, how many attend staff functions, etc. gives a great indication of how well the culture is cooking. Interestingly, it doesn't take much to positively shift it either. People just want to be noticed for the value they bring and to be heard when it's important.

Take the time to engage with your employees. Which are going the extra mile? Who is contributing with ideas? Who is following through more than others. Are you sharing information with your people and asking for input and feedback? Educate and involve your staff. Give them ownership and show respect. Don't forget the little things like thanking them.

Quarterly one on one meetings with employees is important. Ask meaningful questions as employees will be open and honest given the opportunity.

Bill Marriott, the hotel king, had a secret: treat your team right, and they'll rock your customers' world! Today, listening is key, not just meetings and forms. Imagine turning the office into a campfire where everyone shares ideas, not just bosses. That's how unlock hidden genius. Listening to employees isn't just about good practices, it's about witnessing passion ignite! It's like watching a spark turn into a bonfire, and that's something no ad campaign can ever replicate.

You may not be able to act on every idea but, at the very least, you have to acknowledge every idea. One way of "acknowledging" that works well is to set up a dedicated time to discuss their idea in more detail. Even if you think you fully understand their idea and even if they did a thorough job of presenting it originally, sit down with them and brainstorm together so they know you're giving it consideration. It doesn't mean you're going to implement every idea (some just aren't feasible) but, together, you may be able modify their original idea and make it feasible. Or you may be able to blend it with another idea and implement that new, combined idea. Either way, it's a "win" ... for them and you!

Literally have an open door and invite and encourage employees to reach out with ideas, suggestions etc. But make sure you listen to what they are saying and act on those suggestions that are possible.

The most important attribute is listening to the employees. The employees who believe they are heard are the employees who build the best foundation to the Organization and the new joiners to the Organization. Unfortunately the legacy of hearing is not being treated significantly. People leave the Organizations for various reasons for mostly when they sense that they are unheard.

Manager is also employee. It is critical to know how to extract feedback from employees reporting to manager from manager's personal addition to that feedback. More entry points to information channel can in some cases change feedback itself in 180 degree. Upline manager chooses his manager so in most cases they represent values of himself.

Engaging and supporting management is the most obscure part of the equation. Although the concept of engagement has been around for a long time. It wasn’t until Covid that it became widely important and measurable. The truth is this. First line managers are statistically the most knowledgeable when it comes to understanding the needs of a company. They are closest to operational colleagues and given that first line managers do all the 1:1s and communicate effectively, they are the best weapon an organisation has to combat crisis situations or develop unique solutions. Empowering and investing in your management is a critical pillar holding any organisation together.

Really listen and engage with your employees. Too often 'management' is disconnected from their grass roots employees and receive 'filtered' feedback (if they are listening) from their own management teams. Aside from all of the formal and informal measures mentioned in these discussions, Exec teams need to maintain connection to their people.

One incredibly powerful measure is $ Revenue (or Gross Income) per $ Payroll & benefits per FTE. It’s true that not every associate at every firm is individually responsible for producing revenue, but generally their work either supports revenue growth or pulls against it. Therefore, this simple income/expense per FTE measure is meaningful in a discrete instance, and even more impactful directionally over an extended timeframe. This is also a very difficult measure to ‘game’ or artificially influence, as the components are generally distinctive of one another. Saying more: a firm is unlikely to increase gross income simply through hiring/firing or increasing/decreasing comp, so it’s a pure measure of management influence.

I think 'Talk to employee in 121 system' not via survey or any other non personal interaction. Listen doesn't mean you put attention to employee. Talking in other ways it does. Measure someone by talking with him will give you in 5-10 min a perspective and possibility to impact as well.

Effective measurement of employee engagement involves a multifaceted approach that combines quantitative and qualitative methods. One crucial method is the administration of regular employee engagement surveys, which delve into various aspects of the workplace environment such as job satisfaction, communication effectiveness, and leadership impact. These surveys can be complemented by shorter, more frequent pulse surveys to capture real-time feedback. One-on-one meetings and focus groups offer personalized insights, fostering open communication between employees and managers. Analyzing performance metrics, including productivity levels, absenteeism rates, and turnover, provides tangible indicators of engagement.

The culture of the Organizations is built with the qualitative managers it can create. Managers are meant to drive the teams to achieve Organizational goals. So the Managers being on the top of the motivation skin game - they should be engaged and involved to understand their pulse a d teams pulse to enhance the working environment.