Here’s what’s key in a hybrid workplace

If your business is utilizing hybrid work options for some or all of your staff, engagement is critical to its success.

And there are three key drivers behind employee engagement, reported human resources research firm McLean & Company in a new study.

In its 2022 Employee Engagement Trends Report, the group looked at how engagement has evolved in what is a new and constantly-changing hybrid work reality. The report’s findings draw from data collected between 2019 and 2021, studying employee engagement and satisfaction before, during and into the aftermath of the global COVID-19 pandemic.

Why is employee engagement so important? “Engaged employees feel energized, passionate, and dedicated. They are highly involved with their work and the organization,” McLean explained.

That’s why, it added, companies with high numbers of engaged employees usually retain talent at a higher rate than those with lower levels.

The three key drivers of engagement are organizational, job and retention.

Organizational drivers includes culture, customer focus, company potential, department relationships, and senior management relationships. McLean noted that even though remote and hybrid work did not impact views on culture, onsite employees were 9 per cent more likely to agree that their company’s departments work well together to get things done

For job drivers, employee empowerment, learning and development, rewards and recognition, co-worker relationships, and manager relationships were noted as areas that influence an employee’s happiness and commitment to their day-to-day role. It noted that newly hired remote and hybrid employees may be struggling to build relationships with their co-workers in a virtual environment.

Under retention drivers, McLean highlighted compensation, benefits, work-life balance, and working environment as influences on an employee staying with the company. It noted that workers’ perceptions and expectations of flexible work arrangements have grown. That’s on top of offering expanded benefits packages throughout the pandemic. There is now an expectation for employers to provide more comprehensive benefits, such as summer hours (i.e. Friday afternoons off).

“It’s important to remember that while using engagement data is critical in the process of determining best practices for employee engagement within an organization, it is a starting point and not the end of the conversation,” McLean said.

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