Six Benefits of Employee Engagement

Many of your employees are likely thinking of quitting their jobs in the next year.

This is according Joblist’s 2023 U.S. Job Market Trends Report, which highlights the tension of remote vs. in-person work, inflation, and job burnout as key factors contributing to what’s been dubbed “The Great Resignation.” The study found that two out of three job seekers on Joblist are planning on quitting their jobs in the next twelve months.

Underlying many of these challenges is employee engagement. How dedicated and passionate workers feel about their jobs has a material impact on your organization.

Are workers simply punching in and out with minimum effort? Or are they taking proactive steps to advance their career and the company’s goals?

Obviously, the latter is preferable. Employee engagement leads to happier people, better retention rates, and improved business results. What’s more, retaining and engaging your current workforce could save you massive costs in recruitment, onboarding, and training.

Engaged yet? Read on as we dig into six concrete benefits of employee engagement.

What Are the Benefits of Employee Engagement?

1. Reduced Employee Turnover

Imagine clocking in at 8 a.m. from home, working eight hours, and never meaningfully communicating with a co-worker. You turn in your assignments, clock out, and never get any feedback.

This is a recipe for employee disengagement, quiet quitting, and eventual resignation.  

Most workers need some sort of feedback and affirmation to feel happy and engaged at work. And it follows that if your staff are happy, then they’re less likely to seek employment elsewhere. In fact, organizations with high engagement report as much as 65% lower turnover, according to a study by Harvard Business Review. 

By the way, keeping that turnover low is good for the bottom line. Studies have shown that replacing an employee can cost one to two times the employee’s annual salary. 

2. Increased Productivity

“Find a job you enjoy doing, and you will never have to work a day in your life.” Okay, maybe that quote is a little hokey, but it does still ring true.

We all know how good it feels to really get your teeth into something. When you enjoy your job, it feels less like a chore, and you’re likely to be more productive as a result. This is good for you and great for your company, which reaps the rewards of your renewed effort.

It should come as no surprise that engaged teams report 14% to 18% more productivity compared to disengaged ones. So, there is a huge incentive for companies to keep their people engaged and happy.

3. Improved Customer Service

Ever been in a conversation with a friend who passionately discussed with you a topic you didn't care that much about, only later to find yourself rolling dice with them on their next Dungeons & Dragons adventure?

Enthusiasm is infectious. Engaged staff will show more commitment to a business, and it’s almost impossible for this not to spill over onto the customers. If employees feel valued, they’ll be more aligned with a company’s goals and mission and will naturally provide better levels of customer service.

Not convinced? Organizations with an engaged workforce see 10% higher customer loyalty scores. So, by keeping employee satisfaction levels high, companies are likely to see better customer experiences and, in the long term, an increase in customer loyalty rates.

4. Less Stress

Your inbox is bursting at the seams, you’ve got a dozen deadlines looming, and the phone just won’t stop ringing. Sound familiar?

We’ve all been there. With work comes stress. It’s unavoidable. From breathing exercises to taking a few minutes away from our desks, we’ve all got our different ways of handling it.

But, in addition to how we manage our stress as individuals, there’s a strong reciprocal relationship between our well-being and who signs our checks. Being engaged with our work and feeling supported goes a long way to combat the stressors we feel.

In a 2020 workplace study, 66% of workers surveyed were disengaged and also had “suboptimal well-being”. However, the same study found that when workers are engaged and their well-being supported, burnout was “reduced to near zero.”

Feng shui plants are all well and good, but few things top feeling valued and listened to when it comes to easing the pressures of the job.

5. Safety Improvements

It’s one thing to send an email with the wrong attachment or to submit the wrong HR form. But making a mistake in a more labor-intensive workplace like an auto repair shop or a factory can have devastating consequences.

Keeping employees within these sorts of industries engaged is just as crucial as doing so in an office environment. When employees are engaged, they tend to be less stressed and less complacent while on the job. This means they're more focused and attentive to their work, which helps them avoid accidents.

In fact, companies with engaged employees report 64% fewer accidents than those without. And if the friendly mechanic who always comes to your rescue when your engine light comes on is happy at work, they are also more likely to spot potential safety issues before they become big problems — whether that’s with your car or on the entire workplace premises.

6. Higher Revenue and Profitability

Unless you’re a stand-up comedian or a freelancer, most of us are part of a wider team no matter what we do.

Ultimately, we’re all pulling in the same direction, but how far we go — i.e., how profitable the companies we work for are — depends much on how motivated we are to achieve the collective aim.

Better employee engagement leads to better-performing businesses. According to Gallup, organizations with highly engaged employees saw 23% higher profitability.

Lower turnover, happier employees, and higher revenue? Employee engagement is a win-win proposition!

Improve Employee Engagement with Paylocity

Everyone likes the warm, fuzzy feeling of being valued and appreciated. But how can your business start fostering a culture of connection and increasing your employee engagement?

What you need is something that goes beyond legacy HR software. At Paylocity we pride ourselves on being the only HR and Payroll platform designed with the employee experience in mind. And a stellar employee experience sets the stage for stellar employee engagement.

Paylocity offers a full suite of features to that builds engagement amongst your workforce:

• Foster engagement through Community, our online social collaboration hub
• Elevate communication and drive connection with video
• Collect critical feedback with our employee survey tools
• Celebrate wins with our peer recognition system
• Measure the fruits of your labor with an AI-powered HR analytics dashboard

Let us help you drive communication, collaboration, and connection and keep your employees happy in their jobs. Request a demo today!