Employee engagement has hit a ten-year low in the United States, with only 31% of employees reporting being actively engaged in their jobs. For human resource leaders, this is not a statistic but a call to action. While well-tested strategies like recognition and career development remain essential, visionary firms now tap into new potential through local alliances.
These partnerships solve logistical issues and communicate to employees that their productivity and well-being matter. Let’s discuss three real-world approaches to harnessing the power of community alliances to fuel employee engagement.
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Partner with Facility Maintenance Companies
The connection between the physical work environment and employee engagement is well established but not adequately utilized. In fact, employees in clean, organized offices have 15% more productivity due to less distraction and less sick leave. At the same time, 60% of employees report benefits associated with the work environment, such as air quality and ergonomic design, as being critical to staying with an employer.
This is where local maintenance companies become strategic partners. In Baton Rouge, for example, seasonally varying humidity and weather conditions make HVAC maintenance and mold control critical to employee comfort. Having local service providers as partners guarantees facilities in such locations are prepared to meet local climate challenges while building a sense of care that resonates with team members.
The good thing is that maintenance companies Baton Rouge generally have predictive maintenance packages in addition to reactive repairs. For example, seasonal HVAC maintenance in the hot summer months helps avoid breakdowns that interfere with workflow. Employees also appreciate the fact that their company has invested money in a fresh, odor-free workspace; a subtle yet powerful engagement driver.
Actionable Tips for HR Leaders
- Check pain points: Ask employees about workspace annoyances (cleanliness, temperature, etc.) and use this information to schedule maintenance to meet team needs.
- Be transparent: Announce facility improvement plans in employee meetings. For instance, “we’ve aligned with a local business to replace air filters, and this should alleviate allergy symptoms in a month.”
- Use Local Services: Local maintenance companies are aware of common issues, like hurricane preparedness or humidity management. Therefore, it’s vital to use their expertise for preventive actions.
Use Community Wellness Programs
Interestingly, employees have now started seeing employers as partners to their overall well-being. As a result, employers must enact policies that support a sense of community and help promote work-life balance.
HR leaders must understand that community wellness programs are much more than a nice advantage. In fact, they’re the catalyst for stimulating employee motivation, retention, and overall well-being. When human resource leaders work with local businesses and wellness providers, they create programs that are relevant and foster a sense of belonging and common purpose among employees.
You can establish local alliances with gyms and mental health providers, and offer tailored solutions to your employees that even national programs can’t provide. For instance, if you’re a software company, you can partner with a local counseling service to provide free monthly stress-management sessions. Employees can learn more about culturally sensitive coping strategies and figure out how to deal with hybrid work burnout. This makes employees feel they’ve been supported by their employer.
Mental health services are also crucial. Collaborations with the community can help organizations offer mindfulness or meditation courses, access to counseling, or art therapy sessions, all of which have been found to be effective in reducing stress and promoting resilience.
Before offering a community wellness program, you must customize, not generalize. It means you must conduct some research and decide based on what your employees truly want. For instance, a Portland yoga studio could prioritize environmentally friendly practices, whereas a Baton Rouge provider could focus on heat-friendly outdoor pursuits.
Take Community Impact Initiatives
Community impact initiatives have become a part of employee engagement and organizational culture now. The modern workforce, particularly millennials and Gen Z, is greatly driven by purpose and social responsibility. In fact, workers are likely to reconsider their jobs if their firm doesn’t inculcate robust community and social responsibility values.
Community impact initiatives allow workers to link their daily work to something with a greater meaning. These programs can vary from corporate-wide volunteer days to skill-based volunteer programs. Workers, when engaged in such programs, experience a deep sense of belonging and meaning over and above traditional job satisfaction. Team volunteering encourages collaboration, dissolves silos between departments, and builds strong relationships among workers. Employees often return from such experiences with new ideas, greater collaborative abilities and a sense of company pride.
For human resource managers, the key to increasing the impact of such programs is to ensure genuine alignment with the interests of the employees and local community. Start by surveying your employees to determine what causes are of interest to them. Working with local nonprofits or community organizations guarantees relevance and positive impact. The goal is to make employees view their organization as a constructive force in their community, which in turn leads to a greater sense of pride, commitment, and motivation.
Endnote
Employee engagement doesn’t require grand gestures, but it’s a lot about intentional, ongoing acts that tell employees they’re valued. Ultimately, local collaborations are vital, as they create a ripple effect. They solve actual problems while fostering pride, well-being, and commitment. With hybrid work blurring the lines between “office” and “community”, HR leaders must go for these partnerships to build organizations where engagement is felt!
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