The “State of the Global Workplace 2023 Report” came out recently. As always, it is a good news, bad news report. The good news is that global engagement levels are up, rebounding beyond what it was before the pandemic. Trends are important, even when the engagement level is only 23% of the workforce. The not so go news is that U.S. and Canadian employees report no such improvement. The gains came mostly from Southeast Asian employees, up by 7% over last year.
Engagement levels are a key driver of productivity. I hear repeatedly from Leaders that their people are just not putting in a strong effort, they are doing ‘just enough’. The relationship to stress levels is intertwined with productivity. Leaders are advised to consider their role and ability to impact both!
Stress comes from multiple sources. Leaders cannot directly affect employee’s external sources of stress, but they can make a difference in overall stress levels. “Gallop analysis finds that employees engaged at work report significantly lower stress in their lives.” The statistic they based their analysis on is the percentage of people who reported feeling a lot of stress the previous day. 30% of people who identified as engaged felt a lot of stress, but stress was reported by 56% of people who identified as disengaged.
Leaders have a great deal of influence over the stress levels and engagement levels of employees. Yet, it does not have to be a complicated process or even a hard task. Start by asking people on a regular basis what their needs, interests and aspirations are and be truly interested in the responses.
If you recall from the LinkedIn poll I shared in Leader’s Exchange Sandbox, June 7th, the question I posed was: “How often does your Leader ask you about your needs, interests and aspirations?” The comparison between Leaders and those who commented about their Leaders gives a clear message that people would like to be asked more often.
Showing care and concern for each other is a basic human skill that builds connection and trust. And it is a good tool to use to stimulate productivity too!