5 Tips On How To Get Your Employees More Engaged

    Most people think that employee engagement should be a part of their job role.  However, that isn’t in most cases.  According to Gallup’s article ‘Majority of U.S. Employees Not Engaged Despite Gains in 2014’ studies show only 31.5% of employees are engaged at their current job.  You might think well how does this affect me and how do I get my employees more engaged? The answer is quite simple to both of those questions.

How does this affect me?
    Many people have a job, but how many people truly love walking into work?  In the restaurant industry customer service is everything and attitudes are contagious.  Always remember that your customers are important but how they are treated while at your business will determine if they come back or not.  Making a happy employee who is willing to work harder than you are for your business is a serious asset to you.  If you are having a tough time with getting your employees to realize their potential here are some tips on how to increase employee engagement and potential.  If you would like more statistical proof please read Meliorate's 'Top 10+ reasons why employee engagement is important'.

5 Tips On How To Get Your Employees More Engaged

1. Make Them Feel Valued and Respected
        Sometimes we don’t realize the power of tone or vibe we portray.  This step requires us to be humble and ask for constructive criticism from your management team.  I have found in the past that I am a very straight faced and sarcastic individual who lacks the ability to express emotions properly.  What my team didn’t understand was the amount of work that came across my desk on a daily basis and that my ‘short answers’ had no emotions attached to it.  Without realizing it, most of my employees thought that I was a very uptight, mean and unapproachable person.  It wasn’t until I started asking for feedback on how I can be a more valuable manager that things started to change for me.
       We are by no means telling you to take all suggestions but to hear your employees out and address them in small steps.  My solution was to stop answering people in emails and to speak with them verbally.  The response did not change (because that is part of who I am) but what had changed was my approach.  With my approach changing it allowed my employees the ease of knowing the tone of my thought. 
2. Sponsor Advancement
       This can be a scary thing for any business owner as they are left with the fear their chick will fly the coop one day.  However, the best jobs I have ever had were the ones where my bosses saw potential in me and helped me to become a better employee.  They became my mentors; and not only did they mentor me through the process but they also inspired me.  They inspired me because they divulged themselves into the business and took a personal interest in the company and its employee’s well-being.  Seeing that only made me want to be just like them and in turn made me a better employee.
       Think back to when you were younger: Did you have a mentor? Did they inspire you to be great no matter the job role?  Luckily for you, you own a restaurant and most people you hire now-a-days are younger people.  Help mold them and make them realize that no matter what job you take, it is a very important one.
3. Invest in Growth & Development
      Being a business owner and seeing the word ‘invest’ probably makes you squeamish.  Have no worries and get ready to laugh because we aren’t suggesting money, just your time.  Now that you have already laughed and thought to yourself… ‘What time?’  Just remember that there is always time.  Think about all the stuff your parents did for you, or what you do for your children.  Now think of your employees as your children.  Each child is going to have a certain learning style, need more/less attention, and grow/develop differently.  This doesn’t mean one is better than the other.  Rather some employees are going to need more attention than others.  Don’t get discouraged and remember not everyone wants to be helped but this is a great way to help you identify key players within a group.
4. Don’t Be Threatened
      This simply means that if you are looking at your employees as if they were your children, when it comes time for them to ‘move on’ or ‘move up’ you want to know it was because you helped them.
   • When we say ‘move on’, this is just like how you want your children to go off and become something more than you were yourself.  You want them to succeed and look back and say you were one of the reasons they made it so far in life.
   • When we say ‘move up’, this is in the sense that one day they are so well trained they can take your spot.  After all, how do you expect to grow if you aren’t putting people in places to allow you to do so?
5. Encouragement And Motivation
       These two factors are key to making an employee want to work.  Encouraging them to take on more than the role requires.  To help them expand their knowledge on how to handle situations and make judgement calls.  Let’s face it, you do not want to be working all day every day.  You have a family too and I am pretty sure you would like to see them.  Investing more time into your staff now will only allow you more free time in the long run to help make more time to become a progressive owner.  Lost on how to motivate your staff?  Chron posted an article on ‘Top Ten Ways to Keep Restaurant Employees Motivated’.  It is definitely worth reading!

Have ideas that weren't mentioned?  We would love to hear your feedback!

Written By: Colleen Leonardo