Emerge Engagement Research

In addition to the benefits of being fully engaged that employees experience, the organization needs their people to be "fully engaged" in their work. Unfortunately, not every worker is engaged, all of the time, in their work. Recent Industry research shows that there are three basic categories of workers in every organization:

ACTIVELY DISENGAGED - workers who undermine the accomplishments of others. These employees are characterized by negativity, finding fault but not with themselves, under-utilization of their talents, lack of problem-solving and lack of commitment to their work, the organization or their co-workers.

NOT ENGAGED - workers are characterized by neutrality towards their work, the organization and their co-workers. They can be emotionally detached and they are waiting for other options. While some of these leave the organization at the next available opportunity, others will remain with the organization while having "left" the organization in their minds.

FULLY ENGAGED - workers meet and exceed role and performance expectations and contribute directly to business results. Engaged workers are characterized by enthusiasm and energy that positively impacts themselves and others, and have a solution-focused approach to their work and on applying their talents and the talents of others.

The issues around engagement are constantly being studied by organizations. The research indicates that engagement has a profound impact on BOTH individual workers and their organizations. Below are some of the key findings of current research trends:

For the EMPLOYEES: Engagement impacts the well-being of individuals. If employees are engaged, they feel and are more productive, they approach their workday more positively, and ad positive energy to their group, which in turn provides them with an emotional connection to the organization.

For the ORGANIZATION: Engagement is directly tied to the profitability and sustainability of organizations in many key ways. Specifically, organizations with high levels of engagement versus those with low levels of engagement show:

• 50% higher levels of Employee Retention, demonstrating the individuals are happier in their job and feel they need to move less often,
• 56% higher than average levels of Customer Loyalty, demonstrating that engaged individuals build and enjoy strong customer relationships,
• 38% above average Productivity Ratings, demonstrating that engaged individuals tend to perform at a higher level of achievement, and
• 27% higher Profitability, demonstrating that engaged individuals tend to overall help make their organizations, as well as themselves, more successful.

For the entire ECONOMY: Research estimates that the ACTIVELY DISENGAGED group alone costs the American economy up to $350 billion dollars per year in poor productivity, quality errors, increased employee turnover, and lackluster customer service.