Only 24% of employees strongly agree that their organization cares about their overall wellbeing.
Employee wellbeing often gets buried underneath other organizational priorities -- but few things have as big of an impact on engagement.
Gallup has found a striking relationship between engagement and wellbeing, with major consequences for employee productivity and performance: Engagement and wellbeing are highly reciprocal, with each influencing the future state of the other to a similar degree.
But they are also additive -- high wellbeing enhances the benefits of engagement, lifting employee performance to levels not reached through engagement alone. When leaders aren't proactive about employee wellbeing, it can have unintended consequences on critical business outcomes.
Wellbeing falters when leadership fails to align priorities. Here's how it typically slips through the cracks:
- Unclear expectations: Employees don't know what's expected of them, lack the tools to succeed or don't have clearly defined priorities -- causing frustration, lack of motivation and poor wellbeing.
- Negative workplace culture: A lack of appreciation or understanding from leadership diminishes morale and wellbeing.
- Stunted growth: Employees don't feel developed or empowered to leverage their strengths.
When employees strongly agree that their organization cares about their overall wellbeing, they are:
- 4.4 times as likely to be engaged at work
- 7 times as likely to strongly agree they would recommend their organization as a great place to work
- 73% less likely to feel burned out at work very often or always
- 53% less likely to be watching for or actively seeking a new job
- 50% more likely to be thriving in life
How Leaders Should Respond
Moving the needle on engagement requires leaders to meaningfully invest in their employees' experience at work. Because how employees feel about their work determines how they work. When leaders take material action to positively influence engagement, they pave the way for their employees to thrive.
When organizations take care of the basics for engagement, employees are more likely to be highly involved in wellbeing initiatives and more open to broader conversations about work and life.
It's important because wellbeing is the foundation for employee productivity and retention. Leaders can prioritize wellbeing and engagement by:
- Taking a holistic approach to wellbeing: Shift from isolated wellness programs to a companywide, integrated wellbeing strategy that focuses on engagement through policies, processes, programs and role modeling.
- Encouraging strengths-based development: Employees who know and use their CliftonStrengths® are six times more likely to be engaged at work.
- Providing clear communication and expectations: Employees who strongly agree that they know what is expected of them at work are 47% less likely to experience frequent burnout.
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This content first appeared in our "10 Lessons to Improve Employee Engagement" microlearning email series.
