Employees value meaningful work over any other retention initiatives, and the best career option for employees amid the current economic scenario is developing their skills with their current employer. According to Talent Edge 2020, a survey series conducted for Deloitte Consulting LLP by Forbes Insights, meaningful work holds more importance for an employee than any other retention initiative being adopted by their companies.
In a separate survey, findings suggest that development opportunities play a crucial role in staff retention. More than 500 people from 33 countries responded to a recent survey conducted by assessment and development consultancy Cubiks, which asked respondents about their opinions on development and talent management. Their responses demonstrated that employees valued development opportunities offered by employers.
Better yet, the Towers Watson 2012 Global Workforce Study concludes that the traditional definition of engagement — the willingness to invest discretionary effort on the job — is no longer sufficient to fuel top performance in a world of relentlessly increasing demand. What's required now is something called "sustainable engagement." The key factor, according to the post, New Research: How Employee Engagement Hits the Bottom Line , is a work environment that more fully energizes employees by promoting their physical, emotional and social well-being.
For instance, this report found that companies with low engagement scores...keep reading [pagebreak] This report found that companies with low engagement scores had an average operating margin just under 10 percent. Those with high traditional engagement had a slightly higher margin of 14 percent. Companies with the highest "sustainable engagement" scores had an average one-year operating margin of 27 percent. What's the secret ingredient? The study concludes that organizations must create policies and practices that make it possible for employees to better manage their workload, live more balanced lives and exercise greater autonomy around how, when, and where they get their work done.
So what does this have to do with sustainability? Tying corporate sustainability initiatives to day-to-day processes makes CSR more personable to an employee and helps employees to identify their role in corporate responsibility. A strong CSR report provides an excellent starting point for your brand to achieve a meaningful position towards employee engagement within your organization. A recent Forbes report illustrates how CSR and employee engagement go hand in hand:
- Hewitt & Associations found that “the more a company actively pursues worthy environmental and social efforts, the more engaged its employees are.”
- The Society for Human Resources Management found that for companies with strong sustainability programs, “morale was 55% better, business process were 43% more efficient, public image was 43% stronger, and employee loyalty was 38% better."
- Towers and Watson reports that firms with highly engaged employees have three times the operating margin of those that don’t.
- Gallup say these firms have four times the earnings per share.
- PriceWaterhouseCoopers claims that 88% of millenials choose employers based on strong CSR values; 86% will leave if employer’s CSR values no longer meet their expectations.
Today’s companies and entrepreneurs are presented with the unique opportunity to increase profitability through greater eco awareness and the pursuit of a more sustainable business. To gain and maintain a competitive advantage over the competition, sustainable business leaders are making meaningful work a top priority.
Julie Urlaub is the founder and managing partner of Taiga Company, a sustainability social media consulting firm, where she aids clients to powerfully engage in sustainability-related issues and stakeholder communications in the social space. She can be contacted at www.taigacompany.com | @taigacompany | Facebook/TaigaCompany
Photo images courtesy of flickr users ViaMoi and Plamen Stoev.