Why Employee Engagement Is Not Important (Yes, Really) | Inc.

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12/27/12 11:38 AM

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Special Report Dec 17, 2012

LAST WORD | Steve Tobak

Why Employee Engagement Is Not Important (Yes, Really)

This is not a joke--it's every executive's dirty little secret. Here is the real list of priorities within successful companies.

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Employee engagement is all the rage these days. Id even go as far as to call it the management fad of the millennium. But heres the thing. Its just a rebrand of something thats been around forever -- employee satisfaction -- and its not at all clear that the surveys do companies a bit of good. Sure, we all want our employees to care about their jobs and the success of the company. But some experts say theres no compelling evidence that employee engagement surveys and strategies improve business results. One even flat out called employee engagement a racket. And I happen to agree. So why have so many companies jumped on the bandwagon? Because, thats how management fads like this work. Its popular, it sounds good, and its easy. You just hire Gallup, do a survey, announce some strategies, and poof, instant engagement. Companies do half-baked stuff like that all the time. I've seen it over and over. Half the time it backfires because they're not measuring the right factors, they don't make the right changes, they fix one thing and screw up another, or they dont follow up at all. In reality, theres a high risk of actually losing credibility with employees. And get this. When it comes to management priority, Id say that employees should be more or less at the bottom of the list. Yeah, I know thats not a popular sentiment and its probably going to piss off a lot of people, but just hear me out. A couple of weeks ago I did a mock interview with an executive Im coaching. One of
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Why Employee Engagement Is Not Important (Yes, Really) | Inc.com

12/27/12 11:38 AM

the interview questions I posed was this: You have employees, external customers, internal customers (stakeholders or peers), and your boss. Put them in order of priority in terms of serving their needs. Regardless of the type of company or organization, heres the answer and why: 1. External customers The purpose of any company or business is to win and keep customers. Without customers, theres no business, no shareholder value, and no jobs. Since there are a finite number of customers, in practical terms, they are irreplaceable. Theyre always the highest priority. 2. Your boss Your boss is more important to the success of the company than you and your peers. You may not like hearing that, but in just about every case, its true. You may think youre more competent than your boss and you might even be right. But that doesnt change the fact that his function incorporates yours and is higher up on the org chart so, by definition, his needs top yours or your peers. 3. Internal customers (stakeholders or peers) Each and every one of you has peers, stakeholders, internal customers whose functions are intertwined with yours and whose needs are important. Marketing folks, for example, should count product groups and sales as their stakeholders. You should make it a priority to meet with them periodically and ask them how youre doing. Next to paying customers and your boss, theyre needs matter most. 4. Employees So, here we are. The dirty little secret no executive, business leader, or manager ever wants to admit. Nevertheless, its true. Employees are at the bottom of the totem pole in terms of how important their needs are to their management. Thats all there is to it. Dont get me wrong. Creating a culture where employees are empowered, challenged, and supported, where they can really make a difference, should be huge for any company. But all things being equal, as priorities go, employees come in dead last on that list. Sobering as that sounds, its entirely as it should be. Push comes to shove, guess who gets the short end of the stick? Which is precisely why each and every one of you should take complete responsibility for your career, your success, and your happiness. At the end of the day, nobody else cares about you anywhere near as much as you do.

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Why Employee Engagement Is Not Important (Yes, Really) | Inc.com

12/27/12 11:38 AM

Steve Tobak is a management consultant, executive coach, and former senior executive of the technology industry. He's managing partner of Invisor Consulting, a Silicon Valley-based strategy consulting firm. Contact Steve, follow him on Facebook, Twitter, or LinkedIn. @SteveTobak

neil Wednesday at 1:40pm

Great article. I always laugh when I read "employees are our most important asset". The bottom line is all people in organizations look at every aspect of their existence from WIFM. It is human nature...and there's nothing inherently wrong about that. he best leaders, though, will strike a balance and serve other's needs...without compromising profits, ethics, or organizational needs.
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Dawit Arega Wednesday at 2:34am

It doest not make sense. We have seen employee engagement working for us and other companies . Employee engagement underpins the success of any organization . Why do you think companies are at war for talent ? The answer is simply , they know that they can't deliever on your promises with out having inspired and emotionally engaged employees .
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Shad Raza Tuesday at 12:32am

Steve, This may be your feelings but not facts. There are umpteen numbers of studies/research which have proven the financial impact on both top & bottom lines. Please revisit your approach.
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Philippe Mailleux Monday at 12:16pm

The old " 4 phone's CEO dilemna" : you get 4 phone calls at the same time from these 4 callers. Which one do you answer first ? Answer : there is no right answer to a wrong question ! Steve Tobback should know or stop working in the consulting industry !
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Bill Fitzgerald Monday at 10:17am

I've always thought you have to care about all 4? That's why they call it leadership!
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marta lamas Friday at 3:29pm

how can an executive position his/her boss as a second priority? before peers and employees . What kind of executives we have? Thats why companies dont have engaged employees
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Donna DiMenna December 20, 2012 at 11:21am

Was this meant to provoke or are you serious?
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pmracc December 20, 2012 at 12:04am

No even worth a comment...
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Why Employee Engagement Is Not Important (Yes, Really) | Inc.com

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Rob Drasin December 19, 2012 at 10:32am

Steve, Engagement is not a fad. Engagement is about basic human behavior - it's about choice. Employees make many small decisions each day. One small decision may not impact the corporation, but if 10,000 employees chose to make a bad decision (or no decision), it's going to hurt. It's death by many small cuts. The employees seem to be doing their jobs but the company isn't hitting its objectives and it doesn't understand why. The answer begins with asking the right questions about the choices employees make and why they make them. For example, its 5 PM do I go home or do I stay and respond to a colleague in San Diego who is waiting for my information in order to solve a customers problem. Engagement is the process of getting each employee to make a choice to go the extra mile, either for their company (or more likely) for their colleagues. Regarding your point that there is no compelling evidence that engagement impacts corporate performance, I suggest you look at the TowersWatson Global Workforce Study (2008) and later editions which document the direct relationship between financial performance and the level of employee engagement. Mercer, IABC, Blessing White, Buck and others offer similar studies that document that companies with engaged employees will typically provide better financial performance. Engagement is not a fad or a soft science. It is about discovering the keys that unleash employee performance which has a direct impact on the bottom line.

Employees make many small decisions each day. One small decision may not impact the corporation, but if 10,000 employees chose to make a bad decision (or no decision), it's going to hurt. It's death by many small cuts. The company isn't hitting it's objectives and it doesn't understand why. Engagement is the process of getting each employee to make a choice to go the extra mile, either for their company (or more likely) for their colleagues. Regarding your point that there is no compelling evidence that engagement impacts corporate performance, I suggest you look at the TowersWatson Global Workforce Study (2008) and later editions which document the direct relationship between financial performance and the level of employee engagement.
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Sue Wang December 19, 2012 at 10:27am

I can't believe this is even published. Period.
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