Disengaged workers are costing businesses an eye-watering sum of money.
You don’t need to look for long to find claims that hundreds of billions of pounds are lost each year in the UK because of decreased productivity and reduced turnover.
According to Insider Media, just 10 per cent of workers admit to feeling fully engaged at work – one of the lowest rates across the world – findings should sound alarm bells.
So, how should businesses respond?
Are all UK businesses affected by low employee engagement?
While not every UK business will be severely affected by employee disengagement, the issue is widespread and impacts most organisations across the country.
Contrary to popular belief, employee engagement problems aren’t only limited to large companies, where finding the time and resources to nurture close relationships with every staff member can be more challenging.
Businesses of all sizes can struggle with employee engagement, including SMEs (Small and Medium Enterprises) with smaller teams, as the underlying causes remain the same.
Equally, there’s no sector or industry – be it construction, retail, or manufacturing – that’s more prone to low employee engagement than others.
Regardless of whether you own a manufacturing B2B company or run a B2C organisation, knowing the signs of disengaged employees can help you to act faster and minimise any negative impact.
Our advice as HR (Human Resource) specialists is simple: start by understanding the warning signs of poor employee engagement and getting to grips with the basics – rather than panicking with an overly-complex (and potentially unnecessary) staff engagement strategy.
Signs you might have an employee engagement issue
Already worried about the tangible impact of poor employee engagement on your business?
Some of the key signs of disengagement can include:
- A drop in service or product quality
- Consistent failure to meet deadlines
- Increase in customer complaints
- Rise in employee absence due to sickness
- High staff turnover rates
- Decreased productivity
- Reduced turnover
Identifying the causes of employee disengagement
Unfortunately, there are numerous causes of employee disengagement, which can include:
- Lack of recognition
- Unclear expectations
- Poor alignment between individual roles and company goals
- Disconnection between leadership priorities and employee needs
Subsequently, this makes improving staff engagement a particularly tricky problem for many UK businesses to resolve.
Why communication is key
Yes, you could implement a comprehensive employee engagement strategy that specifically targets improving staff recognition or bridging the gap between employee needs and leadership goals, but what’s the real driving force behind all these issues?
The answer is usually ineffective communication.
Whether it’s simply poor, or even non-existent, rest assured it’s hurting your business.
At Peach Law, we believe that strong communication is fundamental to improving employee engagement.
And with this overarching approach in mind, we’ve worked with many businesses to help them define their core goals, create clear instructions, and introduce regular check-ins with staff members.
Because when employees understand organisational goals, know what is expected of them, and feel truly listened to, engagement improves naturally – and quickly!
While our efforts always revolve around strengthening communication throughout an organisation, each solution is carefully tailored to the company’s specific needs.
Is immediate action necessary?
Yes. There’s no question that ignoring (or failing to spot!) employee disengagement is costly for UK businesses.
Whether you’re already concerned about engagement levels, or are only beginning to consider its impact on your business performance, immediate intervention is vital — especially for new start ups that need to get things right from the very beginning.
Seeking expert guidance from HR experts can help you to accurately identify the underlying issues and implement practical and effective solutions that resolve the problem before it escalates.
Why your next move should be Peach Law
At Peach Law, we believe that fancy employee engagement strategies aren’t all they’re cracked up to be.
Instead, we take it back to the basics; we’ll work with you to implement an effective employee engagement framework that revolves around strong communication and leading by example.
Regardless of whether you’re interested in comprehensive employee engagement surveys, benefits packages that boost staff satisfaction, or communication strategies that prevent misunderstandings, we can help.
To discuss your employee engagement needs with our specialists or to find out more about our wide range of HR services that allow you to focus on running your business, get in touch today!
We welcome all enquiries made:
Online: Fill in our contact form
By phone: 0161 478 3800
By email: joanne.wilson@peachlaw.co.uk
