Don’t be the employer who is surprised by this news

From the Wall Street Journal: “Workers Are Happier Than They’ve Been in Decades.”

I’m surprised that it’s a 36-year high. But the fact that job satisfaction is higher is not a shock. A tight labor market has led to employers making themselves more attractive: more pay, sure, but also more flexibility–including when and where the work occurs.

During the pandemic, I heard the story of a woman making mid-six figures for a well-known S&P 100 company. She quit–and her superiors were stunned. Why would she give up such a high-paying job?

It was simple: She was a mom, and the company scheduled meetings for her late into the night. She was going insane trying to be a parent and a good employee.

The bosses weren’t listening.

Are you surprised U.S. employee satisfaction is high? Is that because your employees seem unhappy?

Perhaps it’s time for some employee engagement work. Gallup’s Q12 is the industry standard, although there are other ways to ask questions similar to the firm’s 12 famous ones:

1. I know what is expected of me at work.
2. I have the materials and equipment I need to do my work right.
3. At work, I have the opportunity to do what I do best every day.
4. In the last seven days, I have received recognition or praise for doing good work.
5. My supervisor, or someone at work, seems to care about me as a person.
6. There is someone at work who encourages my development.
7. At work, my opinions seem to count.
8. The mission or purpose of my company makes me feel my job is important.
9. My associates or fellow employees are committed to doing quality work.
10. I have a best friend at work.
11. In the last six months, someone at work has talked to me about my progress.
12. This last year, I have had opportunities at work to learn and grow.

All have been statistically proven to impact employee engagement. The list of benefits for high engagement is almost laughably long: lower turnover, higher productivity, fewer accidents … even decreased sick days.

How can you raise engagement? Scanning through my current client list, there are tons of options: asking staff to help improve processes … training managers how to better coach … investing in employees’ personal awareness and growth … team-building seminars … using DISC in the workplace. …

If you’re unsure how your people would answer the 12 questions, or you’re unsure what to do to address their answers, let’s talk about what it takes to better engage your team.