Engaged employees are the backbone of every successful company. Many engagement-related statistics come to prove that it is directly tied to business outcomes, customer satisfaction, or turnover rate, and it is more than clear that employee engagement should be tracked and improved.
But creating an engaged workforce is not an easy thing, and takes a lot of effort. Actually, according to Gallup most employees worldwide are not engaged and only 15% are estimated to be engaged. So, it’s important for leaders to detect their engaged employees, study patterns in their behaviour and be there when something goes wrong with their engagement rate.
Who Are Engaged Employees?
Having an engaged workforce means working with people who are ready to do whatever it takes to help the company succeed. They are enthusiastic, committed to work, believe in the vision and mission of the organization, in a word, a rockstar employee that everybody wants to work with.
They are ready to take on new challenges, go above and beyond their responsibilities, and put in extra effort to achieve desired goals. They are the ambassadors of the organization, feel proud to work in their teams, are emotionally connected to the company and do not have turnover intentions.
Here are several characteristics unique to engaged employees which will help to spot them and see what they do differently.
Go the Extra Mile and Perform Better
More and more companies start focusing on employee engagement and incorporating it into their business strategy. Why? Because companies with a highly engaged workforce are 22% more profitable.
So, the first and most important sign of engaged employees is that they are ready to go the extra mile, are highly motivated and enthusiastic about their job. They have a sense of purpose, are productive and invest all their efforts to complete their tasks perfectly.
This results in high performance and has a huge impact on business success.
Have Leadership Qualities and See the Big Picture
With their contagious spirit and collaborative outlook, our rockstars are also set apart from other employees with their leadership qualities and problem-solving attitude.
They see the bigger picture that helps to prioritize better and see beyond the tasks, to set bigger but achievable goals and open new opportunities for the company. They find the best possible way to tackle the problem and come up with innovative solutions to deal with the situation.
Engaged employees see the company as a whole and do not simply concentrate on their individual goals or profits. They know how important it is to be collaborative and want the other team members to succeed and achieve their goals too.
Are Committed and Go Beyond Job Responsibilities
Another important sign of an engaged employee is the willingness to go beyond the requirements of their tasks and job responsibilities. You can usually see them coming up with innovative ideas or new suggestions for further business development.
They are ready to take up new challenges no matter how difficult or time consuming it may be; if it’s good for the business then it’s a Yes from them. They are not afraid of obstacles and exceed goals and expectations.
Here the keyword is willingness as engaged employees do not wait for someone else to assign a task and go the extra mile as they want so.
Value Continuous Professional Growth
Engaged employees value growth and make learning a habit. They constantly work on themselves, become proficient in their existing skills and plan for further professional growth.
No matter how busy their schedule is they always allocate time for learning and open endless opportunities not only for themselves but also for the company.
As I mentioned above, Rockstars see the big picture. So, the most interesting part worth mentioning here is that engaged employees align their professional goals with company goals. Before starting on learning a new skill or deepening their knowledge they chose something which will be beneficial for the company as well.
Believe in the Organization’s Vision
What do they do differently? Engaged employees know the vision and mission of the company, they know in what direction it’s going.
And what’s important is that they believe in the vision and put all their efforts towards achieving the organizational goals. They know the Why behind their work and how they contribute to the success.
In a word, they are your “brand ambassadors”.
Use Lucky Carrot to detect your engaged employees
So, these were the characteristics unique to engaged employees. Each point shows exactly how important it is to have an employee engagement strategy and work on it.
Detecting and knowing your top employees will open new opportunities, will help to make better decisions and give them a chance to use their skills properly, also, easily notice when they become disengaged and be able to predict and prevent turnover.
