While many employers boast about improving employee satisfaction levels, research has shown that employee engagement surpasses satisfaction as an indicator of productivity. But a Gallup Organization poll says just 28% of employees are “engaged,” characterizing the rest as “not engaged” or “actively disengaged.”

The addition of an employee engagement strategy to a company’s overarching employee relations program will have much better results than a strategy that focuses on employee satisfaction alone.

Two studies examined what companies can do to foster greater engagement. The authors of one study identified five mutually-reinforcing dimensions that are key components of a successful employee engagement strategy:

• Employees understand and are engaged with the big picture.
• Employees are engaged with the immediate work at hand and are positioned to leverage their individual strengths in their work.
• Employees are engaged with the firm’s leadership and know the firm’s principals consider the project of prime importance.
• Employees are engaged with the process.
• Employees are engaged with the project team.

A second study identified the different factors impacting employee satisfaction and engagement. The key drivers that influence a successful employee satisfaction strategy are:

• An employee’s intention to remain in the organization.
• The skill variety that employees are able to exhibit in their jobs.
• The level of customer service orientation achieved.
• The degree of coordination between units of the organization.

The key drivers behind an effective employee engagement strategy are:

• Reduced role conflict.
• Proper training.
• Personal autonomy.
• Effective utilization of expert and exchange power by managers.

The bottom line: competitive pay, great benefits, decent hours, and a reasonably healthy work environment can help drive employee satisfaction. But if employees don’t feel a bond with the mission of the firm, they will be less likely to put as much effort into their work. A comprehensive employee satisfaction strategy should be complemented by a strong employee engagement strategy.

A shift in focus from employee satisfaction to employee engagement strategy will enable employers to optimize employee retention, productivity and performance.

“Happy Doesn’t Always Mean Productive,” Canadian HR Reporter, 2003

“The Road to An Engaged Workforce,” Krannert School of Management at Purdue University, on behalf of the Forum for People Performance Management and Measurement, 2005