From Corporate - Edition #15

Please note: From Corporate is now The Connected Company. If you’re interested in receiving insightful stories and articles on the future of work every month, sign up here.

We all know that “employee engagement” is the challenge of the modern-day organization. But what does that actually mean? Turns out, employee engagement is more multifaceted than a Game of Thrones prophecy. Involving a marriage of different elements, like mental health, purpose, and even play. Which might not be a surprise given that humans are pretty complex beings and employees are, first and foremost, also humans.

In this week’s roundup, we’re dipping into the pieces of the pie that anyone focused on employee communication might want to consider.

The traffic light mental health exercise, by Buffer

Social media company Buffer are renowned for a culture where employees are encouraged to bring their entire selves to work. Pets make their way into Slack calls, new babies are celebrated and life achievements are well documented. So what about the downside of that; when times get tough? One practice Buffer uses is a “traffic light” energy check at the beginning of their standup meetings that helps employees to show how they’re feeling, easily.

Light work

According to this article, the average employee only works three out of a typical eight hour work day with reasons why including a lack of self-discipline and not taking time to recover properly from sessions of work. Plus tips on how mastering just 1-2 hours of deep work per day could make a big difference.

Does all work and no play make us worse communicators?

The line between life and work is often blurred and it can be difficult to know when, or even how, to switch-off when your phone is pinging with Slack messages every five minutes. Which is why Mark and David, two of ScreenCloud’s CoFounders, are discussing in this podcast episode why having an outlet outside of work, in their cases running and teaching Bodypump classes, is so essential to leading a team.

Purpose over profit

Organizations mainly exist to make profit, but what some company leaders understand, is that to get to profit, purpose must come first. This thought piece discusses the four contributing factors to why modern-day workers now seek meaning in work and how you can infuse this throughout your organization.

Why employee engagement is magic

Results of this 2018 research from DecisionWise involving over 32 million survey responses has concluded that employee engagement is based on fulfilling five basic human needs at work. Which handily fit into the acronym “MAGIC”. According to the study, employees are looking for Meaning, Autonomy, Growth, Impact and Connection at work, and when all five come together, happiness increases.

Generation disrupted

A new study by Deloitte suggests that Generation Z (aka generation relevant right now) are feeling pessimistic about their careers and their futures. Whilst Gen Zs are no less ambitious than previous generations, their priorities are slightly different as they are keener to travel, buy a home and help their community, over more traditional markers such as having children. High salaries and wealth are also top of the list, along with companies having a social purpose, all of which will affect the future workplaces of industry 4.0.

Benefits breakdown

Ever wondered what benefits you should be offering your employees? This is a great breakdown from Basecamp, a company renowned for bootstrap success. From fitness allowances to sabbaticals, paid vacations, and standing desks, it’s a pool of perks to choose from for your own organization.

If you liked these stories and would like to be the first to see them, sign up for our monthly newsletter.

Thanks to Kelly Sikkema for the cover photo, via Unsplash