The most recent study from the research firm Towers Perrin showed that only 21% of employees felt engaged in their work and that fully 38% feel partially or fully disengaged.
The Extra Mile, a new book by David MacLeod and Chris Brady reviewed in the Financial Times by Stefan Stern notes that ”Employers seem ever more remote: leadership is not really communicating with the front line in terms of the basic direction of the company and on the wider issues of company ethos, values and vision. . . Organizations are talking a good engagement game, but their people are not feeling the effects.”
Which businesses get their employees to care about their work and go “the extra mile?” According to MacLeod and Brady,
“Companies with high ethical standards and clear core values, where employees respect management and are treated with respect, and where management seeks the opinion of employees, seem to boast higher levels of engagement.”
Not a big surprise. But this is precisely why corporate responsibility must start on the inside not on the outside via things like marketing campaigns and new product launches.
The company that will succeed in this new era in which business must take on a changing role in society is the one that builds a culture of compassion and commitment to all its key stakeholders, starting first and foremost with its own employees.