It’s the little things

We all know that employee engagement matters. Yet again and again, studies point to a pervasive lack of it as well as to the incredible costs of this problem. No one can deny that disengaged employees are less productive, less innovative, less collaborative … less everything that leads to successful organizations. Yet, despite all the handwringing, no one seems to know what to do about it.

That’s not particularly surprising; after all, it’s not like companies have the money to spend on lavish perks or formal “engagement” initiatives these days, nor do busy leaders have the time to obsess over such matters. Everyone is just trying to survive.

But, there is some good news here. According to Todd Patkin, author of Finding Happiness: One Man’s Quest to Beat Depression and Anxiety and—Finally—Let the Sunshine In (www.findinghappinessthebook.com), true employee engagement needn’t be expensive or difficult to implement. Engagement is another word for on-the-job happiness, and we intuitively know that happiness is connected to the simple things in life, so why not apply that principle to the workplace?

“Over the years, I’ve found that simple things like gratitude, respect and autonomy make people far more happy than, say, big salaries and corner offices,” Patkin says. “Best of all, these things are free and usually easy to provide.

“Sure, you might have to put some work into changing the bad leadership habits that might be keeping your employees beaten down and resentful,” he adds. “But doing that work is worth it. It’s the cornerstone of a cultural change that will naturally and organically lead to better employee engagement.”

Patkin isn’t just a talking head. For nearly two decades, he was instrumental in leading his family’s auto parts business, Autopart International, to new heights until Advance Auto Parts bought the company in 2005. One of his most reliable growth strategies, he says, was proactively nurturing his employees’ attitudes about their jobs. Now, Patkin translates that experience into consulting with organizations to help them build corporate morale and promote greater productivity.

Here he shares eight strategies for transforming workplace environments.
 

1. Catch people doing things right. Everyone knows how embarrassing and stressful it is when the boss catches you doing something wrong. And, for most employees, those negative feelings can linger (and affect performance) for hours, days or longer. That’s why, if you don’t want your team to dread your presence, you need to start each day with the intention of catching as many people as possible doing well. Not only can praise improve your employees’ perception of you, it’s also an incredible morale and motivation booster.

“People love to hear positive feedback about themselves, and, in most cases, they’ll be willing to work a lot harder to keep the compliments coming,” Patkin says, adding that praise is incredibly fulfilling, particularly from an authority figure. (Sadly, it’s also rare.)

Phrases like, “Bob, I’ve noticed that you always double-check your reports for errors, and I want to thank you for your commitment to quality,” or, “Sue, you always take such care to keep the file room neat. Thank you so much!” take about five seconds to say, but they can pay long-lasting dividends for your company.”
 

2. Praise them publicly. Even if they brush off praise or downplay their achievements, everybody loves to be recognized and complimented in front of his or her peers. Don’t stop with a compliment when you catch an employee doing something right—tell the rest of the team, too. Whether correctly or incorrectly, many employees feel that their leaders take them for granted and point out only their mistakes in front of the group, so make it your daily mission to prove that perception wrong.

“When I was at Autopart International and I saw that one of my people did something noteworthy, I made sure that everyone else knew about it by emailing the story to the entire chain,” Patkin recalls. “I could literally see the glow on the highlighted employee’s face for weeks, and I also noticed that many of the other team members began to work even harder in order to earn a write-up themselves. Other successful recognition strategies included writing thank-you notes to my employees and publishing a company-wide monthly newsletter highlighting our ‘stars.’ During our best months, it included everyone from upper management to drivers to floor salespeople and was often over 30 pages long.”
 

3. Handle mistakes with care. Mistakes are going to happen, you don’t have a choice about that. What you can choose is how you as a leader handle them and, by extension, what kind of impact they have on your company. Sure, lambasting an employee who has dropped the ball may make you feel better in the short term, but it’ll negatively impact that employee’s self-confidence, relationship with you and feelings for your company for much longer.

“Don’t get me wrong: You shouldn’t take mistakes, especially those involving negligence, incompetence or dishonesty, lightly,” says Patkin. “But when your employees have made an honest mistake, try to be as understanding with them as you would be with your own family members. Take a deep breath and remind yourself that the employee feels very bad already and that yelling or lecturing won’t change the past. Instead, focus on figuring out what went wrong and how to keep it from happening again. Did the employee (or the company as a whole) learn something? Should a process or procedure be tweaked going forward to reduce the chances of something similar reoccurring?

“Also, never forget that mistakes are an essential part of growth,” Patkin adds. “The innovation and creativity it takes to grow a business will be accompanied by setbacks and slip-ups. You don’t want to create an environment where people don’t take potentially productive risks because they’re afraid you’ll get mad if they screw up.”
 

4. Don't be the sole decision-maker. Maybe you’ve never put much emphasis on the thoughts and opinions of your employees. After all, you pay them a fair wage to come to work each day and perform specific tasks. As a leader, it’s your job to decide what those tasks should be and how they should be carried out, right? Well, yes—strictly speaking. But, according to Patkin, this unilateral approach to leading your team sends the impression that you’re superior (even if that’s not your intent) and also contributes to disengagement.

“Employees who are told what to do feel like numbers or cogs in a machine,” he says. “Yes, you might get the results you want, but never more than that—and often, your team’s performance will be grudging and uninspired,” Patkin says.

He continues, “To unlock buy-in and achievement, make your employees feel like valued partners by seeking out their opinions, ideas and preferences. They’ll be much more invested in your organization’s success because they had an active part in creating it.”
 

5. Help employees grow. As a leader, there’s a lot you have to deal with daily, but no matter how full of “stuff” your plate may be, don’t lose sight of the fact that a crucial part of leadership is developing your people.

“Ultimately, the success or failure of your business depends on the people who show up each day to do the work,” Patkin says. “So place a strong emphasis on developing them. Get to know each member of your team and give each person progressively more autonomy, authority and responsibility when they show they can handle it. When they feel challenged and know that their talents are being utilized, your employees will be more engaged. And whatever you do, avoid micromanaging, which can give employees the impression that you don’t trust them or have faith in them,” Patkin says.
 

6. Remember that business is personal. People don’t care how much you know (or how good you are at your job) until they know how much you care. Your employees will be more loyal and more motivated if they feel valued as individuals, not just as job descriptions. Get to know each team member on an individual basis and incorporate that knowledge into your regular interactions.

“Showing genuine interest and caring is the greatest motivator I know,” Patkin says. “When you dare to ‘get personal,’ your employees’ desire to please you will skyrocket. That’s why, when I was leading my family’s company, I took advantage of every opportunity I could think of to let my people know I was thinking about them. I recommended books I thought they might enjoy. I sent motivational quotes to employees who might appreciate them. I attended all weddings, funerals, bar mitzvahs and graduations I was invited to. And you know what? Not only did I fuel my employees’ engagement, I also formed a lot of meaningful relationships that continue to this day.”
 

7. Make it a family affair. Whenever possible, engage your employees’ families in a positive way. In addition to inviting loved ones to company celebrations, make sure your team members’ families know how much they’re appreciated by your company.

“For example, if an employee did something really tremendous, I would call his home, generally trying to get the answering machine and not a person,” Patkin shares. He’d then leave a message praising the employee and encouraging his or her spouse and children to celebrate the achievement as well.

Patkin continues, “And, in fact, years later, many employees whose families received these phone calls told me that although they didn’t remember how much their bonus checks were for that year, that extra-special homecoming was still clearly etched in their memories.”

He adds, “Leaving that message cost me next to nothing.”
 

8. Rerecruit your best people. Since the buck stops with you, it can be tempting to focus the bulk of your help and encouragement on your lower performers. While it is your duty to help your weak links move up in (or out of) your organization, don’t allow them to distract you from your most valuable players.

“Actually, your efforts are best spent with your top people,” Patkin asserts. “Just think of how much more impressive their already great work could be with some more encouragement and guidance. Also, think of how far back your team would slide if these MVPs decided to hand in their notice and work for the competition. You should go as all-out in ‘rerecruiting’ your top people as you would in attracting new talent,” he advises.

Patkin adds, “At Autopart International, I regularly thanked my top performers and gave them tickets to concerts and sporting events, gift certificates to restaurants, etc., in order to show the depth of my appreciation. And, considering what it would have cost in turnover to attract and train suitable replacements, well, I never considered those expenses to be anything other than money well spent.”

Patkin tells business leaders at all levels and in all industries that they have nothing to lose and everything to gain, even a better bottom line, by making their companies happier places to work.

Todd Patkin is the author of Finding Happiness: One Man’s Quest to Beat Depression and Anxiety and—Finally—Let the Sunshine In, Twelve Weeks to Finding Happiness: Boot Camp for Building Happier People and Destination: Happiness: The Travel Guide That Gets You from Here to There, Emotionally and Spiritually (to be published in 2014). Patkin spent 18 years helping to grow his family business, Autopart International, before the company was purchased by Advance Auto Parts, headquartered in Roanoke, Va., in 2005.