The Astron Road Show

Astronology Mini-Interview

I am a founding partner and National Director. I've been with the firm since we started in 1999.

I enjoy variety in my work, and found the consulting world to be both challenging and intellectually stimulating. Also, I always wanted to own my own company to get into the operational aspects of business and use the skills I learned in my MBA studies. In addition, consulting offers me the freedom to explore other pursuits in the HR field that I wouldn't necessarily be able to do if I were working in a corporate HR position.

Within the HR realm, I am a Board member of HR/NY, New York City's SHRM chapter. I am also a member of SHRM's Total Rewards Special Expertise Panel. In addition, I am an adjunct professor of Human Resources at Pace University. For fun, I enjoy eating out, watching the Weather Channel, and playing Wii. I also take private ballroom dance lessons three times a week. I study Hustle, Argentine Tango, and Paso Doble, and perform regularly at my studio. I'm looking forward to learning Samba this summer!

My favorite place to travel is Walt Disney World. I love riding the rides! I also love going to Las Vegas. I'm not a gambler. It's the scorching temps, the hotel pool, and dancing the night away that lure me in!

In 2009, we'll have a larger staff to maintain our commitment to customer service and product innovation for our ever-expanding client base.

Employee engagement begins with a workplace culture that motivates employees to perform at their highest levels. Engaged employees are dedicated to their work, committed to their organization, and are willing to put in extra effort to see that their organization, succeeds as a whole.

Why is employee engagement important? Non-engaged employees are highly individualized and can have a collective effect on an organization’s profitability and performance. Furthermore, unlike employee satisfaction which is an attitude, employee engagement is both an attitude and a behavior that can strongly influence an organization’s performance. Although there is no single strategy to gain employee engagement, there are several cause and effect interactions within an organization that can potentially lead to a more engaged workforce. By examining the causes and effects of these processes, employers can get a better understanding of the role they play to create happiness within their organization.

Highly engaged organizations have several things in common. According to Grace Endres and Lolita Mancheno-Smoak, in the Spring 2008 issue of Organization Development Journal, “they challenge, inspire, and appreciate their employees; make work meaningful for their employees; encourage open communication; and let their employees know that their work counts and matters.” These four facets of engagement can help create and maintain an engaged organizational workforce:

The most important factor for employee engagement is management’s interest in their employees’ well being. Walk the talk means doing what you say and sticking to your word. When an organization walks the talk, they communicate trust and integrity. Employees can know what to expect in the future, especially during times of change.

To walk the talk, organizations should align their managerial efforts with their organizational strategy so employees won’t feel as if they are on the outside looking in. Employees should understand how their work contributes to the organization’s overall strategy. When the strategy is due to change, organizations should first think about the effect that change will have on their employees’ well being and how to direct the employees through the change. During a time of change, organizations should communicate face to face with employees at least twice as much as they would normally.

An engaged employee is highly motivated to contribute to the organization as well as his / her own career goals. When an employee does not have opportunities to contribute, it is unlikely that he / she will become engaged.

Organizations can facilitate employee contributions by involving their employees in choosing the nature of their work assignments. This approach allows employees to become more active in decision making processes and gives them a sense of control of where they are headed. That being said, every employee has a vision of where they see their career path heading and how their employer can contribute to that goal. Most employees want to be challenged with new assignments and have prospects for future growth that align with their envisioned career path. The more opportunities for growth an employee receives at his / her organization, the more likely he / she will remain at that organization. For an organization to be able to retain employees, the organization needs to evaluate the day to day nature of an employee’s job, how the job pertains to the employee’s career goals, and the potential for growth opportunities for that employee. This will give an employee a sense of commitment to the organization, job ownership and pride, and dedication to the execution of assignments.

Employee engagement is a both an individual and group level phenomenon. When employers create an environment in which employees are encouraged to build relationships, they are satisfying the basic human need to belong in a community. When there is no sense of community or connection to the people who they see every day, employees will disengage and typically feel despondent towards their organization. Engaged employees, as well the disengaged, significantly influence others’ levels of engagement. Employees in an engaged environment have connections within the organization and are able to freely share their ideas and feelings. Additionally, studies have proven that work groups whose members are positively engaged have higher productivity, profitability, safety records, attendance, and retention.

Other then facilitating group work within departments, a good way to promote more connections and teamwork is to use your organization’s Intranet. The organization Intranet can be used to share success stories, recognize employees, and reinforce organizational goals, thus fostering a team mentality.

By providing support and recognition where appropriate, employees will not have to look elsewhere for acceptance. Employers should examine the relationships between managers and employees to make certain that that managers communicate positively with employees. People on both sides are sometimes hesitant to talk about things other then assignments because they fear it will invite risk and scrutiny. However, that is not the case if an organization has a good HR program in place which focuses not only on performance but development. Not only should good managers stay on task and give direction but they should provide guidance and recognition to increase an employee’s development. When managers identify evidence of their employees’ accomplishments and developing experience, employees will apply more effort and be less likely to leave for another opportunity.

The mentoring manager should be aware that it takes a long time to accomplish this type of relationship. He / she may need to be persistent with reluctant employees but the outcome is worth it. When an employee feels comfortable with his / her manager the relationship will build confidence, create acceptance, and generate more innovative thinking.

There are several other factors to consider when encouraging employee engagement, including:

• Assigning realistic deadlines for projects
• Offering competitive compensation packages
• Having opportunities to accelerate earnings

These items are usually the determining factors outside of supervisory relationships for employees when deciding to stay with their employer, whether or not they are engaged.

All of these initiatives can improve employee engagement by reinforcing positive employee experiences. Organizations require these workplace “necessities” because in most cases, employees will leave for a more satisfying opportunity offered to them. Even if your organization offers the resources necessary for employees to perform their assignments, they still need more! Employees require continual opportunities to contribute, connect, develop, and learn. Employee engagement, among other good HR practices, is an ongoing process that must be constantly re-examined and evaluated. Although it is hard work, the investment is worth the effort. These employee experiences will form an emotional, intellectual, and social bond in the workplace that will allow your organization to retain people that care.

Looking for a top-notch presenter for your human resource organization's meeting? Both Jennifer Loftus and Michael Maciekowich present highly-rated sessions on a variety of compensation and employee retention issues. For more information, send an e-mail to info@astronsolutions.com.

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Copyright 2008, Astron Solutions, LLC

ISSN Number 1549-0467