According to Gallup’s 2013 State of the American Workplace study, “in 2010, 28% of American workers were engaged. By the end of 2012, as the U.S. inched toward a modest recovery, that number increased slightly to 30%, matching the all-time high since Gallup began tracking the employee engagement levels of the U.S. working population in 2000.”
“These latest findings indicate that 70% of American workers are ‘not engaged’ or ‘actively disengaged’ and are emotionally disconnected from their workplaces and less likely to be productive. Currently, 52% of workers are not engaged, and worse, another 18% are actively disengaged in their work.” Gallup estimates that these actively disengaged employees cost the U.S. between $450 billion to $550 billion each year in lost productivity.
Gallup also points out the importance of emotion and behavior in the workplace. “Optimizing the emotional connection between employees and customers must be central to what leaders and managers think about every day. If they do not focus on this connection, missed opportunities to maximize employees’ efforts quickly result in missed opportunities with their customers or prospects, inhibiting organizational growth. Despite what companies stand to gain, Gallup often finds that they struggle to connect engaged employees’ actions into an engaging experience for their customers, and the issue is usually that employee behaviors are not aligned with the company’s brand.”1
We believe that truly meaningful brands are built from the inside out. When employees are united and inspired through a common purpose, everything they do – from the products they design, build and support, to the sales and marketing campaigns they develop, to the practices and processes they perform to – all work to create a new energy around your brand. This energy is infectious and deepens the bonds with your customers, suppliers, and partners. At the core of this success is a meaningful workplace that employees feel good about because their work truly matters to them.
For more see our recently published white paper: How Leading Companies are Winning Through Meaningful Brand Strategies.
FOOTNOTE
1. Gallup