12 great employment engagement activities
Engaged employees are the cornerstone of a successful business. When employees are engaged, they should feel as though they are an appreciated and respected part of the company - rather than a worker that just shows up and counts the hours until they can leave again.
Employee engagement means having workers that have an emotional commitment to a company, and that strive to do the best job they can because they feel appreciated and respected.
There are numerous benefits to implementing initiatives that help employees feel engaged. The employee retention levels should be improved because staff members who enjoy time at their jobs are less likely to leave. A lower staff turnover means less cost for the company and higher productivity rates, after all, new hires are costly to train and recruit.
By implementing an effective employee engagement strategy, employees should also be more productive, which is directly linked to high revenue. Lastly, the morale around the workplace should be improved because employees are generally happy that they’re there.
In this article, we will go over 12 effective employee engagement activities that can boost engagement and help your business be the most successful it can be.
Employee engagement ideas
Workplace Brunches
Implementing workplace brunches or team lunches can enhance employee engagement. An activity like this can break the day up, and allow employees time to refresh and regain focus.
This enjoyable and rewarding break will allow employees to relax and socialize with their co-workers and can encourage employees to grow together as a team and help to make some more reserved employees feel more comfortable in the workplace.
Plus, it goes without saying that well-fed employees are generally happy employees! By rewarding your workers with some delicious food, it will not only make them feel good but also make them feel appreciated.
Group Fundraisers
Countless studies have proven that when people help others, there is usually a boost in their morale and self-worth, and their mood improves. This can be translated into the workplace by organising a group fundraiser. This event allows team members to come to work together and also helps to make the world a better place.
Group fundraisers allow for staff to work together on different tasks that they wouldn’t usually undertake in their roles. This gives them a new opportunity to bond with each other while giving back to others.
Additionally, engagement efforts like group fundraisers allow businesses to improve their social reach, show their morals and company values and create a great marketing image.
Team-Building Half-days
As a business owner, the thought of giving employees half a day out of work may sound counterproductive. After all, employees will have less time to undertake work for the company. However, the reality is actually much different.
By adding a short 3-4 hour team building activity every month, employee engagement should be improved and a good work life balance can be achieved. As a result, productivity, and revenue should also improve.
There are many different varieties of team building half days that you can hold, some of the most popular include a day outdoors doing a scavenger hunt with the team, or a beautiful hike through nature. If you’d prefer to conduct an indoor activity, you could try having an art teacher come over to teach workers how to paint with watercolours, or hold a silent disco!
These activities remove workers from the standard day of work and inspire them to communicate with each other, which in turn can help them build as a team and bond together. When your staff feels as though they are an appreciated part of a team, they will be more likely to express their ideas and have a positive attitude about their job, which can lead to them feeling more engaged and, consequently, helping your business thrive.
Friday evening drinks
Many people will agree that letting a bit loose at the end of a long week in a great feeling. This can be translated into the workplace by allowing staff to have a complimentary drink in the last hour of work on Friday, or holding some drinks on a Friday evening for workers who would like to attend. Planning an outing to encourage your staff to come and meet up for some Friday night drinks will allow them to enjoy this relaxed feeling together.
A social event like this will give workers a chance to get to know each other outside of work and encourages them to grow bonds with other employees. Employees who enjoy fun experiences together become more social with each other, and may even build strong friendships. These resulting relationships can mean that employees are much happier in the office.
Of course, there are many people who don’t drink alcohol. So if this method is utilized, employees should never feel pressured that they have to attend and participate, plus there should always be non-alcoholic drinks available.
Cake on Employee Birthdays
Birthdays only come around once a year and when this day does come, many people feel respected and appreciated when their special day is remembered and celebrated. This can be done by bringing (or ordering a cake on your employee's birthdays.
This activity is also a social opportunity for those whose birthday it isn't, and can encourage bonding and relationships to build between all the employees celebrating the birthday.
Rewards programs
Adding a rewards program to your company is a great way to boost employee engagement. These rewards can give your employees motivation to work hard in order to reach a specific goal. This increased productivity is beneficial for both the owner of the company and the staff. The owner gets increased results, which should translate to more revenue, and the employee is rewarded for their hard work.
Furthermore, value based employee recognition like rewards programs often make employees feel as though their hard work is recognized and appreciated, this also encourages an employee to work harder. A few examples of these rewards programs are some time off work, free lunch or a financial bonus.
Training Days
Training days are a great way to engage employees and encourage professional development. When workers learn new information about their job, it can add give them extra initiative to work harder. Training days can not only encourage new skills, but can also create a positive company culture, because staff members will be learning - and bonding - together.
Excursions
Excursions are one of the best ways to improve employee engagement in the workplace. They give employees a chance to leave the workplace and let them have a fun day out with other staff members. Excursions will build great morale within a team because workers have a chance to bond over something enjoyable.
Darts
A darts tournament is simple to set up and the rules are easy to understand, plus it allows for some friendly competition between workmates.
A pool day
During summer, a pool day is a great idea for a work excursion. It let workmates relax and unwind in the sun as a team. However, not everyone likes swimming - or wearing swimwear, so it’s important to make sure employees don’t feel pressured, so it can be a good idea to book somewhere with a shaded area or bungalow, too.
Minigolf
Mini golf is another activity that’s easy to understand, and most people already know how to play.
A few holes of mini-golf gives workers the opportunity to make better friends with one another and have some fun.
Escape Rooms
Escape rooms are a great team-building activity. Being locked in an escape room together means that there's only one way out and colleagues will have to work together to find the clues in order to get out.
Virtual events and games
Virtual events and games are another great way to keep your employees engaged. An activity like this is especially great for staff members who usually sit at a computer all day and don’t necessarily get the opportunity to be physically active at work. This is also a great idea for companies who have remote employees or remote team members.
An example of this type of activity is a virtual pool tournament - something like this can break up the workday. A virtual pool tournament involves setting up an online pool platform where each staff member can play pool against each other on the computer, or gaming system.
Fun competitions
An engaged employee needs to be happy end enjoy being in the workplace, and a fun competition can help with this. Whether the activity is a “who can wear the wackiest hat to work” day or hosting a raffle, it will help to improve ab employee's mood and leads to them being more productive.
One-on-one catch-ups
Having a one on one catch up with your employees is a great way to encourage them to feel happy and engaged and to gather employee feedback. These meetings let staff members express their opinions about what they do like and don’t like about the company and workplace, and make them feel heard.
One on one catches ups also give leaders a chance to get to know staff members better and learn what their goals are for themselves within the company. This employee feedback also helps leaders to become more aware of things that may need to be changed or be improved.
Coffee Randomiser
While coffee randomisers aren’t extremely common, they’re a really great way to initiate relationships between co-workers who might not have the chance to otherwise. They are an initiative where two random people at work are paired up to have a coffee or drink (or their drink of choice) together. This allows for employees to get to know other staff members in different departments and gets rid of the invisible walls that often become common in the work place.
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