What do rail networks tell us about the employee engagement?
There’s over 15,000 km of routes and over 2,500 stations in the UK alone.
Globally, the figure rises to 1.3m km of railway track and seven million stations. Entwined, constant, connected. Every year, 1.8 billion people across the world, travel by rail.
The average UK citizen will use it 52 times over 12 months, provided by 14 different rail companies. Trips full of constant overheard conversations, sales made, ideas conjured, landscapes unfolding and shifting before our eyes, so many adventures started, end destinations in sight.
A bit like the employee engagement, really.
When we join a company, we’re ‘all aboard’, ticket in hand for that organisation’s network. For earlier generations, it’s been a straightforward navigation along the same line, through to the destination of retirement.
But as we are seeing today, for many it’s a more complicated route – zig-zagging all over the place, hopping on and off different trains with competing networks.
But why?
Well, because our individual trips are of course, never without their challenges. As employee, we all have our preferred carriage to carry us along the track, we meet different people, we can be faced with frustration, miscommunication, and a bad coffee here and there.
And now, more than ever, people just aren’t standing for bad service. They are leaving jobs quickly. Jumping on to different networks that are more reliable, that meet their needs and come with better benefits. And we aren’t referring to the dining cart.
McKinsey Co that workers are leaving companies faster than they can be replaced. In the US, departures from jobs have left a huge hole in the labour market. With 10.9 million job openings available, it exceeds the 6.3 million new hires. Gulp.
And in the UK, almost 1 in 4 workers are planning a job change – that’s a lot of hopping trains.
There are of course some ‘operators’ smashing their service.
Hitting the spot with loyal teams, a great experience on board and a trip that’s second to none. They’re getting it right. Constantly adapting, growing, grabbing the route map and saying “now then – where can we be better?”
So, how can we all do that? What part do employee engagement experts play in the network of the working world?
Well, ask yourself – how easy is it to navigate through that first station? Is your signage clear, eye-catching and inviting? Do people get excited for the trolley coming through, just to be disappointed by a tepid cuppa and no Twixes?
Are colleagues confident in the voyage ahead, communicated with before they ask, welcomed by helpful support systems and confident in asking questions? Is the quiet carriage available or can they chatter easily with colleagues?
If they’re having a difficult day and miss their connection, do they feel reassured someone is there to support them? Where are the weak points that could mean an otherwise pleasant journey is completely derailed?
How can you make sure your employees are all aboard, sitting comfortably, along for the ride and not hopping off at the nearest exit?
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