It’s Summertime!

Summertime – the living’s supposed to be easy, as the song goes. The kids are out of school and it’s a delight to hear them playing outside on summer evenings. They are thrilled to have a break from their routine. So why are adults so afraid to use the vacation time that they’ve earned?  After all, it’s part of their total rewards!

A colleague once shared that when he returned from a two-week African safari his staff told him he could never go away for that period of time again! His boss was okay with it, but his staff wasn’t. They obviously got a taste of what it’s like to be the boss. Yes, we Americans think it's unusual to take a two-week vacation anymore, and that used to be the norm. During his trip, my colleague met Europeans who were taking month(s)-long holidays. Some people don’t use their paid time off because they worry the job won’t be there when they get back or that while they are away, their boss will notice mistakes they’ve made that might have gone unnoticed if they’d been on the job.  How sad is that?

Several years ago, I wrote a passage as I was sitting in the Tulleries Gardens outside the Louvre in Paris. It is a spectacular Monday with bright blue skies and all around me are flowers in bloom.  Children are playing while parents and nannies chat nearby.  I am sitting in a café sipping a coffee.  My mind is clear because I am totally relaxed and I am not focused on the usual “to do” lists that drive my workday at home.  Today I have no deliverables, phone calls to make or book chapters to write—I am free to think and to create.

We all have experiences that feed our souls and open our hearts.  What does it for me is being in a place with beautiful artworks or listening to music.  In Paris, that means spending time on the 5^th floor of the Musee d’Orsay with the Impressionists or attending a concert in the stunningly beautiful Sainte Chapell surrounded by the most incredible stained glass windows listening to Vivaldi.  My spirits sore, my mind is free and I am renewed.

I’m not suggesting that everyone needs to take a long vacation to Paris or an African safari! I am suggesting that we all need to step out of our routine and get some rest.  I find I am most creative when I am not tired and not focused on the daily routine.  A weekend away is enough most of the year but from time to time, it is worth it to take a week or two to really unwind.

Rest and rejuvenation go hand in hand for me.  What do you do to unwind?  Are you taking time off to allow your body to rest and your spirit to rejuvenate? Take those vacation days and see what it does for you and your career!

Hot Topic-- Employee Engagement

The good news is that, according to the latest Gallup survey at the end of 2014, employee engagement in the US is at its highest level since 2000 but it still isn’t good.  Here’s what they found:

31.5% of employees are engaged

51% are not engaged

17.5% are actively disengaged

It is estimated that disengaged workers cost the US economy approximately $300 billion in lost productivity annually.  Employee engagement corresponds to the level of the staff members’ commitment and connection to the organization they support.  High levels of engagement translate to increases in customer satisfaction, employee retention and productivity.

 One way organizations can gauge whether or not their employees are engaged is by doing employee surveys or by holding focus groups to ask questions around how employees are feeling about the work, the organization, and its leadership.  Leaders and managers who listen carefully to their employees in meetings or in one on one situations have a much better chance of having engaged employees than those who aren’t good listeners. 

The Big Book of HR (available on Amazon or Barnes and Noble) has an entire chapter on employee engagement.  Included is a sample engagement survey that you may find useful as you attempt to understand your current employee population and what’s important to then.

One of the things that fuels employee engagement is when people are proud of where they work.  Being a good corporate citizen in whatever community the organization is in is hugely impactful on employee engagement.  This doesn’t mean you have to be a household name—just that you actively support your local community or pick a charity to sponsor—employees love getting behind a good cause and making a difference.

Another way to build engagement and also give back to the community is to volunteer for causes that matter to your employees.  Some organizations ask employees to nominate a favorite charity and select that group to sponsor for a year. Others select organizations where not only are you giving back to the community but you are building teams such as volunteering for Habitat for Humanity.  The organization makes a donation to the organization and then employees work on a build site for a day and in the process, get to know each other while supporting a good cause.

Of course, we know that to have engaged workers, you have to pay them fairly so it is important to participate in salary and benefits surveys in your market to be sure you are competitive.  Pay and benefits are only part of what is now called “Total Rewards Programs” which, in addition to pay and benefits, also include recognition programs and flexible work schedules.  Employees want to be recognized for the good work they do and, now more than ever, having flexible work arrangements have a hugely positive impact.  (See the Total Rewards chapter in The Big Book of HR).

Investing in your employees by showing genuine interest in them as individuals and in their well-being will go a long way toward having a more engaged workforce.