After a spike in distributed work in the last few years, many companies are requiring employees to return to the office. The assumption is that they’ll be more engaged and productive, but a physical body in a chair does not guarantee engagement.
According to Gallup, only 33% of U.S. workers and 23% of workers worldwide are considered engaged. And only 28% of exclusively remote workers feel connected to their organization’s purpose and mission — a key factor in employee engagement.
Since engaged employees are crucial to employee retention, their individual success, and the success of the company they work for, it’s a top priority for human resources (HR) leaders.
One strategy that does produce results is effective knowledge sharing. Take a look at how you can use knowledge sharing to boost engagement and retention, whether you’re in an in-person, remote, or hybrid setting.
The benefits of high employee engagement
There are many benefits for companies with high employee engagement levels compared to those with low engagement, including:
- 23% increase in profitability
- 18% increase in productivity
- 10% increase in customer loyalty and engagement
- 51% decrease in employee turnover for low-turnover organizations, and 21% decrease in turnover for high-turnover organizations
- 78% decrease in absenteeism (when employees miss work, typically unplanned)
How HR can boost employee engagement and retention at your org
Cultivating employee engagement is fundamental to the work and focus of the HR department, especially since talent retention is a key goal. As an HR leader, you’re already championing employee engagement and shaping the way the company approaches, measures, and improves it.
The following steps outline what engagement initiatives could look like at your organization.
Share knowledge by default to ensure alignment and productivity
Having a centralized system in place for documenting and sharing company processes, goals, and other information is essential for improving employee alignment (and, in turn, engagement), especially in a remote or hybrid work environment.
Open and accessible knowledge-sharing prevents miscommunication and wasted work while creating a sense of progress and momentum. This reduces frustration, enhances the team’s ability to perform tasks independently, and fosters a sense of connection to the organization’s goals and processes.
Additionally, when workflows are documented and transparent, it promotes a culture of trust and accountability. Employees know that they have the tools and support they need to succeed, which boosts their motivation and commitment to the organization, which improves overall productivity.
A tool like Confluence provides a comprehensive space for project plans, collaborative brainstorming, strategy documents, company policies and resources, and more.
And all of this information is easily discoverable to employees. Confluence is open by default, which means information is automatically indexed and searchable. Plus, Atlassian’s AI uses this information as a knowledge engine to summarize documents, answer employee questions, and suggest relevant content for further reading.
Even Confluence’s home page is designed to make information accessible by showing employees the latest pages that are trending among teammates so they can discover information they didn’t know existed.
Atlassian tip: Encourage onboarding employees to take their first two weeks to explore what information relevant to their team and goals. Check out how HubSpot creates a culture where all employees feel empowered by knowledge, even if they’re new.
Foster a strong culture of feedback, communication, and purpose
Employees are demotivated when they don’t understand the “why” behind what they’re doing. This can lead to disengagement and lower quality work products. Being transparent about how employee work connects to a larger company strategy gives employees a sense of purpose and ownership, which leads to better results.
Clearly communicating expectations and work impact to employees is key to maximizing engagement and helping them perform at their best. Documenting this knowledge in a shared, centralized resource ensures the process is both successful and sustainable.
Providing regular feedback is also imperative for them to understand the impact of their work and to facilitate individual growth. Specific and actionable feedback that’s respectful and empathetic will empower them with guidance to improve their skills and get better results. One helpful approach that puts feedback into context is the Situation Behavior Impact (SBI) framework.
[Embed this video in the blog post: How to give effective feedback that builds team culture]
But open communication isn’t just about correcting mistakes—it’s also an opportunity to recognize achievements and focus on areas of strength, too. It’s also about welcoming and encouraging feedback from employees on what’s working well and what’s not for them, not just the other way around.
When employees know their voices are heard and their contributions are acknowledged, they feel more engaged and connected to their workplace.
Atlassian tip: Create in-person opportunities for open communication with regular 1-on-1 meetings and/or quarterly check-ins. Also make sure you’re creating connections across teams for more learning and development opportunities.
Invest in the talent you have with mentorship and training
Exceptional managers are instrumental in increasing engagement. Gallup recommends that managers have one meaningful conversation a week with each team member, lasting a minimum of 15 to 30 minutes.
Gallup defines meaningful conversations as sessions with employees that recognize efforts and achievements, identify strengths, set goals, and discuss collaboration opportunities. This practice helps employees feel supported, appreciated, and focused on goals and opportunities.
HR’s role in this important process is to find those leaders who have the ability and desire to be coaches and have those meaningful interactions. Then, once they’re in place, your team must oversee and ensure managers have the training, resources, and continuous development they need to succeed in their role.
Atlassian tip: Set up regular training programs and clear career progression plans that align with individual goals and company objectives. Explore formalizing a mentorship program within your organization.
Remove the friction that certain processes and tools create
A common source of frustration that can lead to lower engagement is having disjointed tools and processes that create work siloes and time-consuming operational tasks.
When different teams and departments use different tools and platforms to do work, it can be hard for employees to find the data and resources they need.
Confluence is a solution that enables more seamless, connected work and breaks down data silos by centralizing information and making it accessible to everyone. For example, Confluence offers a company hub where HR teams can direct employees to self-serve the latest company news and policies. This level of transparency ensures that all team members are aligned, reduces duplication of work, and allows for real-time collaboration.
Run quarterly engagement surveys and act on results
Another important initiative for HR teams to oversee and implement is quarterly employee engagement surveys. These surveys provide a safe space for your team to give their honest feedback about how the company operates and supports its employees.
Based on survey results, company leaders can identify areas of opportunity and improvement and act on them to improve the employee experience. This practice builds trust with employees and evolves the company culture. Design the survey to focus on questions about culture, management, support, resources, processes, understanding of company values, collaboration, and connection. Use a mix of rating scales and open-ended questions.
Running the survey is just the first step. Without a follow-up plan, they’re essentially useless and a waste of time. The first action you should take after collecting the responses is to share the results with the team to promote transparency and awareness. Then, conduct action-planning sessions to recognize individual and team successes and decide next steps based on results.
When action planning, managers should establish a non-judgmental and safe environment to discuss and share feedback. The goal is to discover what actions to take to change and improve different areas, then assign owners to those initiatives.
Atlassian tip: Create a page on your intranet where employees can see what feedback they shared and what leadership is doing about it, for the sake of transparency. Make sure this page is continuously updated.
Improve employee engagement and retention with Atlassian
Atlassian’s work management tools, like Confluence and Loom, provide a shared space to collaborate, communicate, exchange feedback, and share knowledge. A recent survey of Atlassian users found that these products led to improved employee satisfaction. Organizations surveyed claim their employees are “happier, more engaged, and more productive since deploying Atlassian Work management products.”
Discover how your HR team can take your team’s employee engagement to the next level.