What managers can do to fully engage workers

Employees clock 40-plus hours a week, but many workers classify their job as stressful, a grind or a necessary evil. To managers, these descriptions are often the types of work environments they seek to avoid.
With this in mind, what factors contribute to a less-than-rewarding employee work experience and more importantly, how can negative trends be reversed?
There was a lack of information in this area, so in a recent study I co-researched, I set out to identify which variables contribute to or predict workplace alienation for knowledge workers — those hired for their problem-solving and cognitive skills, as opposed to manual or blue collar workers.
In a sample of 1,142 knowledge workers at different IT firms in India, we determined approximately 20 percent were alienated from their work. (In other words, one out of every five knowledge workers was found to be alienated.) This is a striking percentage of employees.
So what can managers do to make employees feel more fulfilled? My research identified some critical factors:
Creativity and self-expression
Carrying out the same daily tasks can leave little room for self-expression or creativity. Obstructing the opportunity for workers to be creative or expressive, whether through brainstorming, analysis, planning, breakout sessions, etc., leads to disillusionment.
Offering opportunities for an employee to tap into their creative side, which can be a positive challenge of its own, helps provide a well-rounded work experience and avoids cynicism.
Meaningfulness
For many in the workforce, the job they’re performing is a small part of the bigger picture. It’s crucial to convey to employees why their contributions matter. Failure to do so can ultimately disconnect the worker not only from the work they’re responsible for, but from the organization entirely.
Challenge
Providing employees with positive challenges in a work assignment often results in engagement, connection and a sense of pride in the completed product. A job that lacks an opportunity for workers to challenge themselves often can be boring, leading to an overall dissatisfaction with daily tasks.
Positive, fulfilling work relationships
Building a positive workforce will result in a positive work experience. Providing employees, specifically younger staff members, with mentors to learn from, while establishing ample opportunities for employees to collaborate, socialize and form relationships, will likely lead to a stronger connection to the organization.
Structure can be a good thing
While too much structure and an excess of formalization in terms of rules and procedures can be burdensome, a lack of structure is equally damaging. Workers operating in highly ambiguous work environments crave more structure.
To the extent that the structure doesn’t limit autonomy, it can help reduce ambiguities, thereby reducing stress.
 
 

In the end, all of us seek the same things: being valued for our work and feeling significant in the large corporate machinery; finding meaning and self-expression in what we do for the better part of our waking lives (work); and hoping to forge relationships with others that address our need for social connection. These are the things that managers need to focus on.

 
 
Nisha Nair, Ph.D., is a Clinical Assistant Professor of Business Administration, Joseph M. Katz Graduate School of Business & College of Business Administration, University of Pittsburgh.