Studies show that organizations with high employee engagement are more productive and efficient. And these companies boast higher retention numbers, which avoids the costs of training new hires when employees leave.

But you can’t fake employee engagement—nor can managers dictate it.

“Top-down solutions might produce clarity, but they don’t inspire buy-in or practicality,” Gallup Business Journal reports. “That’s because top-down decision making about engagement fails to recognize the varying dynamics among work groups. More important, it misses an opportunity to engage teams in creating and ‘owning’ their own solutions.”

Treat employee engagement as a process, not a one-time event. Action plans formed through open dialogue between managers and employees are a proven
strategy to increase engagement for the long haul.

When evaluating employee engagement, Gallup Business Journal recommends you ask employees five questions to generate participation, determine the most urgent goals, promote practical courses of action, and encourage ownership:

►How do we define success? Gallup’s employee engagement survey features a dozen statements such as “I have the materials and equipment I need to do my work right” and “My associates or fellow employees are committed to doing quality work.”

Different credit unions—even different departments in credit unions—will answer these questions differently.

Managers should listen for unexpected suggestions and gauge the intensity of the feedback about issues already on their radar.