When you know you are good at your job, you can take on the world. But to really make the most of your talents, you do need enough room.
What does an employee need to perform well? First of all, a reason to get out of bed: if you believe in the 'why' of your organisation, you are happy to put energy into your work. Second, you need to know 'what' to do. That is why every employee and every team needs clear goals. For the rest, people mainly need room. Nobody likes being told 'how' to do something. You would rather decide that yourself, and that gives you the chance to really contribute something.
Self-efficacy
Self-efficacy is believing in your own abilities. Psychologist Albert Bandura showed that this belief determines whether people start something, how much effort they put into it and how long they persevere when things get tough. It grows mainly through experiences in which you succeed at something. Bandura
People who believe in their own abilities therefore cope better with setbacks, because they trust their own strength. They are also more committed to the challenges they take on, because they are convinced they can make the difference. Incidentally, it is not the same as self-confidence. Self-confidence is more about your ego; self-efficacy is linked to what you do.
Self-efficacy and work engagement
According to self-determination theory, three basic psychological needs are important for working with motivation: autonomy (being able to set your own direction), relatedness to the people around you and competence, the feeling that you are good at what you do. Self-Determination Theory For that last one, you need room to manoeuvre. The more you can fill in yourself, the more you can leave your mark and the more you can attribute success to yourself. And pride is a strongly motivating factor.
Give everyone the room they need
Employees who experience autonomy feel that their contribution matters. They feel more responsible for the result of their work. How much autonomy someone needs varies. If someone does their job competently and with motivation, you had best steer them as little as possible. If someone is still inexperienced or unsure, they often want a bit more guidance. Even then, it is good to give more responsibility quickly, even if that still feels a little scary. People who are trusted appreciate it and don't want to betray that trust. The result is a steeper learning curve and a stronger bond with the organisation.
Autonomy and the size of the organisation
Employees in smaller organisations often experience more autonomy. They are less bothered by unnecessary protocols and rules. According to Guido Heezen, that doesn't automatically make them more engaged. Fewer layers of management do help. In employee surveys, he therefore sees that engagement scores at medium-sized companies are often higher than at large corporations.
Coaching and inspiring
As a manager, it helps to be serving and to make yourself as invisible as possible. Younger generations in particular have more respect for knowledge and skill than for authority. When they become managers themselves, they therefore prefer a serving role. Old-fashioned bosses who mainly broadcast and listen little are becoming increasingly rare. Everyone wants a manager who coaches and inspires rather than controls. Also read engaging leadership.
Beware of micromanagement
In employee surveys, the leadership scores per team often show straight away which managers micromanage or impose their way of working on employees. All the scores turn red, and certainly those for engagement. Such a controlling attitude is found, for example, among managers who used to excel in the profession they now manage. They hold on to their own formula for success and impose it on others. Heezen often sees this in traditional family businesses. Management development often helps people grow further.
Let go
What applies to the individual also applies to the team. A team can only become a high-performance team if it gets enough room. The 'what' and the 'why' must be clear, but the 'how' must be free to fill in within a framework. So you help a team most by saying: "If anything is unclear, you can always come to us. For the rest, we have every confidence that you will divide the tasks between you and reach your goals."
Why it pays off
Work engagement is the extent to which employees are absorbed in their work. Engaged employees learn quickly and are creative. And it pays off: in a large meta-analysis, Gallup compared the teams with the highest and the lowest engagement. The most engaged teams were 23% more profitable, 18% more productive in sales and had 81% less absenteeism. Gallup
Do you want to know how much room and trust your people experience? You can measure it with the Employee Engagement Survey.
About this article: this piece is based on a blog by Guido Heezen of Effectory, from his series on the conditions for work engagement.
