Why is Employee Engagement Increasingly Critical for the FM Sector? Spotlight Video Interview | MIT Ventures

• Content
• Features
• Why is Employee Engagement Increasingly Critical for the FM Sector? Spotlight Video Interview | MIT Ventures

29 April 2020 | Updated 14 May 2020

When it comes to people and culture, employee engagement is one of the core pillars of a thriving workplace. In this interview, David Callaghan of MIT Ventures discusses why it's crucial for FM businesses, the methods for supporting proper engagement and how organisations can benefit from a happier, healthier and more productive workplace whilst saving time and money.

"Proper engagement is all about creating trust, loyalty and devotion. Employee engagement is proven to decrease staff turnover, increase productivity, retain customers, increase staff satisfaction and improve bottom-line profitability." 

– David Callaghan

CEO, MIT Ventures

Watch the Spotlight Interview to Learn More 

Fight for the attraction and retention of talent

The UK economy is demanding more essential FM services than ever before. Areas such as hygiene, maintenance and security are facing significant skill shortages, which changes the balance between supply and demand of labour. Many employees now have more choice and there is a real fight for the attraction and retention of talent. Add to this advancement in technology, work practices, social changes and desires, and workers will typically look for far more in a role than before. It's worth noting that a third of people have turned down jobs due to lack of additional benefits and over half of people seeking employment want better employment benefits.

The implementation of an employee engagement strategy can result in sustainable benefits, from reduced staff turnover to a happier, healthier and more productive workplace. Organisations that utilise employee engagement services are seeing employee turnover decrease by as much as 40 per cent, which leads to significant cost savings in recruitment and training.

The virtual workplace is just around the corner...

For the majority of organisations, the coronavirus pandemic has disrupted their standard engagement practices – with a combination of unusual working conditions and personal uncertainty causing employees to become disconnected. Without digital platforms, employers will struggle to sustain morale – it's crucial to use this time to show remote employees some much-needed care and attention through an effective engagement strategy, with support materials that can be accessed anywhere through laptops and smartphones.

How the workplace will change once this pandemic is over and the world attempts to regain normality is yet to be seen, but it's likely that changes will need to be made to daily operations. This new normal will include a shift in employee and employer preferences – and the expectation of a more virtual workplace. To manage this, businesses need to consider how to best interact with their employees and be proactive in implementing methods to support this.

Drive customer satisfaction

It is proven that by ensuring your employees are engaged, you will drive customer satisfaction too. Engaged employees will go above and beyond the call of duty to provide far better customer experience to your clients and visitors, and therefore, to your organisation's reputation and profitability.

"I have FM clients who tell me that they have won work as a result of being able to demonstrate effective employee engagement ­– if the supply of people is a large part of what you provide for your clients, if I was buying, I’d want to know that they were happy, motivated and going to be there. That’s why employee engagement in facilities management is critical if you want to succeed with customers."

– David Callaghan

CEO, MIT Ventures

LEARN MORE ABOUT THE POWER OF EMPLOYEE ENGAGEMENT

Image: David Callaghan | CEO, MIT Ventures

Article written by Daisy Miceli | Published 29 April 2020

Share

Related Articles