Recent questions over corporate reputation take their toll on employee engagement
Only two fifths of employees (41.7%) are proud to work for their organisations, according to new research from hyphen, the recruitment solutions provider; declining from nearly half (48.0%) at the start of the year.
In a summer that aims to demonstrate all things great about the UK, recent question marks over the reputation of some organisations has failed to instil this sense of pride and enthusiasm amongst UK workers and is likely to affect employee engagement, warns hyphen.
The decrease was felt most significantly by women and London workers, with nearly a third (27.3%) of women no longer feeling proud of the organisation they work for (17.1%, Q1 2012) and a quarter (25.1%) of the capital’s employees losing pride in their place of work (15.0%, Q1 2012).
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There is some good news however. The poll of over 1,000 workers shows that nine out of 10 (90.2%) employees believe that their role contributes towards the success of their organisation, and that three quarters (73.4%) think that their co-workers seek their opinion by listening to and respecting their views. In addition to this over two thirds (69.8%) feel that their managers empower them to do their job to the best of their ability.
However, younger workers (16-24 year olds) have cited a considerable drop in the amount of support they feel they receive from their managers. In Q1, eight out of ten (81.2%) felt empowered to do their job, in Q2 this dropped to only 63.5%
Zain Wadee, managing director at hyphen, said:
“It is concerning to see that employees have lost pride in their organisations and this is likely to have a knock on effect for their engagement. At a time when businesses are cutting back on spending and the marketplace is tough, a workforce that is proud and enthused will strive to work harder and produce better results.
“However with many employees finding their roles stretched even further as organisations look to manage costs, and recent media profiles placing some organisations in the reputational spotlight it is not overly surprising that employees are struggling to feel totally attached and committed to their work.
“This adds to the strong argument in favour of investment in engagement as a business priority. Organisations and managers must work hard to foster a strong culture of inclusivity within their workplace over the coming months. This is even more important with the younger generation who are just entering the workplace and are therefore very impressionable – they require stronger guidance and support as they embark upon their careers.”
