Active listening is the key to engaging employees
How can you increase employee engagement when budgets are constantly being put under pressure? Julia Lindsay, CEO of iOpener Institute for People and Performance explores.
Register for free to become a member and enjoy access to all HRD content.
Member benefits:
Register below, or sign-in if already a member
How can you increase employee engagement when budgets are constantly being put under pressure? Julia Lindsay, CEO of iOpener Institute for People and Performance explores.
We are all facing a challenging economic environment because of continued Brexit uncertainty, retail chains closing and nervous consumer confidence. Any initiatives that can increase performance and productivity will help us to be competitive in this high change environment. By increasing colleagues’ happiness at work, our research shows you can reduce employee turnover, reduce absence and improve productivity.
Your employees’ happiness at work is underpinned by three key things:
Listening is a vital skill for leaders that can support all these. By actively listening you show you are interested in colleagues’ thoughts and opinions. This is a type of Recognition and it can build a sense of Pride, helping colleagues give their best at work. By contrast, when people feel they are not listened to, they often feel helpless and unable to influence their situation. They are more likely to disengage from your organization and consider their future outside your company.
Entrepreneur Bill Liao said that “If you are going to achieve anything you have to listen.” He identifies different types of listening:
So how do you increase your listening skills? As a leader, self-awareness is key so try this today. Keep a log for 4-8 hours, noting who you listen to, who you don’t listen to and why. Consider the different types of listening that you might be using in each situation. Analyse your findings. How could you focus on listening more? Which particular types of listening can you focus on? Draw conclusions, implement and review. Listening is both an art and a science – a skill which can be honed over time, that could make a real difference to your organisation.