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Employee engagement can start before a new employee joins. Managers need to connect quickly with new staff - the quicker employees become settled, the quicker they will start contributing in a positive way to the business.

How to engage new staff

New employees should know what to expect and what is expected of them in their new job role. There are many ways new employees can be welcomed and embedded into an organisation, including:

Tour of the workplace

Even ahead of a new employee's first day, you could invite them into the workplace for an informal tour so that they can familiarise themselves with the layout, where they will be working, and where key amenities are located. You could also use this opportunity to introduce them to their new colleagues. This helps to settle nerves and makes the employee feel part of the organisation ahead of their first official day on the job.

Welcome from other staff

You should brief staff in other teams about a new employee starting so they can welcome them and introduce themselves when they meet. This will help the new staff member familiarise themselves with other colleagues who they may not be working with directly but may need to approach at a later stage.

Employee welcome pack

A welcome pack containing essential information for a new staff member could include an employee handbook, HR policies, internal procedures, benefits package, brand guidelines, and short welcome profiles from new colleagues in their team. You could also include some gifts such as a branded company mug, notepad, or pens. See new starter pack for staff.

Staff induction

You should establish a formal induction programme to help new employees understand the business's purpose, structure, and culture. See induction programme: what to include.

Work equipment

Make sure new employees are set up and ready with the equipment they need for their first day. This may include a computer, laptop, tablet, phone, mobile, email, and other relevant software. It may be helpful to develop a checklist for new starters, so you know exactly what they need ahead of their start date.

Buddy scheme

You could consider introducing a buddy scheme where an existing staff member helps a new employee settle in, shows them key procedures, and is on hand to answer any queries they may have.

Social events

Social events are a good way for new employees to get to know their colleagues in a more relaxed environment. Make new employees aware of any regular social events that take place throughout the corporate calendar and invite them to any upcoming events.

It is important that managers have good relationships with employees. If a manager knows and understands an employee as an individual, they will be able to better motivate them to perform well and deliver business success.

How to build effective relationships with your employees

Establishing good relationships with your staff can be done by:

Discovering staff interests

By taking an interest in employee's interests outside of work you can develop better connections. Staff feel valued and that they can bring their whole self to work. You will gain an understanding of what interests and motivates them.

Informal discussions

You could make time for informal discussions away from work distractions, eg, catch ups over coffee or at social events. By making yourself visible and approachable you give staff the confidence to converse with you.

Keep in regular touch with employees

You should regularly visit or hold conference calls with staff, especially those based in different locations or company sites. Just checking in every so often with individual staff members lets them know they are involved and 91Ï㽶»ÆÉ«ÊÓƵed.

Social events

Holding social events before or after business meetings helps you get to know individual team members and colleagues get to know each other eg monthly breakfasts or lunches after meetings.

Family events

You could host an annual party where employees have the chance to bring along their families, eg, for a family fun day. This shows that you value what is important in your employees' lives.

Regular staff communication

Managers also need to communicate with employees and give them the chance to share their views, contribute to improving business processes and define organisational goals. You could consider:

Regular staff updates

Regular meetings where staff are updated on the latest issues and ongoing developments in the business are very powerful in creating an open and honest culture. You could also use this platform to outline progress on corporate targets and key activities. You should have an agenda for each meeting so that you cover the key points and set enough time aside for staff to ask questions.

Ideas generation

You could set up forums where staff have the platform to address specific business issues and have the opportunity to suggest solutions and other ideas for improvement.

Team Q&A sessions

Develop sessions where employees can come and talk to you about any issues or ideas. These could be in an informal format eg lunchtime discussions or coffee catchup sessions.

Encourage feedback

Posing regular team challenges, asking for staff views, and encouraging team members to collaborate on ideas. See encourage staff feedback and ideas.

Responding to feedback

By acknowledging suggestions or concerns, explaining your views - whether you agree or not - and involving employees in developing actions to address emerging issues. Taking action on issues identified and sharing the steps you are taking so that employees know their voices are being heard.

Talking to individual employees

Talking to staff on a regular basis to check their understanding of objectives or key issues and inviting them to raise any questions or concerns they haven't discussed.

The way managers shape the roles of employees, oversee and 91Ï㽶»ÆÉ«ÊÓƵ them in their work, has a huge effect on individual wellbeing, commitment, and performance.

Practical ways to 91Ï㽶»ÆÉ«ÊÓƵ and motivate staff

To help you 91Ï㽶»ÆÉ«ÊÓƵ and motivate your employees, you could consider:

Job design and responsibilities

Employees who have input into shaping the work they do and how they do it are far more engaged than those who are simply given tasks to complete.

Objectives linked to business goals

When employees can see how their objectives, whether at an individual or team level, directly contribute to the overall strategy and success of the business, they will feel motivated and invested in what they do.

Trusting in staff

Give employees the freedom to carry out their work in ways that suit them without being micro-managed. You could set SMART targets, but give staff the autonomy to work out how they will deliver on these targets. See agreeing performance objectives with staff.

Staff autonomy

Where applicable, give employees the autonomy to manage projects and take responsibility for managing budgets or other resources and meeting measurable targets. This will help develop their skills and abilities while also freeing up your time to manage other areas of the business or focus on other priorities.

Performance feedback

Providing regular, open, and honest feedback on individual performance to help employees understand how they are progressing, identify areas for improvement or development, will motivate staff to continually improve their performance in line with their objectives and business goals.

Supportive behaviours

You should encourage and spotlight staff who exhibit positive behaviours and challenge inappropriate behaviour that is contrary to accepted business values or standards.

Directing employees

Direct employees more firmly when needed to help them deliver the level of performance required.

Managers need to help employees identify solutions to issues they encounter so they keep developing their skills and confidence. Offering clear development paths and the opportunity to be coached can be useful in helping your staff reach their full potential. Below are some ideas to help you make employee development a core part of your business culture.

Personal development plans

Create personal development plans for each team member. Make sure these plans have clear links with individual roles, team activities, and corporate goals.

Give employees the opportunity to try new areas of work and develop new skills in line with this plan.

See managing staff performance.

Open discussions about goals

Encourage team members to be open about their ambitions. By doing so, you can help them feel their ambitions are compatible with the business. SMART objectives are a clear way to outline what is required from employees to meet their goals and make it easier to track progress and identify milestones that have been reached or missed. This approach eliminates guesswork as progress is easily measured.

Everyday coaching

Encourage team members to discuss challenges they encounter so you can help them identify the issues. Give staff the space to set their own plan and decide on a course of action.

See mentoring versus coaching.

Informal opportunities

Create on-the-job development opportunities, eg, shadowing employees in different roles or working alongside colleagues in other teams. This can help people understand more about different job roles within the organisation and improve their interaction with other teams and colleagues they wouldn't normally work alongside.

Mentors or personal managers

Give employees career mentors to help share experiences and encourage their personal development - this could be someone who joined in the same position a few years ago and is further along in their career path.

You could also consider introducing a personal management system to provide care and 91Ï㽶»ÆÉ«ÊÓƵ.

See use mentoring to improve staff performance.

Internal transfers and promotions

Be willing to let employees move around the business. This can help individuals develop new skills and experiences that will benefit the business as a whole. If you try to hold people back it could undermine the engagement and enthusiasm of others within the team.

Seeking and responding to feedback from employees is vital to building a strong relationship with them. The way managers handle feedback has a major influence on employee engagement, trust, and confidence. Try to keep the following points in mind.

How to effectively manage staff feedback

Actively listen to staff feedback

If an employee gives you feedback, let them raise their point. Don't cut across them. If their point is long-winded, help conclude it by rephrasing it as you have interpreted it.

Body language when receiving staff feedback

When receiving staff feedback, the way you behave is as important as how you respond. Maintain open body language and keep eye contact with the employee as they explain their point to you.

Understand the other person's perspective

Try to see the issue from the employee's point of view. Try to understand why they are concerned and don't be judgemental.

Don't let one person dominate feedback sessions

If you are inviting feedback from a group of staff members, there is a risk that one person can dominate the discussion, and others may be reluctant to speak in front of their colleagues. This may limit good quality suggestions coming to the fore. To counteract this and encourage feedback from a diverse range of staff, you could try to encourage feedback by email or staff suggestion boxes, especially if anonymity is important to your staff.

Don't rush to respond to staff feedback

Take a moment to consider what has been said and form your response carefully, especially if the feedback isn't positive or you don't agree with it. Don't take feedback personally and avoid giving a quick response that you might later regret. You might find it more constructive to address staff feedback in a written manner first and then follow up with face-to-face conversations with your staff to discuss further and allow your employees to seek further clarity and ask questions.

Be calm, clear, and concise with your feedback response

If you find yourself waffling in your response to staff feedback, stop. Don't pretend to have answers if you don't know them, but commit to finding out and responding in due course.

If possible, find a way to end on a positive note. Sum up any agreements you have made. Check that everyone has the same understanding. Be positive where possible and highlight any next steps.

To help motivate employees, you need to show genuine appreciation for the contribution they have made through hard work, feedback, and engagement. Recognise their efforts and the improvements they make to the business.

Steps to recognise and reward employee efforts

Here are some steps you could take:

Say thank you

Just saying thank you to staff for a job well done is a powerful way of recognising staff contribution and motivating them to keep performing to a high standard.

Celebrate success

Use internal publications, an email to the team, or a poster to celebrate an individual's success to show employees that their commitment and efforts are appreciated by you and the business as a whole.

Internal staff forum

If you have an intranet, create a bulletin board or forum so employees can thank colleagues for their efforts and help with work-related issues or tasks.

Rewards

Give spot prizes for specific contributions or tasks where employees have exceeded all expectations, eg, this could be a personal reward relevant to their interests outside work.

Award schemes

Establish an award scheme so employees can nominate colleagues for their work and the way they have helped drive the business forward. See implement staff incentive schemes.

Social events

Host social events when you achieve key milestones or targets to thank your team or teams for their work.

Personal celebrations

Hold celebrations to mark employees' personal milestones or significant life events, eg, birthdays, weddings, births, or length of service to the business.

See how to encourage employee engagement in your business.

Engaging managers keep improving their own performance by seeking views and feedback from the people they work with. Here are some steps to consider.

Ask your team for their views on your performance

Ask your team members for their views on your management style and effectiveness. For example, ensure evaluation forms or cards are always available after any briefings or presentations you have given - download a template post-event feedback form (DOC, 16K).

Approach your manager for feedback

Managers should proactively ask their line managers for feedback on their objectives. You could also use a 360-degree feedback approach so that formal reviews include feedback from team members.

• Download a sample performance agreement - for managers (DOC, 14K).
• Download a sample performance review form (DOC, 18K).

Explore management styles

Explore your strengths and weaknesses to help you improve your management style and encourage other managers to do the same. Your workplace may have its own approach for this, or you could use external methods, for example, psychometric tests.

Set up a mentor system

Ask more experienced management colleagues to act as mentors for new managers. This helps them learn from experience and allows them to seek advice on any issues. Alternatively, you could consider hiring an external coach. Use mentoring to improve staff performance.

See more on performance management and staff training templates.