Employee engagement is ‘misunderstood’

A new book from controversial business chief Alan Crozier asserts that employee engagement initiatives are often misunderstood or wrongly applied

Alan Crozier's The Engagement Manifesto is based more than 20 years of consulting and research and shows that many employees may be missing out on the key benefits of good workplace motivation programmes.

According to Mr Crozier, 'engagement' is a term often misinterpreted, and communication, whilst still vital, is not always the most important factor in the process.

It is also important that firms do not confuse terms, asserts Mr Crozier: "I have seen companies measuring employee satisfaction and calling that engagement. I have seen three published 'engagement' surveys in the past 18 months that only measured communication effectiveness."

In addition to 20 years of research, Mr Crozier has over 30 years experience in advising blue-chip companies in the UK, Europe and the US on various aspects of employee engagement.

Insurance company Aviva recently commented that firms must be flexible in order to encourage better employee engagement with pensions.