Yesterday’s posting was too much fun not to try again.

Couple of weeks ago I read an article from the folks at Development Dimensions International (DDI), in their Workforce Performance Solutions (promotion) publication.

They listed the 6 actions business leaders take that promote an Employee Engagement Culture in their business. Here are the 6

• Have a passion to lead
• Select for fit
• Make the connections
• Promote accountability
• Develop talent
• Recognize the obvious

Let me take a little twist, because I suggest that each of these are what (can) generate truly high levels of engagement among managers. Here’s a fact: employee engagement is directly influenced by manager engagement A manager may want her employees to engage fully; but if she does not engage, then they are not likely to either.

So let’s look at those 6 leadership actions and see how they are instrumental to manager engagement (and so to a culture of EE).

Passion to Lead. As a leader must demonstrate the passion to lead, a manager must possess a passion for management. A manager must want to manage before he can fully engage in managing. Be careful of that almost forgotten Peter Principle: don’t promote someone beyond ability or beyond desire.

Select for Fit. As you want to place employees in job assignments where they fit the function and the culture, the same is true of managers. The fit must be true. Before placing a manager pre-assure there is a match between the individual and the job (managing) and between the individual and the function (operation). A notable exception is the exceptional individual manager who can take on a new and unfamiliar responsibility in order to broaden management awareness and ability.

Make Connections. A manager must have super-comprehension of the connection between company goals/directions and her department’s goals/directions. She must clearly understand her responsibility and role in that connection. And she must be able to convey that connection outward to her employees.

Promote Accountability. Accountability is dependent upon expectations, understanding expectations. The manager must not only understand global expectations (i.e., company vision and mission) but also the specific, day-to-day functional expectations of the individuals in his team. Promoting their accountability begins with expressing and confirming their expectations…and that each employee clearly comprehends the expectations. This is what’s expected of the manager.

Develop Talent. 39% to 46% of employees say they leave their employer due to insufficient developmental opportunities. The figures are likely similar for managers. Providing continuous learning — functional and professional — for managers contributes directly to their engagement, as well as to their ability to manage and to their retention by the company.

Recognize the Obvious. As employee engagement becomes a more common concern, managers are expected to provide more recognition to their employees. Managers are employees. Managers have similar “recognition cravings”. Recognition may be for the successful performance of the manager’s unit or team. It may also be for the manager’s specific engagement in guiding, developing, leading, motivating that team.

OK. I don’t argue with DDI’s point that there are 6 ways business leaders can promote their own Employee Engagement Culture. Yet, I’ll add that these are also areas in which attention should be paid to manager engagement. Their engagement is pretty critical to building a viable, workable, maintainable business culture.

Tags: Change, Employee Engagement, Management