I get particularly excited when an opportunity arises for us to combine an important topic and a powerful exercise into one. In this case, I’m referring to employee engagement and the Flywheel Effect. For those of us who aren’t familiar, the Flywheel Effect, a term coined by author Jim Collins, describes the momentum gained from small wins that accumulate over time and generate growth and improvement. Each turn of our “flywheel” builds upon work done previously and when we stay focused on core concepts that power our flywheel it can lead to tremendous success. Identifying the flywheel for our organizations is a highly impactful exercise, one that I coach all my clients through.
Traditionally, I’ve focused on the Flywheel Effect relative to a company’s strategic focus. However, I recently read an article about applying the Flywheel Effect to employee engagement, which is especially important at a time when job openings are abundant. Creating our flywheel for employee engagement begins with conducting an employee engagement survey to find out what employees are thinking and feeling. If you don’t already have a preferred platform, I recommend checking out the Engagement Multiplier which has a dynamic dashboard and provides a wealth of information.
The key to a successful (and frankly, worthwhile) employee engagement survey falls heavily on what we do with the results. Experts recommend using the rule of THREE framework, which involves the following:
Respond to the survey results within THREE weeks
Addressing findings while they’re still fresh signals to the organization that we’re listening and motivated to act!
Select THREE areas of focus
It can be tempting to select more, but since we’ll be in a regular cadence of conducting a survey, there will be future opportunities to select those that don’t make the top three this time around. Make sure to select things we can show measurable improvement on.
Communicate the action plan in THREE ways
This can be customized to fit your organization’s preferred communication medium. One suggested sequence is (1) sharing it through the employee engagement platform, (2) presenting it in a town hall, and (3) reinforcing it in department meetings.
Lastly, communicate the action plan THREE times
Communicate what you’re going to do when, communicate how it’s progressing halfway through, and finally communicate when it’s complete and then share the outcomes. We know how important repetition is for retention. Oftentimes, leaders think it is beneath them to keep repeating things, but leaders should be acting as the “Chief Reminding Officer”.
Beginning the survey starts our flywheel and repeating the survey regularly is how we build that momentum to keep powering our flywheel. Plan to repeat the survey every 3 months. Studies have shown that this length of time is the sweet spot to implement learnings and follow the rule of THREE plan above. Once we get our flywheel moving and into a consistent rhythm, it becomes easier to maintain that momentum so having a process and committing to it is key.
An engaged employee experience builds trust in both leadership and the organization, helps us retain our top talent, and promotes high performance which all ultimately impact the bottom line. We know that investing in our employees is non-negotiable. This framework doesn’t require a lot of effort yet yields high impact. So, get out there and power your flywheel!