When analyzing employee engagement, Gallup has identified 12 core elements - the Q12 - that best predict employee and workgroup performance. The Twelve Items are:
I know what is expected of me at work.
I have the materials and equipment I need to do my work right.
At work, I have the opportunity to do what I do best every day.
In the last seven days, I have received recognition or praise for doing good work.
My supervisor, or someone at work, seems to care about me as a person.
There is someone at work who encourages my development.
At work, my opinions seem to count.
The mission or purpose of my company makes me feel my job is important.
My associates or fellow employees are committed to doing quality work.
I have a best friend at work.
In the last six months, someone at work has talked to me about my progress.
This last year, I have had opportunities at work to learn and grow.
These elements drill down to the important factors relating to employee engagement and while the results are calculated overall, the question that determines the highest likelihood of retention is answering yes to number ten: I have a best friend at work.
This item is one of the most controversial of the list - it’s not just at the notion of having a friend at work, but having a best friend at work. People are typically friendly with their colleagues, but for some, there is a clear distinction between work life and home life. Gallup’s research shows that those who have a best friend at work are seven times as likely to be engaged in their jobs, are better at engaging customers, produce higher quality work, and have higher well-being. In sharp contrast, those without a best friend in the workplace have just a 1 in 12 chance of being engaged.
The benefits of workplace friendships are easy to list but the challenge comes in creating opportunities for friendships to form and nurturing those relationships. An even greater challenge is doing that remotely. At Spark, finding ways to help employees connect is our passion. Here are some tips to help encourage and develop friendships for a remote workforce:
Provide a Space for Employees to Share their Interests
Finding common ground with someone is a universal way to connect. When working remotely, finding shared interests can be tough, especially when the majority of conversations are not social. Using a tool like an Intranet can provide a platform where employees can add bios and interests and create channels for employees with shared interests to connect. This is especially valuable when introducing new employees to the company. If you’re new to intranets and need help choosing one, one of our favorites is Jostle.
Host Small Group Virtual Events
Too many people on a video conference equals microphones and cameras off. It’s easy for employees to disappear into the sea of tiles and become disengaged. Instead, host virtual events that spread people out into smaller breakout rooms and make sure the event is interactive. One of our favorite games to play virtually is Photo Bingo. Employees add different images as their background and are put in small randomized groups for a few minutes at a time then switched to new breakout rooms with different groups to find the background images on their bingo cards. This encourages face to name recognition and allows for social conversation during each round.
Create Workplace Groups
Employees largely interact solely within their department or with a handful of other employees in cross functional teams. To help them branch out, group employees by something other than what they do for work. Birthday month, tenure, even alphabetical - whatever the grouping, getting employees out of their bubble will help them develop closer relationships with teammates they may not usually have connected with. Start with something simple like establishing the first Wednesday of every month as the birthday lunch day and issuing a food delivery gift card to everyone celebrating their birthday that month. Add the birthday employees to a video conference and let them take care of the rest.
Host In-Person Events
No matter how much technology advances, nothing beats being face to face for getting to know someone better. While the majority of employees do not want to return to a physical office (only 3% would like to return full time), most appreciate opportunities to see their colleagues in a social capacity. Making time to gather in person, whether as a company or in smaller groups, strengthens existing bonds and creates new ones. This could be as simple as a team lunch or as elaborate as a holiday party. Don’t have time to plan? Spark can help.
Socialize New Employees Early
When new employees start, they have likely never met anyone in the company before. To help them get socialized early on, implement initiatives that will get them meeting other employees outside of their department bubble. One simple way to kick that off can be setting up 15-minute coffee meetings with two employees at a time for their first two weeks. The employees can be chosen at random or can be part of different departments to help add color on how the company runs. Let employees choose between Starbucks or Dunkin' gift cards and make the goal talking about something other than work for at least half of the time they meet.