Women in the Workplace – Retain Them With Employee Engagement Tactics

Many companies and HR executives recognize that one of their major challenges is attracting and retaining highly skilled employees and managers. Older workers are heading toward retirement, and younger people often have different attitudes and expectations when it comes to work. Increasing employee engagement is an excellent way to make employees happier and less likely to leave. 

Working with women can be a lot more challenging than working with men. Due to the sensitive nature of their character, women can’t always cope with a stressful environment; therefore, they won’t hesitate to leave. How can companies retain women? How can they keep them motivated and involved? Here are some tactics to boost engagement.

Create a positive work environment

The work environment is a product of corporate culture, and it starts at the top. If your business has a high stress, cut-throat environment, where employees feel like they must work long hours and unpaid overtime, then many of them will be unhappy and feel like looking for other employment. 

Women are especially concerned about family responsibilities, and it can be hard to juggle the demands of a family and career at the same time. If you create an environment where it's easier for them to balance work and family, then they will be more likely to stay with your company.  Management training is essential to ensure that consistent practices are followed throughout the organization.

Provide career development

Employees near retirement age may not care about development, but younger people you bring in will typically care much more. In male-dominated companies, women may be concerned about advancement opportunities. Many employees view career development as just as important as salary in determining what job opportunity to choose.

If managers work with individual employees to discuss their career path and growth opportunities within the company, employees won't feel that they need to jump ship in order to advance their careers elsewhere. Work with every person, so that they don't feel they are stuck in a dead end position. Development plans can give each employee a roadmap to follow to gain the skills they need to move ahead in their career. 

Get women employees involved

When people can be involved with a company beyond just the scope of their individual job responsibilities, it makes them more engaged, and they feel a greater sense of commitment to the organization. Find ways to solicit women employee ideas and suggestions. You may find that employees have valuable suggestions for ways to improve your operations. Encourage everyone to get involved and participate. The next step is to act on some of the suggestions that you get. If people contribute with ideas, but see that they go nowhere, then your efforts could backfire.

Recognize and reward

You want employees to do their best on each project, and to take pride in producing quality results. If you want to foster that behavior, then recognize people for that type of effort, and reward those behaviors. While any employee would appreciate a big cash bonus, you don't have to limit yourself to monetary rewards. Although financial incentives are important, women would prefer to feel valued and appreciated in exchange. 

Some simple public appreciation of a job well done will boost an employee's feelings of accomplishment, and make them feel that they are appreciated and respected for the work they do. Point out and celebrate excellent performance at staff meetings, and any other time you have an opportunity.

Encourage women to become leaders

Companies should encourage their female employees to become leaders. This is a certain way of keeping them engaged, too. When women feel valued and appreciated by those around them they feel alive and willing to go to extreme lengths to attain their goals. Allow them to make important decisions, share essential company information with them, and invite them to official meetings. 

More business women would want to take risks at the workplace. Unfortunately, they’re not always allowed to do that, especially if the people in their companies are mostly men. The good news is entrepreneurs and business owners can change all that. Men shouldn’t feel superior at the workplace. As long as women are appreciated by those in charge, they will feel engaged. That’s everything they need to prove that their skills go beyond their pretty faces.  

By Steve Brown and Peopleinsight.co.uk!