Employee Engagement Activities: Techniques to Get Employees Active & Involved

The benefits of employee engagement are no secret. Companies with highly engaged employees consistently outperform their competition, experiencing benefits in profitability, productivity, employee retention, innovation–the list goes on and on. And when it comes to increasing employee engagement activities, there are all manner of approaches to take and strategies to try. So many, in fact, that sometimes it’s challenging to know where to begin.

In this article, we’ll tackle some of the most frequently used employee engagement activities, as well as some lesser-known strategies for getting employees off the sidelines and “in the game” so to speak, when it comes to company news and company life. 

Why Employee Engagement is Important

Employee engagement refers to the emotional commitment the employee has to the organization and its goals. Engaged employees are more productive, provide better customer service, and are more likely to stay with the company.

According to Gallup, companies with highly engaged workforces and strong team building outperform their peers by 147% in earnings per share. Businesses with highly-engaged employees experience a host of benefits, including a 78% decrease in absenteeism, coupled with a 23% increase in profitability and a 68% increase in overall wellbeing. Additionally, engaged employees are essential for fostering innovation, reducing turnover, and driving overall business success. In effect, employee engagement is essential for team building and one of the biggest general indicators of a company’s health.

List of Employee Engagement Activities: From Team Building Exercises to Mentorship Programs 

So what is an example of workforce engagement? What is considered employee engagement? And what employee engagement activities yield the best results? These questions may seem basic, but they’re important. Because employee engagement activities can be filed under a number of different categories, and involve many different approaches. 

Below are some examples of the best employee engagement activities, from the classic, like team building exercises, to the cutting-edge, like remote employee engagement activities for hybrid office scenarios. These are employee engagement ideas, virtual or in person, that any company can implement and use:

1. Team Building Exercises
   • Examples: Trust falls, escape rooms, outdoor adventure activities, and other more physically-oriented, in person team building activities. Online team building games are a more recent, virtual addition that can work for a remote team. Even virtual coffee breaks and virtual happy hours for remote employees can qualify.
   • Benefits: Builds trust, improves communication, enhances teamwork.
2. Employee Recognition Programs
   • Examples: Monthly awards, public acknowledgments, reward systems.
   • Benefits: Boosts morale, increases motivation, reduces turnover, and helps employees feel valued.
3. Professional Development Opportunities
   • Examples: Training sessions, workshops, online courses.
   • Benefits: Enhances skills, fosters growth, improves job satisfaction.
4. Health and Wellness Programs
   • Examples: Gym memberships, mental health days, wellness challenges.
   • Benefits: Promotes well-being, reduces stress, enhances productivity and a positive work environment, allowing employees to thrive.
5. Flexible Working Arrangements
   • Examples: Remote work, flexible hours, compressed workweeks.
   • Benefits: Increases job satisfaction, improves work-life balance, reduces burnout among the remote team.
6. Community Service Initiatives
   • Examples: Volunteer days, charity events, corporate social responsibility (CSR) projects.
   • Benefits: Builds team spirit, enhances company reputation, fosters a sense of purpose for every team member.
7. Social Events and Gatherings
   • Examples: Company picnics, holiday parties, team lunches.
   • Benefits: Strengthens relationships, boosts morale, encourages a positive work environment and company culture.
8. Employee Feedback Mechanisms
   • Examples: Surveys, suggestion boxes, regular feedback meetings.
   • Benefits: Increases engagement, improves management practices, fosters open communication.
9. Creative Breaks and Activities
   • Examples: Art classes, hobby groups, game rooms for in person activities.
   • Benefits: Enhances creativity, reduces stress, boosts morale.
10. Mentorship Programs
    • Examples: Pairing new hires with experienced employees, career guidance sessions for every team member.
    • Benefits: Provides support, enhances learning, fosters a supportive environment to engage employees and promote career development.

How Sociabble Can Power Up These Employee Engagement Activities & Encourage Team Members

When it comes to engagement, team building, and promoting employee engagement activities like those described above, the right employee engagement tools can make all the difference. And with an employee engagement and communication platform like Sociabble, for example, businesses can enhance employee engagement activities through a variety of innovative features and modules:

Enhanced Communication and Engagement:

• Multi-channel Solution: Sociabble’s platform supports communication through web apps, mobile apps, email, chat, intranet, and Microsoft Teams, ensuring all team members are informed and engaged regardless of their location.

Recognition and Rewards:

• Gamification and Engagement Framework: Sociabble incorporates points, leaderboards, badges, employee engagement games, and meaningful rewards, including CSR initiatives like Sociabble Trees, to recognize and motivate the entire team.

Professional Development and Content Sharing:

• Content Hub: Provides a centralized platform where employees can share, discover, and engage with relevant information and personal interests, facilitating continuous learning, professional growth, and career development.

Wellness and Community Initiatives:

• CSR Alignment: Sociabble supports and promotes CSR initiatives, allowing companies to integrate community service projects into their engagement strategies.

Feedback and Communication Tools:

• Surveys and Polls: Sociabble enables real-time feedback collection through surveys and polls, ensuring employees’ voices are heard and considered in decision-making processes, enhancing job satisfaction.

Social Events and Employee Involvement:

• User-Generated Content (UGC): Sociabble encourages employees to participate in content creation, fostering a sense of involvement and team community for team members within the workplace.

Edenred: A Case Study in Successful Employee Engagement

Background:

Edenred, a global leader in prepaid corporate services, needed to enhance employee engagement and streamline internal communications. They sought a solution that would not only inform employees but also involve them in company activities, ultimately turning them into brand advocates. They were familiar with Sociabble from previous activities, and ultimately decided to incorporate the Sociabble platform into their efforts, to boost employee engagement among team members.

The Sociabble platform was chosen to spearhead their employee engagement initiatives because it met 3 fundamental requirements for employees:

A quick and easy-to-use interface:

Sociabble is designed to perform on mobile devices, and offers a familiar user interface, inspired by the application features of the main social networks. It is easy for team members to learn, and for them to interact with the content (creation, likes, comments, shares).

A single application for a wide variety of content:

All of Edenred’s important information is gathered in RED: content issued by the “group” communication teams, of course, but also that of local teams, publications proposed by subsidiary employees, and finally posts from social networks.

This centralization is beneficial for the user, who no longer has to search for information on different tools, but also for communication managers, who now have only one tool to “operate” and who find in RED all the consultation data useful for improving the performance of their communication.

Greater accessibility:

With RED, the group’s communication is readily at hand, for everyone. Employees connected to the Edenred directory log in with their Office 365 credentials, others with a designated login and password.

All employees are included:

In all segments, the Sociabble application provides notifications for important (even mandatory) content, interaction capabilities with comments and likes, and content creation possibilities (photos/videos, web links) for the users themselves.

The Initial Challenges:

• Low Engagement Levels: Employees were not actively participating in internal communications.
• Disjointed Communication Channels: Information was scattered across multiple platforms, making it difficult for employees to stay informed.
• Lack of Employee Advocacy: The company struggled to encourage employees to share corporate content on their social networks.

The Solutions Implemented:

• Centralized Communication Hub: Edenred implemented Sociabble to provide a unified platform for all internal communications, making it easier for employees to access and share information.
• Gamification and Rewards: By incorporating gamification elements such as points, leaderboards, and badges, Sociabble motivated employees to engage with content and participate in company activities.
• Employee Advocacy Programs: Sociabble enabled employees to share pre-approved content on their personal social media channels, boosting brand visibility and engagement.

The Results:

• Increased Engagement: Edenred saw a significant rise in employee participation in internal communications, with more employees actively sharing content and contributing to discussions.
• Enhanced Communication: The centralized hub streamlined information flow, ensuring employees were always up-to-date with the latest company news.
• Boosted Advocacy: Employee advocacy efforts resulted in higher brand visibility and increased traffic to Edenred’s digital channels.

For more details on Edenred’s success with Sociabble, check out these links:

• Edenred Case Study
• Awards: Edenred & Sociabble

Conclusion: Building a More Engaged Workforce is Made Simple with a Tool like Sociabble

Employee engagement is critical for the success and growth of any organization. By implementing a variety of employee engagement activities and leveraging platforms like Sociabble, companies can create a more motivated, productive, and loyal workforce. Sociabble’s robust features and comprehensive approach to employee communication and engagement make it an ideal solution for enhancing these activities and building a stronger team. It has all the built-in components and modules you need to get employees involved with company life, and ultimately become more informed, engaged, and productive team members.

Ready to transform your workforce? Contact us today to learn how Sociabble can help your company achieve its employee engagement goals–or even if you’d just like to discuss some employee engagement ideas. We’ve already partnered with global leaders around the world to achieve their engagement and communication goals, including Pierre Fabre, AXA, Coca-Cola CCEP, and Edenred, and we’d love to discuss ways we can do the same for your business.