Disengaged employees are one of the top financial drains on any given company. It was recently reported that workplace complacency decreases productivity by 18% and profits by up to 15%. In fact, it is estimated that for every $10,000 in annual salary, an employee who is not engaged can cost an organization $3,400. That’s over $13,000 a year for the given median salary of $40,000, and up to $350 billion in losses to the American economy each year.
So, what exactly are the attributes of a truly disengaged employee? How can you identify warning signs early to reduce time and financial loss? And what are professional courses of action to improve their levels of engagement and retain a high level of talent?
1. They Do Not Feel Good
Disengaged employees usually do not feel excited about going to work. And when they are there, they are hardly ever in a good mood. And it’s noticeable. To be fair, the ebbs and flows of any work environment or situation can certainly lend to disengagement on any given day. But prolonged disengagement? That’s a whole other ballgame.
Many employees become disengaged from a workplace they once loved because of problematic behavior they have experienced. Others may have been dreaming of a career trajectory that just hasn’t manifested itself yet. There are so many reasons for someone to feel uncomfortable when heading into work, and it isn’t always about a cold temperature commute.
If you are beginning to see an employee pull away, examine the tasks they have on their plate and the full picture of what they may be dealing with in the workspace. Did new management come in and complicate or overturn any processes? Did your employee take on more tasks while you were hiring other people for their team, and then happened to be given the same amount of grueling work even after the hire was onboarded? Are the projects they are assigned in line with their initial job description?
It may be time to speak with them about expanding their job. In this instance, it would be more than fair to offer higher compensation, more benefits, or a promotion. (Or all three!)
2. Disengaged Employees May Have Been Antagonized
Employees may have developed resentment for the company because of troublesome coworkers, managers who don’t respect boundaries, or workplace bullying. Check out some of the emails you are CC’d and BCC’d on between your employee and their managers, clients, and other colleagues. Could the verbiage be read as condescending or offputting?
Is there a nickname floating around the office that could have an embarrassing origin? Do you find that people speak about this employee in a critical way, behind their back or to their face? If someone’s crude comments may have been seen as funny in another life, they may not hold up in the modern work environment.
It’s important to make sure every one of your employees is being equally respected. Pay attention to these interactions when you can, and be the voice of reason when necessary to detract from future issues.
3. Disengaged Employees Spend Less Time Interacting
Disengaged employees may be very obviously unenthusiastic or checked out of work. Maybe someone who was once very involved or on time for everything is now late for meetings, clocking in at varying hours, and logging less time on projects? Are they leaving early, responding to messages less frequently, or less reliable with project turnaround than they once were?
They may also be working the same hours as before, but communicating less with their teammates or boss. A lack of communication–especially where there once was an open line–can be very detrimental to the development of projects within the workplace. Make sure to re-evaluate where you like to keep work-related communication and be clear with your team about your expectations.
Another great bit of advice for this scenario is to spend time letting your employees know what their contributions mean to you and the company. Love their attitude on a given day? Let them know! Thought their presentation was stellar? Send them an email congratulating them! Reward them! Positive reinforcement will encourage interaction and often motivate your colleagues.
4. They Often Miss Deadlines
In the same vein, you may have noticed that one of your employees or colleagues has been missing deadlines. Not just once or twice here and there, but they have actually made a small–or steadily growing–habit out of it? Being disengaged often leads to a lack of attention to detail.
While your colleague may not mean to bottleneck a project with their tardiness or finish their tasks late, this is something that, left undiscussed, can massively affect the trajectory of the business itself. This is a blatant symptom of disengagement in the workplace.
5. Disengaged Employees May Not Understand The Product
Do you work with someone who is not part of the target audience for your company? Are they working on accounts for products they have never tried or that do not benefit them? It can be very difficult to lend your talents to the growth of a company if the brand or product doesn’t speak to you, or if you have never used it before.
Take, for example, someone who feels that discussing period products is taboo, or hasn’t had much experience talking about them. They might not be a clear fit to work in sales for a tampon company. Or someone who is working through product design for a professional sports team that may not love sports. Maybe everyone works in corporate for an audio company, but your colleague hasn’t had the chance to hear the difference between different equipment setups.
Work alongside your employee to understand what their core needs are. Do they have family or friends that have used, or could benefit from, the product? Has your team given them enough continuing education opportunities? Just because the employee doesn’t have experience with it, doesn’t mean they can’t find perspective when exposed to it.
Sometimes, the product or brand can speak to them in alternative ways to others. This could be great for unique campaigns, or fun nods to pop culture to help boost sales. (For example, referencing Channing Tatum’s usage of tampons in She’s The Man is a brilliant way to demonstrate other needs for the product and increase your brand’s awareness using humor.)
Consider sitting down with your employee at the onset of any of these signs. Disengagement could be a symptom of another issue they may be facing in their personal life. More than 7% of adults have been diagnosed with depression, a number that is climbing quite steadily in the wake of the pandemic.
Your employee may be navigating loss or another trigger of stress. While it is certainly not your job to be your employees’ therapist, it is important that you allow them to feel seen and heard within their work environment. Plus, it gives you a way to gauge if this is a short-term issue or something bigger.
