Resumes and references can help you confirm candidates have adequate experience. Determining if they have the dedication and drive to be a high performer can be decidedly more difficult.
Employers want to hire employees who are passionate about work. Forty-five percent of hiring managers view positive attitude as an important quality, and 31 percent feel enthusiasm for their company’s mission is a valuable trait, according to a survey from LinkedIn.
According to recent Gallup data, employees who feel excited about the work they do are more productive, more likely to treat customers well and less likely to leave the organization than disengaged workers.
Encouraging Engagement
Many candidates will say in an interview that they plan to be a dedicated worker. In reality, though, some aren’t. Additional research from the analytics provider indicates just 13 percent of employees are engaged worldwide. How can you judge which hires will turn out to be passionate employees — and keep enthusiastic employees on board? Consider the following suggestions:
Watch for passionate employee attributes
In a 2014 report, Deloitte found 88 percent of employees aren’t passionate about work and don’t contribute as much as they could. It also identified several characteristics passionate employees often possess, including the desire to seek challenges and have a long lasting impact.
Asking interview questions that encourage candidates to share information about their career goals and examples of past experiences that led to professional growth can help you identify which potential hires may be dedicated workers.
Hone in on daily performance drivers
In addition to finding only a third of U.S. workers were engaged, Gallup’s research also uncovered some potential solutions to the problem — including clarifying employees’ roles, providing development opportunities and giving employees feedback on their performance.
Offer an excellent office environment
Workers who are extremely satisfied with various aspects of their workplace also tend to demonstrate higher levels of engagement, according to a recent study involving 12,000 participants from Steelcase. Examine employee sentiment (a pulse survey may help) about your office’s lighting, temperature, ambient noise level, the size of each individuals’ workspace and other elements to ensure the setting you provide isn’t repelling dedicated workers.
Inciting Passionate Employees
Asking how employees feel about their workplace shows you care about their opinion. Communication can go a long way toward preventing disengagement.
To encourage employees to feel fervently about work, hire managers who know how to motivate staff members, and urge them to give — and receive — feedback. Work to disarm your most disengaged staff members so they don’t negatively influence passionate employees. Improve your employee value proposition.
Finding — and retaining — dedicated workers isn’t easy. Engagement has to be a consideration during the initial screening process, onboarding efforts and each day the employee works for your organization.
The process typically requires significant time and effort. However, if you can get it right, the ample benefits — ranging from reduced turnover and absenteeism to increased profitability — make the investment more than worthwhile.