Remember that great scene in Terminator II when Arnold Schwarzenegger (who’s now on the side of the humans) has just been poleaxed by the Bad Terminator (Robert Patrick) in the steel foundry and his lights are about to go out? The existence of humanity depends on him getting up and pulling Bad T’s head off. But he can’t because his power source is all used up. All of his strength, his speed, his sharp wits and his determination to save the world are at risk because one tiny part of him, his battery, has given up.
Most corporations are a little like that. They have talented employees. They have top products and services. They have good clients. They have a solid partner network. But there’s just one part of them that’s given up: the employees. They can’t be bothered. Yep, those top quality candidates who were recruited last year with fire in their eyes and a hunger to change the world have grown cynical and tired. Something’s gone wrong. And as each one resigns and goes off to search for a better life in a corporation far away, line managers and HR wearily return to the task of plugging the gap.
But unless they can find a battery pack that works, in other words a better engagement strategy, the next recruits will fare no better than the last.
In the film, just as Arnie’s eyes are dimming and Bad T turns to finish off mad heroine Sarah by switching off her lights for good, the camera shows Arnie’s internal electronics searching for – and finding – an alternative power source. His eyes light up. Hurrah goes the audience, we know what will happen next. Ker-ching go the film’s backers, another crowd pleasing – and highly profitable – project.
Corporations too now have a great reason to cheer. There’s a new battery pack around that can turbocharge employee engagement. Just like Arnie’s power source, it’s based on impeccable science. But unlike Arnie’s power source, it doesn’t need to be the alternative strategy, it can easily be the main strategy. The new battery pack is a teaming science called Method Teaming and it’s the talk of boardrooms around the world. It’s achieving the apparently irreconcilable goals of both increasing employee productivity and making employees much happier. In other words, it’s improving employee engagement.
Employee engagement is set to be the competitive battleground of the next 20 years. Process re-engineering, IT and total quality initiatives have come and gone. Victory will now go to organizations that can raise employee engagement to the 90% level from its current US average of mid 40%. And with its ability to meet the needs both of individuals and the teams they work in, Method Teaming is the employee engagement solution that is making a loud ker-ching sound in global boardrooms. This should come as no surprise. It’s a crowd pleasing – and highly profitable – project.
