Dr. Paul Marciano, "a leading authority on employee engagement and respect in the workplace", estimates that one minute of intentional acknowledgment and appreciation of an employee has the potential to generate 100 minutes of engagement in the workplace.
If a leader spends five minutes each day providing RESPECT, that will equal nearly 42 hours of initiative in a week. Talk about ROI!
Using Dr. Marciano's RESPECT model, I provide practical ways to integrate employee engagement into your leadership style. Choose one to focus on each day and watch your employee engagement increase!
The RESPECT Model: A Quick Overview
The RESPECT model emphasizes respect as the foundation of employee engagement. It's based on seven key drivers:
Recognition
Empowerment
Supportive Feedback
Partnership
Expectations
Consideration
Trust
1. Recognition: Acknowledge and appreciate the contributions of your team members. Highlight big or small actions you want to see more of and express gratitude for their hard work. This sounds like “I noticed your willingness to speak up in meetings encourages others to do the same.” or “Thank you for asking Sam for their opinion when you noticed they were quiet.”
2. Empowerment: Provide your team with the tools, resources, and support they need to grow and take on new responsibilities. Instill a sense of autonomy and confidence in your employees to enable them to make decisions and contribute meaningfully. This sounds like “You’ve developed a solid action plan and I look forward to hearing the results of your work.” Or “You are creative and I trust you will take the best action based on the information available today.”
3. Supportive Feedback: Offer regular, and influential input with a focus on impact. Influential feedback fosters personal and professional growth and helps employees improve their autonomy. This sounds like “When you chose to interrupt Taylor, it caused the brainstorming session to stop. Would you be willing to allow others to finish their thought before providing your own?”
4. Partnership: Teamwork and collaboration foster an environment where team members openly share ideas, work together, and challenge the status quo. Effective partnerships promote innovation and drive the organization toward goals. This sounds like “I have some ideas to share, but I want to hear yours first.” Or “What if failure wasn’t an option, what might be your path forward?”
5. Expectations: Setting clear and consistent expectations is crucial for guiding your team. When expectations are roles are clear and reasonable, it leads to a sense of fairness and purpose among employees. Brené Brown offers a power expectation-setting question in “What does done look like to you?” Or “What done looks like in my mind is…”
6. Consideration: Take into account the impact of your decisions and perspectives other than your own. Actively listen to questions, concerns, and feedback to understand the impact and perspectives. This looks like mirroring or labeling what you’ve heard to ensure you’re connecting the right dots. Then create and communicate an action plan with follow-up and completion dates. This sounds like “Based on the feedback I’ve heard, I commit to providing an agenda in future meeting requests so others can come better prepared for a productive discussion.”
7. Trust: Believing in your team’s ability to positively contribute to the team is the cornerstone of the RESPECT model. It looks like keeping your commitments, communicating expectations clearly, and treating your employees with fairness.
The RESPECT model is a practical framework for enhancing employee engagement. By implementing recognition, empowerment, and feedback, you can create a workplace where employees feel valued and motivated. Embrace these principles and watch your organization thrive with respect at its core.