Treat Your Business as a Startup

Back to Work: Redefining Employee Engagement

By: John Blattner, PhD, RYT200

Edited by: Elizabeth Conlisk

Editor’s Note: This is a reprint of an article originally published in July 2020. It continues to be relevant.

John Blattner (no relation) has been my friend, colleague, mentor, and coach for almost twenty years. John has assisted me in multiple company environments. I enjoy his company and lean on his knowledge and expertise. I hope John will contribute regularly. Buddy

A friend tweeted that while there have been many days in his career when he’s been more excited to go to work, with his return earlier this week, he’s never been more grateful.

That’s understandable.

Overnight, COVID turned our lives upside down, causing loss of life and economic insecurity for many while affecting our families and our relationships.

We return to work with an additional layer of emotion that may or may not be visible, challenging leaders to expand and evolve how they engage with their employees. Leaders will need to recognize that their workforce will need to heal psychologically.

Employee engagement as we know it will now need to be reimagined. Employees will want a sense of belonging and know that their contributions really matter to the organization.

What are the short- and long-term steps leaders and frontline employees can take to…