How Player Engagement Affects Performance

I was interviewing with a team and a candidate asked about culture. The manager answered, "there will be lots of team building!" Lunch, games, team dinners... My heart sank a bit. Do not confused team building with activities! Escape rooms, golf outings, trust falls can be fun but they really do not build teams! 70% of team #engagement is influenced by the manager (Gallup, State of the Global Workplace Report) • Effective team building must start with leadership alignment and support. Teams with high #psychologicalsafety are 27% more likely to report strong performance (Google’s Project Aristotle) • High-performing teams share a sense of psychological safety — a foundation of trust, candor, and vulnerability. Companies with #effectiveteam collaboration are 5x more likely to be high-performing (Institute for Corporate Productivity, i4cp) • True team building improves cross-functional collaboration and alignment. Strong #teamrelationships improve job satisfaction by 50% (Officevibe, State of Employee Engagement Report) • Investing in connection-building has a clear impact on retention and morale. Disengaged teams cost companies up to $550 billion annually in the U.S. alone (The Engagement Institute). The ROI on effective team building isn't just culture — it’s cold, hard cash. Ask your teams how they want to build their workplace! Calling for more of their time for activities can cause disengagement and be a culture "eroder". Invest in manager 1:1's, make sure they are a consistent format, make sure conversations matter. Teach #collaboration, #effectivecommunication and #problemsolving.

Why don’t organizations place a greater emphasis on creating meaningful engagement in the workplace? Given the pivotal role that connection plays in fulfilling our fundamental human need for social interaction, I believe it’s warranted. Is there any ‘downside’ in doing something as simple as; regularly meeting with the people on your team, building relationships, discuss performance, and identify developmental needs? You know, being real with people, true engagement. Knowing and understanding your team is a "strategy execution principle." It’s importance spans well beyond effective team building and crosses over into on-the-job happiness, productivity, and belonging while also helping to drive your organization’s success. Sure, I agree that no one likes wasting time with useless gatherings; however, an every 30-day individual check-in or "progress meeting" can provide significant value for every manager and their direct reports. Taking the time to solely focus on an individual's performance and working to proactively understand their needs and develop their potential is a model for engagement with a high rate of return. Organizations that execute well make these meetings mandatory scheduling them with the expectation that they be held. I’m talking about an allocation of 45-60 minutes each month, using the time to listen to and focus on each team member.   These are not a series of monthly performance reviews, they are coaching, guiding, and leadership development sessions. The outcomes your organization receives from these efforts are three-fold: 1) You leaders grow by making a personal investment in the relationships they have with their people, 2) The space is being created for consistent conversations of consequence to occur, 3) You're guaranteeing that every team member knows their role and what is expected from them. This is where the execution occurs. Both parties build trust and respect, work collaboratively, and invest themselves in the success of the business. Believe it or not, this connection drives results. The organization gains a quality understanding of every team member's capabilities from each session. They know what each team member does best, who they work well with, and how to lead and challenge them. THIS IS NOT AN EXERCISE IN DOCUMENTING PERFORMANCE. It's about creating a partnership, based on mutual benefit, where two parties are committed to each other’s success. A bond is established that says when a team member fails at something, their leaders recognize they have also failed. They work together to improve. This is true engagement. "Is dedicating just 60 minutes each month to focus on your team's individual performance too high a price for a more engaged, happy, and productive workforce? Think about it. What commitment is your organization making for your team members? Your organization's success? #leadership #progress #employeeengagement #execution

✨ “𝐄𝐧𝐠𝐚𝐠𝐞𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐢𝐬 𝐧𝐢𝐜𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐡𝐚𝐯𝐞 — 𝐛𝐮𝐭 𝐢𝐭 𝐝𝐨𝐞𝐬𝐧’𝐭 𝐝𝐫𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐦𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞.” If you’ve spent time in HR or leadership circles, you’ve probably heard this. Maybe even said it. But the data tells a different story. 👇 Companies in the 𝐭𝐨𝐩 𝟐𝟓% 𝐨𝐟 𝐞𝐦𝐩𝐥𝐨𝐲𝐞𝐞 𝐞𝐧𝐠𝐚𝐠𝐞𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 don’t just have happier employees — they have more high-performing ones: ⭐️ 𝟒𝟎% 𝐦𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐞𝐦𝐩𝐥𝐨𝐲𝐞𝐞𝐬 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐡𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐞𝐬𝐭 𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠  📈 A performance curve that shifts up and to the right This isn't a tradeoff. It's a multiplier. 🏋️♀️ Engagement doesn’t lower the bar — it 𝒆𝒍𝒆𝒗𝒂𝒕𝒆𝒔 it. 🏎️ And engagement isn’t fluff — it’s a strategic driver of results. 💡𝐖𝐚𝐧𝐭 𝐦𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐡𝐢𝐠𝐡 𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐦𝐞𝐫𝐬? 𝐒𝐭𝐚𝐫𝐭 𝐛𝐲 𝐦𝐚𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐤 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐡 𝐬𝐡𝐨𝐰𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐮𝐩 𝐟𝐨𝐫. When have you seen that play out in your org? Let’s compare notes.