The Role of the Operations Manager in Improving Employee Engagement

Author: David Godden, published: Nov 7, 22

When we consider employee engagement within a business, our minds naturally head toward the HR function. However, we often don't realise that although HR deals with issues that might affect employee engagement, they are not at the forefront of business operations.

This role is for the Operations Manager, and, in this article, we will explore why their input is critical and how they can work with HR to help improve employee engagement.

Communication

According to a report published by Gallup, employees that receive daily feedback from their manager are three times more likely to be engaged than those that receive it less regularly.

Although the Operations Manager isn't directly responsible for this task, they oversee the managers who are, and therefore, they can work together with HR to ensure feedback is offered regularly. The Operations Manager should be visible within a business; they should be there to answer questions and communicate important business news. The more they do this, the more engaged and connected the employees will feel.

Managing Disputes

Although HR is present to manage individual disputes, the Operations Manager can help resolve departmental disputes. For instance, the allocation of resources, budgets, etc. With this in place, it helps ensure different functions within the business work together effectively to benefit the employees and the organisation.

Automation

One of the reasons employees become disengaged with their work is boredom. If their job is monotonous, they are unlikely to find it fulfilling enough to keep them performing at their best.

The role of the Operations Manager and HR can be to develop tools to improve productivity and streamlining automation within the business.

For instance, working with latest systems and technologies, bandwidth to mix up repetitive tasks, ongoing training and personal learning development programmes can not only improve efficiency, but create a more interesting workplace for employees who feel like they are progressing within the organisation. This will undoubtedly help improve employee engagement.

Flexibility

The Operations Manager has the authority to help provide a flexible working environment. It is less about the working hours and more about efficiencies, processes, and procedures to keep employees engaged whist getting the work done.

Ensuring employees can work in an environment where they feel a sense of autonomy and deal with customers the way they want, allowing their own personality to flourish, will benefit all and improve engagement.

Culture

Unlike the HR department, the Operations Manager is at the heart of the business. As such, they can deeply understand the organisation's culture. Where HR deals mainly in facts and figures, the Operations Manager can strive to understand how employees feel. As such, they can grasp the culture and, therefore, make improvements to the workplace culture as necessary.

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The best way to improve employee engagement is to find out exactly how they feel about the workplace. With our always-on surveys, you can get better insight into the needs of your employees and make more informed decisions to improve employee engagement. You can contact us on 01223 750 251 to find out more. Alternatively, you can email hello@thymometrics or visit thymometrics.com for information.