The Goal is Customer-Employee-Leader Connection, not Employee Engagement

The business press, books, and consultants’ websites are full of ideas for getting employees engaged.   But setting up ping pong tables, installing swings in conference rooms so employees can swing when they feel bored in meetings, providing free popcorn on Fridays, and the like don’t do much for the success of your enterprise.

A business enterprise exists to fully deliver on its promise to its customers.  Customers, employees and leaders who are connected is what counts.  The more these three are connected, the more employees (and customers and leaders) will be engaged.  Focusing on employee engagement per se actually subtly misconstrues the purpose of the enterprise.  It gets people focusing on a tangent.

Employees are motivated by making a recognized contribution to the progress of the enterprise.  Leaders are motivated by the same thing.  Customers are happy when those employees and leaders live up to their promise.  Mutual prosperity is the major motivator.