Employee engagement is a cornerstone of integrated EHS management systems, but an ongoing challenge in EHS and sustainability efforts. David Zinger addressed this topic during his session at last week’s 19th Annual NAEM Forum in Tucson.
When developing and implementing an EHS and sustainability initiative, Zinger stressed, each person must be able to voice his or her opinion and be listened to. “Never do anything about me without me if you expect me to be engaged,” he said. “If you want them to be on the same page, they need to be able to write on the page.”
Zinger also presented another way to frame engagement—in terms of safety. If employees or stakeholders fear unpleasant consequences from engaging, they will obviously be less inclined to do so. Thus, if higher engagement is desired, a higher level of safety is needed. One way to achieve this is through anonymous or confidential reporting.
Zinger spoke highly of a UK document entitled, Engaging for Success: Enhancing Performance Through Employee Engagement. After the session, I downloaded and quickly flipped through it, uncovering many best practices. Some of the highlights include: “Employee Engagement —What, why and how”; “The Case for Employee Engagement—The Evidence”; “Barriers to Engagement”; and “Enablers of Engagement—What has to happen to make engagement work.”
Consider some of Zinger’s tips as your organization works to improve employee and stakeholder engagement in your sustainability program.
© Redinger EHS, Inc. (2010)