Disengaged employees (individuals who feel no attachment or obligation to their employer) exist in virtually every organization. If left unattended, they can do untold damage to your business. Last week, I wrote about using information sharing as a tactic that can help keep employees engaged in their work. This week, I want to introduce some other &8220;engagement actions&8221; that managers can utilize.

Managers are responsible to ensure that every employee knows two things; what their job is and how to do their job. This may seem elementary but in reality, there are millions of people waking up and going to work today who would be unable to successfully answer one or both of these questions if asked. The blame for this lies clearly with management.

Management&8217;s job is to orient, train and develop their people. If as an employee I do not know how my job impacts the financial and operational success of the organization, then I do not truly know what my job is. From date of hire and at every point where significant change (job transfer, promotion, new technology is introduced, etc.) affects my job, management is obligated to provide the support necessary to ensure that I know how to do my job. Failure in either area creates the opportunity for employee disengagement to occur.

Have you ever heard something like, &8220;I don&8217;t know what management wants; they keep changing the targets.&8221; Yes, change is constant in today&8217;s fast-paced business world. This does not relieve management from its responsibility for effectively communicating performance expectations to employees. Keeping employees knowledgeable of their key performance requirements is an absolute necessity if the organization is to have any chance for success.

And finally, management must be certain that employees know how they are performing. This does not mean just at annual review time but literally all the time. Long-term behavioral change and improved performance occurs only in situations where managers provide their employees with frequent feedback and coaching.

As you examine the problem of employee disengagement in your own organization, be certain that effective communication and coaching are part of your strategy