Talent, Recruitment, Engagement Insights - November 2024
Employee engagement and leadership continue to be key topics for organisational success. This month, we take a closer look at the real costs of disengaged employees, with companies losing billions annually.
We also explore the rise of international recruitment as businesses search for global talent to fill crucial roles.
High-profile leadership positions are becoming harder to fill, and burnout is becoming a critical issue, with increasing numbers of managers reporting high levels of stress and exhaustion.
We’ll also discuss how you can effectively manage and lead people with very different behaviour and communication styles, so you can keep them engaged and motivated in the job.
What Disengaged Employees Are Costing Companies
Disengaged employees represent a significant challenge for organisations, with ripple effects that undermine productivity and performance.
In the U.S. alone, this disengagement equates to an estimated $450–$550 billion annually in lost productivity, driven by absenteeism, lower effort, and reduced work quality.
Meanwhile, engaged employees are shown to be 87% less likely to leave their roles, underscoring the connection between engagement and retention. The data reveals a clear pattern: businesses with engaged teams often experience higher profitability, greater innovation, and improved customer satisfaction.
These statistics emphasise the substantial impact workforce engagement has on organisational success.
Tapping Global Talent to Address Staffing Shortages
In response to ongoing staff shortages, many organisations are looking beyond local talent pools to meet their workforce needs. A notable example is the South Australia Police (SAPOL), which has launched a $12 million international recruitment campaign.
The initiative aims to attract experienced officers from countries such as the UK, Ireland, and New Zealand to fill up to 200 positions.
This strategy is not only designed to address current operational demands but also to prepare for future population growth, showcasing how organisations are tapping into global talent pools to ensure long-term stability.
The Struggle to Fill Leadership Roles
High-profile leadership positions are becoming harder to fill across sectors. Several factors are contributing to this shortage:
- The expanding number of public bodies
- Increased scrutiny of leadership positions
- Uncompetitive salaries
Another challenge gaining attention is leadership burnout, with 72% of leaders reporting they feel drained by the end of the workday. Despite this, only 15% feel prepared to address burnout in their teams.
These obstacles are sparking discussions about the need for a fundamental overhaul in how leadership roles are recruited and compensated to attract top talent.
How to lead and manage people with different work styles?
Research tells us a few important things when it comes to managing people at work:
- 86% of employees and executives cite ineffective communication as a primary cause of workplace failures.
- Companies that actively address and manage behavioural differences experience a 21% decrease in workplace conflict.
- 75% of employees who voluntarily leave jobs do so because of their bosses.
It’s rare that you get to manage someone just like you (behaviourally speaking). Most of the time you have to manage, motivate, train and get results from people with a very different behaviour type from your own, who communicate differently and aren’t motivated by the same things you are.
Just as the key to sales/marketing is to understand your customer the key to effective management and leadership is to understand your people. When you get this right, it increases performance, creates a better company culture, increases employee engagement and improves your staff retention rates.
DISC profiling makes this possible, in a way that anyone can understand and put into practice. It offers you real, in-depth, science-driven insights into that person’s behaviour style at work.
You could walk into a room with nothing but the knowledge of that individual’s DISC profile and know more about how to manage them than any number of interviews could provide.
- How are they likely to react under stress/pressure?
- Which team members are they likely going to conflict with?
- How do you gain their full attention?
- What is likely going to motivate/demotivate them?
- How are you supposed to adjust your style to work with, or manage them?
- How can you help them to modify their behaviour to better fit the team/job and achieve results.
- What are they most likely to excel at, and where are they going to struggle and need support?
More than 1 million DISC profiles are completed every year, because it gives managers real answers to managing their people.
Rather than putting people in boxes, it helps managers break them down. By understanding each individual’s unique DISC style, leaders can move beyond one-size-fits-all strategies and tailor their approach to bring out the best in everyone.
Author of this Article
Chris Schutte
Chris has 30 years experience as senior manager and entrepreneur in the Human Capital consulting and management industry, using the DISC test in his practices. He has a wealth of experience in business development, Human Resources and Human Capital risk management and turn-around strategies. His leadership experience, runs across various industries including Manufacturing, Retail, HR, etc.