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#lockdown2uk will undoubtedly impact employee engagement and wellbeing. A hard lockdown followed by a long period of home-working has hurt many businesses.
So as we head into a second lockdown how can you make sure your team remains connected, fulfilled and inspired to uphold the mission and values of your business?
Here's our top tips to set you and your team up for success...
&nbsp;
<h4>1.Learn from last time</h4>
This time round, we&rsquo;re more prepared. Speak to your leaders, reflect what worked and what didn't work and prepare you plan accordingly.
&nbsp;
<h4>2. Address concerns early</h4>
Make it clear how you will be responding to lockdown. Communicate what it means to your business and the impact it may have. Sometimes, saying&nbsp;&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t know right now&rdquo; is an opportunity to demonstrate transparency and build trust.
&nbsp;
<h4>3. Connect and listen</h4>
Informally speak to your team and find out what they are worried about regarding a second lockdown. Is there anything you can solve before it becomes a problem? Is there advice you can give, or signpost them towards?&nbsp;
&nbsp;
<h4>4. Address work-life balance</h4>
What responsibilities and life admin do your team have? Can you accommodate it? Can you make things easier to relieve some of the pressure and acknowledge their life outside of work?&nbsp;
&nbsp;
<h4>5. Check your tech&nbsp;</h4>
Have you and your team got what you need to be a productive remote team? Can&nbsp;everyone remember their log ins?! Is everyone&rsquo;s equipment still fit for purpose. Not having the basics can be really frustrating and disengaging.&nbsp;
&nbsp;
<h4>6. Set personal boundaries</h4>
What hours will you work? Can people contact you always? Will you not take calls after a certain time? Set a great example for&nbsp;your team and role model good practice so your team can follow suit.&nbsp;
&nbsp;
<h4>7. Connecting as a team</h4>
Agree how and when you&rsquo;ll come together as a team - agree on what you&rsquo;ll use the time for&nbsp;so that it is focused and productive -&nbsp;get the dates and times in diaries in&nbsp;advance&nbsp;and demonstrate how important it is to you.
&nbsp;
<h4>8. Goal setting</h4>
Set short term goals, ensure you and the team are focused on what&nbsp;you need to deliver over the coming weeks - set some clear deliverables and deadlines if you need to, to keep everyone on track and engaged.
&nbsp;
<h4>9. One-to-ones</h4>
Plan one to ones and team updates in your diary, make them non-movables, these are important times to check in on the wellbeing and engagement of your team, don&rsquo;t let them slip - put them in your diary now!&nbsp;
&nbsp;
<h4>10. Wellbeing warnings</h4>
Refresh your memory on wellbeing in the workplace, so that you have resources to draw on if you see any of your team struggling.
<a href="https://www.mind.org.uk/media-a/4662/resource3_howtopromotewellbeingfinal.pdf">This is a good resource.</a>
Of course, these are all things you really should be doing anyway, so why not use #lockdown2uk as an excuse to put a better Employee Engagement framework in place. The benefits will be felt far beyond #lockdown2uk as productivity and performance increases and your retention of great people guarantees an outstanding company culture.
&nbsp;
For help and support with your employee engagement strategy, contact Victoria Bond at Ten Space - victoria@tenspace.co.uk

Remain engaged in lockdown2uk 

<a href="https://www.flexjobs.com/blog/post/survey-resignation-workers-considering-quitting-jobs/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">25%</a> of employees left their job due to toxic culture in 2022.
A workplace culture is &ldquo;<a href="https://www.predictiveindex.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">typically considered toxic</a> when trust, psychological safety, and employee morale degrade to unhealthy levels.&rdquo;
Toxic cultures are extremely dangerous for both companies and employees. Symptoms rapidly spread through a workforce if not managed. They have an impact on productivity, mental health, and employee engagement.
Here are some examples of a toxic culture:
<ul>
<li>Overworked employees</li>
<li>Chronic stress</li>
<li>Workplace bullying</li>
</ul>
In the majority of these situations, the issue stems from a lack of trust and communication among those in the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.spacehr.co.uk/blogs/organisational-structures---where-do-you-fit" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">workplace hierarchy</a>.
&nbsp;
<h3>Effect of Toxic Culture</h3>
Staff turnover is typically very high in toxic environments as a result of this feeling of separation between employees and their leaders.
Those who feel ignored, mistreated, or exploited by their leaders often prefer to leave a company rather than file a complaint. They lack confidence that their problems will be solved.
Toxic cultures can have a huge negative effect on a company's performance. "Poor company culture" costs UK businesses a staggering&nbsp;<a href="https://www.breathehr.com/en-gb/resources/culture-economy-report-2021" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">&pound;20.2 billion</a>&nbsp;every single year.
&nbsp;
<h3>How Does it Develop?</h3>
Sadly, there are numerous ways for a toxic culture to emerge at work. While the root cause of the issue may change between each situation, generally speaking, a lack of communication exacerbates and hides the issues.
Negative or even abusive behaviour is permitted to continue when organisations don't take the time to collect employee feedback. It can spread rapidly throughout a company.
Companies should be sending out anonymous employee engagement surveys to mitigate this. Surveys can reveal early warning signals and red flags of emerging issues.&nbsp;
Organisations can jump in early when faced with concerning feedback or low engagement scores, reducing the likelihood of later problems.&nbsp;
When a toxic culture has already taken hold, there are some major warning signs to look out for:
<ul>
<li>Managers who speak condescendingly to their teams</li>
<li>A feeling of &lsquo;profits/policies over people&rsquo; where employees feel exploited</li>
<li>Micromanagers&nbsp;</li>
<li>Unsupportive performance appraisals</li>
<li>Discrimination or lack of diversity</li>
<li>Failure to recognise or reward employee achievements</li>
<li>Harassment</li>
</ul>
If you recognise any of the above signs in your workplace or business, it&rsquo;s time to:
a.) leave (if you&rsquo;re an employee)
b.) do something about it (if you&rsquo;re an employer!)
&nbsp;
<h3>Gathering Evidence:</h3>
Quantitative research on the culture of your firm can be useful for understanding what it's like to work there. Here are just a few suggestions for how to go about doing this:
<h4>1. Regular Engagement Surveys</h4>
<a href="https://www.tenspace.co.uk/blogs/employee-engagement---starting-your-survey-process" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Employee engagement surveys</a> can provide a lot of quantifiable information, including eNPS scores and real-time feedback from current employees.&nbsp;
Quarterly surveys allow you to regularly check in with your team&nbsp;whilst leaving enough time to action feedback and build trust in the process.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.tenspace.co.uk/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Ten Space</a>&nbsp;offers an innovative and anonymous method of surveying through Whatsapp, email and SMS, which delivers an engaging way to survey your team.&nbsp;
&nbsp;
<h4>2. Glassdoor Reviews</h4>
Glassdoor is a very helpful (and free) website where current and past employees can post honest reviews about their work experiences. While the findings of engagement surveys are most likely to be shared just within the company, Glassdoor provides a more public way of sharing feedback.
&nbsp;
<h4>3. Turnover &amp; Absenteeism</h4>
The average employee turnover rate in the UK is currently&nbsp;<a href="https://www.monster.co.uk/advertise-a-job/hr-resources/workforce-management-and-planning/staff-retention/what-is-the-ideal-employee-turnover-rate/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">15%</a>&nbsp;a year. Absence and turnover rates among employees are telltale signs of a toxic workplace environment. Not all staff turnover is a terrible thing, but if your turnover rate is far higher than this, you may want to pay closer attention to your culture.
&nbsp;
<h3>Preventing Toxic Culture</h3>
While there isn't a "perfect" way to shape your culture, there are a number of essential components you'll need to create a healthy working environment.
Listen to employees -&nbsp;Your staff may currently have the solutions to the majority, if not all, of your problems. Utilise the knowledge that employee engagement surveys may provide and, before a toxic culture emerges, focus on its underlying causes.
Great leadership -&nbsp;Toxic cultures often stem from miscommunication and bad leadership. It's essential to develop your managing teams' leadership abilities. This comes in many different forms, so knowing what makes a&nbsp;<a href="https://www.spacehr.co.uk/blogs/want-to-become-a-fantastic-leader" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">bad leader</a> is key.
Develop trust - Operating transparently, doing what you say you are going to do and doing the right thing builds trust.&nbsp; A lack of trust in an organisation can quickly slow it down and impact on performance.
Employees first -&nbsp;Always put your employees at the heart of your business. You wouldn't have a brand, clients or services to offer without them. Your culture will stay healthy and thriving if you put your people at the centre of every business choice you make.
&nbsp;
We&rsquo;re committed to creating healthier workplaces - delivering employee engagement surveys through innovative technology and great service. For more information on how our platform can help your business thrive, visit our website, or&nbsp;<a href="https://www.tenspace.co.uk/contact" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">get in touch</a>!&nbsp;

Preventing Toxic Culture

For the last 20 years, I've been designing, building, supporting and managing technology and software teams in organisations ranging from tiny startups through to major multinational companies.
Some of those companies are "tech" companies and some are major brands for whom technology, although key to their success, is not their main value. With diverse experience in industries from logistics, through multi-national telecommunications, "generalist" tech giants and human capital management, even my time working in online dating has helped me spot some similarities; as a tech leader something I've always found hard is recruiting, retaining and motivating the high calibre talent that my teams have really needed to succeed.
I know I'm not alone in this. No matter what industry you're in or what your team's area of expertise is, I'm sure that as a leader you've experienced similar challenges. It always boils down to the same thing: good, skilled staff are hard to find and always have plenty of options elsewhere. If you're not their employer of choice, why would they want to work with or for your&nbsp;organisation? If they don't want to work with your&nbsp;organisation, why would you expect them to stay?
&nbsp;
<h3>Why would you stay?</h3>
Any half-way decent book on modern management will tell you that diversity is a great thing. It helps teams to uncover solutions that they wouldn't have thought about without those differing viewpoints. It helps to build a stronger team as individuals bring their own unique strengths to complement the areas where others may struggle. It even helps individuals to grow, learn new skills and develop themselves in ways they wouldn't otherwise have.
With that diverse team comes differing drivers, differing needs and differing ways of thinking and working. You may know why you love what you do, but do you truly know what motivates your team (and potential future team)?
Maybe you do. Maybe you don't need any help from employee engagement experts like Ten Space
After years of searching, I've come to realise that the people I need to make sure my team succeeds aren't all like me. And I don't want or need them to be either. To hire, retain and excite the diverse talent my teams needed, I've had to reach them and satisfy their needs in ways that, personally, don't always motivate or drive me. The key to making sure that those teams continue to perform at their best has always been in ensuring that the team's voices are heard and understood, taking actions to make sure that even the quietest of colleagues is properly listened to.
Among the many reasons I wanted to join Ten Space was the opportunity to help teams to hear the voices inside.
&nbsp;
Ten Space's employee engagement experts are able to provide amazing guidance to clients. In order to make sure that support is the best possible for their clients' teams, we have to do everything we can to provide even the quietest person a way to give crucial feedback. Underpinned by our <a style="background-color: transparent; color: rgb(219, 62, 98);" href="https://www.spacehr.co.uk/employee-promise" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">employee promise</a>, the technology that my tech team is delivering on every day is built with anonymity and safety in mind to make sure that safe space is provided, respected and guaranteed,&nbsp;in a way that is most convenient for those clients' team members.
&nbsp;
We're reaching those team members in ways that nobody else can and making sure that they have a safe way to express themselves easily, honestly and openly.

Dan shares his "why" as he joins the Space HR team

Our CTO shares his thoughts on what employee engagement means to him

Every company needs an organisational structure&mdash;whether they realise it or not. The organisational structure is how the company delegates roles, responsibilities, job functions, accountability and decision-making authority.
There are now as many as 7 popular kinds of organisational structures, each offering their own unique advantages and disadvantages.&nbsp;
Many companies are now choosing to break away from conventional hierarchies, in order to create a more diverse workplace for employees and align structures to the culture of the organisation.&nbsp;
There are 3 main kinds of organisational structures - Hierarchical, Holacracy &amp; Matrix.
We&rsquo;ll be investigating these and understand their pros &amp; cons when it comes to employee engagement.
&nbsp;
<h3 dir="ltr">Hierarchical Structure</h3>
Hierarchical structure is one of the most popular management structures amongst larger corporations and organisations. It involves different levels of authority within a company, starting with the CEO, then working down through directors, then managers, then individual contributors and so on.&nbsp;
&nbsp;
<img src="https://lh7-us.googleusercontent.com/WEuj0QopSrpIQG7OSX-RSV52yRjMWrW6z7O-OgpxVp7sOMM1C_xFLg43OKiCyPNHmpunB8ALImlvYu4oJvuG9Sb4xZeCnCB6s85l1eBU3hIbj_1XLqdaSkMBNJR_YjnvgDVDPUxtZe55LvxF8hVcSVg" width="602.2993613902846" height="401">
&nbsp;
<h4 dir="ltr">Roles</h4>
Typically, the wider the company expands, the taller the hierarchy structure grows, but it will generally always maintain a pyramid shape.
Employee roles in this kind of organisational structure are usually very clearly defined, and decision-making usually starts at the top before working its way down.&nbsp;
&nbsp;
<h4 dir="ltr">Successful Example</h4>
Amazon is a good example of a company that adopts the hierarchical structure employing more than <a href="https://www.aboutamazon.co.uk/working-at-amazon/our-people#:~:text=Our%20people&amp;text=In%202021%20we%20will%20employ,1.3%20million%20around%20the%20world.">55,000 people in the UK,</a> and around 1.3 million globally. Whilst there are pockets of other structures, broadly all employees technically report back to CEO, Jeff Bezos up through the <a href="https://www.indeed.com/career-advice/career-development/chain-of-command">chain of command</a>.
&nbsp;
<h4 dir="ltr">Advantages of Hierarchical Structure</h4>
There are many advantages to the hierarchical organisational structure, hence why it&rsquo;s the preferred choice for businesses small and large.
Here are some of the biggest pros:&nbsp;
<ul>
<li dir="ltr" aria-level="1">
They typically present employees with an opportunity to &lsquo;climb the ladder&rsquo; and follow a clear, upwards career path.&nbsp;
</li>
<li dir="ltr" aria-level="1">
Separate departments within a hierarchical structure give employees the chance to become specialists in their field, and adopt niche positions that bring on their own opportunities.&nbsp;
</li>
<li dir="ltr" aria-level="1">
Hierarchical structures allow a clear line of communication and their operations are typically well-organised with exceptional managerial control. It&rsquo;s clear who can shape and influence the team.&nbsp;&nbsp;
</li>
</ul>
&nbsp;
<h4 dir="ltr">Disadvantages of Hierarchical Structure</h4>
Though the hierarchical structure is typically very organised, such rigidity can actually be detrimental to larger companies.
Here are some of the disadvantages of this structure:&nbsp;
<ul>
<li dir="ltr" aria-level="1">
The solid and lengthy chain of command can often be detrimental to collaboration across various departments, and can cause delays in communication and drain employee engagement.&nbsp;
</li>
<li dir="ltr" aria-level="1">
Hierarchical structures are highly susceptible to bureaucracy, with a clear dis-connect between employees and their leaders.&nbsp;
</li>
<li dir="ltr" aria-level="1">
Employee-management relationships often come under strain due to a lack of autonomy
</li>
<li dir="ltr" aria-level="1">
Hierarchical structures often come with large overheads due to an extensive chain of command, this can lead to regular restructuring, as the business evolves to keep control of costs.&nbsp;
</li>
</ul>
 
&nbsp;
<h3 dir="ltr">Holacracy Structure</h3>
The holacracy structure may seem a little complicated on the outside, but it&rsquo;s actually relatively simple. The structure is a decentralised model, where there are no job titles, no managerial roles, and no hierarchy whatsoever.&nbsp;
&nbsp;
<img src="https://lh7-us.googleusercontent.com/UX-n6wHyxKwOsJBArRARzhRpVENAYQsXY2gOiCfpCQ2E-uZVaNS_6pYL2RbIprgv7tYuISwVenQxZ3OWj0hGRSQ6kccHacdUQelQSgi8dFlOLfp3EHA3A4ZjFwnylRXDryWAMjryu6UIIMRc4hllE3c" width="602" height="401">
<h4 dir="ltr">Origin&nbsp;</h4>
Holacracy borrows its name from the Greek term &lsquo;holons&rsquo;, which means &lsquo;whole&rsquo;. A holacratic workplace is made up of a &lsquo;ring&rsquo; of employees (rather than a pyramid), where each worker is given the flexibility to choose tasks at their preference. Employees are even given the freedom to move between teams, as long as they assume responsibility and lead the company towards a common goal.&nbsp;
&nbsp;
<h4 dir="ltr">Successful Example</h4>
One of the most notable examples of a holacratic company is Zappos, who began adopting the model in 2013. And although they noted that almost <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/zappos-ceo-tony-hsieh-on-holacracy-transition-2016-1?r=US&amp;IR=T">18% of their employees</a> had decided to quit after the switch, the company has been continuously celebrated for its <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/chriscancialosi/2017/05/30/preserving-a-culture-people-love-as-your-company-grows-lessons-from-zappos/?sh=74ac0c9f712b">high employee engagement rates and thriving culture.&nbsp;</a>
&nbsp;
<h4 dir="ltr">Advantages of Holacratic Structure</h4>
The advantages of the holacratic structure are quite profound, largely due to their seemingly radical ways of working.
Here are just some of the advantages:
<ul>
<li dir="ltr" aria-level="1">
Without a traditional hierarchy, employees feel a greater sense of belonging, and often work harder towards the common goal of the company.&nbsp;
</li>
<li dir="ltr" aria-level="1">
Due to the flexibility of roles, employees are often highly skilled in various areas, and can remove the need for recruitment of expensive specialists.&nbsp;
</li>
<li dir="ltr" aria-level="1">
Without a chain of command, employees are invited to solve problems on their own, or collaborate with other team members. This fosters greater innovation and employs efficiency and productivity within the company.&nbsp;
</li>
<li dir="ltr" aria-level="1">
Thanks to the fluidity of this structure, it&rsquo;s easy to implement profound changes quickly, allowing the company to evolve at an accelerated rate.&nbsp;
</li>
<li dir="ltr" aria-level="1">
Holacratic companies often report higher levels of employee engagement, thanks to their all-inclusive approach to meetings and strategy. Everyone feels like they&rsquo;re being heard, has a voice and is making a clear contribution.&nbsp;
</li>
</ul>
&nbsp;
<h4 dir="ltr">Disadvantages of Holacratic Structure</h4>
Holacracy has faced immense amounts of criticism, largely due to the lack of a &lsquo;big picture&rsquo;.
Here are some of the biggest disadvantages of the model:
<ul>
<li dir="ltr" aria-level="1">
It&rsquo;s extremely hard for a large company to adopt a holacratic model. It took Zappos two years to fully implement the structure throughout its organisation.&nbsp;
</li>
<li dir="ltr" aria-level="1">
The reliance on your workforce to be &lsquo;all singing all dancing&rsquo; can result in higher training and onboarding costs.&nbsp;
</li>
<li dir="ltr" aria-level="1">
The structure isn&rsquo;t something people can easily get used to, and often involves changing people&rsquo;s entire habits e.g. those who feel like they must report to someone about a problem, or when a task is complete.
</li>
<li dir="ltr" aria-level="1">
With most of the concentration flooding into the everyday processes and smaller tasks of the company, the &lsquo;bigger picture&rsquo; is often lost, and the company can stagnate.&nbsp;
</li>
<li dir="ltr" aria-level="1">
Some people like to have job titles - it gives them a sense of purpose. Without them, they may feel lost and end up leaving the company, driving up recruitment costs once more.&nbsp;
</li>
</ul>
&nbsp;
&nbsp;
<h3 dir="ltr">Matrix Structure</h3>
A matrix structure is a blend of two or more kinds of organisational structures, offering the &lsquo;best of both (or multiple) worlds&rsquo;. The matrix structure typically functions like a grid that&rsquo;s split into various projects, such as finance, HR, operations and marketing.&nbsp;
Employees within these projects may find themselves with two or more managers - their regular manager, and a team leader who spearheads the project.
<img src="https://lh7-us.googleusercontent.com/sl1nBmofqn9uvT1w0sas8DSlORCVaGqlPRJkRp4JLNRuAV-dOJWCjK_UG1pucTk69GqMUgICSa0QQ-9GA3jUlCXlZ6diFmep3BqcybbLnC_55KXSjoL4t6zGMq8oVBefzF5foteAeJPxwRs1TqmGlHk" width="602" height="401">
<h4 dir="ltr">Successful Example</h4>
Google is a perfect example of a large corporation who uses matrix structure to manage their global workforce. The company has been commended in the past for their ability to nurture a great workplace culture by incorporating a <a href="https://fourweekmba.com/google-organizational-structure/">high percentage of flatness</a> in their management. This flatness enables employees to skip the middle man(ager), and communicate across teams with ease. This structure offers the perfect grounds for team building and nurtures employee engagement.
&nbsp;
<h4 dir="ltr">Advantages of a Matrix Structure</h4>
Matrix structures naturally offer organisations a high degree of flexibility within management.
This brings with it a whole host of unique benefits:&nbsp;
<ul>
<li dir="ltr" aria-level="1">
Employee engagement is likely to be higher in matrix structure organisations, thanks to their ease of communication and collaboration across departments.&nbsp;
</li>
<li dir="ltr" aria-level="1">
Teams are likely to feel more motivated, with greater autonomy and scope for a wider variety of work.
</li>
<li dir="ltr" aria-level="1">
Costs are often lower for matrix organisations, due to the reduced need for separate departments to communicate regularly.&nbsp;
</li>
<li dir="ltr" aria-level="1">
Matrix structures often offer career opportunities for those who want to be people managers, as well as those who would like to remain subject experts, meaning there are often opportunities for a broader range of skills
</li>
</ul>
&nbsp;
<h4 dir="ltr">Disadvantages of a Matrix Structure</h4>
Naturally, such a varied and flexible structure can bring its own difficulties.
Here are the disadvantages of the matrix structure:
<ul>
<li dir="ltr" aria-level="1">
Without a clear chain of command, some companies find it difficult to coordinate their teams.&nbsp;
</li>
<li dir="ltr" aria-level="1">
Team members are likely to have varying degrees of loyalty toward each of their project managers, which can result in tension and/or miscommunication.
</li>
<li dir="ltr" aria-level="1">
Accountability can be tricky due to the complexity of the structure.&nbsp;
</li>
<li dir="ltr" aria-level="1">
It often takes team members longer to get used to working in matrix structures, which can lead to added recruitment and training costs.&nbsp;
</li>
<li dir="ltr" aria-level="1">
Due to the shared nature of the projects, it can be easy for some team members to neglect their typical responsibilities, which can quickly erode trust if not managed effectively.
</li>
</ul>
&nbsp;
&nbsp;
<h3 dir="ltr">Understanding Engagement in Flexible Businesses</h3>
Assessing engagement and gaining valuable employee insight in flexible organisational structures requires a flexible approach with fresh technology.&nbsp;
At Ten Space, we use anonymous employee engagement surveys to help organisations take control of engagement, retention and performance whatever the shape of their organisation. Our platform is flexible, so that we can align to exactly the shape of the organisation and ensure we&rsquo;re maximising the insights from each survey.&nbsp;
Take a Holacratic structure for example -&nbsp;
<ul>
<li dir="ltr" aria-level="1">
How do you start to add an organisational structure into a platform (before you send surveys out) when there is no formal structure?
</li>
<li dir="ltr" aria-level="1">
Where do you start when you want to slice and dice your data for interpretation?
</li>
<li dir="ltr" aria-level="1">
Who gets to understand what about which employees?&nbsp;
</li>
</ul>
If you want your Scrum Masters to understand how engaged their scrums are, so they can maximise performance, but they aren&rsquo;t their direct line manager - the valuable feedback your teams will be giving, might not be seen by the person who can make a difference.&nbsp;
Most platforms aren&rsquo;t really built to cope with flexible organisational structures. Their reliance on structure to offer a hierarchical position to each individual before a survey goes out, often prohibits their ability to present results to the people who can make an impact.
&nbsp;
<h3 dir="ltr">Finding the Best Employee Engagement Platform</h3>
The Ten Space platform is different. Our tagging system allows every individual in your business to be given a unique set of tags. These could include simple tags such as gender, location and role, but can extend much further and much deeper.&nbsp;
Importantly, where there is a lack of structure, we can still provide many attributes for each person that the hierarchical approach wouldn&rsquo;t allow.&nbsp;
Once the survey is complete, these tags really come into their own. If you want to look at the specific performance of a team, cross referenced with, for example, location, gender and longevity of service, this is not a problem.&nbsp;
Also hierarchy doesn&rsquo;t need to govern who gets to see the results of the survey. Permissions in a platform are usually based on hierarchy too. With the Ten Space platform you&rsquo;ll only be served the data that you should see based on the tags you&rsquo;ve been assigned.
You can&rsquo;t fix employee engagement through structure alone. But whatever structure you&rsquo;ve chosen, we can help you to work out the best way to develop your questions, your survey and your tags to guarantee a data set and feedback that is right for your organisation - putting the valuable insight in front of the people that can make a difference.&nbsp;
Start your journey to high engagement with us by <a href="https://www.tenspace.co.uk/contact/">getting in touch</a>. Or check out how we&rsquo;ve helped others create incredible workplaces in our <a href="https://www.tenspace.co.uk/case-studies/">case studies</a>.

How your org structure can impact employee engagement

Organisational Structures - Where do you fit?

The working environment has undergone rapid transformation during the last few years. <a href="https://www.fosway.com/talent-management-to-people-success/">39% of HR leaders</a> are harnessing the Covid crisis to reshape and reprioritise their company&rsquo;s talent agenda. In order to deal with the shifting employee expectations and retain their talent, organisations must become more agile.
Perhaps your engagement strategy has been successful in the past, but it's no longer effective? Maybe you&rsquo;re looking to create an incredible workplace and wondering what steps to take next?&nbsp;
We have put together a more detailed guide with hints and tips for taking your employee engagement to the next level.
<a href="https://info.tenspace.co.uk/next-level-employee-engagement">Click here to access the full guide</a>.
The next steps in your journey are likely to be focused on the details of your employee experience and the future of work. Here&rsquo;s what that could look like&hellip;
&nbsp;
<h3 dir="ltr">Employee Experience</h3>
Employee experience is the sum of all the individual experiences and employee journeys that your employees have, as they enter the organisation and move through it. Great employee journeys and experiences create high employee engagement and the benefits that brings. Of course, the opposite is also true.
Crafting and maintaining engaging employee experiences for an individual, from when they enter an organisation through to when they leave, can impact hugely on engagement, retention and performance.&nbsp;
Companies with highly engaged teams achieve on average <a href="https://www.gallup.com/workplace/236366/right-culture-not-employee-satisfaction.aspx">59% less employee turnover</a>.&nbsp;
&nbsp;
A focus on this area can provide a clear return on investment:
<ol>
<li dir="ltr" aria-level="1">
Retention - When employees have a positive and enjoyable experience in the workplace, they are more likely to stay with the company longer term.&nbsp;
</li>
</ol>
High employee turnover can be costly for a business in terms of recruitment and training costs, lost productivity, and reduced morale among remaining employees. It always makes sense to focus on retention ahead of recruitment.
<ol start="2">
<li dir="ltr" aria-level="1">
Engagement - Overall, a positive employee experience can increase employee engagement and the link between these two concepts is clear.&nbsp;
</li>
</ol>
Engaged employees are more likely to be committed to their work, contribute to the success of the company, and feel a sense of purpose and fulfilment.
<ol start="3">
<li dir="ltr" aria-level="1">
Performance - A positive employee experience can improve employee performance. When employees feel supported, empowered, and engaged, they are more likely to be productive and deliver high-quality work - the secret to unlocking a high-performing organisation is undoubtedly in employee experience and engagement.
</li>
<li dir="ltr" aria-level="1">
Reputation - A positive employee experience can enhance a company's reputation as an employer. This can help attract top talent and build a strong employer brand / EVP, attracting talent and fueling additional engagement with the right people in your organisation.
</li>
</ol>
You may want to take a deep dive into your onboarding process. Or look at the experience that your employees have when they return from maternity leave. Or track the experience of your leaders as they move through a leadership program.&nbsp;
Capturing regular data, feedback and insight in these areas can have huge benefits, if you use the findings to optimise your processes and build additional engagement.&nbsp;
This isn&rsquo;t a one-off project. It is important to continually review and make improvements to the employee experience to ensure that it stays relevant and effective in driving engagement, as your organisation changes and your talent evolves.&nbsp;
&nbsp;
<h3 dir="ltr">Future of Work</h3>
Positioning yourself as &lsquo;ahead of the pack&rsquo; in the field of employee experience is crucial in today's rapidly evolving business landscape.&nbsp;
By anticipating the key points that will shape the future of work, you can ensure that your organisation remains at the forefront of the latest developments and best practices in employee engagement and experience.
Before the pandemic, just <a href="https://venturebeat.com/2021/05/06/microsoft-pandemic-turbo-charged-digital-transformation/">24% of businesses</a> felt employee engagement was a priority. Following the pandemic, this number hit nearly 36%. The pace at which we are seeing businesses focusing on employee engagement &amp; experience is certainly increasing.&nbsp;
Any great employee engagement and experience strategy should have a strong element of preparing for the future.
&nbsp;
Here are some areas to consider:
<ol>
<li dir="ltr" aria-level="1">
Technology - From an employee engagement perspective, the &ldquo;threat&rdquo; of technology can be unsettling and an engagement plan may need to focus on reassurance and protection of roles or evolving mindsets.
</li>
<li dir="ltr" aria-level="1">
Flexibility - From an EVP perspective, those that use flexible working as a key differentiator now, are likely to need to look for other factors as slower organisations are forced to catch up.
</li>
<li dir="ltr" aria-level="1">
Gig Economy - For anyone in your workplace, who is contributing to the goals and mission of the organisation, it makes sense to ensure they are engaged and delivering at their best. In the future, this is likely to increasingly include all types of workers who represent your brand.
</li>
<li dir="ltr" aria-level="1">
Diversity &amp; Inclusion - Increasingly talent is seeking out organisations where they can truly be themselves and build a sense of belonging. Those organisations who have put their DEBI strategy on the back burner, or consider it a &ldquo;nice to have&rdquo; are likely to miss out on the very best talent.
</li>
<li dir="ltr" aria-level="1">
Life-long Learning - Employees will need to continuously upskill and reskill to remain relevant in the job market. Employers will need to provide training and development opportunities to support ongoing learning and development and ensure that employees and the organisation as a whole can keep up.
</li>
<li dir="ltr" aria-level="1">
Mental Health &amp; Wellbeing - Mental health and wellbeing will become an increasing priority for organisations. Work-related stress and burnout are becoming more prevalent.&nbsp;
</li>
</ol>
<a href="https://hrnews.co.uk/88-of-uk-workforce-have-experienced-burnout-in-the-past-two-years/">88% of UK employees</a> have experienced at least some level of burnout over the last two years.
Organisations will need to prioritise employee wellbeing to maintain a healthy and engaged workforce. This is likely to mean a change in ways of working.
&nbsp;
<ol start="7">
<li dir="ltr" aria-level="1">
Appealing to Gen Z - Identifying the needs and trends that are emerging from your Gen Z population can help you to ensure you are providing what they need to maximise their performance and that Gen Z are attracted to your organisation, to build a strong future talent pipeline.
</li>
</ol>
 
<h3 dir="ltr">Our guide to &lsquo;Next Level Employee Engagement&rsquo;:</h3>
We have put together a more detailed guide with hints and tips for taking your employee engagement to the next level.
<a href="https://info.tenspace.co.uk/next-level-employee-engagement">Click here to access the full guide</a>.
At Ten Space we work with our clients to amplify employee engagement, retention and performance.
Taking it to the next level, we can help you explore your employee&rsquo;s journeys to ensure you&rsquo;re optimising every part of the employee experience. Protecting the time and money you spend in areas such as onboarding, leadership development, rewards and benefits; helping you demonstrate ROI for the HR team on the activities you deliver.
 Contact us to help your teams deliver the future of your business: <a href="mailto:enquiries@tenspace.co.uk">enquiries@tenspace.co.uk</a>

Supercharge your talent with Employee Experience

Next Level Employee Engagement

Are you constantly looking at your notifications? Is that red bubble above Instagram constantly on your mind? Did you know that in 2021 the number of smartphone users in the United Kingdom rose to&nbsp;<a href="https://cybercrew.uk/blog/smartphone-usage-statistics-uk/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">53.5 million</a>, making it 78.9% of the population?
We increasingly miss out on valuable moments when our faces are buried in our screens, documenting every thought and action on social media. If you notice any of these mannerisms in yourself, then maybe consider taking part in the National Day of Unplugging which is a 24-hour period running from sunrise to sunset on Friday 4th March 2022.
It&rsquo;s a chance to connect with friends, family and colleagues.&nbsp;Take this day to carve out precious time to unplug, relax, reflect, be active, visit the outdoors, and connect with loved ones.&nbsp;
&nbsp;
<h3>The Right to Disconnect Law</h3>
A right to disconnect gives employees the right to disconnect from work outside of their normal working hours. That means once workers are off the clock they will not receive or be required to answer any work-related calls, emails or messages.
The UK is very much behind the rest of the world when it comes to a right to disconnect with several countries introducing rules to prevent employees from working outside their allotted hours.
Portugal has introduced a law that would make it unlawful for bosses to text or email their employees outside of working hours.&nbsp;<a href="https://www.gov.ie/en/press-release/6b64a-tanaiste-signs-code-of-practice-on-right-to-disconnect/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Ireland</a> introduced a code of practice in April 2021 that gave workers the right to disconnect.
While employees don&rsquo;t have a legal right to disconnect, they can take action against employers at the Labour Court or Workplace Relations Commission if they feel they have been penalised for refusing to attend work to work outside normal working hours.
French employers with more than 50 employers have been legally obliged to create a charter of good conduct since 2017. That involves working with union representatives to decide the hours when staff are not supposed to send or answer emails.
There is currently no specific right under EU law for a right to disconnect, although the EU&rsquo;s working time directive, like its UK equivalent, sets working hour limits. However the EU directive also stipulates minimum daily and weekly rest periods.
&nbsp;
<h3>Digital Detox</h3>
In a poll conducted by<a href="https://www.commonsensemedia.org/blog/tweens-teens-and-phones-what-our-2019-research-reveals" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">&nbsp;Common Sense Media</a>, 50% of teens reported that they felt that they were addicted to their mobile devices. A whopping 78% of the teen respondents said that they check their digital devices hourly.
&ldquo;Detoxing&rdquo; from digital devices is often seen as a way to focus on real-life social interactions without distractions. A digital detox refers to a period of time when a person refrains from using tech devices such as smartphones, televisions, computers, tablets, and social media sites. Here are a few benefits of a digital detox:
&nbsp;
<h4>Technology can be Stressful</h4>
While most can&rsquo;t imagine their life without digital devices. Research has found that technology can actually increase levels of stress.
<a href="https://www.statista.com/statistics/1134262/negative-effect-of-tech-on-employee-s-well-being-in-the-uk/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">According to a survey</a> carried out in 2019, 86% of respondents in the United Kingdom said that the inability to switch off out of work hours was having a negative effect on employee well-being.&nbsp;
Furthermore 70 percent of respondents also said that technology has a negative effect on employee well-being due to the stress caused when technology fails.
It&rsquo;s the constant need to keep checking emails, texts and social media that is causing the majority of tech stress.
&nbsp;
<h4>Digital devices can disrupt sleep</h4>
<a href="https://doi.org/10.1177/2333794X17736972" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">One study</a>&nbsp;found that children who use digital devices at bedtime had significantly worse and less sleep. Researchers have also found that&nbsp;<a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sleh.2017.12.004" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">in-bed electronic social media</a> use has adverse effects on sleep and mood.&nbsp;
70% of participants checked social media on their phones while in bed, with 15% spending an hour or more on social media while in bed.&nbsp;
The results found that using social media when you are in bed at night increases the likelihood of anxiety, insomnia, and shorter sleep duration.
It is vital that in order to be productive and engaged during the day, you have to first get a good night's sleep with no distractions.
<h3>&nbsp;</h3>
<h4>Health benefits</h4>
One study conducted by&nbsp;<a href="https://doi.org/10.1186/1471-2458-11-66" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">researchers in Sweden</a> found that heavy technology use among young adults was linked to sleeping problems, depressive symptoms, and increased stress levels. The study also found a connection between nighttime tech use and increased body mass index.
In this ever changing world, health is a number one priority. If a few days of no screens here and there can have a positive impact on your physical and mental health, then it seems like a day of unplugging is worth it.
&nbsp;
<h3>Signs you might need a digital detox</h3>
<ul>
<li>You often find yourself staying up late or waking up early in order to go on your device</li>
<li>You are afraid you might miss something if you&rsquo;re not constantly checking your phone</li>
<li>You feel compelled to check your phone for notifications every few minutes</li>
<li>You feel anxious or stressed when you can&rsquo;t find your phone</li>
</ul>
Committing to the National Day of Unplugging is a chance to relax, unwind and refresh. It&rsquo;s a time to make plans with loved ones and create more human connections with the people around us. Start your day with a coffee and a conversation with a loved one. Read the newspaper. Meet a friend for breakfast. Turn off your notifications and recharge yourself instead of your phone.&nbsp;
&nbsp;
At Ten Space, we can help you check in on the engagement and wellbeing of your team through anonymous employee feedback. Check out how we can help at www.tenspace.co.uk.

Are you constantly looking at your notifications?

National Day of Unplugging

You&rsquo;ve completed a great survey, you&rsquo;ve got tons of awesome feedback. But what do you do now? How do you make the most of your engagement data?&nbsp;It goes without saying that you should be taking action from each survey, but it can be easier said than done.
Capturing employee engagement data is essential to knowing how satisfied and motivated your team is at work. Motivated employees are more likely to perform better at their job, in fact,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.gallup.com/workplace/285674/improve-employee-engagement-workplace.aspx" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">employees work 20% better when motivated</a>. So checking in with your employees regularly via surveys will ensure you&rsquo;re able to address issues as they arise and maintain an engaged workforce.
By not taking feedback seriously you risk losing valuable team members. Employees who don&rsquo;t feel comfortable providing upward feedback are&nbsp;<a href="https://en-gb.workplace.com/blog/employee-voice?t=b" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">16%</a>&nbsp;less likely to stay in their organisation.
&nbsp;
<h3>Tell a story with the data</h3>
You can help create extra insight from your results by sharing them effectively. It can help people connect with them and understand the action that they need to take next. It&rsquo;s easy to get lost in the data - try not to! Consider key themes, quick wins and longer term big wins from each survey.
To get real value from the data that you&rsquo;ve collected, you have to dig through it and discover where you need to make changes. You need to locate both the strengths and weaknesses within your business.
1.Look for patterns - Are there areas in which your organisation scored low across the board? This is an obvious place to start. Identifying failings that are affecting employee happiness is key to moving the needle.
2.Dissect the data&nbsp;- At an absolute minimum, you need to be able to segment the data by department. Not all teams work the same, and not all teams have the same concerns. Data creates stories at both an individual and a team level, so be sure to consider both.
&nbsp;
<h3>Create a plan &amp; discuss</h3>
Once you&rsquo;ve identified patterns and drawn conclusions, it&rsquo;s time to talk to individuals one-on-one. Communication is at the heart of all successful businesses. It&rsquo;s important to talk about engagement and action planning regularly.&nbsp;
Is there time at board / leadership / management meetings to track progress and keep employee engagement high on the agenda? Not just the first meeting after a survey, but every one. Continue to share actions and progress with wider employee groups &amp; across the entire organisation. You can share the continual progress and show that you're keeping the conversation going.
For individual leaders, you may want to take the time to sit down with employees and&nbsp;discuss what&rsquo;s keeping them engaged at work, and what (if anything) is holding them back. Give your employees structure, help them plan for the future, and act on what they tell you so you don&rsquo;t lose their trust. Whilst were huge advocates for anonymous feedback, it&rsquo;s only one part of ensuring employees have a voice in your organisation, talking to employees one to one is another powerful method.&nbsp;
It can take some time for your action plan to gain traction in your business. In fact, on average it takes&nbsp;<a href="https://jamesclear.com/new-habit#:~:text=On%20average%2C%20it%20takes%20more,to%20form%20a%20new%20habit." target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">more than 2 months</a> before a new behaviour becomes automatic - 66 days to be exact. So being consistent with your action plan is the best way to get a new workplace habit to &lsquo;stick&rsquo;.
&nbsp;
<h3>Use segmentation to explore your data</h3>
Using segmentation in your survey can be a powerful way to gain additional insight from your data. Knowing specific teams or demographics who are less engaged than others can help to highlight retention risk &amp; drive specific actions.&nbsp;
You may find that there are key themes in smaller populations that emerge, which can have a huge impact on engagement overall when addressed. This can especially be true when addressing key themes for under-represented groups. It can have a positive impact on feelings of inclusion and belonging across the entire organisation.&nbsp;
There may be key areas, questions or themes that you might want to keep a close track on. You can build these into a dashboard or report that is regularly reviewed, so that progress can be monitored.&nbsp;&nbsp;
There is a word of caution when it comes to segmentation, it shouldn&rsquo;t come at the cost of anonymity. At Ten Space, we have an &ldquo;ethics&rdquo; filter built into our <a href="https://www.spacehr.co.uk/platform" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">platform</a>, this allows us to protect anonymity to create a safe space for employees to share feedback, but also to drill down to identify additional insights.&nbsp;
&nbsp;
<h3>Survey regularly</h3>
Employees feeling left out or uninformed could be a huge barrier to engagement. This is something that you&rsquo;ll be able to uncover through your data and that you should work on resolving. By surveying regularly, you stand a better chance of preventing problems that lead to resignations as you are building up patters and collecting regular data, in the moment it is happening.&nbsp;
By building up trends and themes over time, you can understand in great detail what employee engagement and culture is like in your organisation. Your teams are given a voice and when they see action coming from their feedback, they know their voice is being heard.
Creating great processes &amp; habits around employee feedback &amp; actions will pay off. This will come through in both survey completion rates and engagement levels.
&nbsp;
At Ten Space we offer quarterly surveys which allow teams to share their honest feedback anonymously. This gives leaders the chance to listen to their team, understand the problems in the organisation and work on changing things for the better. We also provide tools which help you with reporting. These enable you to take the feedback to your leaders quickly and effectively.&nbsp;
&nbsp;
We can help you check in on the engagement and wellbeing of your team through anonymous employee feedback. Check out how we can help at<a href="http://www.spacehr.co.uk/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">&nbsp;</a><a href="http://www.spacehr.co.uk/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">www.tenspace.co.uk</a>.

It goes without saying that you should be taking action from each survey, but it can be easier said than done...

Making the most of your engagement data

If you spend time on social media, you don&rsquo;t need to look far to find a troll. These are people or accounts who show deviant, malicious or antisocial behaviour online. Their aim is to offend and trigger<a style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;" href="https://skemman.is/bitstream/1946/28349/1/Predictive%20Factors%20of%20Facebook%20Trolling%20Behaviour_skemman.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">&nbsp;conflict.</a> This is an obvious and prolific form of cyberbullying.
Often trolls hide their true identity online, so it wouldn&rsquo;t be obvious if you had an internet troll in your team.&nbsp;O<a style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;" href="https://www.sbs.com.au/news/one-in-three-australians-say-they-ve-been-trolled-online/c8ec0e27-cb88-4c94-9505-77554520b692" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">ne in three</a>&nbsp;people say they have experience of receiving abuse online. Sadly, we&rsquo;re not talking about something rare and unusual.
A<a style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;" href="https://www.psychologytoday.com/gb/blog/your-online-secrets/201409/internet-trolls-are-narcissists-psychopaths-and-sadists" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">&nbsp;2014 study</a> showed those who said they enjoyed internet trolling had common personality traits. These included<a style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;" href="https://www.psychologytoday.com/gb/basics/narcissism" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">&nbsp;narcissism</a>,<a style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;" href="https://www.psychologytoday.com/gb/basics/dark-triad" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">&nbsp;Machiavellianism</a>,<a style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;" href="https://www.psychologytoday.com/gb/basics/psychopathy" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">&nbsp;psychopathy</a>, and sadism. In short, trolls enjoy making you feel bad.&nbsp;
So if people are 'trolling' online, in their own time, with a hidden identity, should you care about having trolls in your team?
&nbsp;
Yes. You absolutely should.
Trolls are bullies. Their behaviour can lead to psychological damage of themselves and others. And there are many documented cases of where it has led to<a style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;" href="https://www.smh.com.au/entertainment/celebrity/charlotte-dawson-death-twitter-criticised-for-failing-to-act-against-trolls-20140222-338z6.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">&nbsp;suicide</a>.
It's also very likely that these character traits and behaviours are present in the workplace (albeit to a lesser degree). Some believe that internet trolling is a way of discharging this type of behaviour so that it is less likely to appear face-to-face. Having a secret troll on your team means having someone who is unkind, aggressive and unwilling to be accountable for their actions. They aren't the ideal team member.&nbsp;
Having people that display these personality traits and enjoy spouting hate online is bad for culture and employee engagement. All organisations should have zero tolerance on bullying, whatever form it takes.
A great culture is built around a psychologically safe space, where people can be themselves and everyone is welcomed. Trolls can be hugely problematic for creating a healthy &amp; inclusive working environment.
&nbsp;
<h3>How can you protect your team from trolls?</h3>
The best way to protect your team is to research a potential recruit online before hiring them. Be careful here, this is not a forensic deep-dive into someone&rsquo;s online activity! If you can find evidence demonstrating trolling behaviour, this should be a red flag against welcoming them to your team.
More workplaces have gone remote and rely on written communication for every day interaction. This helps shape the culture of a team and build employee engagement. There is now more opportunity for people to bring their toxic habits into the workplace. The wrong thing to do is to monitor online behaviour of your employees. This can erode trust and create engagement problems of a different kind.
Allowing employees to provide regular<a style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;" href="https://www.spacehr.co.uk/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">&nbsp;anonymous feedback is a</a> safe way for them to raise concerns. Employees can pro-actively share their thoughts about culture and engagement. This allows you to spot any signs of toxicity creeping in and address them before they grow.
In extreme cases, cyberbullying is<a style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;" href="https://www.personneltoday.com/hr/how-can-hr-respond-if-an-employee-has-been-trolling-someone-online/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">&nbsp;illegal</a>, it carries a prison sentence and a fine of up to &pound;5,000. As an employer, you are legally responsible for the actions of your employees whilst in your employment, even if you didn&rsquo;t know about it, or endorse it.
If an employee makes hateful comments online they can be traced back and may be considered to be representative of the business. Dealing with cyberbullying appropriately may be a legal obligation as well as a moral one. Many organisations are dealing with online behaviour &amp; social media in policies. If you are, it should cover trolls, cyberbullying and harassment.
The behaviours and traits of trolls and cyberbullies may creep into the workplace where they can be as damaging as they are online. Taking a zero tolerance approach on such attitudes is the only way to deal with trolls. Providing employees with a safe way to share concerns anonymously is an important way to protect the health of your organisation and its culture.
&nbsp;
To find out more about how Ten Space can help your employees to share feedback, find out more on our website<a style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); background-color: transparent;" href="http://www.spacehr.co.uk/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"> www.tenspace.co.uk</a>.

Trolls hide their identity online, so you won't always know they are in your team - but you may notice the impact they are having on engagement.

Is there a troll in your team?

The Ten Space 'Big HR Engagement Survey' has now closed and the results are in! Over the last few months, we've been gathering insight from hundreds of in-house HR professionals and we're going to give you a sneak-peak of our findings.
The purpose of the survey was to gauge the level of engagement within the HR profession and the industry as a whole. We aimed to uncover the factors that drive HR professionals, understand the challenges they face and explore the opportunities that lie ahead.
This article is a small window into our extensive research, focusing on one particular aspect that emerged as a significant finding.&nbsp;
How engaged are those who are often responsible for engaging others?
&nbsp;
<h3 dir="ltr">HR&rsquo;s Engagement Levels</h3>
💡 We asked our respondents how their engagement had changed over the previous 12 months. Over 37% (the largest population), said that their engagement was lower than in the previous 12 months.&nbsp;
&nbsp;
<img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" src="https://lh7-us.googleusercontent.com/sjfrSAH4wuWtd3hWRuCDDI1jK07sxslOW9rsJpMmWcqjt_EvFv_t1IyMkh9gdjDPVp0_VE2dc8NjU9hxARljlJBECRQG8_BxKVVWfMn8SgEfK9om0PKyHn27udMC0A06ePjEj57NfWjyovC-sS3lCcE" width="602" height="401">
&nbsp;
Gallup's recent&nbsp;<a href="https://www.gallup.com/workplace/349484/state-of-the-global-workplace.aspx">State of the Global Workplace</a> report revealed that employee engagement is rising worldwide. While the overall engagement picture may be improving, there are pockets of concern or opportunity that may require targeted interventions. There could still be specific areas within organisations, such as HR leadership, that need more attention and focus to ensure sustained engagement and positive outcomes.&nbsp;
Why does the HR profession appear to be going against the positive trend of increasing engagement?
💡 Over 65% of those we asked said that they had considered leaving their current organisation in the last 12 months. Indicating that your HR team is far from being locked into their current organisation.&nbsp;
&nbsp;
<img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" src="https://lh7-us.googleusercontent.com/IopGlExqjHWnekwirY4CAQb2BGx5gVKA9YF1cXtNtwr3XG7uJ1G4-OqqqKC75hLiwEeZ9ElCe1Xn2Hpnk3qk9fTmECcyexmNmUcD9GJch6z5sh5qp9ed-fqqB8KCfh3M8wTiwT3IVvq25mf7rAkbpWE" width="602" height="401">
&nbsp;
One-fifth of UK workers are feeling burned out, leading <a href="https://www.hrgrapevine.com/content/article/2024-01-22-70-of-uk-staff-looking-for-a-new-job-in-2024#:~:text='Talent%20war%20is%20raging'%20%7C,a%20new%20job%20in%202024&amp;text=One%20fifth%20of%20UK%20workers,2024%2C%20according%20to%20new%20research.">70% of workers</a> to seek a new job in 2024. There is a trend in both the general workforce and specifically HR teams which suggests a high level risk and potential turnover among key employees.
&nbsp;
<h3 dir="ltr">HR&rsquo;s Frustrations</h3>
💡 Dropping engagement was particularly an issue for those who had been in the profession between 3 and 5 years - with over 50% of them saying they were less engaged now than in the previous 12 months.
&nbsp;
<img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" src="https://lh7-us.googleusercontent.com/yf4AM8-RHgxi_Nrg-Ih6ezYcsZ33FhKnELxQP4RJP0kwX4328zpf6FGdFQcfLbiyKp_1lI1BGPSpacAOlH-_2PUsQxRNKH4-JHBkBeKDZ_yFE0J-Gg2FGX3uGrEtzZzmCwPhk-ihir7OhwFjiX_MDPM" width="602" height="401">
&nbsp;
So what&rsquo;s driving the downward trend? What are the frustrations? As part of the survey, we asked what has had the most negative impact on your engagement recently. The answer? Leaders!&nbsp;
Through comments made in the survey, we got a good feel for what the concerns and frustrations are with leaders and their relationships with HR.&nbsp;
&nbsp;
<img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" src="https://lh7-us.googleusercontent.com/CFA634bd_c4_Xg6LO-2kJt_aWt8yvQjXWbDZ_s6X4ugtaSs4sxsNEKgMejf2pqD18NJIBjBB0VpRVgAjYN3mTXgnpLu7TXxBKEyA_5IMyX7udtAQDbCUQgOfdwTxZ5aB_a36o1Q6ynuFUS9A08jSToU" width="602" height="401">
&nbsp;
<h5 dir="ltr">One HR Professional told us&nbsp;</h5>
<blockquote>
&ldquo;It is a great profession, but has become less enjoyable in recent years. It would be great to have more support for HR, as we are always there for everyone else.&rdquo;
</blockquote>
A common frustration is the lack of buy-in and understanding from leaders, who often fail to listen to their HR counterparts. This lack of receptiveness is compounded by the presence of &ldquo;incompetent leaders&rdquo; and &ldquo;<a href="https://www.tenspace.co.uk/blogs/preventing-toxic-culture/">toxic leadership</a>&rdquo; within the organisation. The absence of clear direction from leadership has left HR teams feeling adrift and unable to manage their own teams effectively. The &ldquo;egos&rdquo; of the <a href="https://www.tenspace.co.uk/blogs/the-role-of-leadership-in-employee-experience/">leadership team</a> further exacerbate these issues, creating a hostile environment that is detrimental to employee engagement and HR engagement.
But it isn&rsquo;t all doom and gloom! The majority of HR professionals that we asked said that they weren&rsquo;t considering leaving the profession altogether.&nbsp;
💡 Over 80% of them said that they saw HR as their long-term career path. And over 70% of those that we asked, said that they&rsquo;d recommend HR as a career to others who were considering it.&nbsp;
&nbsp;
<img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" src="https://lh7-us.googleusercontent.com/SR-MpFQVDJATpQoVB0WNuY-bfA14hWxJEiBEz6QoBTqtRCNDMaE8QZ415ZeXeMPnhPwCxlctWqq1Ko-LDXF-xX34uxrNHmF4APTINhJgo_k9F6ZmKQ7Ja8ZM3YtK8EsNuBtrmDNfYLLiHM4kbJQ6O2U" width="602" height="401">
&nbsp;
<h3 dir="ltr">What should we do?</h3>
So what is the conclusion? It seems that HR professionals love the profession, but don&rsquo;t always love the organisation that they are a part of.&nbsp;
&nbsp;
<img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" src="https://lh7-us.googleusercontent.com/l9NCevik7F-__E34dKGXVTLeP5XMpAq9zbET6wyQrXb75IC9Z2IqHriHwXTD_RTBnYkH6LmIB7ShwBn7nmheSLD-L3MLhITjTiLLve0hmwutdyTzWHnSFdQxWj1_a6BrdaJaIW6VTMc5qcUcC8U7bZE" width="602" height="401">
&nbsp;
<h5 dir="ltr">As one HR professional said&nbsp;</h5>
<blockquote>
&ldquo;Sometimes the only way to change, is to change - don't fight what you can't impact, the business HAS to recognise the want and need to change, if they don't - you change.&rdquo;
</blockquote>
Particularly in mid-career, around the HR Manager / HR Business partner level, it seems that other leaders in the organisation have a huge impact on engagement levels and create frustration and disengagement within HR teams.
HR leaders reading this may want to take a closer look at their teams and wrap their arms around those at the coal face if they want to retain them in their teams.&nbsp;
&nbsp;
<h3 dir="ltr">Dive deeper into the stats</h3>
We're thrilled to announce The Big HR Engagement Research Report is nearing completion. This comprehensive report is packed with valuable insights from hundreds of in-house HR professionals.&nbsp;
From uncovering the factors that drive passion and commitment to understanding the challenges they face, this research is set to be a game-changer. Stay tuned for the full report, where we'll delve into the data and provide actionable strategies to enhance HR engagement.&nbsp;
Make sure to <a href="https://www.tenspace.co.uk/big-engagement-survey/">sign up</a> to be one of the first to get the full report - whether you took part in the survey or not.&nbsp;

How engaged are those who are often responsible for engaging others?

Is there an engagement crisis in the HR profession?

How BEAM Fieldwork increased their survey completion rate to 94% by creating action plans using feedback  gathered by Ten Space

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Following a successful HR career, Victoria saw the opportunity to build a pragmatic product for HR teams to fall in love with. Her mission to ‘create incredible workplaces through highly engaged teams’, is underpinned by the technology and service delivered by the Ten Space team. 

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Ten Space is a team of experts in employee engagement, experience and technology. Our powerful survey platform and service helps HR teams build winning businesses.

<div>Right from the start our goal was always very clear. We wanted to help businesses be the best versions of themselves.So we combined technology, support and resources for HR professionals and business leaders to gain incredible insight.We’ve built a product that’s really easy to build into your current framework and delivers feedback from day one.</div>

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Employee engagement is crucial for accountancy firms as it directly impacts productivity, client satisfaction and firm reputation. Engaged employees are more likely to go the extra mile to understand client needs, provide tailored solutions and build long-term relationships. High levels of engagement reduce turnover rates, saving recruitment costs and preserving institutional knowledge.
                

Measure employee engagement in accountancy firms through regular surveys assessing factors like job satisfaction, work-life balance and alignment with firm values. Include questions on communication effectiveness, career development opportunities and recognition. Analyse survey results to identify areas for improvement and gauge overall engagement levels.

 A great employee engagement platform will give you the data, insight and feedback you need to enact real change in your organisation. Using a third-party platform adds an extra layer of trust. By segmenting the data from engagement surveys, you can uncover valuable insights specific to different employee groups. You can find where your problems are coming from and create targeted actions.

How it works

<div><h3 class="heading pb-4">What is Employee Engagement?</h3>To put it in its simplest form: Employee engagement is the level of commitment, enthusiasm and dedication employees have towards their work and the organisation. Enhanced employee engagement reveals itself in employees reaching their full potential and delivering exceptional performance at work.</div>

Measuring employee engagement in your legal firm can be achieved through regular employee surveys. This first step is critical in gathering data that will help you make decisions. Ideally you should be surveying your business every month so you can quickly observe any drops in engagement and affect a plan quickly to resolve issues. Regular surveys provide the data you need to build a strategic engagement plan based on real information, not gut feeling.


Using an ‘engagement specific’ survey platform will help you gather data faster, more securely and more accurately. The right platform will also make it easier for people to submit their responses in a way that’s easy for them. You’ll be able to compare results over time to analyse trends. By segmenting the data from engagement surveys, you can uncover valuable insights specific to different employee groups. You can find where your problems are coming from and create targeted actions.

Once you’ve done your first survey, things will become instantly clearer. You’ll start to see the hotpots in your company by a variety of segmentation criteria such as team, location, gender, role and tenure. Open-ended feedback will often help provide a solution to the challenges you’re seeing. We’re always amazed how much insight a first survey provides to our customers from a high level right into the detail. Measuring consistent data-points over time will help gain a deep understanding of how to build your strategic plan.


Build your employee engagement strategy

<div><h3 class="heading pb-4">High engagement means higher performance</h3>Employee engagement is a critical activity for professional services firms. Retaining your high performing people will help you build a high performing legal practice. 

But if you don’t have a way to measure engagement and understand when engagement is dropping, you run the risk of losing your top performers and a potential domino effect of top talent.</div>

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learn more about employee experience &amp; retention

An easy-to-use platform to helps you capture employee feedback simply, safely and securely.

Survey using Email, WhatsApp and SMS. Easily reach your deskless mobile and remote workers with surveys so everyone can share their ideas and feedback.

Reporting that delivers instant actionable insights, whilst offering rich detailed analysis.

The insights you need to prioritise, make decisions and track your impact. The data you need to help your team thrive.

<h5 class="heading mt-4 aos-init"> Take employee feedback to the next level</h5>If you're already gathering employee feedback but want to do more, we can show you how.

<div>The Ten Space survey platform does the hard work for you, reducing months of data collection and analysis into minutes.</div>

<div>Our survey platform delivers feedback surveys to gather responses back quickly for super-quick analysis and faster action.</div>

<div>Employee surveys, that allow you, your HR team and your leaders to focus on what they do best - building engagement and creating change.</div>

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<ul><li>Access for up to 250 team members</li><li>Bi-monthly engagement surveys</li><li>Industry specific questions</li><li>Real-time results and analytics</li><li>Result segmentation, tracking &amp; comparisons</li><li>Suggested actions from experts</li><li><a href="/employee-engagement-model/">The Ten Space employee engagement model</a></li></ul>

<div class="text-center"><a>Find out more about advantage</a></div>

Fast and powerful engagement surveys

advantage

<ul><li>For all sizes of organisation</li><li>Advanced AI analytics</li><li>Build your own surveys</li><li>Distribution via email, WhatsApp &amp; SMS</li><li>Customisable data segmentation</li><li>Targeted surveys based on segmentation</li><li>Customised dashboards</li><li>Track key parts of the employee journey</li><li>Permissions based reports</li><li>Dedicated engagement managers to help you get the best results</li></ul>

For larger teams with dedicated requirements

enterprise

Build question sets unique to your business to get to the heart of the problem.

Set surveys to deliver when you want, to whoever you want, where you want.

Your business is comprised of lots of different teams that work in different ways.

Our platform is customisable to fit the needs of every part of your organisation.

Ten Space AI summaries reduce days of data analysis into seconds of processing. In a few clicks the key themes of your survey are summarised, allowing you to identify the parts of your business that need help. 

Simple, clear, easy to understand dashboards for faster desicion making.

Tag and segment data easily to identify areas of concern.

Get ahead by viewing results as they come in.

Confidently identify hidden meanings and discover trends.

Agile businesses need a flexible and inclusive approach.Ten Space reaches the parts that other platforms can't, using Whatsapp, SMS &amp; Email to gather employee feedback.This leads to higher participation and a more inclusive experience, capturing the data from all your people, easily.

The Ten Space survey platform offers a data-driven approach for HR professionals. You can easily design, gather and analyse real feedback from your across your business in real-time. 

Listen to HR Director's Cut - insight into your dilemmas, conundrums and questions

Engage your team to deliver the future of your business today. From only £3 per employee per month. Whether you're starting your employee engagement journey or taking your people strategy to the next level, we can help.

Capture and utilise diversity data to enhance your culture. Capture diversity data in an efficient and safe way. Explore diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging in your organisation. Ten Space supports your DEIB strategy. We can help you capture diversity data from your team in an efficent way to enhance your people data.

Elevate engagement. Retain talent. Supercharge performance. An engaged workforce helps businesses achieve so much more. The Ten Space survey platform captures the insights you need to understand employee engagement &amp; culture across your organisation. Take action &amp; drive change.

Create exceptional employee experiences. Optimise engagement. Supercharge your EVP. Let us take you on a journey.... Explore the experiences of your employees. Ten Space can help you to explore the journeys your employees take as they join your organisation, all the way through to when they leave.

Accelerate the performance of your teams to drive business performance. Explore what is driving, or holding back, your teams from delivering high-performance. We can help you explore high-performance in your organisation. Using our performance-focused surveys, we can help you uncover what is holding a team back from achieving their full potential.

Our monthly subscription fee includes our intuitive survey platform and wrap around service.

Ten Space fully supports your Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging (DEIB) strategy in the workplace. We offer comprehensive solutions to help you efficiently capture diversity data from your team, thereby enriching your people data. Additionally, our platform enables you to explore the topics of diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging within your workplace culture, providing valuable data and insights to inform and enhance your DEIB strategy.

Ten Space equips companies with the necessary resources, tools, knowledge and information to create the ultimate diverse and inclusive workforce. Our platform offers analytics and insights that enable organisations to develop and implement effective DEIB programs. From setting goals on equality to attracting diverse candidates during the hiring process, we provide solutions that address gender, race, ethnicity, and other dimensions of diversity.

Leveraging our data capture platform, we ensure that the process of collecting DEIB data is efficient, safe, and secure. Our platform is designed to capture data in a clean and organised manner, ready for your analysis and utilisation.

With our DEIB focused surveys, we enable you to capture the essential data and gain insights that support your DEIB strategy. We can explore general engagement across different demographics, or we can specifically focus on diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging as central themes, allowing you to delve deeper into this critical area of culture.

As a trusted third-party platform that captures feedback anonymously, we provide a safe space for your employees to share their experiences and provide valuable feedback. This anonymity fosters an environment of authenticity and trust, enabling you to build an accurate and comprehensive picture of the insights you need to drive your DEIB initiatives.

We understand that your DEIB strategy is an ongoing journey, not a one-time event. That's why we help you regularly capture feedback and insights, allowing you to track your progress over time. By monitoring and analysing this data, you can demonstrate the impact and return on investment of your DEIB efforts, ensuring continuous improvement and advancement.

An engaged workforce helps organisations achieve their goals. Ten Space captures the valuable insights you need to build a positive culture through high employee engagement. Your people managers and leaders can easily identify and address those critical issues preventing high engagement and build a culture that everyone buys into.

Ten Space empowers organisations to unlock the full potential of their employee engagement strategy. By utilising our platform, people managers and leaders can leverage their knowledge, experience and approach to drive positive change throughout the workplace. Effective communication, addressing challenges and fostering a supportive culture are integral aspects of our platform, enabling you to build a thriving organisation that values its employees. With Ten Space, you have the necessary insights and data to prove the impact of your employee engagement strategy and continuously improve the employee experience.

"Ten Space help HR teams identify and resolve retention hotspots quickly. The data helps you improve every stage of the employee journey including hiring, onboarding, probation, reviews and exit interviews to continuously improve the employee experience and reduce retention risks"

<div><h3 class="heading pb-4">What is the Employee Engagement model?</h3>Some believe engagement is solely about having happy employees, but engagement goes beyond this. Enhanced employee engagement reveals itself when your employees reach their full potential and deliver exceptional performance at work.At Ten Space we use a simple model. It helps you explore engagement in your organisation. It shows you where you already excel and where you need to focus to improve.</div>

When your employees feel connected to the mission of the company, their engagement improves significantly. They find meaning and purpose in their work, knowing that their efforts contribute to something larger than themselves. They become more invested in the success of your organisation, leading to higher productivity, increased job satisfaction and a stronger sense of belonging within the team.

A great leader inspires and motivates their team members, earning their trust and respect. They provide clear direction, guidance, and support, allowing employees to perform their best and reach their full potential. A great leader creates a sense of empowerment, job satisfaction and loyalty among the team, leading to enhanced employee engagement and overall success.

 Employee engagement improves when your employees feel fulfilled in their role. When individuals find their work meaningful and aligned with their values, they are motivated to invest their time and energy into their work, going above and beyond to achieve goals. This positive mindset and attitude contribute to increased productivity, stronger teamwork and a happier work environment, ultimately enhancing overall employee engagement.

The highest-performing teams have one thing in common: psychologically safe workplaces. Psychologically safe workplaces promote healthier, more productive and more inclusive workforces. They also provide the environment in which innovation can thrive and people can perform at their best.

Ten Space is the platform to gather regular employee feedback. Every month, your employees are able to offer the feedback and insight you need to create positive change throughout your organisation.

The Ten Space engagement model underpins the data. It ensures a consistent approach to capturing feedback that can be measured over time. Our platform helps you build the perfect question set to understand the real issues preventing high engagement. 

 Ten Space does all the hard work, saving you days of admin. Questions are sent via email, WhatsApp or SMS and responses are gathered back in the platform. No matter where your employees are or how they work, there is always an easy way for them to provide their feedback. 

See responses as they're being submitted. Our dashboards display real-time information for you and your managers to access valuable insights at any time. This allows you to spend less time collating data and more time taking the actions that matter to build higher engagement.  

The Ten Space way

Retaining your best people is all about understanding the individual and collective journeys they're on. Ten Space allows you to predict retention issues before they occur and prevent your top talent from leaving.  

The Ten Space survey platform allows leaders to seamlessly follow their employees' journeys within the organisation, gaining invaluable insights into their professional growth and development. The platform provides a unique ability to monitor employee sentiment through live data streams from surveys, enabling leaders to make informed decisions to enhance workplace satisfaction.

All of your employees are on a journey. Even before they work for you, they're building an impression of your organisation through the hiring process. Common experiences for all employees may include hiring, onboarding, probation, promotion and exit. Ten Space allows you to unpack the employee experience at each stage of the journey, helping you improve the experience for future employees. 

Ten Space provides a highly customised in-depth feedback loop to understand which parts of your HR initiatives and processes could be causing retention issues. Our platform sends our feedback surveys at critical times to gather sentiment and understand feeling. At every step, you'll gain a true understanding of how employees really feel and what retention risks exist.

Ten Space makes the process of collecting feedback really easy. Our platform allows you to build and launch custom feedback loops that can analyse specific journeys being experienced in all parts of the organisation. You can customise your questions to gain a deep understanding of employee experiences. And our AI summaries make it easy to analyse retention hotspots at all times.

At any time, your HR team can log into Ten Space and view our feedback dashboards. Our customer success team will hold regular reviews and insights sessions with you, so you feel fully supported. We'll help you to get the most out of the insights you've captured and support you in taking the next steps to further enhance employee satisfaction. 

The Ten Space way

Ten Space assists you in exploring high-performance within your organisation. Leveraging our performance-focused surveys, we enable you to achieve your goals and unlock the full potential of your teams. Our platform helps you identify the unique qualities that make a team exceptional, empowering you to replicate and build upon their success. Analysing performance culture team by team in organisations where performance matters.

Ten Space equips you with everything you need to drive team performance and achieve success. By leveraging our platform, you can assess and enhance the culture, communication, management, individual commitment, projects and processes that contribute to team effectiveness. Through comprehensive performance evaluation metrics and insights, you gain a deeper understanding of your teams and can make informed decisions to drive improvement and productivity.

Utilising our performance-based question sets we’ll help you understand how to assess performance in organisation. We guide you by asking the right questions to extract the necessary insights on performance evaluation for teams. Whether your team operates in creative, technical, administrative, or sales-focused areas, we tailor the process to fit your team's specific requirements.

We assist you in segmenting your team data, enabling you to gain in-depth performance insights and understand the trends that impact team effectiveness. Our intuitive dashboard helps you quickly identify key insights from your results, allowing you to focus on actionable steps and next moves.

Harnessing the power of Ten Space as a trusted third-party anonymous platform, we provide a safe space for employees to share any challenges, barriers, or catalysts that affect their performance. This way, we foster a climate of openness, encouraging individuals to provide candid feedback that can uncover valuable insights.

We can help you integrate communication and training needs analysis into your surveys, allowing you to gather ideas and solutions directly from your team members. By capturing this information, you gain a clear understanding of work expectations and where your team would like you to focus your efforts to improve performance culture. There are no limitations or holding back when it comes to taking action.

Capture and utilise diversity data to enhance your culture.

Insights to understand the engagement and culture across your organisation

Identify and resolve retention hotspots in your organisation

Capture and utilise diversity data in an efficient and safe way to enhance your culture.  

Capture the insights you need to understand employee engagement &amp; culture across your organisation.

Create exceptional employee experiences. Optimise engagement. Supercharge your EVP.

Accelerate the performance of your teams to drive business performance

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