How to Take Employee Engagement from Buzzword to Reality

It’s been said that “to win in the marketplace, you must first win in the workforce.” I couldn’t agree more. In fact, I believe the best recipe for an engaged team is to treat employees like customers by building solid, trusting relationships that stand the test of time. To do that at Wells Fargo Equipment Finance, we think of employee engagement not as the most recent buzzword, but as a business priority that directly translates to a more satisfied customer base. This is one of the top goals outlined by our CEO, Tim Sloan.

Advisory Council

In an effort to better understand key issues and surface break-through business ideas, we assembled a council of top performers and tasked them with developing and executing a list of priorities that would help the business grow. A few vital streams of work emerged within the group:

• Team member development. Strengthen mobility between job opportunities and enhance transparency of development expectations between managers and leaders.
• Standardization. Find ways to create more common practices and processes between business verticals.
• Onboarding. Enhance training for new employees to create a good first impression of the company and solid understanding of their roles.

What I like most about the advisory board is that it’s driven by employees. As the designers of the program, the team is more motivated to execute on action items. As you may have noticed, two of the three priorities involve employee engagement—another sign of the importance of this work.

Two-Down Meetings

In addition to soliciting the help of my top performers, I make an intentional effort to meet every two months with employees who are two-reports down from my direct managers. My goal is to get to know them personally and gain an understanding of what they’re experiencing at work, as well as build trust. I use a specific set of questions, take notes and follow up on action items after the discussions. Some questions I ask include:

• What are you experiencing in your job? What do you like, don’t like or find difficult about your work?
• What do you need from me (direction, resources, connections, human capital, etc.)?
• What would be the one thing you would change about this team and/or department? What would you not want to change?
• As a senior leader in your group, what could I do a little more of, or a little less of?

Rather than shy away from difficult questions or ones that add to my to-do list, I hit them right on. I want to know what’s happening with the team, and I want employees to feel empowered to share their thoughts and ideas.

Guest Lecture Program

Lastly, it’s important to connect with the younger generation. Our industry needs facetime with up-and-comers. As chairman of the Equipment Leasing & Finance Foundation’s Academic Outreach Committee, I work closely with industry counterparts and my own team to reach out to college students. We use resources available from the Foundation to present the case for making a career within the equipment finance world. I encourage my leaders to schedule college lectures and gather feedback and questions from students. One of the brightest rewards of this outreach is learning about students’ diverse perspectives, particularly those who participate in our internship program. I believe strongly in welcoming a variety of backgrounds and voices—from all generations and experiences.

In short, employee engagement is about making a connection. It sets the tone for how we expect the team to interact with clients. We want our employees to feel included, valued and supported. Everyone is respected, and we work as a team.