Satisfaction vs. Engagement

Should organizations aim for employee satisfaction or employee engagement? What makes the difference in the long run? While employee satisfaction and employee engagement are similar concepts, knowing the difference between these concepts is critical for an organization to make strategic decisions. 

Encompassing the basic concerns and needs of employees, employee satisfaction is a good starting point, but employee engagement is what really matters, according to some HR experts. An organization could wind up with a complacent team of materially satisfied employees who fulfill the minimum requirements of being employed or a group of very engaged employees who perform well but seek new opportunities that meet their material needs.

Employee satisfaction – how satisfied content employees are with their jobs, their employee experience, their work environment, and the role the job plays in their life – can be a key factor in determining the overall health of an organization. Some employers use periodic surveys to measure employee satisfaction and track contentment trends over time. Factors that influence employee satisfaction addressed in these surveys may be compensation, workload, perceptions of management, flexibility, training, teamwork, and resources. If there is a high satisfaction level, employees are happy with how their employer treats them. 

Employee satisfaction should be related to both short and long-term visions. In the short term, satisfaction is directly related to attrition and employee-organization match. People need to see the company in a positive light in their early days of employment, or they quickly seek a change. In the long term, it is a problem when an employee is dissatisfied but continues to work with an organization for other reasons.

While satisfaction is important for retention, it does not predict performance. On the other hand, engagement – an employee’s passion for the work, commitment to the organization and discretionary effort – is directly linked to output. Engaged employees have the motivation to do more than the basic requirements of keeping their jobs. They possess a great sense of purpose and leadership. They enjoy challenges and strive to succeed in the face of them. 

Engaged employees like to prove that they are the engine of a company or organization by performing at a high level. They add value by pushing limits to drive growth and innovation. An engagement strategy offers both informal and formal learning experiences that create important opportunities for employees to make them feel valued and recognized for their efforts. Engaged employees will often grab these opportunities and run with them.

Employee engagement can be part of employee satisfaction, but it is important for employers to know the difference. Strategies that focus on improving employee satisfaction may discourage or demoralize high achievers. The importance of engagement cannot be stressed enough. Employers need to know not only how to keep employees happy but to keep them looking for growth, challenge, and success.