My hope is by now you’ve heard about our recent announcement of the 2024 Stand Out 50 Leaders and perhaps you’ve even seen that we’ve just published a report we created with the input of those leaders. The idea being that if we’re recognizing the impact of fifty exceptional leaders, it would be worthwhile to use the occasion to understand their views on the service landscape’s current opportunities, challenges, and key areas of focus.

We surveyed the Stand Out 50 to ask them questions we defined across the three categories leaders always say are critical to service transformation: people, process, and technology. I poured over the data and pared it down to fit into the 12-page report myself, but try as I might there was simply too much valuable insight to squeeze it all in. As such, I have some exclusive bits on different topics to share with you all over the coming weeks.

To start, in the people section of the report, we cover a number of factors related to employee engagement. I’m going to assume I don’t need to reinforce the importance of employee engagement; the leaders within the Stand Out 50 and many beyond them realize that to deliver exceptional service and meet business objectives, employee satisfaction not only matters but is crucial. As we explored different aspects of how the Stand Out 50 recruit, hire, retain, and empower their teams, I asked the following (optional) question: What do you feel is the #1 factor that impacts employee engagement? Here are the anecdotal answers that the Stand Out 50 leaders shared:

• “Investing in training has and will be a continued priority, including a recent launch of a new training lab that allows for hands-on product training, brand immersion sessions, and focus on soft skills throughout.”

• “Creating a culture of humble and transparent leaders through trust and integrity.”

• “An effective direct manager that makes them feel valued and supported.”

• “Leadership engagement and transparency which enables the employees to connect to the company vision and strategy.”

• “Recognition at company level of the importance of the role. Not once a year, but regularly.”

• “Being inclusive.”

• “Communication - often, timely, candid.”

• “Fair, two-way performance reviews linked to training and development.”

• “Focus on creating and reinforcing awareness of service relevance to the total business performance.”

• “The freedom to have choice in their work life - opportunities, location and working hours, as well as the chance to develop and learn.”

• “For service employees, the customer relationships are often what keeps them engaged the most.”

• “Promoting work-life balance.”

• “Employee empowerment is the basis for engagement.”

• “Creating a strong emotional link with the company, feeling part of a family, and having a clear sense of purpose.”

These responses touch on several categories we know to be paramount in today’s talent landscape: empathetic, authentic leadership; clear communication; a sense of purpose; flexibility and work-life balance; investment in ample training and development opportunities; inclusivity; and being recognized and rewarded for their contributions.

I do wonder if, since the Stand Out 50 were peer and team nominated, this acknowledgement of what it takes to create employee engagement is adequately shared among the “masses.” I’ve had a handful of conversations in the last weeks with service leaders who bemoan their organizations failing to recognize the direct tie between how teams are treated and how the business performs, but I do hold a belief the percentage with that mentality is dwindling.

How highly does your organization prioritize employee engagement, and what factor would you add to this list? I’d love to hear from you! Be sure to download the full Stand Out Service Trends Report to see what our leaders had to share about other topics within people as well as process and technology.