Employee Engagement Activities For Manufacturing Plant

Dear Members,

I need to seek some help from my fellow mates. I have recently joined a manufacturing unit after having experience in the service industry for almost 6 years. I am facing an issue in understanding what employee engagement activities can be helpful for a manufacturing plant where workers are required to work in a 24 x 7 environment. Currently, I am planning to introduce some activities to increase their interest level and enthusiasm.

Kindly advise.

Regards,
Neha Barole

Dear Neha,

Whether in the service or manufacturing sector, employee issues are the same. Before launching employee engagement initiatives, find out what the employee attrition level is. Attrition is one of the signs of disengagement. Of course, it need not be interpreted that those who stay long in the organization are better engaged.

The second measure is to conduct an "Employee Satisfaction Survey." This is also a powerful tool that reveals important information. You can also conduct a survey of the organization's culture.

The third step is to measure the "Customer Satisfaction Index." Disengagement obviously has a fallback on customer satisfaction.

You can derive an "Employee Engagement" strategy from these ratios. Finally, your engagement activities have to show improvement in these ratios; otherwise, it may lead to barking up the wrong tree!

Thanks,

Dinesh V Divekar

Hello Neha Barole,

Further to what Dinesh V Divekar suggested, first of all, please clarify/confirm your location - are you in India or China? Your location tab says you are in China, Qinhuangdao. While employee issues would, by and large, remain the same the world over, the solutions and action plans would have to be based on the cultural and geographical differences.

Regards,
TS

Dear Nehakhale,

Engagement is not about activities. It is about how employees are treated by management and how well management meets their basic needs. Engagement is a choice employees make or don't make based on how they are treated every minute of every day.

If their needs are only met to a 20% level, then you can expect them to be mostly disengaged. Studies worldwide indicate that 70% of all employees are disengaged or actively disengaged, so that is meeting their needs at about the 20% level. However, meet their needs to a 100% level, and they will become highly motivated, highly committed, and fully engaged, literally loving to come to work and at least 300% more productive than if poorly engaged. I know because as an executive/manager, I have achieved both of those states and much prefer the latter :)

Employees all have the same basic needs, which I express as the needs to be heard, to be respected, and to have competence, autonomy, and relatedness. On the surface, all people appear to be quite different. But beneath the surface, there are definite patterns that make it clear that all people are actually quite the same. If you want to know more, please contact me.

Best regards,
Ben Simonton


Leadership is a science and so is engagement

Mr. Ben, I totally appreciate what you have said. I fully agree with the same. Very well put...!

Dear Neha,

Most of these aspects like attrition, surveys, and management style would be addressed later during the analysis. I understand that you require simple recommendations on engagement activities to propose to keep employees motivated.

Given that the unit operates 24/7, you could consider dividing the employees into four teams to participate in sports and cultural activities. Additionally, arranging a full-day picnic at a nearby resort could be a great way to boost morale. For special occasions, inviting employees' families to visit the factory can be a thoughtful gesture as employees often enjoy showcasing their workplace to their loved ones. Holding town hall meetings and recognizing outstanding employees can also contribute to enhancing engagement.

It is essential to grasp the dynamics of the unit and understand employees' preferences. Engaging in informal conversations with employees and their managers can provide valuable insights to guide your decisions.

Best Wishes,
Murali

I agree with the comment given by Ben and others' suggestions. A small thing you may carry out is to start a 10-minute meeting with shop floor people at the start of the shift. Start capturing their expectations and answer within a promised time frame. You may decide the time frame and communicate during the meeting itself. Initially, you will receive grievances only, but after some days when this decreases, you can initiate other activities like 5S. Before initiating anything, prepare and document the process for the morning meeting.

Hi Srijan_123,

What does the term 5S mean? I really appreciated the simple advice you provided.

Best regards,
Ben

Hi Murali, thanks a ton for your suggestion. You got me absolutely right as this is an initiative which will later be carried out to attrition and other levels. Currently, we have to organize an event to throw a ball in the court stating management thinks about them. For that, we are looking for some activities to be organized on New Year. Would it be okay if we have some team-building fun games at our premises for them, maybe like quizzes or some other team-building activities, or maybe a treasure hunt? Kindly suggest.

Dear Ben Simonton,

I appreciate your literature on employee engagement. As you expressed, I would love to have additional literature on the subject matter. Hope to hear from you soon. I thank you in anticipation of your generosity.

Have a happy Christmas and a prosperous New Year.

Dear Syboriba,

Thank you for your interest. You can find several articles on my website designed to enhance knowledge, as well as a book that provides detailed information, perhaps even too much. Currently, I am developing a 6-hour online course for executives and managers, which will teach precisely what to do and what not to do, and explain why certain actions are right while others are wrong.

Best regards,
Ben

http://www.bensimonton.com

Dear Ben,

One of your earlier queries on 'What is 5S' had gone unanswered. I think it refers to the Japanese method of systematic practice. There are 5 words beginning with 'S' in the Japanese language, and often the short form of 5S is popular. They stand for:

1. Sort
2. Set
3. Shine
4. Standardize
5. Sustain

V. Raghunathan

Thank you for that, V. Raghunathan. I had not come across that before. It seems that my reply is too short, so I am adding a few words to get it posted.

Best regards,
Ben

Hi Neha,

It is great to hear that you have joined a manufacturing unit. Usually, in manufacturing, every small employee engagement activity is highly appreciated by employees. Below is the list of activities you can do in a manufacturing unit:

1. Safety Week in the first week of March - During this week, you can organize various activities each day. For example, you can conduct a painting competition with a safety theme to raise awareness, followed by an exhibition of the artwork. Additionally, you can arrange games related to safety awareness, provide fire extinguisher training, and hold yoga sessions, among other activities.

2. 5S Programme: "5S" is a Japanese principle focused on maintaining cleanliness in the workplace or shop floor. You can conduct a competition among departments and announce a winner.

3. Sports Day: This is always a popular event in factories.

4. Kaizen (Continuous Improvement): Encourage employees to suggest improvements in processes. Further information on this concept can be found online.

5. In addition to the above, you can also organize events such as Traditional Day, Indo-Western Day, Color Day, Secret Santa during Christmas, and more.

Feel free to email me at mzsmruti@gmail.com if you need any further assistance.

Thanks & Regards, Smruti Agrawal

I agree with Bensimo, engagement is not about activities. It's about how employees are treated by management and how well management meets their basic needs.

Listed below are a few employee engagement activities that will help the manufacturing industry to get more engaged employees:

- Strengthen Communication
- Focus on Training and Development
- Provide Flexibility
- Appreciate Employees
- Encourage Innovation
- Give Fair Treatment and Respect
- Connect to Bigger Goals