though they make sure to use every last sick day allotted them) but they are just warming chairs, collecting paychecks and wasting your time at every opportunity. Plenty of them are spending your dollars to look for other positions. How many of your team members already quit but forgot to tell you? Although 57% of the workforce slumps down into this group, the good news is that some of these employees can be revitalized as valued team members who rejoin the engaged category.

At the bottom of the barrel are the actively disengaged employees, who are probably too far

If that hasn’t happened to you yet, you can bet your payroll that it’s going to happen soon. We’re in the early stages of a workforce crisis unlike any that has ever descended on American companies. As the Baby Boomers (who comprise one third of the U.S. population) start to retire, they are creating a significant brain drain. The skilled bodies just aren’t there to fill all their places, not by any demographer’s yardstick. While predicting numbers of new jobs and whether the employees will be there to fill them is an inexact science, most experts interpret data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics to mean there will be a significant shortage of skilled workers in the near future—which will only escalate as Baby Boomers start turning 62 in 2008. Some labor analysts predict the U.S. economy will face a shortfall of 10 million workers by 2012. Even if there are enough people seeking jobs to match the number of openings, not enough of them will have the training and experience needed for the available positions, causing greater competition for the most qualified workers. How many of those unfilled jobs will be in your office?

Add to that challenge the high cost of replacing an employee—often as much as one and a half times their annual salary—and it’s easy to see how this sorry state of staffing could cripple your business. The solution as I see it, is first of all to make darn sure you retain the valued team members you already have, and second, to create the kind of workplace where people actually want to work. It all comes down to engagement.

Employees generally end up in one of three categories. I say “end up” because presumably if you’re hiring the right people, they all start out being engaged in learning your business and excited about their new jobs. The ones who continue to be invested in the mission of your company and who see their own success tied to that of your company, remain in the engaged category. They are the people you want to nurture and encourage in every way possible. According to extensive research by The Gallup Organization, a mere 29% of employees persist in this group.

Then there are the not-engaged people, who for whatever reasons lose their enthusiasm for their jobs and just check out. They still show up (though they make sure to use every last sick day allotted them) but they are just warming chairs, collecting paychecks and wasting your time at every opportunity. Plenty of them are spending your dollars to look for other positions. How many of your team members already quit but forgot to tell you? Although 57% of the workforce slumps down into this group, the good news is that some of these employees can be revitalized as valued team members who rejoin the engaged category.

At the bottom of the barrel are the actively disengaged employees, who are probably too far g

erts interpret data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics to mean there will be a significant shortage of skilled workers in the near future—which will only escalate as Baby Boomers start turning 62 in 2008. Some labor analysts predict the U.S. economy will face a shortfall of 10 million workers by 2012. Even if there are enough people seeking jobs to match the number of openings, not enough of them will have the training and experience needed for the available positions, causing greater competition for the most qualified workers. How many of those unfilled jobs will be in your office?

Add to that challenge the high cost of replacing an employee—often as much as one and a half times their annual salary—and it’s easy to see how this sorry state of staffing could cripple your business. The solution as I see it, is first of all to make darn sure you retain the valued team members you already have, and second, to create the kind of workplace where people actually want to work. It all comes down to engagement.

Employees generally end up in one of three categories. I say “end up” because presumably if you’re hiring the right people, they all start out being engaged in learning your business and excited about their new jobs. The ones who continue to be invested in the mission of your company and who see their own success tied to that of your company, remain in the engaged category. They are the people you want to nurture and encourage in every way possible. According to extensive research by The Gallup Organization, a mere 29% of employees persist in this group.

Then there are the not-engaged people, who for whatever reasons lose their enthusiasm for their jobs and just check out. They still show up (though they make sure to use every last sick day allotted them) but they are just warming chairs, collecting paychecks and wasting your time at every opportunity. Plenty of them are spending your dollars to look for other positions. How many of your team members already quit but forgot to tell you? Although 57% of the workforce slumps down into this group, the good news is that some of these employees can be revitalized as valued team members who rejoin the engaged category.

At the bottom of the barrel are the actively disengaged employees, who are probably too far

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Add to that challenge the high cost of replacing an employee—often as much as one and a half times their annual salary—and it’s easy to see how this sorry state of staffing could cripple your business. The solution as I see it, is first of all to make darn sure you retain the valued team members you already have, and second, to create the kind of workplace where people actually want to work. It all comes down to engagement.

Employees generally end up in one of three categories. I say “end up” because presumably if you’re hiring the right people, they all start out being engaged in learning your business and excited about their new jobs. The ones who continue to be invested in the mission of your company and who see their own success tied to that of your company, remain in the engaged category. They are the people you want to nurture and encourage in every way possible. According to extensive research by The Gallup Organization, a mere 29% of employees persist in this group.

Then there are the not-engaged people, who for whatever reasons lose their enthusiasm for their jobs and just check out. They still show up (though they make sure to use every last sick day allotted them) but they are just warming chairs, collecting paychecks and wasting your time at every opportunity. Plenty of them are spending your dollars to look for other positions. How many of your team members already quit but forgot to tell you? Although 57% of the workforce slumps down into this group, the good news is that some of these employees can be revitalized as valued team members who rejoin the engaged category.

At the bottom of the barrel are the actively disengaged employees, who are probably too far

g engaged in learning your business and excited about their new jobs. The ones who continue to be invested in the mission of your company and who see their own success tied to that of your company, remain in the engaged category. They are the people you want to nurture and encourage in every way possible. According to extensive research by The Gallup Organization, a mere 29% of employees persist in this group.

Then there are the not-engaged people, who for whatever reasons lose their enthusiasm for their jobs and just check out. They still show up (though they make sure to use every last sick day allotted them) but they are just warming chairs, collecting paychecks and wasting your time at every opportunity. Plenty of them are spending your dollars to look for other positions. How many of your team members already quit but forgot to tell you? Although 57% of the workforce slumps down into this group, the good news is that some of these employees can be revitalized as valued team members who rejoin the engaged category.

At the bottom of the barrel are the actively disengaged employees, who are probably too far

though they make sure to use every last sick day allotted them) but they are just warming chairs, collecting paychecks and wasting your time at every opportunity. Plenty of them are spending your dollars to look for other positions. How many of your team members already quit but forgot to tell you? Although 57% of the workforce slumps down into this group, the good news is that some of these employees can be revitalized as valued team members who rejoin the engaged category.

At the bottom of the barrel are the actively disengaged employees, who are probably too far gone to salvage and are a definite liability, as they spend their days sabotaging the rest of your team’s efforts, badmouthing you and your company and generally demoralizing everyone they interact with. They need to be shone the exit before they do any more harm. A recent survey by the Gallup Management Journal found that about 14% of the U.S. workforce sinks to this level, costing the economy about $300 billion dollars a year. You simply cannot afford to keep these bottom feeders on your payroll.

Okay, now that I’ve caused you to spin your executive swivel chair down to the floor in panic, here are some ideas on how to address this situation. As I detail in my book, Finding Joy In Your Job, employees need a number of things to thrive at work, and of course that varies from person to person, but people will respond to most of these:

· A voice in designing their jobs and the power to organize their own days

· All the tools and training needed to accomplish their tasks

· As needed, the support of team members to complete projects

· Opportunities for growth, learning and advancement

· Access to and an open dialogue with management

· To be given regular, constructive feedback on performance and recognized for work well done

· Opportunities to network with other employees in other strata and from other departments, as well as mentoring

· Flexible schedules when possible

· Freedom to develop personal friendships at work, which has been shown to be a critical component of job satisfaction

· Encouragement to be authentic, to have avenues for self-expression and creativity

· Last but far from least, employees value having some fun on the job (and it improves their health)

As you may have noticed, what’s not on the list is more pay. While it’s important to fairly compensate your employees, raises are far down the list when discussion turns to making jobs more fulfilling. Consider downloading and handing out my free survey about job satisfaction, Are You Blooming Where You’re Planted? It can be a great tool to begin a conversation with your team about what will really make them want to remain with your company.

Another good topic for discussion with your team is what constitutes job fulf