Employee Engagement and Leading People Effectively:
Insights from thefield
Steven Rogelberg, PhDChancellor’s Professor
Professor of Management, Organizational Science, and
Psychology
This Session
Present research findings from the largest employee study conducted in animal shelters
Learn from over 3500 employees examining employee engagement, including the biggest areas of concern and strengths (new and updated)
Brainstorm solutions and explore practices to promote employee engagement
Introduce a new tool: People Practices Self-Check
Research Background
•All started by examining impact of euthanasia on employee health and well-being
•Euthanasia matters, but there is so much more to the picture…
Research Findings: The Specifics
What matters?Management behaviorA culture of support Good communication TeamworkEffective volunteer programsSome flexibility with euthanasia
engagement
Research Demonstrated Overall
Employee well-being, organizational health, and animal welfare are interrelated
If we don’t take care of our people, we can’t take care of the animals
Motivation behind the Shelter Employee Engagement & Development outreach program (SEEDS)
Organizational Health
Animal Welfare
Employee Well-being
What is the Shelter Employee Engagement & Development Survey?
SeeDS is a tool to help private and public shelters run better Utilizes anonymous employee
surveys Non-profit initiative
supported by grants from The HSUS and UNC Charlotte –mostly subsidized
Formally known as SDS – now with a greater engagement focus
As SEEDS was the Engine for the Evidence, I want to tell you about it briefly
What Does the SeeDS Assess?
Training issues Volunteer issues Work itself issues Communication effectiveness Teamwork Employee
participation Management Physical facilities Engagement
Organizational vision Feedback Personal Stress Social Support Euthanasia involvement Workload Empowerment Role clarity Tools and resources
The SeeDS Process
Initial assessment to discuss your organization (e.g., how to report the data)
Data collection through a secured online system
Summary reports are generated, along with norms, and feedback given to guide specific actions to improve organization
Where Are We Now?
Over 100 ClientsOver 3500 employee
responses Largest data set ever
collected in animal welfare
We can see where we are at as a sector, updated every month…
Shelters We’ve Served
AbileneAnimal Control Gaston CountyAnimal Welfare League of AlexandriaAnimal Welfare League of ArlingtonAnti-Cruelty SocietyArk-Valley Humane SocietyAustin Animal Services Bay Area Humane Society Capital Area Humane SocietyCentral California SPCA Christ-Yoder Animal ShelterCoastal Humane Society Connecticut Humane SocietyDallas Animal Services Edmonton Humane SocietyFt. Worth Municipal Shelter Greater Brimingham Humane SocietyHinsdale Humane Society
Houston SPCAHumane Society of Central OregonHumane Society of CharlotteHumane Society of West MichiganIdaho Humane SocietyJefferson Parish Animal ShelterKitsap Humane SocietyLarimer Humane SocietyMarin Humane SocietyMaryland SPCAMichigan Humane SocietyMidwest ABS, Inc.Mohawk and Hudson River Humane SocietyMorris Animal RefugeOMHSOregon Humane SocietyPeggy Adams Animal Rescue League
Pennsylvania Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to AnimalsPikes Peak Region Potter League for Animals Prince Georges County Animal ServicesRegina Humane SocietyRoice-Hurst Humane SocietySacramento SPCASan Francisco SPCASan Jose Animal Care Services San Luis Obispo Animal Services SPCA of Texas Valencia Animal ControlVanderburgh Humane SocietyWashington Animal Rescue LeagueWashington DC Humane Society Winnipeg Humane Society Wisconsin Humane SocietyWoods Humane Society
Has Anyone Used SeeDS?
Report Card – Your Predictions
What are shelters doing well from an employee perspective?
What are shelters not doing so well from an employee perspective?
What Does the SeeDS Assess?
Training issues Volunteer issues Work itself issues Communication effectiveness Teamwork Employee
participation Management Physical facilities Engagement
Organizational vision Feedback Personal Stress Social Support Workload Empowerment Role clarity Tools and resources
What are shelters doing well from an employee perspective?
What are shelters not doing so well from an employee perspective?
SeeDS Norms – Positive News
Question Favorability Score Neutral Score Unfavorability
Score
I am satisfied with my co-workers 74% 17% 9%
I am satisfied with the organization in general 71% 16% 13%
I am satisfied with the physical working conditions 67% 18% 15%
I am satisfied with the teamworkwithin departments 64% 17% 19%
I am satisfied with my direct supervisor/manager 62% 20% 18%
I am satisfied with the use of volunteers by my organization 59% 29% 12%
Engagement: More Good News
Question Favorability Score Neutral Score Unfavorability
Score
I am satisfied with the work itself 85% 11% 4%
I am satisfied with the job in general 76% 16% 8%
I feel enthusiastic about my job 74% 18% 8%
I feel attached to the organization 79% 15% 6%
SeeDS Norms – Lowest Rated Items
Question Favorability Score Neutral Score Unfavorability
Score I am satisfied with the standard operating procedures in organization 47% 35% 18%
I am satisfied with the formal training 45% 27% 28%
I am satisfied with the quality of meetings 44% 34% 22%
I am satisfied with the overall communication in organization 39% 26% 35%
I am satisfied with the teamworkacross departments 35% 30% 35%
I am satisfied with the pay 31% 29% 40%
Focused Analysis: Top/Senior Management
Question Favorability Score Neutral Score Unfavorability
Score
Has a meaningful vision for organization 69% 19% 12%
Promotes teamwork across departments 45% 27% 28%
Considers employee input when making policy changes 36% 27% 37%
Focused Analysis: Direct Manager / Supervisor
Question Favorability Score Neutral Score Unfavorability
Score
Is accessible to you 77% 15% 8%Cares about your well-being 69% 20% 11%
Has good sense of problems facing department 65% 16% 19%
Holds staff accountable for poor work 51% 24% 25%
Helps resolve employee conflicts 49% 30% 21%
Focused Analysis: Stress
Question Agreement Score
Neutral Score
DisagreementScore
My job is stressful 67% 19% 14%
My job is emotionally draining 58% 23% 19%
I have become more callous toward members of the public since I took this job 22% 20% 58%
I have become more callous toward coworkers since I took this job 12% 17% 71%
Focused Analysis: Euthanasia Issues
Question Favorability Score Neutral Score Unfavorability
Score
How euthanasia is determined is clear 76% 15% 9%
Confidence in ability to euthanize 70% 24% 6%
Have a say in how often I perform euthanasia 44% 29% 27%
Brainstorming Exercise Around 3 Drivers of Engagement
Org communication Cross-departmental teamwork Stress
Few Ideas Per Topic
Best Practices Documents
Based on data from our client shelters, we have developed a set of “best practices” documents with practical advice for common struggle areas: Communication, teamwork, stress & burnout and more!
Accessed through the SeeDS website https://seeds.uncc.edu
People Practices Self-Check
A self assessment tool designed to help shelters identify opportunities to promote the growth and success of employees!
Access PPSC through virtualconsultant.sheltermedicine.com
New Visitors. . .
“Sign Up” for a private login
Choose Your Track
Answer questions. . .
Sample Report Snapshot
Access to detailed online and printable report with resources
Targeted resources. . .
Print version contains same materials
UNCC overview Industry resources Outside resources In practice
examples from advisors
14 Core areas of the PPSC
Recruitment & Hiring
Onboarding & Orientation
Formal & Informal Training
The Work Itself
Pay & Benefits
Recognition
Performance Management
Advancement & Promotional Opportunities
Stress & Workload
Co-workers & Within Department Teamwork
Cross Department Teamwork & Coordination
Volunteers – From a Staff Member Perspective
Organizational Communication
Board of Directors
All free, all the timeConfidentialBuilt on. . . Shelter dataField expertiseManagement best practices
Final Thoughts
Visit www.animalsheltering.org/assess for links to the SeeDS, PPSC, and VPA (Volunteer Program Assessment)
Index cards Contact info (write neatly) Want to learn more about the PPSC Want to learn more about the SEEDS Want to learn more about the VPA
Questions?
Steven Rogelberg
Dr. Steven G. Rogelberg holds the title of Chancellor’s Professor at UNC Charlotte for distinguished national, international and interdisciplinary contributions. He is a Professor of Organizational Science, Management, and Psychology at well as the Director of Organizational Science. He has over 100 publications addressing issues such as team effectiveness, leadership, engagement, health and employee well-being, meetings at work, and organizational research methods. Other awards and honors include receiving the Distinguished Service Award, Psi Chi Professor of the Year Award, Fellow of the Society of Industrial and Organizational Psychology, and the BGSU Master Teacher Award. He is the Editor of the Journal of Business and Psychology and the Talent Management Essentials book series. Key professional leadership roles have included Program Chair for the Society of Industrial and Organizational Psychology (SIOP), elected Science and Research Officer (SIOP), and serving as Chair of the SIOP Education and Training committee. He has founded and currently directs two large outreach initiatives focusing on nonprofit organization health and effectiveness. Nearly 200 nonprofits have been served. He has been a visiting scholar and guest speaker at universities around the world including: BI Norwegian Business School (Norway), Reykjavik University (Iceland), Hong Kong Baptist University, Peking University (China), Hong Kong City University, The University of Sheffield (England), The University of Zurich (Switzerland), The University of Tel Aviv (Israel), Technion University (Israel), Concordia University (Canada) the University of Mannheim (Germany) and Catholic University of Louvain (Belgium). His research was profiled on Public Television, Radio (e.g., NPR, CBC, CBS), Newspapers (e.g., Chicago Tribune; LA Times, Wall Street Journal, Washington Pos,t London Guardian) and Magazines (e.g., National Geographic, Scientific American Mind).