| | JUNE 20198CIOReviewIt's not surprising that today's employers cringe at the thought of employee engagement goals. Of all the goals businesses are charged with measuring, engagement goals tend to be the toughest. How do we measure employee engagement when there is a lack of consensus regarding its definition? Frankly, it is easier to identify disengagement in an organization than it is to identify engagement. We all remember the old saying, "It only takes one bad apple to spoil the bunch," and let's face it, every organization has at least one. Disengaged employees are not only unhappy, but they spend most of their time attempting to undermine their employers. Today's world of technology and social media add an additional level of complexity when it comes to employee complaints, forcing companies into reactionary roles in the attempt to protect themselves against damaging reviews. With easy access to public sites such as Facebook, Yelp and Glassdoor, disgruntled employees waste no time at all posting negative reviews. Generally, our happy employees don't bother posting their positive experiences but unhappy employees make a point of posting negative experiences.The real question employers must ask themselves is, "How do we take on the battle of negativity?" Battling negative comments can be challenging and while larger organizations have greater resources to hire full-time public relation staff that is simply not the case for smaller businesses. For companies who don't have large budgets to battle negative press, there are effective ways to counter negative comments. For example, organizations can utilize their human capital by encouraging all employees to post company experiences on social media. This approach allows customers and potential new hires to read positive employee reviews, which not only out number negative comments, but also make it apparent to customers that negative reviews are the minority opinion. ENTERPRISE INFORMATION MANAGEMENT: A BRIDGE BETWEEN EMPLOYEES AND EMPLOYERSBy Wendy R. White, Executive Director, MSA, ATC Healthcare Services, MidMichiganIN MYOPINION
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