There are many barriers to employees’ engagement and as many ways to tackle them. To understand the different facets, Supermood has identified 14 themes related to engagement at work. Understanding these different themes helps to provide more context to an overall measure of engagement and to put in place the right actions, at the right time, for the right team.

In this article:

Engagement at work is a diffuse, complex, and constantly evolving notion. Working with many companies, Supermood models the different realities experienced by employees with an analytical framework based on 10 main engagement drivers.
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Definition: Autonomy is a person's ability to make decisions at work. It is a broad concept that encompasses several dimensions such as decision-making latitude, time management, and personal life management.

Optimal Context: A person will have a strong sense of autonomy at work if they participate in decisions that affect them, have freedom in the way they do their work, can attempt improvements without this being a problem if they fail, and can balance the demands of their work and their private life by reducing constraints such as hours, location and overload.
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Definition: Recognition is the unambiguous demonstration that achievements, work practices, and the person are valued.

Optimal Context: A person will feel recognized if their results and efforts are acknowledged with praise, if they are satisfied with their compensation (fair and consistent with the market), and if they feel respected as a person.
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Definition: The work environment is the set of material conditions, services, and means made available to employees for the performance of their work.

Optimal Context: A person will be satisfied with his or her working environment if it allows him or her to do the job well, it is comfortable and can be adapted to the person's needs, the person can be isolated if necessary, and if it is easily accessible.
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Definition: Evolution brings together the dimensions that affect the path and development of the person within the company.

Optimal Context: A person will be satisfied with his or her evolution opportunities if his or her daily activity allows him or her to develop skills, if there are learning opportunities available and if he or she has visibility, follow-up, and real opportunities for job evolution.
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Definition: Management refers to the relationship between the manager and the members of his team (feedback, values, commitment, trust, etc.).

Optimal Context: A person will be satisfied with his relationship with his/her manager if he or she organizes the team well, is caring, respects his/her team members and treats them fairly, provides regular constructive feedback, both positive and negative, and is available when needed.
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Definition: Performance is the set of behaviors put in place to achieve a result corresponding to an organization's strategic objectives.

Optimal Context: A person will be able to perform well if he or she has clear objectives, knows how to do his or her work and achieve his or her goals, and has the right tools to do the job.
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Definition: Relationships are all the interactions between employees within their team and the company (cohesion, values, support, etc.). They are built during informal communications between employees (lunches, breaks) or in a more formal setting (meetings).

Optimal Context: A person will have good relations at work if the people they work with support each other when needed, give each other feedback on their work, are kind to each other, and can exchange their opinions serenely.
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Definition: Meaning is an individual's perception of both his or her work and his or her relationship to it.

Optimal Context: A person will find meaning in work if he or she takes pleasure in daily activities, his/her work benefits to others, contributes to a common cause, and his or her work is meaningful to him or her.
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Definition: Strategy is the set of resource allocation choices that define the scope of an organization's activities to achieve its objectives. Its role is to provide direction and long-term objectives to unite a large number of people towards common goals (Locke, 1968).

Optimal Context: A person will adhere to an organization's strategy if he or she knows the strategy, understands it, finds it relevant, has the means to achieve it, and if the strategy can align the members of the organization.
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Definition: A company's values are the principles on which its members base their day-to-day decisions and work. These principles may be moral (loyalty to customers and employees, transparency, trust, etc.) or societal (respect for the environment, ethics, etc.).

Optimal Context: A person will agree with the values of his company if he or she knows them, if they are respected daily and if the values of the company, the manager, and other members of the company are congruent with those of the person.

Thanks to the feedback from our users and our experience in real-life situations, we have identified some complimentary themes to better understand and improve the employee experience.
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Definition: Onboarding is the induction process put in place by the company to ensure that new employees are well integrated. For the new employee, it is an initiation to life with his team and his role and tasks in this new position. The integration phase has a crucial impact on long-term engagement. According to Glassdoor, a good onboarding improves the retention of recruits by 82%.

Optimal Context: A person will feel fully integrated into the organization if they feel welcomed and supported by their manager and colleagues, are introduced to and understand the company's operations and lifestyle, and have all the materials and information they need to do their job well.
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Definition: We talk about communication to define the different axes of transmission of information necessary for the functioning of the organization. Communication is a simple and effective means of action to increase employee engagement.

Optimal Context:

A person will be satisfied with his company's communication if :

Definition: Employer brand refers to the image that a company reflects as an employer internally (to employees) and externally (to customers, investors, and candidates). The employer brand is generally characterized by the image of the culture and quality of life within the organization. It is expressed through the interaction of three dimensions: its identity, its image (internal), and its reputation as an employer (external). Measuring the success of the employer brand can be used as a secondary measure of engagement.

Optimal Context: An individual will be satisfied with his or her company's employer brand if :

Definition: Workplace well-being is "a state of mind characterized by a satisfactory harmony between the worker's abilities, needs and aspirations on the one hand and the constraints and opportunities of the workplace on the other" (OMS).

It is different from the engagement at work: an employee may enjoy certain benefits related to the quality of life at work, such as free breakfast or gym membership, without having a sense of loyalty to the company.

Optimal Context: A person will develop a sense of well-being (good physical and psychological health) if the atmosphere and workspace are healthy and appreciated by the individual, if the work/personal fulfillment balance is well respected, and if he or she finds meaning in his or her missions.