A government-sponsored taskforce has been set up to try and tackle the staff engagement issues identified in the MacLeod Review in order to boost the productivity and competitiveness of UK organisations.
The taskforce, which includes representatives from both the public and private sector, will be chaired by David MacLeod himself, who wrote the 2009 report entitled ‘Engaging for Success’ with now deputy chair Nita Clarke.
The body will collaborate with academics, think tanks and practitioners in the area and plans to publish its recommendations next year on the strategies it believes that organisations should adopt. The goal is to stimulate debate and devise practical best practice advice, which will be made available via a new web site.
MacLeod said: "If employee engagement and the principles that lie behind it were more widely understood and shared we could see a step change in productivity and performance across the UK and a rise in levels of employee wellbeing and motivation. Engaged employees will be key to growth in the private sector and ‘better for less’ in the public sector."
The aims of the taskforce were endorsed by Prime Minister David Cameron, who said that the public and private sector could learn a lot from each other. "I am delighted that the Employment Engagement Taskforce has come together to develop practical ways to help all employers learn from the best, to break down barriers to engagement and to raise the profile of this whole agenda," he added.
Current members of the body include BAE, Marks & Spencer, ACAS, the Federation of Small Business, Best Companies and the Department for Transport, but additional members will be added to the existing 28 at the Taskforce’s next meeting in April.
Jackie Orme, chief executive of the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development, who is also a representative, said: "The importance of a well-led, well-managed, engaged and motivated workforce in delivering sustained growth cannot be underestimated. There is significant evidence to suggest the UK is suffering from a leadership and management skills deficit, and this taskforce should provide a catalyst for action to plug this gap."
2 Responses
A Government Taskforce or expensive talking shop?
I have to say, I also had that sinking feeling reading this, although I suppose someone has to be seen doing something with all that evidence staring them in the face.
The only bit that made real sense was in the final sentence: "there is significant evidence to suggest the UK is suffering from a leadership and management skills deficit…" If this taskforce does anything, let’s hope it’s something meaningful to address that, not just more talk and another report.
Here we go again?
I may be wrong, I often am.
My heart sank with the news that the UK Government has launched a taskforce to boost employee engagement. Read that sentence again and tell me it doesn’t reek of despair. However well meaning this taskforce is I shudder when government, any government, starts fiddling with the concept of making work better. There’s a huge industry chuntering out surveys and magic numbers and other guff purporting to be about discretionary effort (that means working harder for no more money). Kevin Ball has written a storming post on engagement surveys which is well worth a read.
I blogged about this and an interesting conversation has ensued. If you fancy a read – here is the link:
http://stopdoingdumbthingstocustomers.com/engagement/disengaged/