Government trails private sector on employee engagement

Government lags the private sector’s ability to motivate, inspire and enable employees.

That’s according to a new Forrester report that examines employee engagement (EX) levels in the government sector worldwide.

The research shows that weak EX is harming governments’ ability to operate effectively and is creating headwinds that increase the EX gap between the public and private sector.

Globally, 21 percent of government employees report a low-quality experience. In contrast, just 14 percent of private-sector employees feel the same. As a result, government employees are less engaged than those in the private sector: 27 percent of government employees are disengaged compared to 18 percent disengaged in the private sector.

In addition, governments have weaker recruitment, with one cause likely due to limited flexibility. Only 39 percent of government employees would recommend a job at their organisation to a friend or family member, with the problem most acute at the national level. Only 27 percent of government workers say they have flexibility to decide where to work – such as from home or a different office – versus 46 percent of their private-sector counterparts.

The report examines global EX Index data from a survey of 15,000 global information workers, looking at the employee journey, including the role of technology in engagement.

The report also notes that government employees suffer from poor productivity. Just 61 percent of government employees around the world agree that they’re very productive at work on most days, and only 48 percent agree that their organisation does a good job of providing an environment where they can be productive — suggesting that even some of those who are productive face an uphill battle to get their work done.

Recommendations

Forrester sets out several recommendations to improve EX within government sectors. These include setting policies that support productivity with a human lens, ensuring technology helps employees be productive wherever and whenever, and removing barriers that hamstring workers. It also says employers should reward and recognise employees for positive contributions and formalise coaching and mentoring schemes to develop talent,

“EX best practices acknowledge employees’ humanity flexible work schedules, enabling technology, and manager-led coaching are just some of the ways leading government organisations support their employees,” says the report. “Each programme provides critical foundations that empower, inspire, and enable employees to do their best work and be their best selves at work.”