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Nurturing engaged staff key to growth in great companies

If companies want to create a working environment that both appeals to employees and inspires a sense of ownership in them, they should realise that engagement is the way forward.

Herman Lam, general manager of Microsoft Hong Kong and a speaker at the Human Capital in Greater China conference, said that nurturing engaged employees was the key to growth for great companies anywhere in the world.

He said that Microsoft was committed to providing a flexible work environment and developing an open and collaborative culture. The underlying goal was to recognise and encourage the talents of all staff, reflecting the belief that engaged individual employees were just as important as great leaders and managers.

'We mean employees who are passionate and proud to work for Microsoft, and who come to work every day feeling they can do their best work,' Mr Lam said.

He added that employee engagement was essential since the company's success was 'rooted in our people'.

To create the right mindset, it was necessary to offer roles that were stimulating and challenging, while having a supportive infrastructure and a work environment that allowed people to feel enthusiastic as well as motivated.

'This involves hiring and retaining the best talent in the industry, and developing them,' he said.

Mr Lam said only organisations that had the capacity to change could improve along with their employees.

Nowadays, that meant responding to fresh challenges that came with the emergence of Generation Y - younger people happy to speak their minds and question the status quo.

'Generation Y actually brings in more energy because they are the product of a comfortable upbringing - pampered, well-educated and activity-centric from birth,' he said. ' But it also implies huge potential to be high performers.'

However, not all businesses found it easy to accommodate such employees with their aspirations and habit of challenging accepted ideas.

'This can be an obstacle for many traditional enterprises which still adhere to the comfortable old command-and-control management style,' Mr Lam said.

But forward-looking companies saw the benefits that Generation Y brought and were prepared to engage with their forthright attitudes and independence. Usually, that entailed introducing flexible hours and other practical measures which reflected modern lifestyles and expectations.

At Microsoft, such initiatives include a 'dress-down' code, providing fresh fruit, and allowing flexible work arrangements to suit individual preferences and family demands. Regular checks on business progress and performance against targets ensure the right balance is struck. There are also performance-based rewards, well-being seminars and generous maternity and paternity leave policies.

Internal surveys and blogs allow the company to keep closely in touch with shifting opinions, while a consultative taskforce focusing on employee engagement provides another channel for staff feedback.

'They help guide the leadership team in the identification and development of programmes and initiatives that will continue to build a great place to work,' Mr Lam said.

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