Ask About the Monday Blues to Measure Employee Engagement

Conventional wisdom says that employee engagement affects customer service and the customer experience. Engaged, satisfied employees tend to do their jobs better, whether that’s while talking to a customer or designing an IVR call flow.

But what’s the measuring stick for employee engagement? What do we ask them to delve into their psyches and find out what’s making them tick at work?

We can ask them about the Monday Blues…

Disengaged Workers

Gallup did a survey not too long ago asking Americans about engagement and how they feel during the week. The respondents who were engaged in their work didn’t feel blue or angry on Monday like those who weren’t engaged in their work.

According to the survey, those not engaged in their work experience a dip in their mood on Mondays. In fact, it’s a dip from Sunday to Monday and then a steady rise until the next weekend.

Even worse, the people ‘actively disengaged’ at work experienced a bigger slump in mood from Sunday to Monday. They also experienced anger on Monday far more frequently than engaged employees. The slump continued until Hump Wednesday, when their mood started to improve on the slide down to the weekend.

Anyone who’s had a job they didn’t like knows something about this. And about that sinking feeling on Sunday afternoons that sometimes comes even before you think about work the next day.

Engaged Workers

Conversely, engaged workers have a pretty consistent mood throughout the week, including the weekend.

“Engaged workers feel nearly as good on the weekdays as they do on weekends,” reported Gallup. “Which is not the case for Americans in general.”

According to the survey, around 95% of engaged employees are ‘happy’ on Monday and feel anger far less frequently than their disengaged counterparts. These are the folks who ‘smiled and laughed a lot’ or ‘learned or did something interesting’ while being ‘treated with respect’ on Mondays. Their happiness continues steadily through the week.

Ask Employees About the Monday Blues

If employee engagement has a direct effect on the customer experience, it’s something we need to know about and address. We need to learn how our employees feel and establish processes to ensure engagement.

An employee survey is a good way to learn about how engaged our employees are. An anonymous, automated survey via IVR enables them to be truthful without consequences, which is critical to getting honest answers. With that information, we can begin our engagement-building activities.