Recommended Reads: Employee Engagement of the Past and Present
Make sure to check out the Original Article by Bill Fotsch and John Case!
Fotsch and Case give a brief review of employee engagement in past and present. They also cover how different economy types affect engagement.
TLDR;
In the pre-industrial economy, mom-and-pop shops formed the bulk of the economy. In family businesses, employees were highly engaged with the business and committed to its success on a personal level.
Labor intensive jobs created during the industrial revolution did not necessarily require workers to care about the business. They simply needed to do as told. This dynamic lead to an “us vs them” mentality between workers and management.
In today’s knowledge and service based economy, employee engagement is critical to recruit and retain top talent. Companies must support their employees development, and ensure they are aligned with the overall mission of the company. This is quite similar to the message Gail McGovern, American Red Cross CEO, gave the University of Miami in her 2018 visit.
John Cuneo
John Cuneo joined Cisco Systems through the highly competitive Global CSAP program. He is a masters candidate at the Georgia Institute of Technology specializing in Machine Learning and occasional guest lecturer at the University of Miami Business School. He loves nothing more than lazy Sundays spent on a walk in the woods, whipping something up in the kitchen, catching up on anime, and playing some Super Smash Bros.
