CHAPTER 1 Engaging Leadership

It is imperative that leaders understand what engagement is, what engaging leadership is, how it can be used to foster engagement, and why engagement is critical to leaders and organizations. Engagement can be defined as a state of passion, connection, and motivation, and a willingness to give your best efforts to benefit yourself and your organization. Engaging leaders build trusting relationships, leverage unique motivations, take a people-centric approach to managing performance, and emotionally engage others. Engaging leadership gets the best results when it inspires others to use their discretionary effort in a way that is meaningful, positive, and results-oriented for the individual, the leader, and the organization.

You may be thinking, “This engagement stuff is only for executives or high-level leaders.” After all, the far majority of literature on engagement focuses on data obtained at the organizational level. This data is mostly concerned with turnover and retention. While it is true that every executive- and high-level leader should pay attention to the engagement levels within their organization, leaders at every organizational level can influence engagement. This includes formal supervisors as well as those who take the lead in project teams, work groups, and in other co-worker interactions. Regardless of role or rank, all professionals have the ability to positively influence their interactions with others.