Staff engagement top priority post-recession

28/01/2010

The recession has forced business leaders to reconsider the way they run their organisations and lead their teams, it has been claimed.

According to the Chartered Management Institute (CMI), although the UK economy has now technically returned to growth, businesses will carry the “scars of recession” for years to come and will adapt to protect themselves in the future.

A CMI study found that a third of the 1,337 business leaders questioned expect the business landscape to become more employee-centric over the next 10 years.

One in five said they thought more ‘employee-owned’ organisations will emerge over the next decade, and almost three quarters expect virtual businesses to be the norm by 2020.

A separate study by the organisation, conducted at the end of 2009, also found many business owners vowing to focus more of their attention on their staff in 2010.

Ruth Spellman, chief executive of the CMI, said that the recession had shown business owners the importance of an engaged and motivated workforce.

“One of the major challenges we face as the UK emerges from recession is how to re-connect with the workforce,” she said.

“The insular, corporate approach blamed by so many for the economic downturn appears to be shifting towards a more inclusive style of leadership as employers accept the commercial benefits of building an engaged workforce and working across many partners.

“Of course we cannot determine the future, but that does not mean we shouldn’t prepare for it to ensure that organisations and teams are effective, capable and competitive.”