Drive up employee engagement tomorrow by following these steps today.

For the average American worker, their workplace is one of the most important parts of their life. They spend more than 2,000 hours every year at work, interacting with one another, getting things done, all while pushing to drive your company forward. Given all that time, it should go without saying that your team should feel like their effort is worth something.

Too often great employees end up feeling like a small cog in a big machine, with one Gallup study revealing that more than 60% of Americans feel disengaged at work. That lack of engagement and empowerment regularly leads to poor customer experiences, decreases in performance, and plummeting morale.

With some careful consideration, some changes to company processes and systems, and enough trust in your team to work autonomously, you can avoid those issues entirely.

Why is team empowerment important?

Employee empowerment is a business principle that seeks to encourage your team by giving them a level of autonomy while still being able to come to you for guidance when needed.

According to a recent study by the American Psychological Association, team empowerment can affect your employees in a number of ways. Researchers found that adopting psychological empowerment methods at work was “positively associated with a broad range of employee outcomes, including job satisfaction, organizational commitment, and task and contextual performance.” Conversely, failing to empower your team could cause undue strain.

Providing that much trust to your employees may feel daunting at first, especially if you’re used to micromanaging things, but making your team feel trusted and appreciated within the organization can yield dividends.

Ways you can better empower your team

As a business leader, you have the keys to empowering your team. By opening things up a bit and giving them some level of free reign to just do the jobs you hired them to do, you can create a workplace that people want to come back to.

The following suggestions are just some of the methods you can use in the coming days or weeks to empower your team.

Involve them in decision making and ask for ideas. As a business leader, you’re regularly tasked with making major decisions that affect your employees’ lives and work. Rather than taking on that burden yourself, you can invite your team to become part of the decision-making process. Invite ideas and make them feel like their input matters. Simply doing this can show you respect them as individuals and can bolster a feeling that they aren’t just passive participants, but part of the organization.

Identify and develop team members into leaders. As you boost your team’s autonomy and empowerment, you may notice that some employees naturally fall into more of a leadership role. As you notice this, start delegating some responsibilities over to that person. Giving team members that level of authority over team projects and tasks can show that you’re willing to give your team members a chance to prove their mettle. It also has an added benefit of getting some tasks off your plate, as well.

Cater to a team member’s strengths. Each member of your team has something they’re good at within the organization, so why not lean on them when the time arises? By recognizing strengths and giving them the keys to leverage their talents in a way that’s obviously beneficial to the team shows you recognize their worth as a member of the team and lets them take some ownership over the project.

Be more of a mentor than a boss. Everyone has a boss, but how many people can say they’ve truly had a mentor in the workplace? Rather than focusing on managing your team every day, you can help your team members meet their personal goals by coaching them. Sit down with members and find out more about their goals, not only as a team member, but also in their career. Once you know those details, actively try to help guide them toward success, whether that’s through additional training, providing more responsibilities within the group, or simply giving them the resources to succeed.

Give positive feedback. Being recognized for a job well done feels great. So when team members do particularly well, be sure to recognize their job well done. By showing appreciation for their efforts in a public way, it not only makes that employee feel good, but it shows the rest of the team that you’re not ungrateful for their effort.

Ensure they have what they need. There’s nothing more frustrating than knowing what you need to complete a task but not having the resources on hand. As their manager, you should do everything you can to make sure your team has the tools, supplies, and opportunities necessary to excel at their tasks. Doing so will make your team feel like you have their back and will do whatever it takes to ensure their success.

Establish goals. Setting expectations not only for the entire team, but for each individual team member can be a huge boon for everyone involved. Goals help everyone stay focused on the task at hand, which is great since a rudderless employee tends to feel disengaged, which tanks morale and reduces overall productivity. As such, clearly define goals and explain the company’s vision moving forward, so everyone knows what they have to do to meet and exceed expectations.

Make yourself available whenever possible. As a business leader and the team’s manager, it’s easy to shut yourself off to what’s going on — you have plenty of responsibilities yourself, after all. Avoid that pitfall by establishing an open-door mentality. Let your team know that they can reach out to you whenever they need to talk about any issues or provide any feedback they may have. By letting your team know you’re open to them, it instills a sense of trust that you’re willing to go to bat for them and their needs, leading to a robust and positive workplace.

Show you trust your team. Don’t micromanage your team. Avoid the urge to get down in the trenches and tell them how to do every little detail of their job. You hired these people for a reason, so show you trust in their abilities by letting them tackle their tasks. Your way isn’t the only way to do things and it might not even be the best way. Just let things go and give your team the autonomy they need. And if things go sideways, always err on the side of forgiveness within reason.

Bottom line

Your team is a valuable asset. By showing that you trust their judgment and welcome their input as professionals, you create an atmosphere of true collaboration. This can lead to organic growth within the team and a more positive work environment. And at the end of the day, all it took was some trust and signs of respect.