White Paper Employee Suggestions an Untapped Resource Innovative ideas drive a company s success. Whether creating new products, improving existing services, or finding more efficient workflows, innovation keeps a company at the forefront of its industry. Employees are a very important source of great ideas. They are on the front lines, directly interacting with customers every day, moving product through the company, and supporting the business. Employees know what customers are saying, how products work, and how processes can be improved. Here are some guidelines on how to tap into new ideas to better a company with an employee suggestion initiative. 1 Employee Suggestions an Untapped Resource www.nxlperformance.com
Steps to Designing a Successful Program Create a buzz. Publicly celebrate successes. Be passionate and believe in the program, because enthusiasm is contagious. Where to Start First Steps 1. Obtain Executive Level Buy-in If company leaders aren t listening to and considering suggestions, employees will not participate. Leadership sets the tone for a culture of innovation by lending weight to its importance. This encourages engagement across all levels of employees and managers, and ensures the serious consideration of viable suggestions. The Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) conducted a study * about suggestion programs. It found that 36% of businesses with such initiatives feel that top leaders do not see the program as a critical contributor to innovation. Senior leaders are more likely to support a new program with a persuasive business case, outlining the likely benefits and the investments required. Some potential benefits include: Improving staff morale - meaning, purpose, value Increasing job satisfaction Creating a feeling of ownership and engagement Building team spirit Reducing costs and increasing profitability through efficiencies Increasing revenue Improving customer satisfaction 2. Create a Suggestion Review Team and a Meeting Plan The review of ideas works best as an interdisciplinary effort. All key teams and levels should be represented to ensure ideas are properly evaluated and implemented. Creating a team of expert reviewers simplifies this important process. The choice of members for this team should reflect how business is generally accomplished in your culture. People on the team must be open to change, and willing to ask why not? rather than why? 2 Employee Suggestions an Untapped Resource
Monthly meetings are a good way to start. If the team meets more frequently than once a month, it can become more work than people have time to contribute. Rotate some team members once or twice a year, but not everyone at once in order to provide historical and process continuity. Lastly, an administrator should be designated for the program to make sure the review process moves along as promised. 3. Reward a Great Idea Great ideas deserve great rewards. The same SHRM study found that 44% of respondents said employees receive no form of incentive to offer suggestions. Successful programs handle rewards in various ways. Generally, rewards are Suggestions should be reviewed by a committee of peers not given for simply suggesting an idea, but rather for its adoption by the company. Organizations may choose to have a tiered approach, awarding a set number of points if the review team grants support and moves the idea into the implementation phase, with a subsequent reward at full operational implementation. Another approach is to base the reward on the actual financial value of an idea, which can include the cost savings from changes made, or a measurable increase in revenue. If an employee saves the business $50,000, many organizations reward a percentage of that savings as the recognition for developing and sharing a successful idea. Making the Program Successful Steps for Advancement 4. Take Advantage of Technology Employee suggestion programs will have measurably greater success by using software applications to streamline submission, evaluation, and implementation of ideas. This provides a central hub for employees to learn about the program and to find the answers to any questions they may have. The same platform can also support the internal communication plan and keep submitters updated on the process. Solutions range from intranet functionality and simple software suitable for small organizations to feature-packed platforms, including closed-loop review and detailed tracking and reporting of idea submissions, for larger enterprises. 3 Employee Suggestions an Untapped Resource
5. Develop an Internal Communications Plan Once the suggestion program is in place, employee involvement needs a boost to truly reap the benefits. Publicizing the program will create Establish Suggestion Guidelines Guidelines ensure positive and actionable suggestions. These will likely include ideas that affect cost savings, quality, productivity, process improvements, revenuegeneration, customer satisfaction, safety, or morale. Ideas need to be backed up with solid information such as: What prompted the suggestion? What is the basic idea, how could it work? How will the suggestion benefit the company, employees, or customers? What part of the organization could best implement the idea? Are there documents, pictures, spreadsheets, or other elements to support the idea? Make the suggestion program simple and easy to understand. Avoid making the submission process too complicated, as this will dramatically reduce the quantity and quality of suggestions. employee awareness and attract attention. For one company, consistent communications about the suggestion program increased participation by 350%! An internal communications plan is essential to the program s success: Give the program a name, for example Bright Ideas! or Points of View Develop a launch plan to create initial buzz and encourage employees to submit ideas Consider ways to maintain momentum and celebrate successes Agree on how to respond to both accepted and rejected ideas Consider communication channels from emails to old-fashioned paper newsletters Good messaging lets employees know that the suggestion program is their forum. It s an invitation to get involved and share opinions. Create a presentation that communicates the benefits of participating. Employees will be more actively engaged when they know their ideas are welcome and are valuable. 6. Continued Engagement Market to Your Team Believe it or not many employees are not even aware of their company s existing suggestion program! And many employees who were aware at one point forget about it, if they are not actively participating. Stimulate continued interest by sending out personalized emails or encouraging departmental leaders to talk about it in person. Let employees know that their input is valued do this regularly. Generate awareness to keep the program alive. The options are limitless and can include posters in hallways and cafeterias, regular articles in company newsletters, public recognition of employees that have submitted exciting and viable ideas, and maybe even a short-term team competition for ideas addressing specific needs. Constructing an environment that is fun, friendly, and non-judgmental is vital for people to share their ideas freely. Employees will be excited to participate when reminded of the benefits and potential rewards! 4 Employee Suggestions an Untapped Resource
Measuring Results and Success the Final Steps 7. Feedback Private and Public Making sure the generator of an idea knows the status of the submission is critical to trust and engagement for further creative thinking. Acknowledging and responding to suggestions quickly reinforces the notion that employees are being heard and ideas aren t wasted. This makes employees feel valued and increases participation. Make sure every suggestion is at least followed up with Thanks for the idea! If the review team rejects a submitted idea, make the feedback to the employee private through conversation with a review team member or the submitter s supervisor. Always provide the specific reason for the decision, Provide feedback and encouragement for every idea or you risk discouraging future out-of-the-ordinary and possibly the most fruitful suggestions. When an employee suggestion is implemented, it is important to publicly acknowledge the contribution at a staff or team meeting, or in companywide communications, with the permission of the individual involved. This drives home the value placed on employees and their contributions in your organization. One approach is to include the submitter of the idea on the implementation team. At minimum, if a suggestion is accepted, a timeline for implementation should be shared with the employee who submitted the successful idea. 8. Celebrate Successes! Obviously, not every idea submitted can be implemented. And while some implementations may happen quickly and easily, others may take weeks or months. So when an idea is successfully implemented, share the news with the entire organization, giving credit to the submitter, to the review team, and to the implementation team. Celebration builds both a culture of innovation and a culture of recognition! 5 Employee Suggestions an Untapped Resource
Conclusion Employee suggestion programs can contribute to the success of a company, as well as the motivation and morale of its employees. If you want people to care about a program, first commit to making it work from the top down. Get the entire team excited about it and create a company culture of open communication and innovation. Make sure to be careful with superlatives and comparatives, refer to external data, and pick the right type of reward. For more information, visit www.nxlperformance.com or 1-800-433-7712 Additional Resources: A Roadmap to Employee Engagement What s Wrong With Millennials? *SHRM Poll: Employee Suggestion Programs Underutilized, Rebecca R. Hastings, Society for Human Resource Management 6 Employee Suggestions an Untapped Resource