680. Expert Interview: How to Hire for Optimal Engagement

Minal Joshi Jaeckli

Minal Joshi Jaeckli is the founder and CEO of Open Elevator, the data-driven platform for hiring for engagement to increase profitability and growth for companies and deliver job satisfaction and a sense of contribution for employees. She has worked on multiple continents in various industries and functions over the last decades. Her rich background has given her a deep understanding of the value of engagement from when she was most passionate about her work and when she desperately wanted out from a soul-crushing environment. Knowing there is already a lot written on the subject, Minal’s mission is to arm companies with an easy tool for hiring for engagement, so they benefit from the powerful impact of engagement on their company’s results and employee’s quality of life.

How to Hire for Optimal Engagement

“The average company with high employee engagement has nearly 150 percent higher earnings per share. So, as a business owner, we know this is bottom-line relevant. It is a competitive advantage if you get it right. Also, on a personal level, think about the moment when you have not felt engaged, when you did not like your job and didn’t know when the situation would change. This is not a unique experience. So, this topic is also very important for all of us as individuals. It is a quality-of-life issue.”

Why Is This Important?

This is important for large and small companies. The Gallup studies over decades have been telling us global engagement is in a level of crisis. For companies, this means low engagement, high employee turnover, no customer loyalty, low growth, lower profitability. Only 15 percent of people globally are engaged at work. That means that for every 10 people you know, 8 to 9 are walking around with this feeling. This has tremendous implications for quality of life.”

What Are the Key Lessons Learned Here?

“Employees are more engaged when their basic human needs are met. What are those needs? There is a red thread connecting four building blocks that are consistent across many studies. The first is the need for safety and certainty. Second is the need for growth and significance. Third is the need for connection. Fourth is the need for contribution and purpose.”