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Employee Engagement

I’m a student of history… which contains MANY lessons.

One such lesson relating to employee engagement comes from WW II - when the superior German Luftwaffe (Air Force) was soundly defeated by the small RAF (Royal Air Force) in the Battle for Britain. How could this happen? The German commanders refused to listen to their pilots and NCOs with first-hand knowledge of how the RAF was winning.

The battle lasted almost 4 months - from July 10 until October 31, 1940. In the end, more than 1,700 Luftwaffe planes were destroyed. The 2,662 German casualties included many experienced aircrews, from which the Luftwaffe never fully recovered. The (RAF) lost 1,250 aircraft, including 1,017 fighters. In all, 520 men were killed serving with Fighter Command. But with more than 700 fatalities during the period of the battle, Bomber Command suffered even more heavily. Another 200 men were killed flying with Coastal Command.

Was this because the RAF had better planes? No.

…the Me 109F has a slightly superior performance to the Spitfire V
~ Air Vice Marshal Trafford Leigh-Mallory, September 1941.

I also thought the Bf 109F was slightly superior to the Spitfire V”,
~ Squadron Leader Douglas Bader, circa 1941.

In fact, there are MANY myths surrounding how/why the RAF was able to defeat the Luftwaffe during the Battle for Britain.

The British radar system allowed the RAF to quickly deploy aircraft to areas where German planes were approaching. The British knew when and where the German aircraft would appear. In contrast, while German Luftwaffe command knew about radar (and even had a more technologically advanced radar system), the German officers were more concerned about obtaining the required fuel and munitions for their planes than worrying about British radar. The German commanders refused to listen to their pilots and NCOs telling them that they needed to “knock out” British radar sites (there were only 20). Consequently, not a single British radar site was even attacked… and the Luftwaffe was dealt a devastating defeat!

Take a page out of history and invite each employee into the conference room to ask them for ideas on how to improve the company. Ask them what could be done to make their job “easier” (which often translates into “more efficient”). Resist the urge to challenge or correct them… hear what they have to say. And ask them about what the company can do to mitigate or eliminate any risks that the employee may be observing. Ask whether the employee would like any additional training… or more responsibility (e.g., taking on greater challenges). People with ambition like to take on new challenges and advance. However, some people may have ambitions outside of work - such as with their family, church, coaching local sports teams, mentoring, etc. If these goals are aligned with RMG, then perhaps RMG would decide to “sponsor” a sports team coached by an employee, or in some other way support that employees external goals.