A company successfully engages in the community by ensuring its employees engaged with their work. This week, we speak to a few AHF team members about how they help their employees stay passionate, creative, and effective in their lifesaving work around the globe.
Engaged Employees, Impactful Organization
Unique and powerful methods for keeping people at the center of everything you do.
GUEST BIO:
AJ Alegria is a member of the senior management team at AHF and also serves as Vice President of Healthcare Center Operations within the Department of Medicine.
Dan McKenzie works in the marketing department, overseeing marketing operations in Los Angeles as Associate Director of Client Experience and Staff Engagement.
CORE TOPICS + DETAILS:
[1:56] – How You Make them Feel
Want engagement? Start with emotions.
Creating an engaged culture can seem like a huge task but start small. Start with how people feel when they come into work. Ask, what do your staff members say about their work experience at the dinner table? How do they feel walking in every morning? Start with these emotionally focused questions and you’ll be on your way to empathetic leadership.
[3:52] – Even Beyonce Wants Validation
A powerful example from Oprah
Oprah Winfrey once said that at the end of her interviews, no matter whether it’s Obama or Beyonce, their interviewee always turns to her and asks, “How did I do?” Everyone wants validation, even the most confident people in the world. It’s part of what makes us human.
[10:16] – Different Kinds of Recognition
Some people want to be engaged privately
We may think that every employee wants a big, public show of recognition, but some people prefer more subtle acknowledgements of their work— whether they’re shy, humble, or simply don’t like the noisy attention. Keep in mind that what’s right for one person may not be right for another and get to know your people accordingly.
[13:03] – Systemize Caring
Why a formal process leads to better engagement habits
AJ speaks of a leader who created a get-to-know-you sheet for all new hires, asking questions on topics that ranged from kids’ names to favorite candy bar. It seemed silly at the time, but this kind of formalized process for engaging with employees leads to a more thoughtful approach to getting to know your people— their interests, wants, needs, and personalities.
[17:08] – About the Person, Not the Performance
Emphasize positive traits, not just results
Dan mentions that when he gives recognition, he tries to focus less on the result and more on the actual person and their positive traits. Rather than simply saying “Great job getting this task done,” try “You’re always so dependable, and your work is always thorough and high-quality.” This inspires people to want to live up to those traits within themselves.
RESOURCES:
[0:16] – AIDS Healthcare Foundation Website
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ABOUT AHFTER HOURS:
The AIDS Healthcare Foundation is the world’s largest HIV/AIDS service organization, operating in 45 countries globally. The mission? Providing cutting-edge medicine and advocacy for everyone, regardless of ability to pay.
The AHFter Hours podcast is an official podcast of the AIDS Healthcare Foundation, in which host Lauren Hogan is joined by experts in a range of fields to educate, inform, and inspire listeners on topics that go far beyond medical information to cover leadership, creativity, and success.
Learn more at: https://www.aidshealth.org
ABOUT THE HOST:
Lauren Hogan is the Communications Manager for the AIDS Healthcare Foundation and has been working in a series of roles with the Foundation since 2016. She’s passionate about increasing the public visibility of AIDS, the Foundation's critical work, and how everyday people can help join the fight to make cutting-edge medicine, treatment, and support available for anyone who needs it.
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Lauren Hogan:
Check out what's new and happening from leaders in the community. Learn the ins and outs of advocacy, events, and activations. Get involved, make an impact and do something that adds value in your life.
Lauren Hogan:
AHF is the world's largest HIV AIDS service organization operating in 45 countries globally, 16 states domestically, including DC and Puerto Rico. Our mission is to provide cutting edge medicine and advocacy, regardless of ability to pay.
Lauren Hogan:
Hello and welcome to the After Hours podcast. I'm your host Lauren Hogan serving as your liaison to take you on a journey to learn more about AIDS Healthcare Foundation. Our topic for today is learn, lead, act. Before we start the show, please make sure to remember to check out the show notes so you can follow along. Now let's get started.
Lauren Hogan:
So hello everyone. And welcome back to another episode of the After Hours podcast. Today we have such an amazing episode as we will be zeroing in on employee engagement. So first I would like to introduce our guests that are going to be with us today. AJ, I'm going to turn it over to you first to give the folks... Tell them a little bit about yourself.
AJ Alegria:
Yes. Hey Lauren. Happy to be here. My name is AJ Alegria. I serve the organization in two capacities. One is as a member of the senior management team and then also as the vice president of healthcare center operations within the department of medicine.
Lauren Hogan:
Dan?
Dan McKenzie:
So Dan McKenzie, I'm in the marketing department over in LA. I'm the associate director of client experience and staff engagement.
Lauren Hogan:
Amazing. So first thing I want to kick this off, like I said, we're talking about employee engagement. So from your two different perspectives, what does that mean? What is employee engagement to you?
AJ Alegria:
So you want me to take this Dan [inaudible 00:01:52] that...
Lauren Hogan:
I love how you guys just look at each other.
AJ Alegria:
[crosstalk 00:01:56]. I'll jump right in here. For those individuals who listen to our retention week recordings our presentation, there's a lot of similarities in employee engagement to what we discussed around client engagement. Specifically, how we as an organization and how we as leaders make people feel on the day to day when they come into work. And I think that's a very simplified way of putting it. And there's a lot of different things that go into that. But if I had to sum it up, that's what I'd say. What do our staff members say about us at the dinner table and how they feel about coming to work? I think is how I would describe engagement.
Dan McKenzie:
Yeah, I'd agree. There's a lot of stats out there about what makes employee engagement linked to retention or performance and productivity, but a really simple way of thinking about it is just that engagement is the psychology of how you show up to work and how you think about work and how you feel about work. So it's motivation, it's innovation, it's enthusiasm. And all of this is really in the face of, work can be stressful and there's a threat of burnout. And we, as people who work at AHF need to be able to support our staff in the face of these challenges.
Lauren Hogan:
So next thing I want to ask then, so how do managers actually keep their employees engaged? Dan, you touched on how there's so many different components to work life and we like to talk about work life balance, so what recommendations, or from your viewpoint, how do managers keep employees engaged?
Dan McKenzie:
Yeah, it's really challenging because people are so different and you can't just copy paste the same tactic to everyone who's in your office. It really is about treating the person in the way that they want to be treated. So some people really like that gift card at the end of a long week, that's like, you know what? Have a free coffee.
Dan McKenzie:
But for some people what's more important is just that verbal, thank you. The recognition of them as a person. There's this really good story that I was reading about employee engagement that Oprah Winfrey was saying. At the end of every one of her interviews, whoever the person was, they would turn to her and be like, how was that? Was that good? And sometimes it'll be like super famous people like Obama or Beyonce would turn to Oprah Winfrey, and be like, how was my interview? And it's just this really common denominator in the human experience that-
AJ Alegria:
[crosstalk 00:04:24] yes.
Dan McKenzie:
We want to be validated. We want to be seen as a person. And that's what our managers provide for our staff. That's what our staff provide for each other. And to be able to create that validation differently for each person is really important.
AJ Alegria:
I'm trying to remember. Was that a television episode? Was it a podcast that she did because I remember that exact conversation.
Dan McKenzie:
Commencement speech at Harvard, it's all over the place. Yeah.
AJ Alegria:
It's so true though. We all want to be validated for sure. One thing that I would add is, again, trying to just simplify things. I think how managers can drive engagement is just paying attention. Paying attention to their people, paying attention to the verbal cues, the nonverbal cues. When they see behaviors that demonstrate what it's like to be engaged at work, to acknowledge that openly. To not only solidify with that individual, Hey, when you do this, this is the impact that it has not only on our patients, but the rest of your fellow staff members, but also to recognize what good engaged behavior looks like to maybe others that aren't necessarily showing up for work in the version of their best selves. I think the more we can identify what it looks like, to Dan's point, I think the more people can then take that awareness and then think about, okay, that's what Janie looks like when she's engaged. What do I look like when I'm engaged? So just really building a lot more awareness around it, I think is really important. And just paying attention when you see it and acknowledging it.
Lauren Hogan:
So there's something that you both touched on. You talked about validation, recognition, and then also just examples of good work behavior. So I'm going to grab all those three things together and say, why is employee recognition so important? Why is that almost a necessity in the workplace? AJ, I'll start with you.
AJ Alegria:
So, think about it. We spend more time at work than we do with our families. And yet sometimes we... What's the word? Look at our professional relationships as not as significant, I guess, as our personal relationship. When in fact one could argue that it should be the reverse. Hopefully we want to strive to have the best relationships possible with the people we spend the most time with every single day. And so I think engagement is a big part of that.
AJ Alegria:
Over the years, when I've had conversations about engagement, I often hear employees and sometimes managers say, what we need to do is, in order to drive engagement. And when I hear language like that, sometimes I get a little concerned because it's almost making the engagement somebody else's responsibility and not really looking at how I, as a manager own engagement or creating a culture of engagement, how I, as an individual contributor, a non-people manager own a portion of the engagement of the team that I work for.
AJ Alegria:
And that's not to say that there isn't responsibility at the organizational level as well, but what I tend to find be the most successful ways to drive and engage culture is really at the local level. It starts with the individuals that are working side by side and the managers who lead them. It's really important that I think we all see what role we play in that and commit to what we need to do to at least give engagement a chance. And then, the organization alongside that, also looking for what they can do, which I think, this podcast is a great example of that. The goal of this podcast is to share thoughts and ideas within the organization in order to further engagement, to connect people more to things that may be happening in the organization that they don't have direct contact with.
Lauren Hogan:
Dan, what about you? Why is employee recognition so important?
Dan McKenzie:
Yeah, I think AJ touched on it in a sense of responsibility. I think a lot of times when we're trying to get something done, it requires that community. And in order to complete a lot of the projects that AHF has on its mind and in its agenda, whether it's just seeing a single patient at a clinic or doing something much larger in advocacy, it really takes a community in order to get that done.
Dan McKenzie:
And to create that community, you need to create engagement and you can't really do that without those one-on-one personal relationships, without creating connections between your staff and with your management. But at a larger level, beyond that sense of community, I think AHF also has a responsibility to its staff to create engagement in order to counter a lot of the things that work can stress people out. And our industry is known for its burnout to begin with and to put our staff in a position where we're asking them to do these really stressful things without giving that counterbalance of engagement and appreciation is what AHF needs to do just as an employer, as a direct manager. We have that responsibility to make sure that our staff are all right, given the things that we ask of them.
Lauren Hogan:
So next thing I want to ask you guys is, does it matter how you recognize an employee?
AJ Alegria:
Yes.
Lauren Hogan:
And if so, why?
AJ Alegria:
Yes, absolutely. So, I laugh because I remember as a first time manager, I was all gung-ho about creating a really engaged environment where people were recognized for doing great work and I painted everybody with the same brush. So I remember we used to recognize work anniversaries or just real important accomplishments. And I would, the morning of, I would go and either get them balloons, decorate their desk and really go all out because, Hey, that's how I want to be recognized. And what I found out very quickly was that some people like to be recognized in private, some like to be recognized in public, and I was accomplishing the exact opposite of what I was hoping for. Where this person now dreaded doing anything really significant because they were going to have to endure the uncomfortable feeling of being recognized in public, by their peers. So, that's just a really mild example about how not really understanding what makes your employees tick and how they want to be recognized could actually have the opposite outcome that you're hoping for.
Dan McKenzie:
We had one person in the marketing department take their name off of the birthday calendar, so this wouldn't happen to them.
AJ Alegria:
Exactly. Exactly.
Dan McKenzie:
Exactly what you're [crosstalk 00:11:38].
Lauren Hogan:
Very true.
AJ Alegria:
It's so funny, but hey, we're all different. And I think once you know the ways that each individual wants to be recognized, A, I think it ends up at the end of the day, it could be less work for the manager. If you know one person just needs a simple pat on the back and another person needs a whole parade, then you adjust accordingly. You may save yourself some time and also some negative consequences that you didn't anticipate.
Lauren Hogan:
Dan, anything you want to add?
Dan McKenzie:
That was just so well said. I don't know what else I-
Lauren Hogan:
And so so eloquent, right?
AJ Alegria:
You know what helps, is this microphone and the way that we sound in these headphones, I feel like I'm talking like a whole new person.
Lauren Hogan:
Shout out to technology.
Dan McKenzie:
Yeah. I'll just give you the brief summary that there are a few different ways in which you can recognize people. Some people like to hear something affirmative. Some people want to spend time I'm with you. Some people want an act of service and some people want a tangible gift. So either you give them a gift card, or, you know what? You take them out to lunch, or maybe you take something off their plate. My boss is really good at coming to me and saying, what's a thing on your project list that I can take over so you can do something else? And some people just want to hear, thanks you did that thing really well, and it's because you are good at doing that thing.
Dan McKenzie:
So there's a few different ways of treating people and everyone's a little special snowflake when it comes to getting what they need.
AJ Alegria:
You just made me think of something. When I was, this was years ago, I worked for a leader that created their own little get-to-know-you sheet. And I was a manager so it felt elementary at the beginning, but it ended up being a tool that I used for years and years and years after. And it asked things like, what are your spouse's names? What are your kids' names? What's your favorite food? What's your favorite candy bar? How do you like to be recognized? And the tool it facilitated the conversation, but once you did it once, then you got in the habit of, through conversation asking those questions to the different people that you maybe lead or work alongside. And it really did help because then it just made sure that if you were going to go through the effort of trying to recognize, you knew the best to do that for that individual. And that alone, I think made a lot of people feel appreciated that you were just taking the time to get to know them a little bit better in addition to knowing how they wanted to be recognized.
Lauren Hogan:
So this is kind of a good segue, and it might be a little repetitive. So I might ask you guys to specify what you say, but you guys said it already. How do you engage and recognize the team? Dan, you talked about the gift card or taking something off of your team's plate, but you both have your own individual teams. AJ you're in Florida, Dan you're here in LA, what are you guys's techniques and tools of how you engage your team? Is there something specific you could share?
AJ Alegria:
Yeah. I can take a first stab at it. So one of the things that I try to do with my team is I try to make sure, A, always soliciting their ideas whenever we're trying to implement something or work through an issue. A lot of times I think we maybe over-complicate recognition or we think of it in just one form, but a lot of people feel recognized when they have the ability to contribute to problem solving, to new ideas, new processes, things like that. So I think creating an environment where people can speak about their thoughts and ideas is one way I try to recognize my team.
AJ Alegria:
Another is connecting them with each other. So sometimes we can worry that, oh, me as the manager, I have to be the one that has to solve all the problems or the one that has to help people through whatever challenges they're facing. When in actuality, we may not have all the answers. And maybe connecting someone with a peer with, with an introduction of why you're bringing those two people together, could be a form of recognition for the individual that gets to support their fellow employee with a specific challenge. I think that's another way of recognizing.
AJ Alegria:
And then you have traditional ways of recognizing. I think, especially remote recognition, when when you're a remote manager is a little bit different, but for our leaders that are actually there working alongside our staff on the day to day, I personally think that you can't recognize people enough. An interaction with a patient that went extremely well, the way that somebody covered for somebody when they had to quickly take a phone call that took up more time than usual, the way that somebody thought proactively about what a provider might need and went ahead and did it on their own. There are so many examples of people taking initiative that I think deserves recognition often throughout the day.
AJ Alegria:
And I think not only does it make the person feel good that they're being acknowledged for the extra steps that they're taking, but you're also solidifying the behaviors that you want to continue to see. That's another part of recognition, to help people understand this is a good thing when you do this. So the more often you can do it, the more the team is going to benefit. So, those are some things that I think I do with my team in order to make sure that they feel engaged.
Dan McKenzie:
That was really great. I wish I was on your team AJ. I do something that's super simple, which is just that there's a small difference between recognition and adding in appreciation. So someone can do a really good report and your boss says, Hey, good job on that report. But I think it's important to take it to the next level and make it not just about the performance, but then also about the person. So it's the difference between saying amazing job on the report, an amazing job on the report, you have a natural ability to just come in and create a really compelling report. So it's making it about the person and not just the thing that they did. And I try to add that into all of my moments of feedback or moments of recognition, so it's not just, Hey, you did the thing I asked you too, thanks. It's, Hey, you're really good at doing this, and the thing that you made was beautiful and it's because of your skill in doing that. And I think that leveling up of your feedback and recognition really goes a long way.
AJ Alegria:
It's a really... Sorry to interrupt. Just a really great point. I think the more specific we can be in what we're recognizing, because you're right, it's not just about recognizing a person. It's about what specifically did that person say or do, or what skills are they utilizing? Because a lot of times when somebody's good at something, they might not even look at it as a skill. They just think like, well it's just something I do. I'm naturally good at it. I didn't even realize that it was something that was unique to me. So I think that's a really, really great point.
AJ Alegria:
I wanted to add one other thing and this isn't necessarily... I guess you can say that indirectly it's a form of recognition, but it's really more of something that drives engagement. Checking in with our employees non-business related. So there are some times where I'll have a team call and I can just tell by observing verbal or non-verbal that someone on my team probably isn't having the best day. You can just get that sense. They're either overwhelmed or they just got a lot going on. And so I'll pick up the phone and you know when you're not doing it enough, which I am guilty of sometimes because when they answer they say, is something wrong? What happened? And I'm like, no, I just wanted to call you because I got a sense that something's up and I wanted to check in and see how you're doing. Are you doing okay?
AJ Alegria:
And you can almost sometimes hear the sigh of relief that somebody's taking the time on asking them. And then after they've had a chance to just chat about what they're feeling, their tank is refilled a little bit and they can go on about their day. So I think the more, especially leaders, the more often we can pay attention to those things and create, even if it's just five minutes of space to really check in with the person, I think that is another thing that can fuel engagement if we do it enough and at the right times.
Lauren Hogan:
So we're almost at times. So I've got one last question for you guys and it's a bit off script so just bear with me. So my question to you guys is, from your respective opinions do you all think that AHF as an organization, with the guidance of our leadership, our senior leaders, and AJ you are one of them, has provided an infrastructure to ensure that we have appropriate employee engagement as well as recognition?
AJ Alegria:
So I think we've made significant progress in this area. I've been with the organization six years and I think, like I said earlier, this podcast is a great example. I think the creation of our learning and development department is another example. People are more engaged at work when they have the tools and resources in order to do their jobs well. So I think we've done a lot of investment in that. I know at the senior management level, we are constantly talking about reducing turnover and what does that take? Better onboarding experiences, more engagement from their direct managers. So we're having all of the right conversations and we're definitely doing all of the right things, with still some work to go, but I think we're definitely on the right track.
AJ Alegria:
I think where we can, and this is what I alluded to earlier, where I think we need to start looking at engagement is through the lens of the different parties that are responsible for it. So all those examples I gave are the organization doing things to drive engagement. But what about the mid-level managers? What about the site level managers? And what about our employees? I think we still have some opportunity there to help create some thoughts and some ideas about how each one of those categories of people can show up and contribute to their portion of creating an even more engaged culture at AHF.
Dan McKenzie:
Yeah. I agree. I think that AHF has really done a lot, especially in the last few years. And I think that there's, to AJ's earlier point of you can always have more recognition. I think there's always room for growth in these areas. And especially when it comes to teaching our staff how to show recognition and showing recognition to each other. And I think because we've built some of these resources, in learning and development, with Above and Beyond, I think it makes it easier to do so. But then you hire a new person and they've got to start from scratch and you've got to teach them engagement from zero again. So there's always that learning curve and there's always that need for more infrastructure as you grow.
Lauren Hogan:
So Dan, I have to do a shameless plug as we end.
Dan McKenzie:
Again.
Lauren Hogan:
Can you just plug Above and Beyond really quick for us?
Dan McKenzie:
Of course. I feel like I've heard Above and Beyond in three out of six podcast episodes now. So I will be brief about it. Above and Beyond is super cool. Please go to PingOne and click on Above and Beyond. It's essentially a recognition platform. So it's this staff database of all of your staff and you can go in and send a note that says good job to a person for doing something, write something personalized, and it comes with this really cool gamification method where you get points every time you are recognized for doing something or for having anniversary or going to a protest or an action. And you can spend those points on cool things like gift cards or air fryers. Shameless plug to Lauren who's saving up for the air fryer.
Lauren Hogan:
I surely am. I'm almost there.
Dan McKenzie:
So close. I'll recognize you today for doing this podcast.
AJ Alegria:
Hey, aren't you going to recognize me? I don't get recognition for doing the podcast?
Lauren Hogan:
Aw, thanks Dan.
Dan McKenzie:
AJ, I would like you to send me some recognition points for doing [crosstalk 00:23:57] podcast.
AJ Alegria:
Okay. Got it.
Dan McKenzie:
Anyways. It's that simple. I encourage you all to go recognize each other.
Lauren Hogan:
Well, thank you guys so much. This was a great episode as always. We appreciate you guys for tuning in and don't forget to tune in next time [inaudible 00:24:11] for our next episode.
Lauren Hogan:
Thank you so much for joining us. If you enjoyed this episode and you'd like to help support the show, please subscribe, share it with your friends, like, post about it on social media, or leave a rating and review. Follow us on Instagram @afterhours and see you next time.