While asking your workforce how they are feeling and how they relate to their work might be a first step towards engaging with them, any inquisition must be followed up by real action.

This was one of the clear learning points which emerged from The HR World’s webinar, Engaging Times: Quick and easy ways to motivate employees. Sponsored by emPerform who were represented by their Sales Director Chris Knight, the webinar also drew from the experience and thoughts of HR professionals, Dina Knight – Chief People Officer, DataTec and Logicalis, and Karina Paschalis – Human Resources Business Partner, Canvas Offices.

The discussion covered all aspects of engaging people, from the current challenge of meeting the requirements of a diverse and demanding workforce to building a company culture that attracts and retains talent. What emerged from the discussion was that while technology and processes can be designed to adapt for and reach across a diverse workforce, keeping initiatives simple and straightforward is often the most effective way to show that people matter.

Drawing from their diverse experience the panelists explored how engagement can be difficult to achieve in today’s world, but also revealed the benefits organisations can achieve from getting this right. Not only does it mean your workforce is less likely to leave and more likely to deliver good work, but there’s a deeper, wider benefit. Work, after all, takes up a lot of our lives. Ensuring people are engaged with it, and feel they matter could be seen as making the world a better place.