How to Engage Employees through the Employee Lifecycle: Insights from Hilton Hotels and HR Strategies

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Running head: EMPLOYEE ENGAGEMENT
How to Engage Employees through Employee Lifecycle
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EMPLOYEE ENGAGEMENT
How to Engage Employees through Employee Lifecycle
The employee life cycle is an organizational method that visualizes how an
employee engages with their company. It is model encompassing all stages of the
experience an employee has with a company. Whereas some large organizations fail
to have a true value of employee engagement, it is an essential part in the employee
lifecycle that could capitalize on the talent of a company’s workforce. Employee
engagement describes the emotional and mental connection employees develop
towards their work, the teams they work with, and the organization they work for.
According to Sun & Bunchapattanasakda (2019), employees who develop a certain
level of connection to their organization tend to put in a lot more work, work for the
organization for longer, and even go to the extent of motivating others to do the
same. According to studies, more than 90% of business executives actively believe
that engaged employees perform better, which boosts both team success and
general organization outcome (Ewing, Men & O’Neil, 2019). This paper does an in-
depth look of engaging employees through the employee lifecycle, using the
example of Hilton Hotels that successfully implements an employee life cycle
strategy.
The hospitality industry is driven by customer service, making the employees
the sole brand ambassadors (Book, Gattling & Kim, 2019). A single slip-up could
differentiate between a happy customer and an irate one (Kurtzman, 2017).
Employees that feel part of a team develop a certain sense of pride in being
associated with the company and feel like they have a say in the organization. For
any organization, even in international hotel management, employee engagement is
a big issue and even more significant for human resources (Mayne, 2017). Statistics
show that a minimal 15% of the global workforce is engaged in their work, revealing
a worldwide employee engagement crisis (Mayne, 2017). These statistics are eye-
opening, showing why employee engagement is a big deal for a company's
leadership and HR. They also show why jobs on employee engagement are on the
rise, consultancy services, and research. The question then remains, what does HR
have to do with this?
For starters, the role of HR in employee engagement is nothing but pivotal on
all levels (Half, 2022). Despite the numerous employee engagement initiatives and
functions, for everyone working in HR, employee engagement is something to think

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EMPLOYEE ENGAGEMENT
about. for optimum levels of employee engagement to be achieved, the
fundamentals of HR need to be gotten right (Bhardwaj & Kalia, 2021). Because
employee engagement touches on almost every aspect of HR, it becomes a much
more complex topic than one may initially think. Nonetheless, good employee
engagement needs the human resource department to have a holistic view of the
contract between the employer and employee. HR must ensure that employees
possess the right skills and environment to perform their jobs to their best.
Further, HR has to keep developing employees to maintain the created levels
of employee engagement. It has to ensure that the progression paths of the
employees' careers are clear (Sun & Bunchapattanasakda, 2019). Engaged
employees know precisely what is needed of them and work towards their goals and
those of the organization (Rabiul et al., 2021)
After establishing the need for employee engagement, it is essential to identify
how a team can be engaged in the workplace and ultimately boost productivity,
customer satisfaction, and retention. According to George, Omuudu & Francis
(2020), the top way to engage employees is by keeping them connected to the
company. If crucial company information is not shared, whether intentional or not,
employees will be forced to come up with their conclusion regarding the company. It
is thus vital that every time it is reasonable, staff should be given updates regarding
aspects like the company's financial performance, the goals in place, and why this
information is important to them (George, Omuudu & Francis, 2020). Keeping the
team in the loop develops a connection to the company.
A straightforward definition of employee expectations is also a significant
selling point in employee engagement (Sun & Bunchapattanasakda, 2019). For
instance, it may be hard for employees to get excited about a project if they lack an
understanding of what they are doing and how to do it. Whenever the company's
staff is given an assignment, every possible detail should be spelled out to them,
with the instructions and expectations verified. How the project fits into the bigger
picture of the company's goals should be explained, and a chance to ask questions
for additional information should be provided too. McBain (2007) explains that
because not all projects may be pleasant, sugarcoating unpleasant ones should be
avoided at all costs. When such assignments are handed out, the company should
be straightforward regarding the scope of the task. The last thing an organization
wants is to appear as being untruthful and dishonest about the work they are doing.