FIRE BOMB - New Zealand Fire Service

2008
Employee Engagement
The 2008 survey included a section on employee
engagement. Employee engagement is defined as the
relative strength of an individual’s identification with,
and involvement in, and loyalty to a particular
organisation or job. This is important to an organisation
as staff engagement has a direct correlation to an
organisation achieving its goals.
A total of 38% of you identify yourselves as being
engaged. This compares favourably with international
research from the Corporate Leadership Council where
11% of staff are highly engaged and 27% are ‘leaning
toward engagement’.
Staff that are engaged typically are:
• overall more satisfied with the Fire Service
• more willing to work additional hours
• proud to tell others they are part of the Fire Service
• more likely to recommend the Fire Service as a good
place to work
• more likely to go the extra mile to ensure that the
public receives excellent service
• more likely to understand what is expected of them in
their role
• more likely to agree that their contribution to the
organisation is valued.
You also told us that we should
continue to focus on:
. . . improving how we communicate and listen to
our staff at all levels within the organisation
. . . providing more opportunities for our managers
and leaders to gain leadership skills.
Watch this space in terms of ongoing
work in this area as regional and
national strategies are developed.
Business
The New Zealand Fire Service Magazine August 2009
15