67 employee engagement ideas to energize your workforce

Looking for employee engagement ideas you can actually put into practice? You’re in the right place

What we'll cover

Let’s be honest: Disengaged employees are expensive.

They’re less productive and more likely to leave. They tend to drag down team morale — so one disengaged employee can quickly turn into dozens.

If engagement at your organization isn’t what you’d like it to be, rest assured that you can change the story. You can improve employee engagement through intentional action, smart communication, and a genuine commitment to making work better.

Dealing with frontline employees who never sit down at a desk? Remote teams spread across time zones? A hybrid crew working between office and home?

Whatever your organization, these 67 employee engagement ideas will help you create a workplace where people choose to show up and do their best work.

67 employee engagement ideas

Make work matter

First up, let’s look at employee engagement ideas that connect your people to purpose and values.

1. Get clear on what you stand for

People are more invested when they understand the why behind their work, not just what they’re expected to do. So before you launch any other initiatives or campaigns, get crystal clear on your values and the bigger picture you’re working toward.

2. Bring values into the everyday

If values only live on a slide deck, they won’t make much impact. But bring them into everyday communication — into leadership messages, recognition posts, and team shout-outs — and they can transform your organization. When values become visible, they start to shape employee behaviors.

3. Build trust with leadership comms

Only 19% of employees strongly agree that they trust the leadership of their organization. But trust is the foundation of engagement. You can build trust by making your leaders more visible, with the help of video updates, behind-the-scenes selfies, and personal anecdotes. When leaders show up on your internal communication channels regularly, authentically, and transparently, organizational trust grows.

4. Show employees the impact of their work

Employees are more engaged when they understand the difference they make to your customers, coworkers, and the wider organization. So shine a light on outcomes — a customer story, a safety improvement, a project win. Help employees connect the dots between what they do and why it matters.

5. Prioritise sustainability initiatives

Sustainability — environmental, social, and ethical — plays an increasingly important role in how people feel about their employer. To make your employees feel proud to work for you, share your sustainability goals and progress regularly. Also, involve employees in initiatives and idea-sharing.

6. Support volunteering

Volunteering improves employee well-being. Support volunteering — through paid time off, company-wide initiatives, or local partnerships — and you show you care about your employees and wider society. You also create shared experiences that strengthen connection and belonging.

7. Treat employees equitably

Unfairness is one of the fastest ways to disengage a workforce. So make a genuine, company-wide commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion. Ensure everyone is paid fairly for their work. Also, ensure all employees — whether they’re office-based, home-based, or frontline workers — enjoy the same opportunities for connection, progression, and recognition.

Communicate more effectively

Effective workplace communication is everything. These team engagement ideas are all about getting internal comms right.

8. Identify communication challenges

Employee engagement suffers when messages don’t land. Take a clear-eyed look at your internal communication. What’s being read, what’s ignored, and where are people getting confused or being left out? The goal isn’t more messages — it’s comms delivered in the right place at the right time.

9. Be transparent

Employees don’t want perfection — they want honesty. Share where the business is headed, what’s going well, and what’s proving tough. Open communication builds trust, puts rumors to bed, and helps people feel part of the journey your company is taking.

10. Create a conversation

Top-down messages are important. But so is giving employees a voice. Create low-friction ways for employees to get involved in the company conversation. For example, you can invite interaction on your news feed, encouraging employees to share ideas, ask questions, and celebrate wins together.

11. Cut the noise with one clear source of truth

When you use too many channels, you create confusion, not clarity. Important messages are missed and employees switch off. With a centralized platform like Blink, there’s just one source of truth. Employees know exactly where to go for essential documents, coworker connection, and company updates. And (with smart targeting) they only see comms that are relevant to them and their roles.

12. Keep comms bite-sized

If you’re still communicating using long walls of text, employee engagement is suffering. Try breaking updates into short, scannable chunks. Use visuals, video, and attention-grabbing headlines to get a point across quickly. This style of comms fits into busy work days and is much less likely to be ignored or overlooked.

13. Strengthen peer-to-peer connection

Both top-down and bottom-up communication are important. But is there enough peer-to-peer communication at your organization? Dispersed teams need digital spaces where they can talk, collaborate, and share knowledge with each other. So use chat tools for real-time conversations — in groups and 1-to-1, too.

14. Give regular feedback

Feedback shouldn’t be saved for annual reviews. Regular, constructive feedback reassures employees that they’re on track and shows you’re invested in their growth. Done well, it builds confidence while reducing stress and anxiety. Encourage managers to schedule regular 1-to-1s — either face-to-face or over digital channels.

15. Ask for feedback — often

Go beyond the standard annual employee survey. Take the pulse of your organization more regularly with quarterly surveys and quick-fire polls. Find out how employees really feel about change, your comms strategy, and their day-to-day work. You’ll identify employee engagement issues early and prevent them from snowballing.

16. Close the feedback loop

Nothing disengages employees faster than being asked for input, then hearing nothing back. So when you ask for employee feedback, share what you learned, what’s changing, and why. Even when you can’t act on every suggestion, transparency shows respect and builds trust — both in your organization and the feedback process itself.

17. Run a listening tour

Head to the shop floor, the ward, the customer service centre — wherever work happens. Run listening tours, focus groups, and 1-to-1 interviews. When leaders spend time with employees, they get real insight into their successes and concerns, and the realities of their workday. So they can make meaningful improvements to employee engagement.

18. Bring people together with live moments

In a dispersed workplace, bringing everyone together for an all-hands meeting can prove tricky. But live stream your events, and employees don’t have to be in the office to take part. You can reach frontline, hybrid, and remote employees with digital town halls and Q&As, allowing them to watch, react, and participate in real time.

Leverage technology

The digital tools you use have a big impact on employee experience and engagement. Implement these employee engagement ideas and get your tech stack up to scratch.

19. Use engagement tech

Get the right engagement tech on your team, and you’ll find it much easier to inspire your workforce. An employee engagement platform — like Blink’s modern intranet — provides tools for two-way communication, employee recognition, and surveys. It helps you understand employee engagement at your organization and implement engagement-boosting initiatives.

20. Choose new tech wisely

The digital employee experience (DEX) has a huge impact on employee engagement. And any tech you choose has to work for all members of your workforce — office, remote, hybrid, and frontline employees. Start by finding out what employees want from workplace software. Involve them early, and you’re more likely to find tech tools that fit the needs of your organization.

21. Create a digital front door

Is tech sprawl hurting employee engagement? Instead of forcing employees to jump between tech tools, give them one simple starting point. A digital hub brings tools, resources, comms, and workflows together behind a single login and a unified dashboard. It reduces friction and saves time, so employees enjoy a more streamlined and satisfying workday.

22. Reduce interruptions

Constant pings drain focus and engagement. Choose technology that lets you control notifications. Better still, choose tech that gives employees the power to manage their own alerts. They should be able to decide how and when they’re notified, and to specify quiet days when they don’t want to be disturbed.

23. Make everything relevant

One size doesn’t fit all. To ensure your digital tools work well for employees, use personalization and segmentation features. A dashboard that shows an employee’s preferred tools. A news feed that shows content relevant to their team, location, and tenure. Training recommendations tailored to their roles. When the experience feels relevant, employees are more likely to engage with your tech stack.

24. Opt for social media-style communication

Another great employee engagement idea? Use communication tools that mirror the experience employees get on social media apps. A modern social platform comes with a news feed, reactions, comments, and short-form content. So communication feels intuitive, familiar, and incredibly engaging.

25. Put engagement in the palm of every employee

Frontline workers don’t always have easy access to a desktop computer. A company app brings engagement-boosting comms, tools, and resources to every employee smartphone. So you get to improve employee engagement across the board.

26. Empower employees with self-service

Convenient online experiences have made us pretty impatient, and we don’t like to wait for answers. You can reduce workplace frustration by implementing self-service HR tools. Let employees check paystubs, update their details, request time off, or find policies — without chasing support teams. It means fewer bottlenecks, faster resolutions, and a better employee experience.

27. Use data to spot engagement dips early

Engagement shouldn’t be reactive. AI-powered insights and platform analytics help you track trends, flag potential issues, and act before problems escalate. Whether it’s nudging a manager to recognize a team or prompting a well-being check-in, smart data turns insight into noticeable employee engagement improvement.

Foster coworker connection

Strong social bonds at work boost engagement, collaboration, and morale. Here are some practical workplace engagement ideas to help employees connect.

28. Help employees develop social connections

Employees who feel connected to one another feel more connected to your company. Carve out time for water cooler chat, encourage coworker conversations on your employee engagement app, and schedule social events across the year.

29. Take team photos

It might seem basic, but putting faces to names makes a big difference. Display team photos in the office — or online, as part of a searchable company directory. You make it easier for employees to make connections and find cross-functional collaborators.

30. Create communities within your company

Support employees to share their out-of-office interests — like reading, running, baking, or painting. Use coworker communities, forums, or even noticeboards to help people connect over shared hobbies.

31. Establish employee resource groups

Employee resource groups (ERGs) give marginalized groups a voice and a sense of belonging. Provide access to resources and communication channels so employees can share experiences, raise issues in a place of psychological safety, and feel part of a supportive community.

32. Schedule virtual coffee breaks

Frontline and remote teams often miss out on informal chats. Scheduling virtual coffee breaks helps employees build relationships across your organization, even when they’re away from HQ. Pair employees up, encourage them to grab a brew, and maybe even give them a topic to get conversations flowing.

33. Organize team-building activities

Old school, but effective. Escape rooms, cook-offs, trivia challenges — shared experiences build stronger bonds and make workplace collaboration easier. So plan a calendar of in-person and virtual team-building events to bring your people together.

34. Create space for employee-generated content

Encourage an internal creator culture. Give employees the tools and encouragement they need to create a quick video, a post for the company feed, or a blog for your content hub. Let them share their stories and ideas — and behind-the-scenes insight into their work day. You’ll end up with authentic, engaging content and a better-connected workforce.

Help employees grow

Learning and development is one of the most powerful ways to boost engagement. Here are employee engagement ideas that help your people develop skills and progress on their career paths.

35. Share training opportunities

You may have incredible learning and development opportunities. But if half your workforce doesn’t know about them, they’re doing very little for employee engagement. Keep everyone in the L&D loop with regular company-wide comms that point people in the direction of relevant learning programs, ensuring hard-to-reach frontline workers are kept up to speed, too.

36. Make training easy to access

Remove any barriers to training. Give employees paid time off to attend courses. Make it clear that the company will cover training costs. Also, make it easy for employees to access training at a time and place that suits them with the help of mobile-first software.

37. Offer internal coaching and mentoring

With access to internal coaching and mentoring sessions, employees can develop skills, knowledge, and confidence. They can get career guidance and build connections with new people within your company. Mentoring programs benefit mentors, too — because supporting others is also great for engagement.

38. Train your managers

70% of the variance in team engagement comes down to team leaders. Managers should understand what good employee engagement looks like, how to nurture it within their own teams, and how to spot engagement issues. Where necessary, give managers the training they need to deliver your employee engagement strategy.

39. Set clear goals

Clear goals and targets keep employees moving forward in their careers. Agree on objectives together. Then identify actions, milestones, and training to help employees succeed.

40. Encourage side projects

Give employees space to explore and innovate. Encourage passion projects that allow employees to think and act creatively. They may come up with an inspired new idea for your company. And, at the very least, they’ll feel more fulfilled and invested in their work.

41. Promote from within

A lack of progression leads employees to look for another job elsewhere. You can improve engagement and increase employee retention by promoting employees from within wherever possible.

42. Let workers move laterally, too

Where a step up the career ladder isn’t possible, a step to the side can be just as motivating for employees. A lateral move helps them build new skills and develop their understanding of different departments.

43. Launch learning clubs

Less formal than training courses, learning clubs keep growth social and fun. Skill-sharing sessions and short courses give employees a chance to teach, learn, and get to know one another better. And it doesn’t have to be work-related. Employees can run a hobby-based workshop, sharing their insights into plant care, nutrition, photography — anything that sparks their interest.

Motivate, motivate, motivate

Motivation is about recognition and making work feel worthwhile. Here are a few employee engagement ideas to keep your team focused.

44. Increase salaries

54% of employees say a significant increase in income is very important to them when looking for a new job. So if their paycheck is already competitive? They’ve got much less reason to leave. Make salaries fair and market-aligned to keep your top talent invested in their work.

45. Tailor your benefits

The best benefits programs are tailored to the needs of your workforce. So survey your staff to find out what they’d most like help with — whether that’s childcare, health insurance, gym memberships, travel allowance, or education assistance. You can discover new ideas for your benefits program that really resonate with employees.

46. Go beyond money and benefits

There’s no doubt that money and benefits motivate your teams. But company culture plays a big role, too. Recognition, work-life balance, training opportunities, and a sense of belonging are great at inspiring employee loyalty and engagement. So — if budgets are tight — prioritize these other areas of employee experience.

47. Recognize effort and success

Make employee recognition part of your everyday company culture. Spotlight employee and team achievements (big and small) on the company news feed. Encourage coworkers to add their words of congratulations to amplify the impact. (And bonus points for tying recognition back to company values.)

48. Mark milestones

Birthdays. Work anniversaries. The end of a lengthy project. Celebrate milestones to show employees how much you value them. From office get-togethers to digital shout-outs, make these moments visible and meaningful.

49. Find out what motivates employees

If you’re running a rewards program, check in regularly to find out if employees are excited by your incentives. Surveys can reveal whether employees prefer cash, gift cards, charitable donations, or other perks. They make rewards personal and relevant — so they’re a lot more motivating.

50. Bring in motivational speakers

A fresh perspective can spark new energy in the workplace. Creativity workshops, industry talks, or motivational sessions — these types of events encourage employees to think differently. They can leave people feeling inspired and focused, ready to tackle their workload with an improved mindset.

51. Send out Monday motivation

Start the week on a high note. Use your comms platform to share quotes, videos, or fun content that energizes employees and banishes those Monday Blues.

52. Offer autonomy

Employees are more engaged and motivated when you trust in their judgment, abilities, and work ethic. So give them more autonomy over their work. Let them make decisions and take ownership of projects. You’ll create a culture of trust and accountability that boosts engagement.

53. Harness the power of gamification

Make work more fun with the help of gamification. You don’t need gimmicks, like badges and leaderboards. Instead, you can gamify the employee experience with playful little additions to the workday. A news feed challenge. An interactive poll. A countdown timer for your next event. These moments bring organic recognition and reward into an employee’s everyday workflow.

Offer work-life balance

Helping employees balance work and life is essential for engagement, retention, and productivity. Here are a few employee engagement ideas that help you support your team.

54. Be more flexible

91% of employers now say they offer some kind of flexible working arrangement. Flexibility is helping organizations attract and retain talent. We get that company and employee needs don’t always align. But look at different types of flexible working and try to accommodate an employee’s preference for location and schedules wherever possible.

55. Make it easier for employees to switch shifts

Frontline employees appreciate autonomy. Shift-swapping software lets them swap shifts without asking their manager or HR, giving them more control over their schedules.

56. Communicate shifts in advance

Another way to support frontline employees with work-life balance? Communicate shifts in advance. When you give workers plenty of notice, it’s easier for them to organize child care, social events, and other responsibilities.

57. Boost employee health and well-being

Engaged employees are healthy employees. Promote physical and mental well-being with initiatives like healthy snacks, lunchtime fitness sessions, and wellbeing apps that reach all employees, including remote and frontline workers.

58. Don’t penalize sick time

Encourage employees to stay home when they’re sick. Compassionate policies build trust, reduce the spread of illness, and show employees they’re valued as people, not just workers.

59. Encourage PTO

They’ve earned it. So they should use it. Remind employees of remaining vacation days and be excited for them when they take time off. Employees feel more connected to your organization when they get to take a break from it.

60. Discourage an always-on mentality

Respect personal boundaries. Train managers to avoid after-hours emails or calls and to honor employee vacation time. Encourage your C-suite to lead by example by switching off at the end of the day. You signal to employees that rest is prioritized — and that it’s okay for them to switch off, too.

61. Respect employee schedules

Consider all employees (not just the 9-to-5 crew) when planning events, training, or meetings. If staff work different shift patterns — or work in different time zones — rotate timings and don’t expect attendance outside work hours.

Optimize onboarding and offboarding

Engagement starts the moment someone joins your organization — and doesn’t end until they leave. Smart onboarding and offboarding processes set the tone, build loyalty, and give you insights you need to improve team engagement at every life cycle stage.

62. Welcome new hires the right way

Give new hires all the tools and resources they need to hit the ground running. Create automated employee journeys that deliver the right content at the right time — and give them day-one access to the engagement-boosting tech tools your company uses, including your employee intranet or app.

63. Assign a buddy

Pair new employees with an experienced team member. Having someone to answer questions and introduce them to company culture helps reduce nerves and boost confidence during those early days.

64. Ask for feedback

Survey new employees at regular intervals (at two weeks, one month, 90 days, and six months), to better understand the onboarding experience — everything from IT access to initial orientation to manager support to team integration. You can then find ways to improve employee engagement and reduce new hire churn.

65. Encourage social connections

Ask new hires to introduce themselves on the company intranet. A photograph, a post, or a short video encourages existing team members to say hello. It helps new employees build workplace connections and feel more at home.

66. Set early goals and give recognition

New employees like to know that they’re doing a good job. So — either face-to-face or over chat tools — set targets and recognize early achievements. You’ll show them that they’re on the right path and give engagement a boost.

67. Conduct exit interviews

Offboarding is just as important as onboarding. Exit interviews give you insights into engagement issues so you can make meaningful improvements. Treat departing employees with care and respect, and they’re also more likely to become brand advocates.

Building these employee engagement ideas into your engagement strategy

Employee engagement isn’t built overnight. And it’s rarely fixed by a single initiative.

Real progress comes from a joined-up approach — a combination of the employee engagement ideas above and a commitment to a holistic, company-wide engagement strategy.

That means creating a culture where employees are valued, supported, and recognized. Where engagement programs are tailored to the needs of your workforce. And where the right tech tools are part of everyday workflows.

An employee app like Blink gives you everything you need:

An employee engagement platform, with recognition, live streaming, and employee survey tools
A modern social experience, with an interactive news feed, video stories, and user profiles
A content hub where employees can find workplace resources and automated employee journeys
Integrations that streamline workflows by bringing your tech stack to every employee smartphone
In-depth analytics that help you focus attention where it matters most

With a platform like Blink, you put company culture and connection into the pocket of every employee. So putting these employee engagement ideas into practice becomes easy.

Employee engagement ideas FAQs

What are the key drivers of employee engagement?

Key drivers of employee engagement include:

Internal communication
Company culture
Recognition
Career progression
Purpose
Peer-to-peer relationships

When employees feel seen, heard, and valued, when they feel connected to coworkers, and when they find purpose in their work, they’re more likely to be loyal and motivated.

Which tools help increase employee engagement?

Employee engagement platforms increase engagement with the help of survey, recognition, and internal communication tools. The best intranet platforms and employee apps incorporate employee engagement tools as standard.

What are some employee engagement KPIs?

You can measure employee engagement by tracking KPIs. Some common engagement KPIs include:

Employee turnover
Absenteeism
Employee net promoter score (eNPS)
Employee satisfaction
Employee performance and productivity

By tracking KPIs, you understand your performance over time. You can also find and fix employee engagement issues as they emerge.

What engages frontline workers?

Frontline employees are motivated by many of the same things as desk-based workers — recognition, coworker connection, career progression, effective internal communication, and feeling part of company culture.

But frontline employee engagement activities have to meet workers where they’re at. That means using mobile-first digital tools that bring your engagement strategy to frontline workers — no matter where and when they work.

Blink. And engage employees in every interaction.