Otherwise Engaged Get blase employees motivated about their jobs, and they'll really take care of business.

A woman is standing at a retail counter waiting for help. Whenan employee finally saunters over to ring up her purchase, hedoesn't smile or say "thank you." The woman leaveswith a feeling of discontent, wondering if she ever wants to shopthere again.

An "I don't care" attitude is ravaging businessesfrom the assembly line to the retail floor. Research and consultingfirm the Gallup Organization estimates 70 percent of employees are"disengaged," meaning they're no longer committed tothe company. Even worse, the longer employees stay, the moredisengaged they become.

Disengaged employees are "in a holding pattern," saysCurt Coffman, global practice leader of employee and customerengagement consulting at Gallup and co-author of First Break All the Rules: What the World'sGreatest Managers Do Differently (Simon & Schuster)."[There's] a comfort with being average."

Why Should I Care?

Employee disengagement is widespread at a time when companiesare trying to increase productivity and brand themselves. Layoffshave put employees in positions where they feel poorly trained andoverworked, says Bob Rosner, founder of employee siteWorkingwounded.com and co-author of Gray Matters: The Workplace Survival Guide(John Wiley & Sons). "We put people in situations wherethey can do the worst possible job as opposed to the best possiblejob," he says. "Organizations don't give [employees]reasons to care."

You can't afford to let employees stop caring. A ratio offour engaged employees to one disengaged employee is where acompany starts to see gains in productivity, Coffman says."The key question is, What percentage of my employees areengaged?" he says. "For every engaged employee, how manydisengaged employees are undoing what they're doing?"

Scan your workplace. Are employees going beyond their jobdescriptions to help customers or other employees? Actions speakvolumes. The Gallup Organization asks employees 12 questions tomeasure disengagement, ranging from "Do I know what'sexpected of me?" to "In the last year, have I had theopportunity to learn and grow?" The more employees say theydon't feel praised,developed and valued, the more likely theyare to be disengaged.

Do employees understand where they fit into your company?It's easy to be so busy that everyone loses sight of the bigpicture. For employees, "there needs to be a purpose greaterthan themselves that they're working toward," says JohnWard, president and co-founder of TAParchitecture, an architecture firm in Oklahoma Citywith annual sales of $2.5 million. Ward, 52, has dealt withdisengaged employees and has learned-as he puts it-not to hire fiveminutes into an interview. He's also become a "one-minutemanager"-he offers feedback every day instead of waiting untilthe annual performance review. "It's a full-time job tokeep people engaged," he says. "You can't buymotivation."

Use one-on-ones as an opportunity to ask employees what theythink is expected of them. Their responses could be eye-opening.Also ponder your own work experiences. Did you ever lose enthusiasmfor a job? If so, why? And what would it have taken to keep youmotivated? Chances are, you'll find a few lessons to apply toyour own company.

Get Them Going!

You have to discover and develop employees' talents if youwant to keep them engaged. Do you know each employee's threestrongest skills? Most managers focus on employee weaknesses andtry to fix the unfixable-a surefire way to destroy motivation. Youneed managers who are able to put people in the right jobs and helpthem build on what they already do well. "The real opportunityfor growth comes in utilizing your strengths," Coffman says,adding that great managers "catch people doing thingsright."

It may be time to reconsider managers who can't perform atthis level. Theresa Welbourne, founder and CEO of eePulse Inc., atechnology and management research company in Ann Arbor, Michigan,has fired managers who couldn't energize the company's 15employees. "Sometimes as leaders we create barriers for peopleto get work done, and we're unwilling to listen," saysWelbourne, 47, who is also an adjunct professor of organizationalbehavior at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor."[Engagement] is something every manager has to do with theiremployees." In 2003, eePulse expects sales of $5 million.

Review employee performance formally once a quarter, and focuson future performance instead of past performance. This isespecially important with longtime employees who may feel trappedin jobs where they see little room for growth. "Ask, 'Howcan we position you for success?'" Coffman says.

By re-engaging employees, your company will reap rewards inlower turnover and higher productivity. Your customers will thankyou, too.