Work has been defined in many ways over the years: a contract, a transaction, a value exchange. This led to describing humans as capital and designing systems of management that treat people like financial assets. Is it any wonder that employees’ feeling of engagement within these organizations continues to drop? It doesn’t feel good to be treated like an investment to be maximized.

To reverse this trend requires that we understand what work is for employees, a relationship, and a critically important one. Research has shown us that employees crave the same things from work that they do from other important relationships in their lives: appreciation, connection, acceptance, communication, and support. In this presentation, we will explore how viewing the employee work experience through the lens of a relationship will focus your employee engagement efforts for greater impact.