The Future of Employee Engagement: Why It’s Time to Move Beyond Traditional Platforms
06 May 2025, posted in Blogs
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The Future of Employee Engagement: Why It’s Time to Move Beyond Traditional Platforms
From Employee Engagement to Colleague Engagement: A Paradigm Shift
Employee engagement as we know it is at a crossroads. Traditional tools like company intranets, mass emails, and siloed HR systems are struggling to keep pace with the modern workforce. Hybrid and remote working are now the norm, and many organizations have large numbers of deskless or dispersed employees. In fact, 57% of staff don’t see a purpose to their company’s intranet , highlighting a fundamental disconnect between legacy platforms and employee needs. Forward-thinking HR leaders are recognizing that it’s not just about employee engagement anymore – it’s about colleagueengagement, a broader, more inclusive approach that treats every member of the organization as part of a connected community throughout their entire lifecycle. As Engage Solutions Group puts it, we must “forget what you know about employee engagement” and “transform the way you interact by building thriving colleague communities to unlock the full potential of engagement” .
This shift in terminology signals more than a buzzword; it represents a change in mindset. Colleague engagementemphasizes equality, inclusion, and community – every colleague, whether in the head office or on the frontline, is part of the conversation. It focuses on the entire journey of an individual in the organization, from onboarding to development, recognition, wellbeing, and retention. In contrast, traditional employee engagement often centered on periodic surveys or top-down intranet announcements. The future demands an always-on, two-way engagement that evolves with the employee (or rather, colleague) lifecycle. And to achieve that, we need to move beyond the patchwork of outdated platforms towards unified solutions designed for a modern, mobile-first world.
Why Traditional Engagement Tools Fall Short
Legacy employee engagement tools – think static intranets, company-wide emails, or disconnected HR portals – were not built for the dynamic, distributed workforce of today. These traditional platforms have several key limitations:
- Limited Accessibility & Reach: Old intranets often require a desktop computer or VPN access. For a workforce that’s increasingly on the move or not tied to a desk, this is a major barrier. Consider frontline, retail, or field employees: if engagement relies on pinned-up newsletters or quarterly email blasts, huge portions of the workforce remain in the dark. In one organization, prior to implementing a modern solution, 50% of employees lacked access to direct digital communication, relying instead on newsletters pinned to noticeboards . It’s no surprise that engagement was suffering under those conditions.
- One-way, Impersonal Communication: Traditional tools mainly enable broadcasting information at employees, not with them. An intranet might allow commenting on news articles, but it rarely fosters real conversation. Email inboxes overflow, and important updates get lost. There’s little room for personalization or targeting specific groups with relevant content. It’s all too common that messages don’t resonate because they’re not timely or tailored. Without an interactive platform, employees have no convenient channel to voice feedback or ideas, leading to disengagement. The result? Fragmented interactions and a disengaged workforce, as outdated methods like email led one firm’s engagement levels to stagnate around 30%.
- Disjointed Systems and Data Silos: Many companies use a plethora of systems – one for HR policies, another for recognition, another for wellbeing resources, plus separate tools for scheduling, payroll, or learning. When these systems don’t talk to each other, employees must jump between logins, and HR lacks a unified view of engagement. This patchwork is inefficient and frustrating. Research by Forrester confirms that companies consolidating their engagement tools into a single platform see a 42% boost in employee productivity and a 31% decrease in wasted time . In other words, fragmented systems are not just an IT headache – they’re directly undermining productivity and wasting employees’ time.
- Static Content, Outdated Experience: Let’s face it, many intranets feel like digital ghost towns – rarely updated, poorly organized, and not intuitive to navigate. They often lack the modern, user-friendly experience people have come to expect from social media and consumer apps. If an internal platform feels clunky or irrelevant, employees simply won’t use it. A neglected intranet becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy of low engagement. And without engagement, the intranet fails in its basic purpose of informing and connecting people – a vicious cycle.
The consequences of these shortcomings are severe. Low engagement isn’t just an HR issue; it’s a business issue. Studies have shown that an engaged workforce is 21% more profitable and 87% less likely to leave the company . On the flip side, disengagement fuels higher turnover, lower productivity, and weaker organizational culture. Traditional platforms and approaches are clearly not delivering the engagement or results organizations need. It’s time for a fundamentally new approach – one that is colleague-centric, not technology-centric.
The Rise of Colleague Engagement Platforms
Shifting from “employee” to “colleague” engagement is about broadening the scope of who and what is included. A colleague engagement platform, like the one offered by Engage, is designed to be an all-in-one hub that integrates communication, resources, and HR processes into a seamless experience. Instead of separate apps for news, HR forms, recognition, surveys, or wellbeing initiatives, everything lives in one place. This integration addresses the fragmentation issue directly: for example, Engage’s platform can pull together calendars, team chats, HR documents, payroll info, holiday booking, training modules, and more into a single mobile app .
Crucially, colleague engagement platforms are lifecycle-driven. They don’t just pop up at the annual survey or the all-hands meeting; they are present at every stage of a colleague’s journey:
- Onboarding and Induction: First impressions matter. A true engagement platform helps new hires feel welcomed and connected even before day one. For instance, TrustFord enhanced its Induction Academy by allowing new employees to join a community on the Engage app before even starting the job, so they could meet peers and get up to speed early . This kind of early engagement means new team members hit the ground running and feel part of the culture from the outset, rather than feeling lost on their first day.
- Day-to-Day Communication and Collaboration: A colleague engagement platform facilitates real-time, two-way communication across the organization. Leadership can broadcast important updates, but every colleague can also share feedback, ideas, or success stories. During the COVID-19 pandemic, for example, TrustFord’s leadership relied on their Engage app for rapid, direct communication with employees across 68 locations, ensuring everyone was informed of changing guidelines while also enabling workers to ask questions and voice concerns in real time . This immediate, dialogic communication simply wasn’t possible with their old noticeboard newsletters. The result was a workforce that felt informed and heard, rather than in the dark.
- Culture, Wellbeing, and Community Building: Engagement today goes beyond memos and meetings; it’s about fostering a sense of community and looking after colleagues’ wellbeing. Colleague engagement platforms shine here by providing spaces for recognition, health challenges, interest groups, and more. National Care Group, one of the UK’s leading care providers, used Engage to roll out campaigns like “Wellbeing Wednesday” and “Menopause Monday” to include everyone in health and wellbeing initiatives, vastly increasing participation and reinforcing a culture of care . Executives at National Care Group also started actively engaging on the platform – recognizing individual achievements and joining discussions – which strengthened connections across all levels of the company . By making engagement a daily, social experience, the platform helps colleagues feel valued and part of a community, not just employees doing a job.
- Recognition and Motivation: Being acknowledged by peers and leaders is a powerful engagement driver, but traditional tools often make recognition an afterthought (think annual awards or a comment in a newsletter). Modern platforms bake recognition into the experience. Colleagues can send shout-outs or thank-you messages instantly, and companies can align these recognition moments with core values. Frenkel Topping Group (FTG) worked with Engage’s design team to launch new peer-to-peer recognition “cards” based on FTG’s values as part of revamping their platform. This kind of constant, values-driven recognition helped re-energize FTG’s culture at a time when their engagement was alarmingly low. In fact, after adopting the Engage platform and strategies, FTG saw colleague engagement skyrocket from an average of 30% to 75% of colleagues actively engaged by the end of 2023. Recognition wasn’t the only factor, but it was a key piece of a more engaging, interactive culture enabled by the new platform.
- Feedback and Continuous Improvement: Engagement is a two-way street. Colleague-centric platforms encourage regular pulse surveys, quick polls, and feedback loops so that leadership can gauge morale and spot issues in real time. Unlike the old annual survey approach, this continuous feedback makes employees partners in shaping the workplace. At TrustFord, after implementing Engage, they moved away from infrequent, one-way communications toward interactive methods like in-app quizzes following leadership video updates to gauge employee understanding . Employees stay more engaged when they know their input is valued and acted upon – and when communication is a conversation, not a monologue.
- Retention and Growth: Perhaps the ultimate test of engagement is whether people stay and grow with the organization. Here, the colleague engagement approach shows clear results. National Care Group’s platform launch in 2023, aimed at unifying their dispersed teams and culture, directly contributed to a significant drop in staff turnover – from 31.5% down to 21% in just 18 months. That 10.5 percentage-point improvement in retention means more experienced staff staying on to provide consistent, high-quality service. Colleagues reported feeling more connected and supported, and it’s easy to see why – when everyone from frontline caregivers to executives are engaged on one platform, people feel part of something bigger than just their job. The stability gained by retaining talent doesn’t just boost morale; it also cuts costs on recruitment and training, and improves operational consistency. In short, engagement impacts the bottom line, and modern platforms are proving it.
A Mobile-First, Inclusive Approach for the Modern Workforce
One of the biggest flaws of traditional engagement tools is the assumption that every employee sits at a desk in front of a computer. Today’s reality is very different. Whether it’s retail staff on the shop floor, drivers on the road, nurses on hospital wards, or technicians on-site – a huge portion of the workforce is dispersed, non-desked, and historically underserved by digital communications. Any future-ready engagement solution must meet colleagues where they are: on their mobile devices, in real time. Engage’s platform was built mobile-first for exactly this reason, and the impact is evident in how organizations with deskless workers have thrived with it.
For example, over 60% of wellbeing charity Mytime Active’s workforce is non-desked and constantly mobile . Maintaining a strong sense of community and keeping everyone informed was a major challenge – email chains and a partial intranet weren’t reaching fitness instructors, lifeguards, and other on-the-go staff. After rolling out Engage’s colleague app to 700+ colleagues across 22 locations, Mytime Active saw a transformation in connectivity. The app created a direct line to every colleague, replacing unreliable channels like WhatsApp groups or manager cascade briefings. Now all colleagues receive the right communications at the right time, and everyone can participate in the company dialogue. As Louize Carroll, Head of HR at Mytime Active, reflects: “The Engage platform has been a game-changer for us, providing a direct connection with every colleague and allowing us to mobilise our communications and resources across the entire organisation. The app’s functionality and ease of use have made it a valuable tool for everyone, from lifeguards to instructors. It’s brought our ‘one team’ philosophy to life, supporting our colleagues day-to-day and helping us build a thriving, connected community.” . This testimonial underscores the power of a mobile-first approach – ease of use and relevance for everyone, no matter their role, leads to a truly connected “one team” culture.
Another success story comes from the construction and maintenance sector, where workers are often on-site and rarely behind a computer. Mountjoy, a fast-growing building maintenance company with two-thirds of its workforce constantly mobile, realized that traditional communication tools weren’t sufficient. They implemented Engage and gave every employee access via a custom-branded app on their smartphones. “By deploying Engage we have very quickly connected all our staff – both office and trade – with a mobile-first intranet and communications tool that has a very modern ‘social media feel’,” says Simon Winkworth, Director at Mountjoy . He noted that with so many staff in the field or working remotely, it was “vitally important to provide a platform for improving employee communication and collaboration, engagement and experience… [Engage] was proven to work for companies with large and dispersed workforces.”Mountjoy’s approach included issuing new smartphones to staff and pre-loading the app with content, ensuring no one was left out. The result was immediate: every individual, from site technicians to office admins, suddenly had on-the-go access to company news, updates, and peer-to-peer interactions in one place. The familiar, social media-like design meant even those who weren’t tech-savvy found it easy to use. Early feedback was “incredibly positive, with many staff citing it as a great form of communication”, according to Mountjoy’s internal survey results.
These real-world examples highlight an essential point: mobility and inclusivity drive engagement. When engagement platforms are as easy and engaging to use as the apps people enjoy in their personal lives, adoption soars. TrustFord saw this with its Engage app rollout as well – achieving 100% colleague adoption across 68 locations, connecting over 3,000 colleagues on the platform . This included a large segment of their workforce that previously had no digital access at work at all. By removing barriers and making the experience user-friendly, Engage helped TrustFord turn a historically disconnected group into an engaged community virtually overnight.
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Transforming the Colleague Experience – And the Business
The move beyond traditional platforms isn’t just a tech upgrade; it’s a strategic shift in how organizations relate to their people. By adopting a colleague engagement platform like Engage’s, companies are seeing not only happier, more connected colleagues, but also tangible business benefits. Enhanced communication leads to fewer operational mishaps and faster problem-solving. For example, at TrustFord, what used to be pinned noticeboard updates became instantaneous alerts on everyone’s phone – a critical change that even aided in safeguarding operations during a potential cyber-attack, as leadership could quickly reach all staff to respond and adapt . Streamlining multiple processes into one app (from booking leave to accessing payslips) saves time and hassle, giving employees more time to focus on customers and their core work. TrustFord even replaced large in-person conferences with bite-sized leadership videos and quick quizzes sent via the app, recapturing time for employees to drive value for the business instead of sitting in day-long meetings . These efficiencies add up to a more agile, productive organization.
Crucially, the data and analytics from an integrated engagement platform provide HR and executives with insights that were impossible to get from disconnected systems. Leaders can see in real time which messages are landing, which departments are interacting more, or where there might be bottlenecks in communication. This data-driven approach means engagement strategies can be refined continuously. National Care Group, for instance, used engagement analytics from their platform to tailor content to colleague preferences and identify what communications were most effective . Such insights help ensure that initiatives like wellbeing programs or training drives actually hit the mark with staff. Over time, this creates a culture of continuous improvement in engagement – a stark contrast to the old “launch and forget” approach of an intranet site.
There’s also a powerful retention story here. As mentioned, NCG’s turnover dropped dramatically after focusing on colleague engagement. When people feel heard, valued, and part of a community, they are far more likely to stay. In an era where talent is hard to attract and even harder to retain, this is gold for HR leaders. Engagement is directly tied to retention – and retention in turn drives better customer service, internal expertise, and team stability. In other words, better colleague engagement feeds a positive cycle of success: engaged colleagues drive better outcomes, which drive business success, which further engages and rewards colleagues.
The HR Leader’s New Ally in Transformation
In the push for HR transformation, technology alone isn’t a silver bullet – but the right technology partner can accelerate and sustain change. Engage’s colleague engagement platform positions itself as exactly that kind of partner: future-ready, all-in-one, and deeply focused on user experience. It’s not just about deploying an app; it’s about rethinking the relationship between an organization and its people. HR leaders and executives who champion this approach send a clear message that they are investing in their colleagues’ experience, not just checking the box with a new intranet.
The credibility of this approach is reinforced by the voices of HR and business leaders who have led the charge. “The Engage platform has been a game-changer for us,” says Louize Carroll of Mytime Active, and that sentiment is echoed across industries. When a platform can unify a workforce under a shared sense of purpose and inclusion , as happened at NCG, HR can truly become a driver of cultural transformation. Colleague engagement becomes the foundation for broader HR initiatives – whether it’s embedding new company values, rolling out a change management program, or supporting diversity and inclusion efforts – because you have a direct line to every individual and an engaged audience willing to participate.
As organizations plan for the future, the writing is on the wall: simply managing employees is not enough; you need to engage and inspire colleagues. The next generation of workers expects consumer-grade technology and a sense of community at work. They are digital natives, accustomed to seamless apps and constant connectivity. Traditional platforms won’t meet those expectations. A forward-looking, mobile, and inclusive engagement platform is fast becoming as essential as payroll software or email – it’s part of the core infrastructure of a successful company.
Conclusion: A Future-Ready Engagement Partner
The future of employee engagement is already here – it’s just wearing a different name. Colleague engagement, enabled by modern platforms like Engage, is demonstrating how to unlock the full potential of people at work. By moving beyond the old intranets and isolated systems, companies are building vibrant colleague communities that drive productivity, loyalty, and innovation. The results speak for themselves: double-digit improvements in retention, dramatic rises in active engagement levels, and 100% connectivity across previously disconnected workforces . Those are the hallmarks of an organization that is not just surviving the changes in the world of work, but thriving and adapting to lead in its industry.
For HR leaders and executives, the message is clear. It’s time to retire the clunky portals and one-way communications of yesterday. Embracing a colleague engagement approach is not just adopting a new platform – it’s about adopting a new philosophy that views every interaction in the employee lifecycle as an opportunity to strengthen the bond between colleague and company. With a partner like Engage Solutions Group, which brings a mobile-first, all-in-one platform and deep expertise, making this transition becomes less daunting and more of an exciting evolution. After all, when your colleagues are fully engaged, supported, and connected, they’re not just employees anymore – they’re allies in your mission, and that is the ultimate competitive advantage in the future of work.
References:
Engage Solutions Group homepage messaging
https://www.engagesolutionsgroup.com
Frenkel Topping Group Case Study
“How Frenkel Topping Group’s engagement skyrocketed with Engage”
https://www.engagesolutionsgroup.com/employee/resources/how-frenkel-topping-groups-engagement-skyrocketed-with-engage
National Care Group Case Study
“National Care Group: Transforming Engagement with Engage”
https://www.engagesolutionsgroup.com/employee/resources/national-care-group-transforming-engagement-with-engage
TrustFord Case Study
“TrustFord: Revolutionising employee engagement with Engage”
https://www.engagesolutionsgroup.com/employee/resources/trustford-revolutionising-employee-engagement-with-engage
Mytime Active Case Study
“Mytime Active: Revolutionising workforce engagement with Engage”
https://www.engagesolutionsgroup.com/employee/resources/mytime-active-revolutionising-workforce-engagement-with-engage
Mountjoy Case Study
“Mountjoy builds better digital future for valued workforce”
https://www.engagesolutionsgroup.com/employee/resources/mountjoy-builds-better-digital-future-for-valued-workforce
