The Ken Blanchard Companies Launches Employee Work Passion Assessment Aimed at Resolving the Dramatic Decline in Federal Employee Engagement

The Ken Blanchard Companies®, an expert in leadership development and employee engagement, today announced its groundbreaking Employee Work Passion Assessment (EWPA), a research-based tool designed to address federal workforce disengagement and dissatisfaction, which can impair mission effectiveness. Built on Blanchard’s 35 years of applied best practices, the EWPA enables agencies to more effectively develop leadership capacity; improve workplace cultures; reduce unwanted turnover; and affect desired organizational change. This change results in improved productivity and better service to the American public.

“Federal workers have been through a lot these past few years – sequestration, shutdowns, pay freezes – and it has never been more vital to recruit and retain top talent,” said Peter Shelby, former chief learning officer at the National Reconnaissance Office. “We need to invest in our federal employees to create a better government workforce – one that is productive and passionate about making American lives better.”

The EWPA does more than any other engagement assessment tool available today. It measures and correlates 12 key factors across three categories: organizational, job and relationship. By connecting these factors with intention – the most accurate indicator of future behavior – the EWPA allows Blanchard to strategically measure engagement or work passion more accurately and effectively. As a result, Blanchard is able to design and deliver interventions that move and influence employee perceptions, intentions and behaviors in the desired direction.

The Need for a Federal Employee Engagement Framework

The federal government loses 19,000 work years annually due to sick days, many of which could be avoided by improving employee intention. With glaring deficiencies such as this coupled with the priorities laid out in the President’s Management Agenda, the need for clarifying an effective employee engagement framework is critical now more than ever.

“We are poised to continue our commitment to the world’s largest and most essential workforce through our Employee Engagement Framework and proven solutions which we have been perfected through 35 years of experience serving and satisfying tens of thousands of clients worldwide,” said Paul Wilson, vice president of federal solutions for Blanchard. “Since our inception, Blanchard’s singular focus, purpose and mission has been developing leaders at all levels, impacting employee engagement and optimizing organizational performance.”

Blanchard Solutions Move the Employee Work Passion Needle

Blanchard’s proven solutions can remedy the disengagement crisis that threatens the success of government agencies today. Not only do its solutions boost organizational productivity and efficiency, they also lead to more passionate and committed employees who are more likely to stay with their agency and promote public service. By partnering with Blanchard, organizations have realized the following benefits:

• Improved employee engagement by 20 percent
• Increased employee retention by 17 percent
• Decreased workplace injuries by 83 percent
• Increased training hours by 60 percent while reducing training cost by 65 percent

“Over the past three years, the level of federal employee engagement has fallen dramatically to an all-time low. For agencies to operate at maximum efficiency, employee work passion is a critical catalyst for success,” said Drea Zigarmi, Ph.D., world-renowned engagement expert, founding associate and senior consulting partner for Blanchard.

With the upcoming release of the 2014 Federal Employee Viewpoint Survey (FEVS) results, senior leadership and managers at federal agencies are seeking sustainable solutions to make systematic organizational change that result in increased employee engagement and organizational performance.

“The FEVS is essential to understanding employee satisfaction levels within individual offices and teams,” Wilson said. “The EWPA builds on these results, allowing agencies to focus on improving the staff, divisions and areas that matter most to their mission. Blanchard is able to utilize its experience and proven track record to help the government treat the most pressing problems and become the model employer of the 21st century.”

To learn more about the EWPA, visit kenblanchard.com/gov/ewpa.

About The Ken Blanchard Companies®

With more than three decades of helping leaders and organizations, more than 18 million books in print, programs offered in more than 12 languages, and clients across six continents, The Ken Blanchard Companies is recognized as one of the world’s foremost leadership, organizational and engagement consulting firms. The company’s groundbreaking thinking and memorable learner experiences create lasting behavioral change that has measurable impact on the organizations with which it works. Blanchard has partnered with federal, state, local and military agencies to develop leadership capacity, improve workplace cultures and drive organizational change and strategic alignment. Using a collaborative diagnostic process, Blanchard helps identify each agency’s unique needs and business issues, and then helps to develop an appropriate leadership strategy to increase employee engagement and organizational performance.

As the innovator of Situational Leadership® II—the most widely used leadership development system in the world—the company’s behavioral models add a situational context to the training experience so individuals learn to be more productive in real-world scenarios and make the shift from learning to doing more quickly and effectively. Learning takes place through multiple modalities, from virtual to instructor-led experiences.

To view Blanchard’s GSA Schedule catalog, please visit: kenblanchard.com/Government