# Enhancing Employee Engagement Through Skills Development and Technology
## The Challenge of Employee Engagement in Today’s Workplace
In recent years, employee engagement has become one of HR’s most critical yet challenging areas. The post-pandemic work environment brought us the Great Resignation, followed by what many now call the Great Detachment—a period where employees remain at companies physically but disconnect mentally and emotionally.
Carina Cortez, Chief People Officer at Cornerstone OnDemand, believes tackling this challenge requires a two-pronged approach:
1. Focused development of employee skills
2. Strategic use of technology that connects workers to their purpose
This strategy isn’t just theory—it’s being implemented at Cornerstone itself, where the HR team serves as “customer zero” for the company’s own talent management solutions, testing and refining them before market release.
## The Root Causes of Disengagement
Why are employees disconnecting? According to Cortez, the primary reason is surprisingly consistent:
“The No. 1 reason I see from exit interviews or even in engagement surveys about why people are not feeling engaged or leaving the company is usually about **career development**,” she explains.
Many employees feel stagnant in their roles and don’t believe their organizations are investing in their growth. This feeling of being undervalued leads to:
– Decreased productivity
– Lower job satisfaction
– Higher turnover rates
– Reduced innovation
Even when external job opportunities are limited, employees who feel their development is neglected will mentally check out from their current roles.
## Skills Development as an Engagement Strategy
Investing in employee skills development serves multiple purposes:
1. Reengages workers in their daily tasks
2. Provides tangible career growth paths
3. Contributes to overall business success
4. Addresses critical skills gaps
For organizations concerned about the “silver tsunami” of retiring workers, skills mapping becomes especially important. Identifying which critical capabilities might be lost allows companies to develop targeted mentoring and knowledge transfer programs.
### The Power of Mentorship
Mentorship plays a crucial role in skills development and engagement strategies. At Cornerstone, Cortez has implemented this through their Cornerstar Resource Groups (similar to ERGs at other companies).
“I’m a sponsor for our Unidos CRG, which is for Hispanic, Latinx employees,” Cortez shares. “We’re doing a session next month with a panel of individuals who have received mentoring and asked for help.”
Beyond formal programs, Cornerstone encourages informal mentoring relationships where senior leaders “pay it forward” by guiding newer employees. This approach is particularly valuable for:
– Underrepresented groups
– Young professionals
– Employees transitioning to new roles
– High-potential team members
## Technology’s Role in Modern Engagement
Today’s engagement strategies must incorporate technology in ways that resonate with different employee groups, especially digital natives like Gen Z who value efficiency and innovation.
“Making sure that technology is integrated into all of our processes, especially from an HR perspective, is essential,” Cortez explains. “But you have to strike that balance—automation and still having human intervention.”
### Innovative Engagement Tools
Cornerstone has experimented with cutting-edge technologies to boost engagement, including:
**Extended Reality**: The company created a metaverse environment to launch their new employee value proposition, allowing nearly 4,000 global employees to have a shared experience without travel.
The virtual environment included:
– Leadership videos
– An expo hall highlighting different aspects of their EVP
– Information booths about resource groups
– Interactive spaces for employees to connect
This innovative approach measurably improved employee connection to the company’s purpose—demonstrating how technology can strengthen engagement when thoughtfully implemented.
## Measuring Engagement and Acting on Feedback
Effective engagement strategies require robust feedback mechanisms. Cornerstone uses a multi-modal approach:
1. **Regular surveys**: Moving from bi-annual to three times yearly
2. **Focus groups**: Diving deeper into survey findings
3. **Verbatim comments**: Often the most valuable feedback source
4. **Multiple communication channels**: Videos, emails, all-hands meetings
The key to sustaining engagement through feedback is closing the loop. “The important thing is to always talk about what we’re doing and then keep communicating, ‘We’ve done these things as a result of the feedback that we’ve received from our employees,'” says Cortez.
Cornerstone provides leaders with engagement playbooks, conversation guides, and FAQ sheets to ensure consistent messaging across the organization. They also regularly remind employees about changes made in response to their input.
## Being “Customer Zero”: A Unique HR Advantage
For Cornerstone’s HR team, being in the talent technology space creates a unique opportunity—they can test and refine products before market release.
“I think the coolest thing for me about being at Cornerstone and in the HR tech space is the ability to be what we call ‘customer zero,'” Cortez shares.
This approach evolved from simply implementing internal products to a strategic partnership where HR:
– Aligns technology with organizational strategy
– Provides detailed product feedback
– Tests real-world implementation challenges
– Creates success stories for potential customers
When Cornerstone implemented their talent marketplace internally, initial excitement led to a usage spike that quickly dropped off. The HR team recognized that without supporting structures, the tool alone wasn’t sufficient. Their relaunch incorporated career pathing, development conversations, and mentoring connections—creating a comprehensive development ecosystem.
## Key Takeaways for HR Leaders
1. **Focus on skills development** as your primary engagement driver
2. **Create mentorship opportunities** between different generations of workers
3. **Leverage technology thoughtfully**, balancing automation with human connection
4. **Implement robust feedback mechanisms** and close the loop on employee input
5. **Test new engagement approaches** with small groups before full-scale implementation
By combining strategic skills development with thoughtful technology implementation, organizations can create an environment where employees feel valued, connected, and engaged in meaningful work.
# Enhancing Employee Engagement Through Skills Development and Technology
## The Challenge of Employee Engagement in Today’s Workplace
In recent years, employee engagement has become one of HR’s most critical yet challenging areas. The post-pandemic work environment brought us the Great Resignation, followed by what many now call the Great Detachment—a period where employees remain at companies physically but disconnect mentally and emotionally.
Carina Cortez, Chief People Officer at Cornerstone OnDemand, believes tackling this challenge requires a two-pronged approach:
1. Focused development of employee skills
2. Strategic use of technology that connects workers to their purpose
This strategy isn’t just theory—it’s being implemented at Cornerstone itself, where the HR team serves as “customer zero” for the company’s own talent management solutions, testing and refining them before market release.
## The Root Causes of Disengagement
Why are employees disconnecting? According to Cortez, the primary reason is surprisingly consistent:
“The No. 1 reason I see from exit interviews or even in engagement surveys about why people are not feeling engaged or leaving the company is usually about **career development**,” she explains.
Many employees feel stagnant in their roles and don’t believe their organizations are investing in their growth. This feeling of being undervalued leads to:
– Decreased productivity
– Lower job satisfaction
– Higher turnover rates
– Reduced innovation
Even when external job opportunities are limited, employees who feel their development is neglected will mentally check out from their current roles.
## Skills Development as an Engagement Strategy
Investing in employee skills development serves multiple purposes:
1. Reengages workers in their daily tasks
2. Provides tangible career growth paths
3. Contributes to overall business success
4. Addresses critical skills gaps
For organizations concerned about the “silver tsunami” of retiring workers, skills mapping becomes especially important. Identifying which critical capabilities might be lost allows companies to develop targeted mentoring and knowledge transfer programs.
### The Power of Mentorship
Mentorship plays a crucial role in skills development and engagement strategies. At Cornerstone, Cortez has implemented this through their Cornerstar Resource Groups (similar to ERGs at other companies).
“I’m a sponsor for our Unidos CRG, which is for Hispanic, Latinx employees,” Cortez shares. “We’re doing a session next month with a panel of individuals who have received mentoring and asked for help.”
Beyond formal programs, Cornerstone encourages informal mentoring relationships where senior leaders “pay it forward” by guiding newer employees. This approach is particularly valuable for:
– Underrepresented groups
– Young professionals
– Employees transitioning to new roles
– High-potential team members
## Technology’s Role in Modern Engagement
Today’s engagement strategies must incorporate technology in ways that resonate with different employee groups, especially digital natives like Gen Z who value efficiency and innovation.
“Making sure that technology is integrated into all of our processes, especially from an HR perspective, is essential,” Cortez explains. “But you have to strike that balance—automation and still having human intervention.”
### Innovative Engagement Tools
Cornerstone has experimented with cutting-edge technologies to boost engagement, including:
**Extended Reality**: The company created a metaverse environment to launch their new employee value proposition, allowing nearly 4,000 global employees to have a shared experience without travel.
The virtual environment included:
– Leadership videos
– An expo hall highlighting different aspects of their EVP
– Information booths about resource groups
– Interactive spaces for employees to connect
This innovative approach measurably improved employee connection to the company’s purpose—demonstrating how technology can strengthen engagement when thoughtfully implemented.
## Measuring Engagement and Acting on Feedback
Effective engagement strategies require robust feedback mechanisms. Cornerstone uses a multi-modal approach:
1. **Regular surveys**: Moving from bi-annual to three times yearly
2. **Focus groups**: Diving deeper into survey findings
3. **Verbatim comments**: Often the most valuable feedback source
4. **Multiple communication channels**: Videos, emails, all-hands meetings
The key to sustaining engagement through feedback is closing the loop. “The important thing is to always talk about what we’re doing and then keep communicating, ‘We’ve done these things as a result of the feedback that we’ve received from our employees,'” says Cortez.
Cornerstone provides leaders with engagement playbooks, conversation guides, and FAQ sheets to ensure consistent messaging across the organization. They also regularly remind employees about changes made in response to their input.
## Being “Customer Zero”: A Unique HR Advantage
For Cornerstone’s HR team, being in the talent technology space creates a unique opportunity—they can test and refine products before market release.
“I think the coolest thing for me about being at Cornerstone and in the HR tech space is the ability to be what we call ‘customer zero,'” Cortez shares.
This approach evolved from simply implementing internal products to a strategic partnership where HR:
– Aligns technology with organizational strategy
– Provides detailed product feedback
– Tests real-world implementation challenges
– Creates success stories for potential customers
When Cornerstone implemented their talent marketplace internally, initial excitement led to a usage spike that quickly dropped off. The HR team recognized that without supporting structures, the tool alone wasn’t sufficient. Their relaunch incorporated career pathing, development conversations, and mentoring connections—creating a comprehensive development ecosystem.
## Key Takeaways for HR Leaders
1. **Focus on skills development** as your primary engagement driver
2. **Create mentorship opportunities** between different generations of workers
3. **Leverage technology thoughtfully**, balancing automation with human connection
4. **Implement robust feedback mechanisms** and close the loop on employee input
5. **Test new engagement approaches** with small groups before full-scale implementation
By combining strategic skills development with thoughtful technology implementation, organizations can create an environment where employees feel valued, connected, and engaged in meaningful work.