Here is a brief excerpt from an article written by Kevin Kruse for Forbes. To read the complete article, check out others, obtain subscription information, and sign up for email alerts, please click here.

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[NOTE: Click here for an updated version of this article that includes a larger list of research studies. -Kevin Kruse]

“Why employee engagement?” is a question I’m frequently asked. “Isn’t that just soft stuff? What’s the point in making employees happy?”

In my book, Employee Engagement 2.0, I explain that Workplace Superheroes are truly engaged and that doesn’t just mean “happy” or “satisfied”. It means:

Employee engagement is the emotional commitment an employee has to the organization and its goals, resulting in the use of discretionary effort.

An employee’s discretionary effort results in the Engagement-Profit chain. Because they care more, they are more productive, give better service, and even stay in their jobs longer. All of that leads to happier customers, who buy more and refer more often, which drives sales and profits higher, finally resulting in an increase in stock price.

Think that just sounds like academic theory? Think again. Below are 28 research studies that show a correlation between employee engagement and:

o Service
o Sales
o Quality
o Safety
o Retention
o Sales, Profit and Total Shareholder Returns

[Here’s the first of the six categories of correlation.]

SERVICE

Employees’ customer service productivity scores and their employee engagement scores had a correlation of .51. (Source: Linking People Measures to Strategy. The Conference Board)

In a major department store chain, customers scored higher in customer engagement measures when they were serviced in departments with employees who had high levels of employee engagement. (Source: Getting Engaged, Bates)

Teams classified as “high performance zone for engagement” had a 37% net promoter score (NPS) versus 10% NPS for teams “outside of high performance zone for engagement.” (Source: Aon Hewitt European Manager Survey 2011. Aon Hewitt)

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Here’s a direct link to the complete article.

Kevin Kruse is a serial entrepreneur and NY Times bestselling author, who has used a relentless focus on wholehearted leadership and employee engagement to build and sell several, multimillion-dollar technology companies, winning both Inc 500 and Best Place to Work awards along the way. He is also the author of several books including Employee Engagement for Everyone, Employee Engagement 2.0 ,and the NY Times, Wall Street Journal and USA Today bestseller, We: How to Increase Performance and Profits Through Full Engagement. Kevin writes regularly as a columnist for Forbes.com and American Express OpenForum, and has published over 100 articles for various publications on topics related to leadership, engagement and entrepreneurship. He delivers keynotes to audiences around the world.