Improving employee engagement is often a slippery subject. Everyone realizes they should be doing it, but few understand how to accomplish the goal. Should the company offer more perks? Should they redesign with a sleek, modern feel? Should they purchase the latest and greatest technological tools for employees to work with? All of these elements can play a factor in an individual employee’s level of engagement; however, if employee engagement programs aren’t well thought out—with clear direction and intended outcomes—at best they will putter along ineffectively and at worst they will backfire completely. When considering implementing an employee engagement program, consider these three categories: recognition, ease of service, and data gathering. Feedback and recognition are a crucial part of employee engagement. Giving a thumbs up to an employee who’s doing a great job will go a long way. It’s also important that employees can easily find the information they need to have access to, whether that’s benefits information or how to fix a technical issue they’re experiencing. Data analytics can also provide insight into problems management didn’t know they had, and offer unique solutions to keep employee’s happy and engaged.