#93 - Re-engaging the disengaged!
14 Jan 26
Not all disengagement is a motivation problem. In many cases, capable and committed people become stale because their role no longer stretches them or plays to their strengths. When traditional encouragement, coaching, and incentives fail to re-engage individuals, leaders should consider a different intervention: strategic redeployment. While redeployment carries risks around retraining and short-term disruption, these may be outweighed by renewed energy, improved engagement, and a higher likelihood of long-term retention.
What?
Most teams contain individuals who are no longer fully engaged but are also not overtly underperforming. They meet expectations, avoid conflict, and stay within the boundaries of their role - but the spark has gone.
Leaders often respond by increasing encouragement, setting new goals, or offering development opportunities. When these approaches fail, frustration builds on both sides. The assumption takes hold that the individual lacks motivation, when the reality may be simpler and more uncomfortable: the role no longer fits.
This is not a failure of character or commitment. It is often a signal that the individual has outgrown the challenge in front of them.
Why?
Encouragement works best when someone is struggling to believe in themselves. It is far less effective when someone is bored, constrained, or misaligned.
People disengage when:
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The work has become predictable,
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Their strengths are underused,
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Growth has plateaued,
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They feel boxed into a role with no meaningful evolution.
In these conditions, more praise or pressure can feel hollow. What is missing is not motivation, but novelty, challenge and purpose.
How?
Redeploying a team member into a different role, project, or operating context can reset their relationship with work. New challenges demand learning. New environments restore curiosity. New expectations can reignite professional pride.
This approach is not without risk. There may be a temporary drop in productivity, investment in retraining, and the possibility that the individual ultimately decides to leave. However, these risks must be weighed against the hidden costs of disengagement: reduced discretionary effort, cultural drag, and unplanned attrition.
When redeployment is deliberate and well-supported, it often results in higher engagement, renewed energy, and a stronger sense of loyalty to the organisation.
In Summary
Instead of asking, 'How do I motivate this person?', a more powerful question is:
'Where might this person thrive if I changed the challenge?'
High-performing leaders do not just manage outputs. They manage alignment between people and problems. Sometimes the most effective way to retain talent is not to double down on encouragement, but to change the role, change the context, and let energy return naturally.
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