The modern-day workforce has evolved from a mindset of “living to work” to “working to live” and with that transition has come a need to reassess what it means to have happy employees.
Since the onset of the pandemic, the employment landscape has switched to becoming a candidate-driven market and as the world, at large faces, a talent shortage employee retention has come to the forefront. At BCI Media, we work with companies large and small and know how important it is to each of you to retain the valuable staff you have. And, a big part of that retention is ensuring that you have a happy staff. That’s why today we have deviated from digital marketing to show you some tips on how to have happy employees.
Why is Employee Happiness Important?
Happy employees with positive attitudes are valuable assets for the company and your team. For one, positivity is contagious – when your staff consistently shows up to work radiating positivity – it spreads to those around them from coworkers to customers. Let’s take a look at some of the other benefits happy employees can have for a company.
Reduced Turnover
One of the best ways to keep turnover and churn at bay is prioritizing employee happiness. Unhappy staff members won’t hesitate to jump ship for a perceived better offer, but happy team members stay at their company 4 times longer, on average, than their unhappy counterparts.
Increased Productivity
Did you know that happy employees are 12% more productive than unhappy ones? They typically experience less burnout and stress, making them better able to focus on their work instead of their mood.
Increased Creativity
Unhappy employees tend to focus solely on their day-to-day tasks and fail to think creatively. By prioritizing happiness in the workplace, your employees are empowered to take in the big picture, dream big and bring new, innovative ideas to the table.
Happy Workers Work Smarter
Studies show that workers make better decisions when those decisions are not being clouded by fear and anxiety. Part of what inspires this behavior is the confidence that you, as the employer, instill in your team through respect and appreciation.
How to Measure Employee Happiness
Measuring employee happiness can seem like a tough task, but it doesn’t have to be. Have your managers conduct one-on-ones with employees to gain a pulse on happiness levels. Additionally, surveys offer a great way to uncover employee perceptions. Improve your accuracy scale by making them confidential to that there won’t be fear of repercussions for honest answers.
1. Prioritize Work-Life Balance
Things have changed in recent years and employees are putting more value on maintaining a work-life balance. That means that competitive wages are no longer enough to keep your workforce happy. Top employers take strides to ensure that a positive work environment is part of a fulfilling life by giving their employees the balance they need to thrive outside of the office as well. Accomplish this by having a flexible leave policy, annual vacations, and whenever possible, paid leaves for health-related issues.
2. Flexible Schedules
Sometimes simply referred to as “flex,” flexible schedules allow employees to work schedules that are more compatible with their lives. For example offer employees who have long commutes the option of arriving outside of rush hour to reduce commute time. Furthermore, remote work is becoming more and more favorable in the modern-day workforce. Offering work-from-home options whenever possible is a great way to improve employee happiness.
3. Transparency and Honesty
One of the most common complaints of employees is feeling like they are not sure what’s happening in their workplace most of the time. Companies have a tendency to inform employees only of key events but fail to give information about general workings and how they fit into them. Having a policy of being as transparent and open as possible can go a long way towards making your staff feel important and trusted. When your staff can clearly see their part in how your business works it allows them a higher sense of purpose within your organization.
4. Provide Clear Career Paths
Never make the mistake of assuming that where a person is today is where they want to be in the future. A big part of employee happiness is being able to see a future for themselves within your company. If the way up isn’t clear it’s easy to consider the job as temporary or “just a job.” When employees are given clear career paths as part of training and development, it greatly increases the chances of them remaining happy in the workplace and remaining with your company for the long haul. Provide your staff with opportunities like online training, certifications, mentorship, and cross-training, to increase employee happiness across the board.
5. Provide a Positive Work Environment
It’s hard to have happy employees in a dreary and impersonal work environment. Do what you can to bring in more light (natural if possible) add plants and allow employees to personalize their working areas. Celebrate achievements office-wide, proved company lunches, and in general create a safe and positive space. Remember that a full-time employee spends 40 hours a week in your office, and often sees their coworkers more than their families. Having a pleasant space goes a long way to keeping smiles on your staff’s faces.
6. Be a Good Listener
Big decisions, constructive feedback, or small complaints. If your employees are talking you should be listening. When making decisions, ask your staff their opinions if possible and prudent. It’s a win-win situation, by taking different voices into account, you may just gain valuable insight and strategy for the situation at hand and your employees will feel valued and trusted.
7. Recognize and Reward
A great way to improve employee happiness and morale is to offer praise and reward for a job well done. This however is one area where studies show that frequency is more important than size. Grand gestures can make an impact for weeks or months but smaller rewards more often will keep people happy longer. Even something as simple as a gift card, a free lunch, or a reserved parking spot will work as a reward as long as it is consistent. This one is yet another win-win for a company. Even small rewards will instill a feeling of pride in a job well done and along with increasing the happiness level of your office, they also encourage your staff to consistently perform better.
8. Teambuilding
Whether your staff is entirely remote, office-based, or a mix of both, team building is essential for the social dynamics of the company as a whole. For remote staffs, something as simple as gathering on a regular basis to play online games together or scheduling fun online courses are both great ways for your team to spend some time having fun with co-workers. For in-office teams, host social activities, pot-lucks, team sporting events, or even happy hours to give staff a chance to mingle in a more relaxed atmosphere.
9. Not Your Basic Benefits
As we said earlier in this article employee happiness is based on more than just a paycheck. Think outside the box of basic benefits like health and dental and offer perks that will spark joy in your staff. Concert tickets, movie passes, gym memberships, ski passes, national park passes, and more all fit into this category. It is important to provide higher benefits to show your employees that you truly care about them as individuals.
10. Thank You Goes a Long Way
It’s a simple thing really, but saying thank you goes a long way toward making your employees feel valued. When a job is well done or goes above and beyond, even if a reward is coming, take the time to first and foremost say thank you, as an employer, it’s a simple but effective way to show your appreciation.
Bonus Tip
Partner with BCI! The world of digital marketing is a rapidly changing landscape. If you and your employees are having a hard time keeping up with ever-changing trends, take the pressure off by partnering with us. From fully responsive web design to digital marketing, social advertising, SEO, Targeted display advertising, and more when you work with BCI Media, the results will speak for themselves and give you and your staff a whole new reason to be happy! Contact us today to see how we can help you have happy employees!