When it comes to your business, your employees are essential. You rely on them to run your business, talk to your customers, advise each other, and take the initiative when and where necessary. Trained staff are vital for any organisation. So, that means it is vital that you discover ways to keep your train staff happy, but how can you do this? Not all jobs are glamorous. Some can be dull and monotonous, but even though this may be true, you can find ways to motivate your staff and keep them happy. And not all these ideas are about pay.
Actually, when it comes down to it, pay is not the most important factor in retaining staff. Anyway, let’s have a look at how you can keep your employees happy in the roles:
The Work-Life Balance
If you can get this right, then you have a great chance of retaining staff. A lot of jobs out there leave very little free time for their staff after long hours in a dull office, sleeping, eating, commuting, and all the other factors that eat into free time. Life also includes the time that they spend in the office.
If you can create a dynamic place to be, with a good culture, in which employees feel a connection to the company or organisation they are working for, this helps create a much better work-life balance. Also, consider the hours. Is there any scope for Flexi hours or a shorter Friday? Or even doing their hours over four days or so. Does your business have to operate between 9 and 5? This is all food for thought.
The more flexible you can be, the more staff are likely to stick around for the long haul, even if you are not the top payer.
Keep Employees in the Loop
Create an atmosphere of we are all in this together. If you can create an organisation that allows your employees to have a say, allows their opinions to be heard, to make them feel valued, then this is a huge advantage over your competition which does not do this. Employees like to feel that they have an impact and that what they do and think matters. Perhaps you can champion open and honest communication as inherent in your company culture.
To keep your employees in the loop, have daily buzz sessions and weekly meetings where everyone is encouraged to participate. Advise your staff on things that you are planning on doing to progress the company into the future. Tell them the big picture, your vision and how you intend to get there. Request feedback and listen and take notes.
Remember, in many aspects, your staff knows how your business runs better than you so, so their opinions should be heard in terms of the reality of what is and what isn’t possible.
Transparency
As an employee, feeling like a mushroom – kept in the dark and fed, you know what – can be very frustrating. It also makes them feel uncertain about the future of the company and about their jobs. Could they be made redundant at a moment’s notice? Are they doing a good job? Will they be sacked?
To avoid hearsay, rumours, a drop in morale and everything else in between that happened as a result of secrecy, be as transparent as you can. This is closely linked to the above, but remember you should do this on the individual level too. Give your employees feedback. Let them know areas where they can improve, and let them know where you see them in the coming months and years. Honestly and transparency starts with you.
Opportunities
A great way to keep your employees happy is by providing opportunities. This usually is in the guise of furthering their careers, with the prospects of other roles within the organisation. However, there are other ways of offering opportunities, such as creating individual development plans, offering training courses to improve soft skills, allowing staff to use their own initiative more, and have an area where innovation is championed and thrives.
How about competitions and prizes, including days out and other benefits? There are many different types of opportunities you can take advantage of. Perhaps it is time you looked into what is possible and what is not within your company.
The Setting
Never underestimate the power the space your employees are supposed to work in has on their mental well-being and productivity. Things like natural light have a huge impact on how your worker feels, so you need to let in as much as possible. To do this, ensure that the windows are clean and that there is no furniture in the way. Perhaps have skylights installed. Take down walls that block light etc. also consider how colour affects mood and paint the walls in a colour that promotes a great work ethic.
Consider bringing the outdoors indoors by putting up a lot of potted plants. This can have the effect of relaxing your employees as well as making the air healthier. Also, is the place cool enough in the summer and warm enough in the winter? Perhaps you need to look at getting a new furnace or some church heaters, for example. How your staff feels is just as important in terms of setting. So, with this in mind, why not invest in ergonomic seating and adjustable desks, etc.?
Benefits
A good organisation always offers some fabulous benefits to their staff. This could be in many different areas, from more than the usual amount of holiday days, free private healthcare, cycle to work schemes, car schemes, insurances, free food and drink, a gym, free shares, paying for professional subscriptions, etc, there is a vast array of benefits your organisation can offer your staff.
What may be an idea is to talk to your staff and find out what would motivate them and maybe you could have a vote. If you can offer something that your staff actually want, then your benefits are far more powerful.
