The Best Ways to Keep Employees Happy
Happy employees are the most productive on your company’s workforce but keeping them happy does require some effort on the part of the manager or senior staff.
If your employees aren’t happy, they can easily go elsewhere for work.
No employee is obliged to stay with your company, so you have to try and earn their loyalty and make their job more than just a pay check – or why hire them at all?
Employee engagement may be a term that you hear thrown around a little too often, maybe it’s something you don’t believe in at all, but experts have proven that engaged employees are loyal, trustworthy, and more dedicated to their job than unhappy employees.
Engaging your Employees
First of all, the easiest way to have happy employees is to treat them less like an underling and more like a partner.
If your employees believe that they are dispensable, or they experience days at work where they feel they’re being talked down to, they are less likely to engage with your company.
Give them the ownership of their ideas, show them that you care about their development, and try to include all of your staff in employee meetings – even if that means the phones are unmanned for half an hour. Another section can cover it, if necessary.
Employees that feel like they’re a part of the bigger picture and more likely to perform well during their working hours, and they may even come back with more ideas than ever before.
Be transparent with your team, as much as you can.
If there is a change, ensure that you take a moment to talk everyone through it and let them know what’s happening, why it’s happening, and how it will affect them or their job.
Let your staff get familiar with other departments, as well as their own, and give them a chance to have an input.
Don’t be afraid to give them more responsibilities either but check that they have the time to take them on.
If they don’t, then don’t expect them to complete the extra work without overtime hours or consider paying them to work from home an extra day a week while they’re working on a new project.
Treat your Employees with Respect
Happy employees are respected by their supervisors, their managers, and their team.
There should always be a sense of mutual respect in a workplace setting – no one person should feel any less than another doing the same job.
That means equal pay, equal breaks, and equal opportunities for everyone – from full-time workers to temps on contract.
Recognise the progress and successes of your employees, no matter how small; especially if it’s a project that you’ve given them to do.
By showing that you’re interested in their work, your happy employees will be more likely to engage in staff meetings and put forward other ideas.
You should also trust your employees.
You can delegate tasks to them without micromanaging what they’re doing. The more your show that you trust them, the more you’ll see a change in their attitude towards their job.
Happy employees feel needed and wanted at work, rather than feeling like they’re just taking up space on the payroll.
And lastly, prioritise the work-life balance of your employees.
If you respect the employees that you have, you’ll respect the fact that they have lives outside of work. Perhaps they have children, or family that needs care, or they volunteer.
Embrace the lives of your employees, and give them the time off they need provided they can meet the reasonable work goals you set.
