Have you seen a decrease in energy or excitement amongst your team? Are you noticing more sighs and seeing more rolled eyes than usual? Or, are your team struggling to approach simple tasks with the same motivation they once had?
Establishing a positive company culture is vital for boosting staff morale, thereby ensuring your employees arrive ready to actively engage in the workplace instead of mindlessly going through their daily tasks. Failure to achieve this effective working environment may result in high turnover rates, dissatisfied clients and increased pressure through a lack of productivity.
So, in today’s article, we’ll be exploring the tried and tested tactics to help you motivate your team, allowing your business to thrive as employees will feel encouraged to perform to the very best of their ability.
But before we begin, what is employee morale? Employee morale is defined as the attitude, satisfaction and overall outlook of employees during their association with a business. And, it’s proven to have a direct effect on an individuals level of productivity. Therefore, it is vital as a business owner that you focus on the company culture of your organisation but how can you achieve an effective workplace environment?
#1 Streamline your businesses systems
Employees can quickly get disheartened if they are constantly battling outdated systems and longwinded, unnecessary processes. If they know a task could be shortened to just a few steps but they regularly have to go through twenty, they may begin to think the business is not looking to grow. If you can implement new developments that solve a common sticking point, your staff will see you actively noticing and taking on their feedback. What’s more, you may even find a solution from one of your employees.
Boosting staff morale requires transparency and honesty – you’ll be far more respected if you adapt to solve obstacles rather than trying to hide these problems away. Be sure to provide detail and inform your employees about company updates, new protocols and processes, customer feedback, and more.
#2 Recognise and reward employees
When, as a leader, you celebrate and show appreciation for good quality work, employees take a personal interest in the tasks assigned to them. They’ll feel empowered and will want to continue to perform well as they’ll know this hard work isn’t going unnoticed.
Employee recognition is a no brainer when it comes to boosting staff morale, it’s an easy and simple device to utilise within the workplace. Not only does reward and recognition make employees feel more valued, but it can also increase productivity and loyalty to the company, leading to high levels of retention. Your staff will feel confident that their own personal goals align with those of the company as you consistently show appreciation for their effort.
#3 Be open to feedback and proactively welcome discussion
Feedback is not just something that is “nice to have” nor should it be a once-a-year occurrence, it’s an essential tool when looking to boost staff morale. But, it isn’t enough to just collect employee feedback, you need to act on it too.
Often the change employees crave are inexpensive and achievable, these may range from more effective leadership, the ability to make an impact, career development or a mindfulness incentive. Consider going beyond the “my door is open” and instead actively search out for feedback, conducting ‘stay’ interviews. Ask questions such as “what keeps you here?” and “if you had a magic wand, what would you change?” to reveal potential opportunities to develop your company’s culture. As a result, you may see improved performance company-wide and increased employee engagement.
#4 Personal development and opportunity for growth
Having a purpose is key within the workplace; without it, employees will feel lost as they’ll have no goal to strive towards. Personal development doesn’t necessarily need to be a promotion, but 87% of employees report they want to progress professionally yet few receive any opportunity to grow. Instead, consider sending staff on a conference or course to upgrade their skill set. To truly begin boosting staff morale, you need to professionally motivate your employees and investing in their future is a fantastic way to start!
Not only will your staff feel a higher sense of job satisfaction, but it may improve their loyalty towards your business. You’ll be able to retain the top talent within your organisation and avoid costly high turnover rates. And, should this top talent decide to move on, it’s likely you’ll receive excellent feedback and employee recommendations as the opportunity for development is promoted as an advantage to working for you.
#5 Random acts of kindness!
Don’t underestimate the power of small gestures! When a new hire joins your team, consider asking them to complete a short questionnaire all about their favourites – sweet treat, flowers, magazine, sports team. Not only is this a great ice breaker, but by keeping this information on file you can call upon it when someone could use an extra pick-me-up.
Everyone appreciates random acts of kindness, and these gestures are even more meaningful if you’ve put time into investigating and remembering a small treat they especially love. Or, perhaps take your team out for a lunch after a particularly long and challenging week at work. These may not seem like major actions for you, but they have a big impact on your company’s culture.
#6 Build relationships outside the office
All work and no play is ineffective, and can actually reduce overall levels of productivity. It’s important to invest in team-building activities to create a collaborative and motivated work culture. This aids your team’s ability to problem-solve and fosters meaningful, open communication among peers leading to innovative thinking – keeping the creative juices flowing!
Traditional team-building has been largely disregarded, but you can use a variety of enjoyable and educational games which is guaranteed to give a quick boost to employee morale. Think outside the box and perhaps organise a quiz or murder-mystery evening to engage employees.
#7 Lead by example
Stress is inevitable as a business owner, but this negativity has an infectious effect. If you are knowingly approaching a busy season or challenging projects, it’s important to enter into this with a positive outlook and attitude that will reassure your employees.
Your team will always look to you to understand how to process what’s going on in your organisation, and the way you tackle the day can set the tone for your entire team’s approach. In addition to your attitude, ensure you actually take lunch breaks and balance your life with work. A mere 1 in 5 workers take their lunch break and the majority will feel pressured to work past their assigned hours, but if you can set the example and put boundaries in place to prevent this you can boost staff morale. When putting these boundaries in place, remember to show appreciation for the hard work of your team but hammer home the vital message that they should be enjoying their free time, allowing them ultimately to work more effectively.
Remote working and boosting staff morale: Why it’s crucial you don’t neglect your remote workers
Remote workers tend to feel neglected or isolated – they are out of the loop, voiceless and even lonely. But, the methods you use in-house to boost morale may not be transferrable. However, with the hybrid working here to stay and continuing to rise in popularity, you will need to understand how to ensure your remote workers feel included. It is critical to communicate – we can’t stress this amount! A lack of communication is bound to cause decreased levels of morale. So, ensure you video chat regularly and make work scheduling easier for your remote team; but, don’t micro-mange, trust that your staff will get the work done.
And, remember you can still show appreciation and recognise when an employee goes beyond your expectations – a mailbox brownie or flower delivery is sure to never go a miss!
The bottom line
The second you start to see a dip in employee morale whether there be an increase in turnover rates, less conversation or reduced performance levels, it’s time to take action. Your team’s morale should be a top priority for you as a business owner, you need to be consistent and strategic with your efforts to create a company culture in which they can thrive. Whilst a pizza party or yoga session can do wonders temporarily, it’s essential you listen to feedback, implement change and recognise hard work to make true long-lasting improvements to staff morale.
And remember, this positive work environment will not only assist your team but you too!
Are you looking to transform your business and improve your overall performance? Speak to one of our dedicated Azimuth experts today by contacting us at enquiries@azimuth.eu.com or call +44 (0)1483 24 33 81. We’ll be more than happy to discuss how we can help you and with over 20 years of experience across a range of industries, we have the innovative, proven tools that can help you unlock the true potential of your business. What are you waiting for?
Work with the experts you can trust. Azimuth, a new direction in learning.
