One of your hardest tasks may be identifying there is a workforce productivity problem. Are efficiency levels low because of company culture? Are there internal situations not being addressed? Or does your company not have an accurate read on what’s happening with employees? While we’ve all experienced these struggles at one point or another, the next step is thinking about the solution to the problem.
According to a recent study by Deloitte, over 77% of employees feel a sense of burn out in their current job. In fact, burn out is a huge issue that affects employee happiness, efficiency, and productivity. Thankfully, this can be easily tackled.
We’ve put together a combo of short and long term approaches on how to boost employee happiness in the workplace.
- Improve Employee Onboarding
It’s simple, your new hire accepted and signed their contract and they have a guaranteed start date in 2 weeks. Unfortunately, that’s not always the case. As we’ve seen over the last year, this traditional mentality no longer applies as new offers pop up, better benefits arise, or employees even decide they’ve experienced fatigue or burn out and just need a mental break.
A recent recruiting study showed as many as 1 in 4 new hires quits before they even start. And out of those 3 who make it through the door, another 1 will leave within the first 90 days due to ineffective onboarding. But how do you fix it? By adopting and implementing an effective onboarding strategy which you can seamlessly integrate into your company culture and show new hires how much they have to gain.
Basic onboarding elements should include interactive surveys, extensive training, open feedback, check ins, and support. By spending a few minutes a day to foster employee insights, you can guarantee better retention and ultimately increased employee happiness as individuals will feel heard and valued. The goal is to make it quick and easy for employees to learn as much as possible while sharing their insights.
- Focus on Employee Training
Encompassed within employee onboarding is the importance of strong employee training however, it doesn’t stop there. While the initial training plays a critical role in preparing the new employee for their team and job, ongoing training helps foster growth and encourages employees to feel valued.
A Gallup report states over 88% of employees think their employer did a poor job with their onboarding and training process with a general lack of focus on employee improvement. This leads to a decrease in employee engagement, increase in employee turnover and general loss of productivity and happiness.
By implementing strategic training with interactive feedback loops, employers better their odds of retaining great talent and making their employees feel valued.
- Encourage Flexible Working
We’ve all experienced remote or flexible working by this point but many companies are unfamiliar with how to maintain employee happiness and productivity within that environment.
By adopting (and understanding) agile working practices, you give your employees flexibility that better suits their needs. Does Sally work better at a standing desk by a window, whereas Andrew works better at home 2 days a week? If possible, the flexible work environment empowers employees to take ownership, manage time and needs, and work on their strengths. Effective check ins (especially those with pre-surveys) allow employees to inform their managers and team leaders how they are performing and what they need help with. Scheduling these on a recurring basis can boost employee engagement as well as they know there is a dedicated time and place to discuss.
“Flexible working is about bringing people, processes, connectivity and technology, time and place together to find the most appropriate and effective way of working to carry out a particular task.”
The Agile Organisation
- Ask For Feedback
Employee feedback is vital for every organization. It allows managers to improve on communication strategies, training, team structure, and even product awareness. The easiest way to capture feedback is through automated, scheduled surveys where employees have an interactive experience where they can provide thoughtful responses. Leadership should then be able to collect that data on a concise dashboard to monitor and take action where needed.
It’s important to recognize the importance of feedback from employees as well. Once they feel valued and heard they’ll be more likely to give feedback and greater responses. It provides them with a sense of accomplishment for their hard work and efforts, ultimately improving their workplace productivity.
Recognition is a key motivator for employees and provides them with a sense of accomplishment while making them feel valued for their hard work and efforts. Not only does appreciation encourage employees feel more confident in themselves, but it also improves productivity in the workplace.
Employee appreciation statistics speak for themselves. In an employee engagement survey, over 72% of personnel said they would work harder if they were appreciated by the company.
- Value Transparency
Possibly one of the most vital steps is valuing transparency. It’s important to be clear, concise, and transparent with your employees about all facets of their work. Don’t be afraid of anonymity though – especially when it comes to feedback as this can allow for more transparency on the employee’s behalf as well.
While many organizations are frightened by being too transparent and flexible with employees, empowered employees are 23% more likely to offer ideas, solutions, and honest feedback, thus creating a better work environment.
There’s no doubt that many organizations are experiencing an employee happiness slump, but this lower productivity doesn’t have to be permanent because you have the ability to give both new and existing employees an outstanding experience.
If you are interested in administering your own surveys and collecting feedback, get in touch to discuss PassPoint’s A.I.-driven HR chatbot that can simplify the entire process.