Workplace Morale
3 Tips for Getting it Right
Train Your Managers
Managers have the biggest effect on the level of morale in the workplace. A good manager contributes to a major retention factor for the modern-day employee. Therefore, training managers is paramount.
According to TINYpulse, a leading employee engagement platform, research shows that employees are 4 times more likely to look for another job when managed poorly. This just goes to show how big of a matter is employee management.
How can you train managers? Here a few tips:
- Educate the importance of their role
- Offer leadership training programs
- Enroll them in coaching workshops and courses
- Encourage transparency
- Help leverage technology
Communicate by listening
Communication is the key. Regularly interacting with your employees is a way of showing them that you are transparent and that you have a deep concern for their well-being. Having a better understanding of your employees’ perspective will help you identify what needs to get done to reinvigorate their morale.
One way to assess their inner feelings is by having employee reviews at least twice a year. This kind of survey helps you to determine how an employee might feel about his job and in the workplace. It also gauges the level of satisfaction they have working with your company. You might be surprised to know what they have to say. Use employee reviews as an opportunity for you to focus on the crux of the issue and how to resolve it immediately.
Another way to engage with your employees is by having regular team meetings. Compared to other meetings, this type of meeting highlights a sole topic: improvement. As a manager, your job is to talk to your employees about what works and what doesn’t work at your workplace. Let them say their thoughts aloud, and try to address every one of them.
Besides team meetings, regular one-to-one conversations with your team members is an effective way to determine how they feel about the type and amount of work they are being asked to manage. Do they feel overwhelmed with the amount of workload? Do they feel that their assignments are somewhat irrelevant to their skills? When you identify their needs and the projects that might appeal to them most, you can then make adjustments.
For some managers, they make it a habit to open their doors at all times. This is so that if employees have any problems and concerns, they can come in and talk to them anytime. When you make yourself transparent in the workplace, you let your employees feel that they can rely on you and that you’re willing to address their concerns and take action.
Give employees recognition
When you work in a fast-paced work environment with high levels of stress, it’s easy for us to forget to thank our hard-working employees. However, don’t let this prevent you from expressing heartfelt gratitude. Give employees what they truly deserve—praise. In fact, studies show that employees perform better when they receive recognition for their work. A simple reason is that people naturally want to feel appreciated.
Sadly, when employees feel that their work doesn’t matter or that they’re efforts are unappreciated, it decreases their morale and lowers the level of effort they put into your company. Much worse, you might end up losing one of your top workers.
Don’t ever let your team feel that way! Take time to sit down and tell them how much their work means to the company and most importantly, let them know that you highly value the work they put in. However, giving commendations doesn’t have to be flowery and exaggerated. A short, sincere, and specific compliment is enough to boost a worker’s confidence and self-esteem.
When you regularly give out employee recognition, you will:
- Boost employee productivity
- Raise profitability
- Retain top workers
- Improve employee loyalty
- Create a collaborative work environment
- Increase employee motivation
- Build positive engagement
To view our Full Course on this Topic, Please Click Here!
