The happiness of your workers can make or break a workplace. Therefore, in order for an organisation to thrive and be more productive, it is essential to take the time to develop your employees. This is because research has shown that employers have the biggest influence on the happiness, productivity and morale of their staff. In other words, it is the organisation that creates the environment in which both morale and productivity are shaped and valued.
Of course, it is also important to bear in mind that, like employee motivation, you cannot make an employee boost their productivity.
However, by rewarding and recognising a manager’s good work, for example - you can sow the seeds for this positive reinforcement to filter throughout the organisation.
Sociologist Alexander Leighton defines morale as:
‘The capacity of a group of people to pull together persistently and consistently in pursuit of a common purpose.’
And it is consistently proven that those organisations with high morale and happier staff tend to experience higher productivity and staff engagement. They also have lower employee turnover and absenteeism, a more positive workforce, and find it easier to attract and retain the best talent. Fortunately, there are many ways to help create a perfect workplace and boost employee productivity, including:
1. Having confidence in organisational leadership
When employees have confidence in the ability of their company leadership they tend to have positive morale. An example of this would be sharing a vision for where the company is heading; and feeling involved with its progress
2. Being a part of future success
It is proven that workers who believe their job plays an important part in the future success and/or vision of the organisation, have higher morale. This is because most employees want to feel as if they are part of a larger picture - and contributing to the greater good
3. Ensuring effective, harmonious relationships
Employee interactions with both their immediate manager and their co-workers play a huge role in determining employee morale. Indeed, when employees have effective and harmonious interpersonal relationships, they generally feel that coming into work is worthwhile – and not just a way of collecting a pay check
4. Being recognised for achievements
To bolster employee morale and create a positive working environment, it is important to treat your employees as one of your organisation’s most significant resources. This can be done by providing regular employee recognition of good work done, empowering employees to make their own decisions about their job, and offering regular and open communication, including feedback and coaching
5. Developing skills and abilities
As a responsible employer and to help boost workplace morale, it is a good idea to provide employees with relevant training and professional development. This may include free access to courses and training programs - or simply ensuring employees are managed within a positive success framework of goals, measurements, and clear expectations.
Lastly, there is no substitute for genuine interest and personal contact when it comes to building morale and positive employee relationships.
Thus, as a manager, always congratulate staff on life events such as new babies, birthdays or vacation trips.
And remember – sometimes it is the little things that can make the biggest difference to employee happiness and workplace productivity.