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Its hard to be successful without a smile. Whether youve won a marathon or your company is leading the industry, if youre at the top of your game, chances are youre feeling pretty good about yourself.
But does success lead to happiness, or the other way around? It turns out that when managers nurture a workplace culture that creates happy employees, theyre promoting a more productive and effective team. Our infographic (below) shows how happy workers impact the bottom line, how you can help workers optimize their work habits, and how happy, successful employees mean a win for everyone.
Five ways to create happy employees
1. Empower your employees with a sense of ownership
Empower your employees to take on a feeling of ownership of their project, including taking responsibility in the decision-making process and having a voice in determining how things are done. This helps them become more actively engaged in their project, and more personally invested in the outcomes. How does this impact your business? With as much as a 30% increase in revenues, according to one case study.
2. Challenge your employees to leave their comfort zones
How has Google become one of the most innovative companies in the industry? By creating room in their business model for experimentation – and failure. Googles “fail fast” policy encourages employees to be constantly experimenting, provided they quickly identify and address what doesnt work. This empowers the team to tap into a level of creativity and enthusiasm that is not possible at other companies.
3. Be flexible
When a good management team extends forward a little flexibility, their team reciprocates with loyalty and high morale. One great case study of this is the experiment conducted at the Best Buy headquarters, where employees were allowed to make their own hours and were evaluated on their performance alone. Productivity quickly rose by 35%, and morale was at a peak. The experiment was so successful that Best Buy launched a five-year plan to integrate the practices into other areas of the company.
4. Nurture a sense of purpose and meaning in the work
If you love your job, you live it. When a manager can help their team recognize the meaning and purpose in the work they do, they approach their job with strong morale and a personal sense of mission. One case study, which focused on engaging long-term healthcare workers and giving them a sense of purpose, resulted in a 60% drop in absenteeism, a 75% drop in employee turnover, and a 10% increase in reported job satisfaction. A culture of teamwork began to flourish, and job satisfaction soared.
5. Dont use paid incentives as a crutch
When it comes to motivation, cash is not king. The younger generations identify a rewarding job as one with many opportunities for professional growth, many chances to become upwards-mobile in the company. They also appreciate the opportunity to participate in a company that respects a work-life balance.
And when it does come to cash rewards, a little can often go a long way. For example, a survey conducted by Parago, an incentive consulting firm, found that 60% of workers would be happy for an end-of-year bonus of just $25.
Let our people work for you!
At Adecco, we understand what it takes to bring successful outcomes through workforce management. Whether youre a large company in need of workforce management solutions or a small business in need of a flexible, customized solution, were there for you.
To find out how we work with you to bring
talent to your organization, contact us today.
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