It shouldn’t come as a surprise that the working environment you create for your employees can make or break their time at the organisation. After all, it’s highly likely that many of your employees spend more time with each other than they do with their family, so it’s important to ensure that they’re spending their time in a positive workplace culture otherwise you could risk having dissatisfied employees who leave shortly after starting.
A positive workplace culture can not only be the difference between a satisfied employee and a dissatisfied one who quits early in their tenure at the company, but it can also help to keep your employees engaged with their every day tasks and responsibilities. Employees who don’t feel stressed and anxious about coming into work every day are more likely to take pride in their work and be more productive. So the benefits of having a workplace culture can not only help your employees and team, but also the organisation as a whole.
But, how do you create a positive workplace culture that helps your employees flourish? Here are three tips you can start incorporating in your company today.
Make sure your employees know what their responsibilities are
There’s nothing more unsettling to employees than not knowing what they are working towards. Without having a clear idea of what their goals and responsibilities are, employees can feel like they are out of the loop, which can result in an increase in their stress and anxiety levels while at work. So it’s important to be transparent with your employees about what their goals and objectives are. Make sure everyone on your team knows what their individual, team and organisational goals are. It can also be helpful to set up weekly or bi-weekly catch ups with each of your employees, and one with your entire team, to keep everyone on track and motivated about what they’re working towards.
Create an environment where your employees feel safe, included and trusted
In order to foster a positive workplace culture, your employees need to feel comfortable enough to be themselves and voice their opinions. This means creating an environment that has a zero-tolerance policy for any kind of workplace harassment or bullying. It also means creating a culture where every employee—regardless of their race, age, gender, sexual orientation and religion—has an equal opportunity for advancing in the company.
Your employees also need to feel comfortable and supported enough to speak up in meetings and voice their opinions. So the next time you have a team meeting or brainstorming session, try to give every employee in the room the opportunity to participate and express their ideas. This can not only help to create a positive working culture for your employees, but it can also boost collaboration and improve productivity within your team.
Don’t forget to recognise your employees for their hard work
Without occasionally recognising and rewarding your employees for their work, it can be hard to keep them engaged and satisfied in their roles. In fact, according to an Indeed survey, 16%1 of job seekers start looking for a new job when they don’t get recognised for their accomplishments at their current role. So it’s crucial to regularly recognise your employees for their work—whether that’s in your one-on-one, in the next team meeting or simply in an email.
If your company has a structured employee recognition program, then make sure all your employees are aware of how it works so they have a clear understanding of when and how they can expect to be rewarded. Your employees will appreciate the fact that you are transparent with them about what their career progression will look like at the company, which can in result help reduce employee turnover.
There’s nothing more destructive to a team or department than unmotivated and dissatisfied workers. So as a manager or department head, it’s your job to ensure your employees are working in a positive culture that helps them thrive and flourish in their roles. With these three tips, you can not only build that positive environment for your workers, but you can also help boost their productivity and morale, which will in turn help your employees, team and business excel.
Methodology: Indeed survey with Decipher/FocusVision, N=1,000
With more than 15 years of experience in the recruitment industry, Jay Munro has worked in a variety of roles in agencies and job boards, from consulting and recruiting, through to leading the product development of new sourcing technologies. As an Employer Insights Strategist with the Indeed Employer Insights Team, Jay pairs platform data with industry trend analysis to share Indeed’s story and bring the value of the company’s programs and solutions to life.