Happy employees are productive employees. And when a business is at its maximum level of productivity, its competitive edge is sharp. So, it’s well worth your investment to build and nourish your company culture.
While every organizational culture is unique, a common denominator critical to success is having a safe, satisfying work environment that is fun – yet by no means equates to wasting anyone’s time on the job.
A culture that facilitates employee happiness means improved recruitment, lower turnover and overall enhanced performance. You can get there by:
Recognizing Milestones and Achievements
Making your employees feel appreciated goes a long way toward creating a positive company culture. Celebrating milestones and honoring wins builds morale by encouraging both the honoree and those around them. It sends a compelling message that important events are noticed and acknowledged.
- Make recognition personal. Whatever award you give, be sure it is meaningful to the individual receiving it. Google, one of the world’s most popular places to work, awarded a star employee with a week off for his birthday, because his young daughter wrote the company a letter and requested it.
- Celebrate birthdays and work anniversaries. These are meaningful milestones. Gather the gang together for a round of applause, an appropriate gift and words of congratulations.
Getting Out of the Office – Together
Give your team a break and get away from your worksite as a group. People will come back with increased focus and productivity.
- Take a field trip or have a party. It can be as simple as leaving an hour early and going to a local sporting event. Host a picnic in a local park or simply plan a happy hour once a month. December calendars are chock full, so why not plan a “beat the blahs” party for a date in January or February?
- Volunteer together. This not only enables employees to better get acquainted outside of work, it also serves your community. The latter, by the way, is a leading draw for top talent. Both current employees and prospects feel positive about a company that is a good corporate neighbor.
Making Social Media Social
Of course, you use social media to boost your business. Be sure to also use it to foster your positive culture.
- Engage both clients and employees. Keep conversations alive with topics that are both business-related and fun. Allow team members time to use their personal accounts to promote your products, services and/or job openings. Periodically, interject content that keeps them engaged and fosters their interpersonal relationships. For example, one employer used company social media to ask, “If you could go anywhere in the world, where would it be, and why?” Employees chimed in during their spare time and had a great time, which in turn led to higher on-the-job satisfaction.
Are you looking for more ideas to build your company culture in 2016? The workforce development experts at PrideStaff Fresno can help. Turn to us as you develop your industry-leading strategies for recruitment, retention and talent management. To learn more, contact us today.