Not all employees care about getting a pay rise. Of course, an increasing wage is a bonus, but there are many other factors employees appreciate at work. Keeping your staff happy is important. It doesn’t look good for your business if you have a high staff turnover and it negatively impacts work production. There are many ways to keep staff happy.  What do employees value most? Once you can answer that question, you’re on the right path.

1. Work-life balance

Employees value having a work-life balance. Staff can be tempted to look for other employment if they feel their job affects their home life.

As we’re working through the 21st century, we’ve seen more businesses relax the 9 to 5 office hours and introduce flexible working hours. As long as you complete your work to your deadlines, more employers are giving their employees freedom on their working hours and where they want to work.

In the UK, all employees have a legal right to make a flexible working request.

Employers can introduce core hours all employees have to work, but they can introduce flexible start and finish times to help staff feel happier at work.  Some businesses would struggle to introduce flexible working hours but if you can introduce them, it can increase office morale.

 

2. Transparency

In an employee engagement survey, transparency was voted the Number 1 factor for contributing to employee happiness in the workplace.

Some employees can feel like management is secretive about how the company is doing. This secrecy makes it difficult for staff to communicate with the higher ranks and they feel like they aren’t part of the company team but rather a working cog in a machine. Transparency gives staff the chance to know more about the business. As employees are working 40 hours a week at work, the place they work is a major part of their lives.

It doesn’t cost anything to be transparent with employees. Monthly or quarterly meetings on how the business is performing encourages staff to feel involved in the future of the company.

Being transparent is a great feature of a positive office environment.

 

3. Responsibilities

Most people don’t like being micromanaged. Feeling like your manager is supervising every action is stressful and can do more harm than good.

It’s empowering to know your manager trusts you to work independently and you have your own responsibilities.

Giving a colleague extra responsibilities shows they can be trusted and they’re a valued member of the team (teamwork in the workplace improves staff morale).

 

4. Career Opportunities

A common reason why many employees leave a job is because they feel like there is no career opportunities. 

If an employees plans to stay at a company for the long term, they will likely want to progress in their career. A career path shows there is more to offer them in the future if they work hard and provide good results, like: more responsibilities, higher salary, developing job role, etc.

When you hire new staff you should be asking them where they see themselves in the future. What type of career progression are they looking for? This information can help you prepare for the future and encourage employees to stay at the company for the long term.

 

5. Recognition

Most employees don’t expect a pat on the back every time they’ve done a good job. But they want their hard work to be recognised.

Employees will feel undervalued if they receive no recognition for any successful achievements. They are getting paid for their work but they won’t have any enthusiastic desire to overachieve or excel if they feel like their work won’t be recognised or appreciated.

If an employee doesn’t feel like their work is valued, they won’t feel like they are valued by the company.

 

The secret to creating a happier workplace for your employees

Employees value being appreciated. In the 21st century, more businesses are focusing on the well being of their staff and working towards creating a happier work environment. Our FREE eBook covers all the important features of successful modern offices. Learn how they succeed and how employees value working in a modern office: