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7 HR Strategies for Improving Employee Onboarding
Employee onboarding is a crucial and challenging process for organizations and HR professionals. There are diverse aspects to consider, from ensuring that new hires have all the required information to integrating them into the company culture. With that said, the endeavor can significantly impact an organization’s success.
Unfortunately, too many companies still struggle with getting it right. Improving your onboarding process doesn’t have to be arduous, though. Here are seven strategies to make your employee onboarding process more effective.
1. Define Your Onboarding Goals
Employee onboarding is the process of getting new hires to adjust to the culture and become productive team members. It encompasses the activities after completing the recruiting process, from orientation to training to socialization. Hence, it's essential to have a robust onboarding program to help new employees hit the ground running and turn into productive members of your team quickly.
The first step in crafting your employee onboarding process is to define your goals. For example, do you want workers to be productive as soon as possible? Do you want them to feel like they're part of the team and clearly understand company culture? Defining your onboarding goals upfront will aid you in creating a process tailored to achieving them.
2. Create an Employee Onboarding Plan
Once you know what you want to achieve, you can start putting together a plan of action. Effective employee onboarding doesn't happen overnight—it's a process that takes time. However, a well-designed program enhances new hires’ onboarding experiences. In turn, these can help increase job satisfaction and retention rates.
When creating an onboarding plan, it’s vital to examine the organization's requirements and the program's goals. Once you’ve defined these elements, you can begin to create a detailed employee onboarding plan. Some integral components of an onboarding program include orientations, training, and social events.
Employee orientations provide new hires with basic information about the company, such as its history, mission, and values. Training aids employees in gaining the skills and knowledge they need to perform their duties and routine tasks. Social events allow employees to meet their coworkers and get to know the organization's culture.
A recent report cited that 61% of companies estimate new employees to stay with them for an average of two years. Hence, employers must conduct the onboarding process for several months to maximize this number. Regardless, the employee onboarding program length will vary depending on the organization's size and the job role's complexity. However, ensuring enough time for employees to complete the entire process is crucial.
Besides those mentioned above, the onboarding plan should also be flexible to accommodate changes throughout the employment course. Companies can effectively assist employees in transitioning into their position by carefully planning and designing employee onboarding programs.
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3. Prep All Onboarding Materials in Advance
One of the most crucial moves you can make to ensure a smooth and successful employee onboarding process is to prepare all the necessary materials and information in advance. This step includes creating employee files, gathering new hire data, and assembling onboarding packets. Other required paperwork may include employee contracts, tax forms, and benefits information.
Additionally, see to it that you have a plan for orienting new hires to your company culture and values. This measure could include providing an employee handbook or holding culture training sessions. Remember, sending materials in advance gives new hires time to read through them and answer any concerns before their first day on the job. It also lets the employee know you’re excited to have them on board and that you prepared for their arrival.
Other items you may include in your onboarding package are an employee manual, company history, job descriptions, and contact details of key staff members.
4. Assign an Employee Onboarding Point of Contact
Reports indicate that 86% of employees decide to stay with a company when they have access to mentors. Thus, an onboarding point of contact is essential in transitioning new employees to their jobs and workplaces.
This individual can be a mentor, coach, or even a friend within the organization. The goal is to have someone the employee feels comfortable talking to about anything and everything related to their job.
Likewise, the assigned point of contact must be knowledgeable and qualified to educate a new hire about the company and their position. In addition, they should be able to provide guidance and support while allowing the new employee to take ownership of their role. Ultimately, assigning a point of contact can help ensure a gradual adjustment for the new hire and the rest of the team.
5. Make Use of Employee Onboarding Technology
As any employer knows, onboarding new employees can be time-consuming and challenging. Aside from training staff on company policies and procedures, you also need to help them meet coworkers and understand the job's expectations.
Again, the purpose of the process is to help new hires feel comfortable and productive in their current role. Today, many companies are turning to employee onboarding technologies to achieve this task. These innovative solutions help streamline the onboarding phase by providing new hires access to pertinent data and resources. Designed to enhance employee experience, it can also assist in tracking employees' progress and identifying areas for additional support.
With organizations increasingly embracing remote work, employee onboarding technologies will become even more critical. It can help guarantee that new hires always have the resources they need to be successful no matter their location. Moreover, implementing the best HR software systems in 2022 will ensure your team is always up-to-date with the new recruitment and onboarding technologies.
“Interim Healthcare SLC needed HR technology, and we’re pleased with the results we’ve gained from LIKE.TG’s solutions for recruiting, onboarding, and employee engagement. Yet it’s an opportunity for all Interim franchises. It would be so great if each franchise owner could implement similar solutions to replace legacy systems that might not work as well as they should.”
Michael Hawkins Franchise Owner of Interim HealthCare SLC
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6. Encourage Social Interaction and Networking
Companies understand that employee onboarding is a critical time for social interaction and networking. When staff interact with each other, employers help them form bonds that’ll last long after the onboarding process is over. In addition, encouraging employees to network helps them develop the skills and connections they need to be successful in their careers.
One of the best ways to motivate social interaction and networking during employee onboarding is to host a series of events or activities. These initiatives include team-building exercises, group outings, or even taking new hires out to lunch with their coworkers.
You can also host social events, such as happy hours, or create opportunities for employees to work on projects together. Similarly, you can encourage workers to participate in professional development activities, such as conferences or networking events. Remember, employees form bonds when allowed to interact in a relaxed setting.
By taking these simple steps, you ensure your employee onboarding program fosters positive social interactions and helps new hires feel welcome in their current workplace.
7. Evaluate and Adjust Your Onboarding Process as Needed
Organizations should regularly evaluate and adjust the employee onboarding process to ensure efficiency and effectiveness. Your onboarding process will also need to evolve as your business grows and changes. Some of the variables that can impact onboarding are company size, industry, and turnover rate. Additionally, employee demands will shift over time, so it’s vital to be flexible and adaptable.
Equally critical is to check indicators such as employee satisfaction, productivity time, and company policy compliance. If you’re seeing any red flags in these areas, it’s time to take a closer look at your employee onboarding process and make some changes.
Furthermore, make it a point to collect feedback from new hires who have recently gone through onboarding to evaluate the process. Employers can use this feedback to identify areas for improvement and make changes accordingly. Finally, keep up with best practices in employee onboarding and implement revisions as needed to stay ahead of the curve.
Reinvent Your Employee Onboarding Strategy
Employee onboarding is a process that can make or break the success of your new hires. Ongoing evaluation and adjustment of your strategy are key to ensuring that it continually meet your organization's short and long term goals.
By implementing the human resource strategies listed above, you can deliver a smooth and successful transition for new employees, resulting in a more productive and cohesive workforce. Remember, though, that what works for one company may not work for another, so prepare to experiment and look for what works best for your team.
Author Bio
This article is written by a marketing team member at LIKE.TG. LIKE.TG is a leading provider of proven HR solutions, including recruiting, onboarding, employee communications engagement, and rewards recognition. Our user-friendly software increases employee productivity, delivers time and cost savings, and minimizes compliance risk.
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6 Tips to Creating a Winning Hybrid Workplace for Your Business
The hybrid workplace is a relatively new concept that is becoming increasingly popular with businesses of all sizes. Many business leaders are even terming it the future of work. A hybrid work model combines traditional office space and remote working arrangements. This arrangement can provide many benefits to businesses, including increased flexibility, reduced overhead costs, and improved employee productivity.
If you are considering implementing a hybrid workplace for your business, there are a few things you should keep in mind to ensure success. Here are six tips for creating a winning hybrid workplace for your business:
1. Make Employee Engagement A Priority
Engaged employees are more productive, more satisfied with their jobs, and more likely to stick around in the long run. Gallup found that engaged employees improve earnings by 23% and sales by 18%. The following photograph shows added benefits of engaged employees.
But despite its importance, employee engagement remains a challenge for a hybrid workplace. For one, hybrid workplaces can be challenging to navigate, with different departments and teams operating in silos.
So, you must develop a positive workplace culture where employee engagement is a priority if you want to see results. Here are a few more tips for boosting employee engagement in the hybrid workplace:
Communicate regularly: Promptly share company updates, news, and information about upcoming events and initiatives.
Offer opportunities for growth: Offer training and professional development opportunities and regular performance feedback to help employees reach their full potential.
Encourage input and feedback: This can be done through employee surveys, focus groups, or one-on-one conversations. You can also use pulse surveys to collect feedback continuously.
Recognize and reward employees: Consider offering bonuses, awards, and other forms of recognition to those who go above and beyond.
Keeping your hybrid employees engaged can improve productivity and deliver a positive employee experience. It gives you satisfied employees, helping to reduce turnover and create a more positive hybrid work environment.
2. Be Inclusive
Creating an inclusive environment where everyone can thrive will help create sustainable models of success. It’s one of the critical remote employee retention strategies. Inclusivity is vital to creating community and connection within your hybrid teams. It is the act of including all people, regardless of their background or identity, in the activities of a group.
However, it is crucial before you hire people to learn how to start a business that caters to all individuals, regardless of race or sexual orientation.
To be inclusive in a hybrid workplace, it is crucial to be aware of the different needs and preferences of different groups of people.
Salesforce, for example, clarifies its inclusion awareness and what the brand does to be as inclusive as possible. For instance, the company hosts an annual Trailblazing Women Summit to enhance the conversation around gender equality.
Some ways to be inclusive in a workplace include:
Creating a code of conduct and a process for handling harassment and discrimination. This will create a place where everyone feels safe and comfortable in the workplace or learning environment.
Encouraging open communication. Talk to your coworkers about their needs and preferences, and be willing to compromise when necessary.
Promoting cross-generational mentoring. Senior employees can mentor junior employees and vice versa, which can help reduce stereotypes and build relationships across generations.
Fostering a company culture of inclusion. Make sure everyone in your workplace feels welcome and accepted, regardless of their background or identity.
Ensuring everyone feels like they have a voice in the company by providing platforms like Zoom and Slack where they can give opinions can help get these things done in a hybrid workplace model. Through online communication, you can make remote employees feel included. It also ensures everyone has an equal opportunity to participate in decision-making. All this will help you create a winning workplace culture that’ll help you retain employees and boost and boost their performance.
Also, as a leader, be careful of your cultural biases, be open to hearing feedback about your own behavior and adjust accordingly. Finally, encourage people to advocate for inclusivity in the workplace this will promote an inclusivity culture which leads to a healthy hybrid workspace.
3. Ensure There Is Flexibility
A flexible workplace culture gives employees more control over their work lives. This leads to increased loyalty and motivation since it shows you trust them and helps attract and retain top talent. Flexibility is even more critical in hybrid workplaces since employees will not always work from the office.
You can give flexibility to your hybrid workplace by offering telecommuting options for employees. This allows employees to work from home or another location of their choice. You can also allow them to adjust their hours or take time off when required.
In the table below, you can see more flexible workplace arrangement options you can consider.
It's also essential to communicate with your hybrid human resources about what might be possible for work flexibility.
You can also use SaaS marketing tools to create a flexible workplace that adapts to the needs of your employees. For example, you can use them to create customizable employee profiles. This way, employees can enter their preferences and needs into the system, and the system can then match them up with the right job roles.
4. Optimize All Your Meetings
No matter how well you think you have planned and executed hybrid meetings, there is always room for optimization. After all, meetings are essential to doing business and getting things done.
You can do a few things to optimize all of your meetings for a hybrid workplace. Ensure that all your employees know the meeting schedule, the purpose of the meeting, and what they need to do to participate.
Create an agenda for each meeting and send it out to all participants ahead of time. This will help everyone stay on track and make the most of the meeting time. According to this research, stated objectives and plans are critical to effective meetings.
Also, ensure that all your meeting tools (like video conferencing software) are up-to-date and easy to use. Last but not least, once the meeting is over, be sure to follow up with your team. A follow-up meeting can help ensure everyone is on track and that the project is moving forward as planned. You can follow up via email or another communication tool.
5. Focus On Time Management
In today's workplace, with increasing demands and ever-changing deadlines, it is more important than ever to manage one's time effectively.
Time management is a critical skill in the hybrid workplace. It can help increase team productivity and ensure they work more efficiently, helping them get more done in less time. Here are a few pointers to improve your time management skills.
Set realistic goals for your employees: Employees working with clear goals may push themselves and feel connected with big-picture projects, increasing productivity.
Use time tracking software: It helps your remote team to enhance their time management skills and meet deadlines without sacrificing quality. These tools also support performance management as they can help you track the productivity of your entire team.
Encourage communication: Team and project health depend on communication about task progress. Effective communication keeps you informed and helps you take action if a project is delayed. Consider employing WhatsApp Business platform for collaborate communication purposes
Allow your team to decline tasks: Delegate decision-making and task-setting to your team. That will boost meeting deadlines and prevent team members from being overwhelmed.
Regular check-ins with your team: You must check in and motivate your team to drive initiatives ahead.
Time management can be challenging under pressure or with many deadlines. So, plan ahead and focus on time management.
6. Tracking Goals And Performance Metrics
One of the most important aspects of any business is ensuring that employees meet their goals and perform to the best of their abilities. By setting clear goals and tracking employee progress, you can ensure that everyone in the company is working towards the same objectives.
Additionally, by monitoring employees' performance, you can identify any areas in which they may need additional training or support.
Performance tracking can be done in several ways, depending on the company's needs. Some key metrics to analyze your hybrid workforce's performance and impact include:
Employee satisfaction levels: Employee satisfaction can impact the long-term success of your company. Employees leave easily when they’re not satisfied with a certain workplace. Their performance also tends to drop, affecting customer experience and sales. Therefore, you must track this metric. You may assess employee satisfaction using eNPS or a Salesforce survey.
Productivity levels: Measuring worker productivity reflects how workers have successfully adapted to hybrid work. It may be measured by analyzing employee work volume and time spent. You can also use software to track employee activity and productivity. This can help identify areas in which employees may need improvement or support.
Engagement levels: Employee engagement contributes significantly to a company's long-term success. You can measure employee engagement via a survey, one-on-one meetings, and an analysis of the outcomes.
Retention rates: Employee retention is the proportion of long-term workers. To calculate, divide the number of workers who remained by the number at the start of the term, then multiply by 100.
You can also use a spreadsheet or create a list of goals and performance metrics to measure your hybrid work performance. Here's an example of a performance spreadsheet. It includes performance metrics and personal objectives.
It is also crucial to track progress regularly and revise goals as needed. This will ensure that employees are always working towards the desired outcome.
In Closing
Leaders today are tasked with the unique challenge of developing a hybrid workplace strategy that meets the needs of their employees while also being mindful of the company’s bottom line. The answer lies in creating a winning hybrid workplace that is both effective and efficient.
There are many things to consider when creating a winning hybrid workplace. But we hope that these six tips we’ve discussed will provide you with a solid foundation. Make employee engagement a priority, be inclusive, ensure flexibility, optimize all your meetings, and focus on time management. Finally, track goals and performance metrics and review them often.
What strategies have you found work best for your business? Let us know in the comments below!
Author Bio:
Austin AndrukaitisEntrepreneur Leadership Network WriterAustin Andrukaitis is the CEO of ChamberofCommerce.com. He's an experienced digital marketing strategist with many years of experience in creating successful online campaigns. Austin's approach to developing, optimizing, and delivering web-based technologies has helped businesses achieve higher profit, enhance productivity, and position organizations for accelerated sustained growth.
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Recommendation systems for recruitment: an overview
Following the digitalization of the job market, including a growing reliance on free job posting sites for e-recruitment and the emergence of remote working models, the reach of the recruiting and job-hunting process has massively expanded. As a result, the traditional pool of candidates and job ads has turned into a vast ocean of potential recruits and open positions.
Crafting a winning job post is one of the strategies for attracting top talents. For example, LinkedIn reports that 95 job applications are submitted every second on its platform and that each week, 50 million users access it to search for jobs.
This certainly represents a tremendous opportunity for both hiring managers and job seekers. However, the ability to post your jobs on a platform with a virtually unlimited outreach would end up being counterproductive without proper tools to filter the most relevant options, as recruiters screening hundreds of candidates are well aware of. And that's where machine learning-based recommendation systems for recruitment come into play.
The role of recommendation systems
Recommendation systems for recruitment are powered by computer algorithms and designed to route professionals toward an open position matching their aspirations and expertise, or companies toward suitable candidates based on their business requirements. These tools, currently implemented by all major employment-oriented online platforms and social media, can perform a variety of HR-related duties, such as:
Segmenting professionals into sub-categories or archetypes depending on their profile information (country, previous work experience, skills, certifications, and more) and behavioral patterns (such as likes, shares, comments, and browsing history).
Segmenting employers and their respective job listings data based on the industry, location, current staff, open positions, requirements, and more.
Providing employers with a list of potential candidates, sorted by relevance, while targeting job seekers with tailored recommendations regarding the most interesting job opportunities.
Suggesting the best certifications and highlighting the core strengths to compete for a certain position.
Thanks to their segmentation and matching capabilities, recommendation systems for recruitment can act as a catalyst to connect professionals and corporations on the job market. Furthermore, they can easily mitigate the so-called information overload suffered by HR departments when flooded with thousands (or millions, as for multinational corporations like Google) of applications. For example, a recruitment proposal can help you revolutionize the way you segment and attract top talent, making your hiring process efficient and engaging like never before.
However, the above wouldn't be possible without the essential contribution of machine learning algorithms. So, let’s better frame this technology and its actual application in this field.
Why apply machine learning in e-recruitment
Nowadays, any advanced recommendation engine for recruitment relies on machine learning to peer into data and provide relevant suggestions. Specifically, this subset of AI strictly related to data science and analytics concerns the creation of self-learning algorithms that can process data, spot key variables and recurring patterns among them, and create models representing such relationships.
As the name suggests, a core strength of machine learning algorithms is their ability to learn and improve through experience. Specifically, they can identify more and more correlations as they process new data and refine their models to provide a more truthful portrait of the scenarios and dynamics examined. Once a model has been trained with enough data, it will be leveraged by a machine learning system to process new datasets and provide valuable insights or predictions.
For example, the ML algorithm powering a recommendation engine for recruitment can be "fed" with datasets collected through a professional networking platform. After proper training, the algorithm may observe that having a certain qualification or trait in the user profile generally results in a greater chance of being hired by a specific type of organization, be it a large IT corporation or a small business. Thus, the engine will start recommending properly qualified professionals to that employer and vice versa.
ML algorithms for recruiting
How the aforementioned routing process takes place depends on the algorithms used and the recommendation system design approach. Regarding the first point, researchers have tested several machine learning algorithms whose performance could actually range according to the operational scenario, including the number of platform users and relevant metrics to consider.
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Among the algorithms typically implemented in this kind of software solution, we may count naive Bayes classifiers, K nearest neighbors, random forest, support vector classifiers, logistic regression, and gradient-boosted decision trees. The latter, for example, have also been adopted by LinkedIn for its well-known Recruiter feature.
As for the design approach, this aspect of recommendation systems deserves its own section.
Types of recommendation systems for recruitment
Similarly to their eCommerce-focused versions, recommender systems for recruitment can be built according to three major design approaches defining the underlying mechanisms for providing recommendations.
Collaborative filtering
E-recruitment recommendation engines embracing this approach base their suggestions on similarities among users. Indeed, they recommend candidates that other companies with similar requirements have already expressed an interest in or suggest jobs that other professionals with common traits have previously applied for.
Thanks to their ability to accurately frame users based on context-aware variables and identify non-linear relations between them, collaborative filtering engines currently represent the most successful segment of the recommendation system market, so much so that major hiring platforms such as LinkedIn and Indeed rely on similar tools.
Content-based filtering
The focus, in this case, is not on the relations among similar users, but on the convergence between similar items. In a real-world recruiting scenario, the “items” are online job ads or candidate profiles. The recommendation system will examine job seekers' preferences for certain ads and recommend new job listings sharing similar features with the previous ones. At the same time, it will assess recruiters’ interest in specific candidate archetypes and suggest other profiles with similar characteristics.
This implies the analysis of features from user profiles, curricula, and cover letters (such as age, language, skills, education, and more) and job descriptions (including employer, industry, country, responsibilities, etc.). The aforementioned information is typically extracted by identifying specific keywords and concepts via natural language processing technologies.
“Interim Healthcare SLC needed HR technology, and we’re pleased with the results we’ve gained from LIKE.TG’s solutions for recruiting, onboarding, and employee engagement. Yet it’s an opportunity for all Interim franchises. It would be so great if each franchise owner could implement similar solutions to replace legacy systems that might not work as well as they should.”
Michael Hawkins Franchise Owner of Interim HealthCare SLC
Learn More
Hybrid approach
This hot trend in recommendation system design is aimed at combining the key strengths of both approaches at the cost of creating a more complex architecture and requiring more computing power. Such systems rely on different hybridization techniques to provide job and candidate recommendations, including the creation of a single processing pipeline in which the result of the collaborative part becomes the input for the content-based phase.
Reshaping the job market with algorithms
While human relationships and networking will always remain staples of job search and recruiting, we can expect a growing role played by recommendation systems and machine learning algorithms in our professional lives.
But if it's true that online recruitment and the possibility to post jobs for free on global platforms have turned the job market into an ocean of opportunities, ML-powered recommendation systems will act as a beacon to guide ships to a safe harbor, or skilled professionals toward a company ready to value their expertise.
7 Components of Human Resource Software Development
The human resources (HR) department is key for every organization. They enable everyone to carry out their roles and responsibilities seamlessly.
The HR department has loads of responsibilities to fulfill, from managing employees’ information, recruitment, and hiring to evaluation and retention.
Efficient data management at each stage is required for the HR team to work at their optimum best. Wondering how this can be done seamlessly and reduce their burden? It’s high time to think about HRMS (Human Resource Management System). This software can lessen a lot of burden for the human resource department, such as paperwork management, employee management, and ensuring employee satisfaction.
HRMS effectively cuts down the excess amount of work and helps standardize the normal HR tasks. It actually helps save a lot of time by storing all data in one single place and structuring all the essential administrative tasks.
It saves time and effort by storing the complete information and data in one place only. Plus, it also helps in structuring administrative tasks.
That’s why organizations have shown their interest in adopting such software. It’s worth mentioning that global human resource technology is projected to grow from $24.04 billion in 2021 to $35.68 billion in 2028 at a CAGR of 5.8%.
Before moving ahead, let’s understand what human resource software is.
An Overview of Human Resource Software
The human resource software is also called human resource management systems (HRMS) or human capital management (HCM) software.
It is basically all-in-one software, which enables management to perform several functions. The main purpose of this specialized software is to increase the productivity and efficiency of HR activities by consolidating data and automating manual repetitive tasks.
How to know if you need Human Resource Software?
Is the HR department of your growing business finding it difficult to carry out day-to-day operations? Do you feel the need for a centralized system for streamlining HR operations? If so, then you need to invest in human resource software.
Sometimes it can be tricky to determine if you need HR software or not. Here’s a small list of situations in which HR software might be the perfect addition to your list of tools.
If your employees work in different locations and there’s no one-stop employee communication platform to communicate with each other, you should invest in custom software development services.
If the workload of the HR department is too high and they do not have enough time to manage all the tasks, then you should consider a human resource software solution.
If you can’t manage applications, on-boardings, and payrolls efficiently, then it’s high time to pick one of the best software development companies.
7 Components of Human Resource Software Development
If you have made up your mind to select the best human resource software, it is essential to have a software solution with full-fledged features that can meet your business needs. Let’s have a look at some of the must-have components of HRMS.
1. Payroll management
One of the core features should be payroll management in an HRMS. Undeniably, there is a growing workforce all over the world. Hence, there is a high demand for this.
The primary function of payroll management is to calculate and pay salaries along with taxes and deductions and manage the printing of paychecks. The HR team can track employees’ wages and salary rates, issue cheques, and automatically run payroll. It also keeps account of allowances, overtime rates, etc. The best part about this is that it can reduce the risks of errors during payroll.
The automatic tax computation functionality of the payroll management feature helps you avoid errors in taxation. Moreover, automating payroll can offer even more great advantages, such as:
Tasks can be done with minimal time and effort.
No need to put manual data inputs.
Easy access to everything that you want to check in a fraction of a second.
Any inaccuracy in payroll can lead to a disaster for an organization. It is important that it should be well-managed. So, you should adopt this technology to minimize human errors and increase accountability in order to efficiently manage paychecks, control pay schedules, and ensure accuracy.
2. Analytics document management
Talking about corporate data, human resource management is considered a vulnerable one. This is because such data includes the personal financial details of employees. That’s why organizations should be careful about their sensitive data and information. An ideal HRMS comes with SSL systems and secure transmission of data, which encrypts all the information when it gets transferred over the Internet.
It also helps your organization to analyze information in real time and make the best decisions. Basically, it works on a data-driven approach. It includes images, messages, emails, electronic documents, files, MIS reports, document sharing, employee mood monitoring, and exit process management.
3. Onboarding
Onboarding is a process in which new employees are integrated into the organization. When it comes to the onboarding module of an HRMS, it automates the whole process of introducing new employees to their respective managers and teams. With less effort and minimal time, it can be done effectively. It also automates the onboarding processes like setting up user accounts, security access, entry passes, etc.
It cuts down the time and helps to be productive by automating lengthy paperwork. Therefore, new employees can start carrying out their responsibilities sooner.
4. Recruitment
Recruitment is one of the essential yet daunting tasks of the human resource department. Finding an ideal candidate with the right experience, attitude, and skill set is often challenging. Without an ATS the recruitment component is particularly designed to streamline the lengthy recruitment process. It helps with job postings, talent acquisition, the interviewing process, and the selection of suitable candidates.
5. Performance management
Now, the next must-have component of HRMS is the performance management system. It allows you to measure employee performance based on different parameters. You can set goals, and keep track of their progress and performance. The component organizes all the relevant information in one place. You can quickly evaluate the performance against the KPIs (Key Performance Indicators) assigned to the system.
6. Time tracking leave management
This must-have component can store time information and generate reports, attendance, and leave records. It can also have employee self-service (ESS) functionality, which empowers employees to see their schedules, check-ins check-outs, leave requests, and balances.
Retail and food-related businesses should not miss out on this component in their HRMS. Since, such businesses work on a shift basis, staying in touch with employees from various shifts becomes difficult for the management. With the help of HRMS, the communication between employers and employees gets streamlined. Ultimately, it leads to efficient workforce management. If you have more than 50 employees, then you should go with this since managing the attendance and leaves of a great number of employees can be a strenuous task. Better automate it to stay behind the hassles.
7. Benefits management
A must-have component in HRMS is benefits management. It helps with delivering benefits to employees, including extra perks, healthcare insurance, pension schemes, parental leaves, etc. This benefits administration module helps organizations streamline the whole process and tracks data for compliance purposes.
Conclusion
Undeniably, the HR department of every organization is packed with responsibilities. However, implementing a proven modern solution like HRMS can help you provide more quality control and allow you to collaborate seamlessly with your employees.
It’s high time to invest in HR software solutions that best fit your needs. It not only helps your business grow faster but also makes your business efficient enough to stay ahead of the competition.
Now you have a good understanding of must-have components that every organization should invest in. If you think we've left some, then you can share it by commenting below. We’d like to hear from you!
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About Author:Hardik Shah is a Tech Consultant at Simform, a digital product engineering company. He leads large scale mobility programs that cover platforms, solutions, governance, standardization, and best practices. Connect with him to discuss the best practices of digital product engineering cloud transformation @hsshah.
16 Important Tips to improve employee loyalty
In a workplace, how your employee feels hugely impacts your company's productivity. So, whether you are recruiting new employees to the company or reducing employee turnover, prioritizing employee loyalty is a key factor.
Nevertheless, it is challenging for companies to keep up with the demands and needs of the new generation of employees.
According to the Global Benefits Attitude Survey between December 2021 and January 2022, 53% of employees are actively searching for new employment opportunities or at risk of leaving.
It shows that the struggle is not to hire new employees but instead to retain and engage the employees.
However, there is no need to worry. A loyalty program can make employees more likely to stay with an organization.
So, here is a handy guide that will help you to explore 16 essential tips to improve employee loyalty.
What is Employee Loyalty?
Employee loyalty refers to the feelings that bind employees to their current employers and prevent them from seeking greener pastures elsewhere.
Loyal employees give their 100% and devote themselves to the success of their company. They put their efforts into meeting the organizational goal. Further, they don’t look for alternative employment opportunities as they plan to remain with the organization.
Employees show their loyalty when they are paid well, mentored, empowered, trusted, and challenged. Further, they stay in the company for a long time when they are promoted, involved, appreciated, and valued. Employees should have the feeling that the organization wants the best for them.
Why Is Employee Loyalty Important?
For the development of any organization, employees are a valuable asset. Recruitment, training, employee salary, and benefit costs represent a substantial investment. And loyal employees in the workplace can improve the daily operations of an organization. Your company will see a positive impact from them.
Employee loyalty in the workplace is essential for a number of reasons. There are several benefits of employee loyalty.
Loyal employees are more likely to stick around during difficult times. This can be important for businesses that experience periods of instability or decline. Hence, it is beneficial to implement a robust employee engagement strategy.
Here are several reasons employee loyalty is vital in the workplace:
1. Improved productivity
Employees with positive attitudes and motivation can pass the same energy to other employees. And loyal employees are always dedicated to improvements and the organization's success.
They are less likely to call in sick, take extended breaks, or engage in other behaviors that can hurt productivity. So, your productivity levels are most affected by loyal employees.
2. Impact customer experience
Employees who value their company can communicate these values to customers through daily interactions. As a result, your company's reputation will increase among the community, and your customer loyalty will increase.
Further, they will make the people feel and understand your organizational culture.
3. Enhance growth and improvement.
Often, loyal employees adopt and adjust new policies or changes first or act as change agents. By doing so, improvement efforts can be more effective, and organizational growth can be achieved.
4. Increase hiring capabilities.
Besides reducing employee turnover, it can attract new talent. Employees who feel valued in a company will also recommend other job seekers to work for your company.
So you can hire new talents to fill the vacant positions.
5. Healthy work environment
Finally, loyal employees tend to be more positive and supportive of the company. So it can create a better work environment for everyone.
Overall, employee loyalty is important because it can lead to increased stability, productivity, and positivity in the workplace. These benefits can be especially important for small businesses or businesses that are going through tough times.
Why do employees leave?
There was a time when employees wanted the security of their jobs only. But today, they want more than that.
Multiple roadblocks hindering the employee lead to them leaving their jobs. Some of the reasons why employees leave their jobs are listed below.
1. Lack of career development
A report from Statista shows that 41% of employees quit their previous job due to a lack of career advancement.
Career progression shouldn't be stunted for any employee. Employees will likely look elsewhere unless the company communicates and provides clear growth opportunities.
2. Inadequate compensation
Also, according to the same report above, 36% of employees leave the job because of inadequate compensation. So, you need to ensure that your staff is compensated fairly and in line with industry/market standards.
3. Lack of recognition
A lack of recognition or appreciation for employees' hard work eventually leads to unhappiness and low motivation.
4. Ineffective leadership
Leaders can significantly affect employee morale, whether they are CEOs or direct managers. Chaos can quickly occur when work environments lack clear goals and effective leadership.
5. Poor work-life balance
Setting realistic boundaries and expectations with your team is vital to maintaining employee satisfaction and promoting a healthy work-life balance.
How to build employee loyalty commitment?
You can do a few key things to build employee loyalty and commitment within your organization.
- Ensure you know your company's mission and values and that your employees know them.
- Provide opportunities for employees to grow and develop within the company.
- Give employees a sense of ownership in the company through stock options or profit sharing.
- Create a positive and supportive work environment where employees feel valued and appreciated.
Doing these things will create a strong sense of loyalty and commitment among your employees. However, to know the best tips that help you to improve employee loyalty and retention, continue reading the guide.
16 Effective Tips To Improve Employee Loyalty Retention in 2023
Avoid any communication gaps.
It is important to have an open communication channel to keep the employees loyal to their company. The employees should feel free to discuss the issue and give feedback about the work.
You should engage your employees in the workplace. Engagement can be either physical, cognitive, or emotional. Make sure there are no communication gaps between team leaders and members.
When you have all of your workers on-site, this isn't a big deal. But if you have remote workers, you should make sure they communicate well.
Communication tools at work include video conferencing software, instant messaging, and voice calling.
You can use your regular mobile or landline for an audio call. However, using virtual phone numbers is best for avoiding the communication gap within the company.
Understand what your employees need and try to cater to them
The major concern of almost every employee is that no one listens to them. But employers should listen to their needs.
Employees who feel fulfilled by their jobs do not search for other opportunities. Provide an efficient way for employees to express concerns or share ideas. It is easy to provide your employees with the type of benefits they prefer once you know what they like.
Take feedback and act on them.
Stop Conflict Before It Begins witha Culture of “Thank You”
Does your organization foster a culture of micro-rewards and gratitude? If you’re not sure or the answer is “no,” your company culture could be contributing to workplace conflict. Building a culture of “thank you” can be difficult (especially with remote teams), but it doesn’t have to be! Learn more in our eBook, "10 Free / Low-Cost Employee Recognition Ideas.”
Learn how!
Employees and management should have a continuous feedback channel. Don't assume what your employees need or want. Ask them directly what is working for them and what isn't.
By doing this, you have the chance to collect valuable feedback.
The employee's feedback may not be possible to address directly. But it is still worth exploring whether a mutual course of action can be agreed upon.
But employees may not wish to give their opinions if their feedback is not acted upon.
Acknowledge their good work and appreciate them.
Appreciating employees' hard work is one of the best ways to increase employee loyalty and promote growth.
So, managers or supervisors should appreciate whenever an employee goes beyond what is expected and performs well. You can use either a no-cost or low-cost employee recognition program to implement them.
Further, public recognition is an effective way to motivate your employees. You can use the Wall of fame to recognize their efforts in work socially. Seeing that their efforts are appreciated makes them feel motivated and valued.
You can also use sticky notes to write genuine appreciation and stick them in front of their desk or on the wall of fame.
However, providing your employees with negative feedback is also important, as long as it’s constructive.
Help employees with their work-life balance
Your employees may go through so much in their personal and professional life. So, it may be hard for them to manage their personal and professional life.
Whether they need financial help or extra days' leave, consider it. Prioritize your employee’s wellness because it will increase employee loyalty.
Address toxic workers.
An American survey found that 82% of workers would quit their job if their manager were a bad manager. A toxic person can make the whole workplace toxic.
An environment that is toxic can affect someone's mental state and reduce their productivity since it is impossible to work in such an environment.
So, make sure to deal with that toxic managers and decrease the turnover rates.
Offer competitive fair compensation and pay rise.
Provide a competitive salary to a deserving candidate because one reason employees leave the job is less salary.
Paying competitive salaries to high-turnover employees is an excellent way to maintain loyalty within your company. When filling difficult positions, high salaries can help relieve stress.
Offer incentives and perks.
Besides direct compensation, you can offer incentives. When employees have stock options, they are more likely to connect corporate success with personal success. It encourages them to work harder toward company success.
Offer great perks to your employees to build loyalty between employer and employee. Invest in perks like free time, gym memberships, flexible scheduling, employee discounts, health plans, and personal development programs.
Company swag items you can use as incentives include branded drinkware, food trucks, hybrid workplace essentials, tech items, travel essentials, and more.
Give responsibilities and ensure professional growth.
Workers want to develop skills and grow in their careers. So by acknowledging their skills and experience, you should assign responsibilities and ensure their professional growth.
Employers seeking long-term employee loyalty can increase employee loyalty by providing latitude in their roles.
Co-create your strategy
Top-down loyalty strategies are not effective. Managing and leading shouldn't be the only people responsible for creating and implementing it. They should discuss it with other workers too.
If you want a high engagement between employees and managers, it's better to co-create your strategy. It will help you to design a strategy that will help your company and individual.
Ensure a positive and safe work environment.
“Our staff has praised the increased communications level Workmates delivers. We use it to communicate important project matters and give staff specific ‘kudos’ or even recognize their birthdays. More importantly, we use Workmates to clarify important project details that needed rapid dissemination among the entire team.”
Christopher Baggott Chief Executive Officerator of Medlinks Cost Containment, Inc. and Medlinks Staffing, LLC.
Learn More
Employees should not experience a sense of dread when they come to perform duties in the office. No one likes to hear disrespectful comments, be treated badly, or act in a negative manner.
So, create a work-positiveenvironment and make your employees happy. Owners must promote an open, respectful, patient, and tolerant company culture. Even when a problem arises, solve them calmly without making the environment chaos.
Offer flexibility in work.
By providing your employees with flexible work hours, you allow them to plan their schedules according to their lifestyles and needs. It will generate more productive employees.
Increasingly, people are working from home with multiple responsibilities daily as remote jobs become more prevalent.
Most people say they don’t want to leave the company because they have such flexibility. So, a flexible working schedule is vital.
Invest in education, training, and development
According to the report, 86% of millennials would stay in their current jobs if their employers offered training and development.
Improving the skills of your employees in the workforce by investing in education and training is a win-win strategy.
Not only will it help you increase your company's productivity, but it will also increase employees' loyalty.
However, before organizing any type of training, you must understand the types of education your staff wants. So, you must communicate with employees. Recognize the jobs of employees and provide them with the training needed to them.
The education or training can be related to either manager coaching and mentorship, stretch assignments, or online training sessions and webinars.
Remove unnecessary uncertainty and insecurity.
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Doing tasks that are not necessary for now might frustrate your employees and decrease your business revenue. So, eliminate such unnecessary tasks.
Further, uncertainty is a common feature of the workplace today. Innovation constantly disrupts previously stable markets during a time of rapid economic change.
Employees can be unhappy living in an environment where their future is unsure. So when they are stressed, it reduces the company's productivity.
Even though you cannot fix the economy, you can help your employees cope with changes by providing notice and briefing them.
Conduct recreational programs and celebrate milestones
Celebrating milestones is another way to show your employees their dedication and loyalty are appreciated.
Thus, if you want your workers to stick around your company, it is essential to appreciate them and celebrate employee milestones.
Whether it's work anniversaries, the biggest achievements, or a birthday, celebrate them, offer a gift card and make your employee feel special.
Encourage teamwork
The employees should not feel alone in doing the work and that the management is not helping them.
Employees get to know each other better when they work together on tasks. Further, they feel more loyal to the company and team when they share a common goal.
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Conclusion
To be successful, an organization must have loyal employees. In today's automated, fast-paced, technology-oriented world, time is money and everyone is looking for ways to save time. In such a situation if you'd think keeping employees engaged and happy is easier than ever, then you are wrong.
However, to solve this problem and keep your workforce engaged and motivated, check out these essential tips for improving employee loyalty in 2023.
FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions
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What are the main factors that can increase employee loyalty?
Some of the factors that increase employee loyalty are:- Salary- Active participation and interaction- Recognition and Rewards- Goal Setting- Leadership- Training and development,- Job security- Flexibility balance between work and life,- Empowerment.- Employee Engagement
How do you keep employees loyal?
The things that you should consider to keep employees loyal are:
- Competitive Salary- Motivation and Appreciation- Career development and growth- An open line of communication- Flexibility- Positive work environment - Reward and incentive for High Performance
How do I win over my employees?
You'll need to show them that you're a competent and trustworthy leader. Here are some ideas for achieving this goal:
- Be a personality- Show your ability- Arrive early and stay late- Be collaborative- Tackle issues- Provide occasional treats- Be discreet
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What are the Levels of Employee Engagement
In today's fiercely competitive market, employee engagement has evolved into a fundamental factor in business success. High levels of engagement strengthen organizational performance and stakeholder value while encouraging talent retention, fostering customer loyalty, and improving customer satisfaction. Retaining talented employees is a major concern for most businesses in the rapidly evolving modern business environment.Are you aware of the term "war for talent"? It refers to the phenomenon of businesses finding it difficult to retain top employees. This is due to a skills deficit and employee expectations. Prospective employees now assess not only the perks of working for a company but also the company's beliefs and growth prospects. In other words, you must have a strong employee engagement strategy to stay ahead of the competition and survive the "war for talent”.
Levels of Employee Engagement
To evaluate the changes in American workforces, Gallup launched an employee engagement tracking survey about 20 years ago. The study examined common elements and grouped them into 3 types of employee engagement based on commitment and dedication. The three levels of employee engagement are: actively engaged, not engaged, and actively disengaged.
Companies can benefit from this model to further understand the importance of employee engagement. The model can help companies increase productivity and commitment within the company.
1. Actively Engaged
Actively engaged employees are heavily invested in and passionate regarding their work and the company. They want to drive their company to success with their productivity and high performance.
Engaged employees believe in their company’s ‘customer first’ ethos. They demonstrate leadership, enthusiasm, creativity, ambition, tenacity, and a strong work ethic.
Actively engaged employees:
Offer creative ideas for enhancing operations.
Take on initiatives that will benefit the company.
Support the company's vision and beliefs.
Show pride in their company.
Exceed expectations.
Create bonds within the company and motivate their colleagues.
Are resilient when faced with obstacles and pressure.
Maintain a positive outlook on the future of the business.
2. Not Engaged
Not engaged employees are emotionally disconnected from their work and workplace. As a result of their demands not being adequately addressed, they only invest hours in their job, not their passion or drive.
Consider an employee who completes their job but is motivated by responsibility and a monthly salary instead of interest. A not-engaged employee will prefer to stay low and decline particularly demanding tasks.
Not engaged employees:
Perform the bare minimum to survive.
Don't make recommendations for enhancing processes.
Don't like change or growth.
Will constantly criticize the organization or become uninterested.
Are reluctant to go beyond their duties and responsibilities.
Don't respect the company's goals and objectives.
Prefer working alone and are not team players.
3. Actively Disengaged
Actively disengaged employees are not just dissatisfied at work. They are also disappointed that their demands are not addressed by their workplace. These workers potentially undercut the efforts of their motivated peers every day.
An actively disengaged employee wastes time criticizing other colleagues, ongoing projects, management, etc. They may wish to discontinue their tenure at the company. As a result, they may actively be looking for alternative career opportunities as well.
Actively disengaged employees:
Through their statements, make it obvious that they do not wish to work for the organization.
Sabotage the efforts of their teams, management, colleagues, and the company.
Claim credit for another person's work.
Blame their lousy performance on a lack of resources.
Are outspoken about the issues with the company.
Spread damaging information about the company outside work.
Are not receptive to learning or growing.
Complain about the company's flaws instead of suggesting remedies.
Are not team players.
Introduction to Conflict in the Workplace(and How it Erodes Productivity Culture)
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What Factors Cause Decline in Employee Engagement?
Lack of Confidence in Leadership
Employee engagement is greatly influenced by the interactions between employees and their management. Psychologically absent leaders don't take the opportunity to get to know their employees. They fail to give adequate guidance and constructive criticism. Apart from not showing appreciation, they may also micromanage their teams. They struggle to develop strong ties with their teams and frequently claim credit for the achievements of their teammates. Excessive stress and poor morale can eventually cause employee disengagement. The three main factors that contribute to employee disengagement are:
poor leadership,
a lack of mentors,
and a poor working relationship with superiors.
Limited Growth Opportunities
Career growth and opportunities are significant factors that influence whether an employee will continue with your organization. Therefore, you must give your employees the necessary training and learning opportunities for them to be more engaged in their jobs. Without the same, employees may struggle to understand how to progress in their professions. They may also be unable to place their line of work within the hierarchy of the organization. Employee disengagement could result from insufficient training and development (LD) initiatives.
Poor Reward and Recognition Program
If your employees are delivering their best work but do not gain recognition for their accomplishments, they may burn out and stop caring about their job. Poor, impersonal rewards and recognition programs will be ineffective and may potentially harm employee engagement.
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Disregard for Employee Well-being
Employee engagement is heavily impacted by employee well-being. A motivated workforce is more likely to exist in companies that take a genuine interest in employee mental health. Workplace factors like stress, anxiety, and burnout should all be addressed by companies. Failure to do so may lead to employee disengagement.
Discrepancies with Company's Values and Goals
Companies choose to work with people who match their culture. Similarly, employees choose to work with companies that share their goals and beliefs. An individual prioritizing work-life balance will not work for an employer with unpredictable work hours. Employees that appreciate diversity, equity, and inclusiveness at work would like their company to embrace these values. Both employers and employees must share the same objectives for the company.
Unsatisfactory Compensation and Incentives
Another factor for employee disengagement is inadequate compensation and benefits. Financial stress is an important factor in employee disengagement at work. Employees don't feel motivated by their jobs if they're not paid enough for their time and effort. As a result, they are less likely to be engaged. They may find it challenging to partake in workplace activities when preoccupied with paying bills and providing for their family.
How Do You Keep Employee Engagement High?
Strengthen Communication and Relationships
Disengaged employees may have great potential but frequently feel neglected. Therefore, management should balance communication with a greater concentration on what employees have to say. They should also urge them to express their concerns, so appropriate steps can be taken. You can encourage employees' sense of belonging and participation by actively offering them opportunities to interact with peers. Make sure to also look into other ways to help them establish closer ties at work.
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Invest in Career Development
Most employers say that their companies provide limited opportunities for growth and development. This leads to disgruntled employees and, eventually, disengagement at work. Work on an employee development and training strategy. This can help employees grow in their careers and learn new skills. According to a Udemy survey, learning and development opportunities can increase employee engagement at work by 80
Provide Recognition and Reward to Employees
By expressing your gratitude for their efforts and contributions, you can re-engage your workforce. Employee engagement and motivation increase when they feel appreciated and rewarded for their efforts. You do not need to design an expensive reward and recognition program.
A solution can be found in implementing employee recognition software where you can acknowledge your employees' hard work and make them feel valued with ease. Another way is simply thanking them, complimenting them in meetings, or honoring them as an employee of the month can make a positive impact.
Seek Employee Feedback
Asking questions will help companies understand what motivates employees and how employee engagement can be strengthened. You can learn how to improve employee engagement using employee engagement surveys, exit interviews, and online reviews of your company.
Provide Flexibility
Employees are increasingly choosing flexible and work-from-home options over conventional 9 to 5 jobs. To encourage your workforce, consider offering a flexible hours policy. You can also let employees work remotely, provided the nature of your firm supports it. This will be more effective than giving them annual incentives. Employees who have greater control over their schedules are more efficient, and happier, and work harder to achieve the company's goals.
To learn more about giving access to vital HR and work information — even when they're not in the office. Download our ebook now.
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Review Pay and Benefits
A lack of competitive perks or poor wages can make employees feel disrespected and disengaged. Use an HR payroll system to examine all aspects of employee remuneration. This includes incentives, bonuses, time off, and other benefits. Make sure to conduct an in-depth analysis of what you currently provide your employees.
Employee disengagement affects countless companies globally. If not treated with extreme caution, it can be an epidemic in the workplace. Regardless of the reason for employee disengagement, it is the company's responsibility to initiate the process of re-engagement. When businesses understand the consequences of poor employee engagement, they are more likely to make incremental changes and implement initiatives that boost employee engagement.
There is no quick fix for increasing employee engagement in your organization. However, there are steps to identify probable reasons for disengagement. With the insight we've provided, you can accelerate progress toward increasing employee engagement by building relationships, knowledge programs, rewards, and recognition.
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Top HR-Approved Employee Engagement Tools In 2023
Employee engagement software is a platform wherein it helps HRs or employers to connect better with their employees and strengthen their business relationships. It is a cloud-based system wherein employers could get in touch with their employees through various means. Engaging with employees requires a strategical approach that requires dedication and hard work.
In this guide, we will share 10 important employee engagement tools to improve the overall engagement level in your organization.
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Top Employee Engagement Tools
The following 10 tools and software are approved by HR professionals in order to increase or improve employee engagement in the organization:
1. LIKE.TG
LIKE.TG is a software used by many HR professionals around the world as a tool to increase employee engagement in the organization. One of the greatest benefits of using LIKE.TG is that the users are more connected to their organization or company as well as with each other. It provides an automated onboarding process, personalized paid time-off for the team, helps you recognize employee potential, and more.
LIKE.TG helps you create a successful onboarding experience for new employees with self-service capabilities.
Usecases of LIKE.TG, a employee engagement platform:
Promotes employee recognition and good work with a centralized newsfeed of a company
Automate the employee onboarding process
Gamify the employee rewards program
Welcome employees with a personalized portals with important information and a welcome letter
Boost collaboration between internal team members in your organization
Also, one of the important ways to measure the employee engagement level in your organization is by conducting survey and taking feedbacks.
Fortunately, the tool helps you perform survey and polls with a detailed analytics reports.
Book your free LIKE.TG demo
2. Bonusly
This is software that helps to make the recognition of employees more impactful by helping you connect with the employee’s core values and giving recognition to everyone’s contribution to the company. It also helps to build a stronger team and a scalable culture of recognition by empowering everyone. It helps greatly in boosting employee engagement by encouraging and motivating the employees. It also helps employers to listen and act according to the employee’ feedback with fun surveys. It also reduces friction by helping you implement an easy to manage system.
Price: bonusly starts its pricing at $3 per month for each applicant. They also provide a free trial.
3. Empuls
This tool is trusted by various big companies. The main reason that empuls is this recognized is because of their help in providing various strategies to implement in order to increase employee engagement. They provide a “social intranet” that helps the employees to connect with the organization through open and honest communication. And through surveys, empuls helps to measure employee sentiment and to seek honest feedback to make improvement in the strategies. Empuls also help in recognizing employees for collaboration among teams and for motivation to do better.
4. Nectar
Nectar has been helping to power up the teams that deliver great Customer User Experiences for over 15 years. This platform helps to strengthen your brand and also in improving customer service. It is cost-effective and helps in increasing efficiency. It helps in monitoring and alerting the environment of your employees. Nectar also provides help in reporting and analytics.
5. Awardco
It helps to create, manage and customize various recognition programs for employees. Awardco helps you create modern service awards and milestones for all your employees. It helps you create automated incentive programs to reward your employees. Awardco helps your come up with ideas to reward your employees with the most powerful network you could find.
6. Quizbreaker
It helps you custom your own questions to acquire honest feedback from your employees. Quizbreaker helps to build or strengthen the relationship or connection with the people around you. It also provides you with various fun activities to know more about the employees.
7. TINYpulse
It helps you get the right tool or formula for the success of your company. It helps employees with more opportunities and to provide honest feedback. TINYpulse helps you in getting the right data and tools you need to build a robust employee engagement strategy. It also helps you to act strategically upon the feedback in order to improve them. It helps in activating the full potential and core values of your employees.
To learn even more about improving the employee experience and increasing your competitve advantage while providing a fast return on investment, download our ebook now.
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8. Slack
Slack helps you bring your teams together. It also provides your employees with various opportunities within the organization. It helps you move fast and think quicker with tools and strategies all in one place.
Slack offers two types of plans, i.e; standard and plus. The standard plan costs $8 per person per month, or a few cents more than $80 per person annually. Plus plan costs $15 per user per month or $150 per person annually.
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9. Monday.com
This software or platform is trusted by various great companies all over the world. Monday.com helps you create visual boards to tailor your way to manage anything from projects to departments or teams. It helps in supporting your growth every step of the way. It helps you streamline your work for maximum productivity. Monday.com also helps to bring your teams together in order to drive the business impact. It also helps your team to stay on track to achieve or reach your goals faster.
Monday.com starts its pricing at $8 per user per month to $16+. It also provides a free trial.
10. 15Five
It provides an easy-to-use system for HRs to make their work much easier. 15five helps to turn engagement insights into engagement outcomes. It helps in quick communication and to track your employees. It helps to upskill managers, employers, or leaders to drive performance and engagement simultaneously.
11. Vantage Circle
Employee recognition stands as the number one motivation for more productivity. Vantage circle helps in recognizing employees’ hard work and efforts to get more flexible at work. It also helps in celebrating great accomplishments with employees and expressing your gratitude towards them. Vantage circle also helps you develop digital rewards and various ideas and offers on that aspect. It provides real-time and fun recognition activities. It also helps in deep analysis.
Vantage circle starts its pricing at $3 per month for each applicant or user. They also provide a free trial plan.
“Our staff has praised the increased communications level Workmates delivers. We use it to communicate important project matters and give staff specific ‘kudos’ or even recognize their birthdays. More importantly, we use Workmates to clarify important project details that needed rapid dissemination among the entire team.”
Christopher Baggott Chief Executive Officerator of Medlinks Cost Containment, Inc. and Medlinks Staffing, LLC.
Learn More
Benefits of Using Employee Engagement Software
Employee engagement: These employee engagement tools help in Improving overall employee engagement on a large scale. Employee engagement is as essential as expecting the employees to contribute to the growth of the company.
Productivity: These employee engagement tools help in Improving employee productivity. Employee engagement is the key to the success of one’s company.
Retention rate: The following software tools also help in Increasing the retention rate and the onboarding process or employee experience. It can be designed to the will of the employer in such a way that it will help the employee feel comfortable around the new environment.
Teamwork: With the help of these employee engagement tools, employers can keep an eye on the teams which helps in Improving teamwork among colleagues.
Stop Conflict Before it Begins witha Culture of “Thank You”
Does your organization foster a culture of micro-rewards and gratitude? If you’re not sure or the answer is “no,” your company culture could be contributing to workplace conflict. Building a culture of “thank you” can be difficult (especially with remote teams), but it doesn’t have to be! Learn more in our eBook, "10 Free / Low Cost Employee Recognition Ideas.”
Learn how!
Feedback: These tools also Help employees give honest feedback and the freedom to provide honest opinions. When an employee provides honest reviews or feedback, you might get an idea of how your strategy/tool is working and how to improve that tool to a better strategy.
Communication with peers and employer: The tools that you implement also help drastically in improving employer-employee communication. Employer-employee communication/interaction is very important since it helps in understanding each other and acting according to it.
Employee satisfaction: implementing employee engagement tools helps in Increasing employee satisfaction. Employee satisfaction is very crucial. Without satisfying their work needs, you cannot expect them to produce an amazing work either.
Emotional well-being: Providing the right tools and environment for your employees to work in helps Improve employees’ emotional well-being. According to human psychology, the color of the room also affects the mood of the employee whether in a good or a bad way.
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Company culture: Implementing the right tools also shows what type of culture your company follows. And a good company culture always attracts more people to your company. Providing the right tools helps your company Improve work or office culture
Employee recognition: This is a very important factor in employee engagement. And that is to recognize your employees for their work. Recognizing their effort is very essential, as it helps them in getting motivated to keep up the work or to make it better. This software Help in recognizing employees for their efforts.
Conclusion
The above ten amazing tools and software are recognized and approved by various HR professionals all over the world. These tools have worked and have been working for many organizations as a leading strategy for improving employee engagement. The exact method of these tools may or may not work for every company. So, improving and enhancing your strategic plans in improving employee engagement should be put into thought and implemented into action.
7 Effective Employee Engagement Case Studies and Strategies for a Productive Workplace
Are you looking for employee engagement case studies? Learn from some of the best companies out there that have successfully increased employee engagement. See how they did it and what worked for them.
As more and more employers in today’s corporate world realize the importance of employee engagement, the demand for effective and result-oriented employee engagement programs is rising. The internet may present many employee engagement initiatives, but here’s something more: case studies to prove that certain employee engagement strategies are really effective. Follow our blog to learn more about employee satisfaction and ensure that your company is teeming with higher employee engagement initiatives.
According to Johnson and Johnson “the degree to which employees are satisfied with their jobs, feel valued, and experience collaboration and trust. Engaged employees will stay with the company longer and continually find smarter, more effective ways to add value to the organization. The end result is a high-performing company where people are flourishing and productivity is increased and sustained.”
Nokia Siemens describes employee engagement as “an emotional attachment to the organization, pride and a willingness to be an advocate of the organization, a rational understanding of the organization’s strategic goals, values, and how employees fit, and motivation and willingness to invest the discretionary effort to go above and beyond”.
While we learn what employee engagement means and its importance, incorporating practical and effective employee engagement programs as part of company culture is the right recipe for success. Here are certain strategies for best employee engagement with case studies.
1. Acknowledgment and Appreciation
The first and foremost step to boost employee engagement is making sure your employees are valued, acknowledged, and appreciated. This motivatesemployees to become more productive, stay on track with tasks, and perform well. This can be done in many ways and you need to choose an approach that your employees can relate with. While some enjoy public recognition, others don’t. Hence, you can work on innovative recognition ideas.
According to a study, social workers in a company received personalized letters of recognition at their home addresses. The workers were chosen randomly and half of them received letters while the rest half didn’t receive any. The first half of the letter was chosen from a few positive motivational sayings and the second half of the letter had a personal note of appreciation written by managers. After a month of the letter experiment, the workers who received letters felt more recognized and appreciated for their efforts, compared to those who didn’t get any. This also had a positive effect on their motivation levels and well-being, according to the results of this study.
2. Emphasis on Employee’s Holistic Wellness
There are many components of employee wellness like nutrition, work-life balance, mental health, and stress management, to name a few. A healthy employee will be more productive and employees who are mentally and physically healthy will exhibit positive motivation, and better morale and resulting in a win-win for both employers and employees. A wellness program can be a good way to start where employees get a chance to explore yoga, in addition to vacation days. A wellness room provides employees with a personal space for their personal needs.
The indispensable role of wellness and an overall effective wellness strategy for an organization can be best understood based on a study that explored the objective of workplace wellness programs and their impact on employees health and medical expenses and so on. The study identifies certain key factors to boost wellness ideas in a corporate setup such as:
Effective communication strategy
Organizations that were part of this research emphasized the importance of how a wellness program is communicated to employees, both in-person and mass information campaigns, with messaging and clear interaction getting the highest priority.
Accessibility of wellness programs
Making wellness programs accessible for all employees is an effective strategy to boost the levels of employee engagement in their organization.
Engaged leadership
According to this study, for wellness programs to be successful, senior leadership should imbibe wellness as an integral and important part of the company culture.
Effective use of existing resources
Organizations leverage the existing resources and then build relationships, which also include health plans to provide employees with more options.
Ongoing assessment
Most companies agree that continuous assessments are required for employers to better understand their employee’s wellness needs.
3. Initiatives that are Development-Focused
Ongoing development is key for every employee andthere are a few development-focused initiatives that you can adopt actively to help your employees gain professional growth like professional networking, master’s or even Ph.D. programs, industry seminars, training courses and conferences, internal promotions, mentoring groups, and career coaching.
This study titled A Study on the Influence of Career Growth on Work Engagement among New Generation Employees involved six companies from diverse industries like consulting, finance, management, real estate, and so on. The findings of this study show that:
Organizational identification (IO) is very important for engagement levels and career growth.
Employee career growth positively impacts work engagement;
Person-organization value is positively linked to career growth and organizational identification (IO).
If employees recognize that they can make career progress in a company, they feel more attached and this increases employee loyalty, particularly for the new generation. It motivates them to put in the extra effort, improve performance, work on new skills, and so on.
4. Develop a Sense of Purpose, Values Mission
A visible employee engagement program to achieve higher employee satisfaction levels requires employees to gain a sense of purpose, portray the company’s values and understand the mission. It is important to also understand what each of these attributes stands for.
Purpose
A company's purpose is the reason it exists in the first place. Purpose-driven companies are devoted to achieving goals that are bigger than just making money and increasing shareholder value. They also want to make a positive impact on the world around them and approach their work sustainably and ethically. In other words, they're committed to making a difference.
Mission
The mission of a company is similar but not identical to its purpose. Many people use the terms interchangeably, but we see the main difference as follows: the mission statement focuses on what the company has been built to achieve.
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Values
Values are important because they act as a compass for the overall expectations of an organization - they guide how employees do their jobs, how managers communicate with clients and partners, and how workers interact with their peers. By understanding and sharing company values, employers can make better decisions that reflect the priorities of the business.
According toa study by Deloitte, a company’s purpose and mission impact corporate confidence as well, as indicated by the results of this study.
Nearly half of all executives (47%) say that they can identify with their company's purpose, while only 30% of employees feel the same way.
A whopping 44% of executives believe that exemplary leadership involves setting an example that lives and breathes the company's purpose - but only 25% of employees share this belief.
41% of executives believe that a company's purpose plays a significant role in major corporate decisions, whereas only 28% of employees feel the same way.
38% of leaders claim that their company's purpose is communicated clearly and openly to all, but only 31% of employees actually think this is the case.
Ultimately, teaching your employees about the company's purpose, mission, and vision takes time and patience. It's a gradual process, but when done correctly, it has numerous benefits for employers. Creating a sense of purpose for your employees allows you to see numerous benefits in the long run such as a more committed workforce and less employee turnover.
5. Maintain Transparent Communication Channels
Many employees feel reluctant to share their concerns and opinions with their managers or peers, either due to a perception that their managers don’t pay much attention to them or maybe they tried earlier but no action was taken by the leadership. Encouraging employees to share their concerns with leaders has its own benefits.
Practicing reflective listening helps managers to understand the message, through attentive communication.
Making employees understand they are respected helps them to respect you back and this is an employee engagement strategy based on common sense.
Acknowledging employee views is a way of recognizing a diverse range of ideas and respecting what they say, even though in the end you may still agree to disagree.
Seeking employee’s input actively helps to boost job satisfaction levels.
A research study analyzed communication between employers and employees and its impact on engagement levels. The findings supported the general definition of engagement as a sense of shared responsibility between both supervisors and employees, proving that establishing communication with your employees has a wide range of benefits and can work wonders for a company’s employee engagement levels.
6. Create Conducive Working Conditions
While expecting high performance from employees by an organization is quite natural, it is also equally important to provide necessary conditions for employees to do their best, by supporting them in any way you can. You can encourage positive and healthy competition in the workplace, show zero tolerance for toxic behavior, maintain a clean and healthy workplace ambiance, and create supportive teams. One way to support your workforce is by encouraging them to focus on things that are already good in their lives.
According to a consultant, Stephanie Pollack, a visible change is possible when employees are encouraged to know more about the benefits of gratitude and become aware of good things already existing in their lives. Showing gratitude has a plethora of benefits that range from reducing stress to making people feel better about themselves. It's important to build a culture of appreciation in your company so that employees feel comfortable expressing gratitude to one another and also feel appreciated in their jobs. This will not only lead to employees appreciating their jobs and coworkers more, but it will also help them appreciate themselves on a whole new level. Creating a grateful environment takes time, but it's worth it to see the positive transformation it can have on your organization as a whole.
“Our staff has praised the increased communication level Workmates delivers. We use it to communicate important project matters and give staff specific ‘kudos’ or even recognize their birthdays. More importantly, we use Workmates to clarify important project details that needed rapid dissemination among the entire team.”
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7. Create Space for Fun Happiness
Workers who are content with their jobs are more likely to be motivated, productive, and engaged than those who are unhappy with their work. And happiness usually comes with having fun. However, this doesn't mean that employees should neglect their tasks or ignore deadlines. Learning how to balance work and play is key to being successful in both areas.
Employees should get the chance to do fun stuff to uplift their moods and refresh their minds and thoughts. This will make them more productive while handling their daily tasks. This can be in the form of having lunch together, organizing joke sessions, quizzes, celebrating employee milestones and birthdays, hosting parties, sports activities, recreational outings, and so on. According to a study “Finding Fun in Work: The Effect of Workplace Fun on Taking Charge and Job Engagement”, having fun in the workplace motivates employees in a positive way improving their job satisfaction levels, productivity, commitment, energy, and creativity. It also helps to reduce anxiety, turnover, stress, and absenteeism.
Conclusion
There is no one-size-fits-all approach to improvingemployee engagement in the workplace. You can employ one or more of these strategies based on case studies and see what works best for you and your workforce. Creating a nurturing and fun-filled productive place can make a great difference for your company and its growth in the years to come.
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How HR Can Support Remote Employees?
Working remotely is growing in popularity as it becomes easier and more affordable to set up a completely functional workplace at home or on the go. How can HR maintain communication with a remote workforce?
The correct remote workspace is even more crucial for productivity, worker safety, and well-being. Whether it comes to construction, safety, or transportation, it is essential. A competent HR team may take actions to assure your team's success as you plan for remote teams or remote working arrangements.
12 Tips on How HR Can Support Remote Employees
Want to know how you can support remote employees? Read below:
Create Expectations
Changes are inevitable when a new method of operation is adopted. Uncertainty about the new procedures, communication methods, and employee deliverable expectations causes discomfort.
You can outline these expectations with HR manager and department heads as an HR representative. Make documentation and provide information about how to discuss routine meetings, output from work, deadlines, etc. You may encourage practical work by establishing expectations and conveying them to others.
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The rapidity of Response is Crucial
Regular communication keeps remote workers informed and demonstrates your respect for their time and attention. It illustrates the importance of giving your remote staff the deadlines and objectives. As a remote worker, it frequently rests on the individual to establish the ideal working environment.
They are, therefore, in charge of maintaining contact. Keeping your reaction times brief will make it simpler for your staff to keep you informed. Remote project management can be complex at start. Experiential learning and improvement are possible.
Observe Payroll Rules
Depending on where they reside, remote employees may be subject to different payroll laws. To avoid fines and penalties, adhering to payroll requirements is imperative. Make sure the needs of those who work from home are met.
Monitor their performance and maintain contact with them. The executive board must operate shrewdly and methodically. Regulators may monitor variations in the minimum wage, tax withholding, and workers' compensation.
Use of New Tools and Technology
Using new tools and technologies will be one of the most significant changes in remote working. Using an online HR platform may simplify tasks like PTO requests and perks. Programs and tools that aid in the performance of their duties must be available to employees. This can involve software for developing, managing and creating content, and more. Video conferencing is also an effective technique for staying engaged.
The firm and personnel who handle contracts with customers and suppliers might benefit from legal documentation tools and e-signatures. Including security and data privacy protections and the appropriate technologies is critical. As more work is done online, this safeguards the company's assets and guarantees the privacy of your employees' information.
Provide Comfort and Satisfaction to Employees
Regularly creating engagement is a necessary action where you can make a big difference. Making events and activities that bring your team together and encourage interaction is enjoyable and good for your well-being. Slack talks with a theme and questions to better understand one another are entertaining ways to interact online.
You are likely to get intriguing answers when you ask questions about food preferences or anything else. Hold online gatherings to foster communication. If you do, make sure to buy RDP online for online communication to provide utmost safety and effective networking environment. This year, instead of our usual retreat, we held a day-long online retreat with games, tests, and other activities. Birthdays and work anniversaries should be quietly observed.
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Ask for Opinions
There will be difficulties and disruptions in these times of transformation. People may have trouble communicating with one another or using particular instruments. Some workers may experience disengagement and disinterest. It could impair productivity or cause other problems. It won't be easy, but you can make it easier by listening.
This entails frequently soliciting feedback and providing a forum for discussion. And also, it entails paying attention to what others say. Encourage your staff to keep sending in comments using a survey or a submission form on an internal page. Feedback can also be gathered via casual discussions and online meetings.
Provide Cooperative Environment
Provide a shared record that monitors work activities. Even when teams are in the office, it's a useful exercise that will aid managers greatly. It helps in clarifying what exactly is expected of workers during this uncertain time.
The use of apps for remote working can be beneficial. Also, come to agreements on what constitutes appropriate virtual teamwork conduct.
Provide HR Self-Service
Additional platforms provide quick ways to submit expenses and request time off. Employees who work outside the office frequently have less access to HR. It includes informal communication channels like strolling up to the HR department and asking a quick inquiry.
HR may address this by providing self-service portals so workers can complete more tasks independently, such as locating solutions to frequently asked queries. The time it takes an employee to access their payroll and benefit information can be reduced with the use of self-service HR solutions.
Stay Flexible in New Situations
The HR manager needs to be receptive to change and willing to listen. This will enable the group to continue producing work while operating remotely. Understanding is improved by putting new digital solutions into practice and communicating frequently.
Doing this lets you learn about the significant life events that affect your staff members and recognize their achievements. For effective employee engagement, monitoring and acknowledging internal shifts among the workforce is essential. In this manner, the HR manager can progressively implement new regulations that consider remote workers' requirements.
Elaborating Communication Guidelines
Face-to-face communication is no longer safe, so it's crucial to establish efficient communication channels and cultivate a high level of response. By implementing a multichannel communication protocol, you and the staff will have more options for communication and information gathering.
Keep all business-related and formal contact emails alone. People don't have to reply in these circumstances. Invest in a live video conferencing system like Zoom or a complete system like Microsoft Teams. Set a deadline for email responses and commit to responding promptly.
Establish Appropriate Benchmarks
Since performance evaluations can be subjective, it's crucial to collaborate with your hiring managers to establish the criteria for success. It can be challenging to determine what tasks staff work on during the day. Good outcomes occasionally go unreported. It's much more difficult for people working from home to receive praise for their efforts.
The team is split between office-based employees and remote workers. The performance of all employees within the firm must be best captured. Thus, HR must develop clear and appropriate benchmarks.
Equip Teams with the Necessary Tools
One component of the equation is offering the appropriate technology. If possible, provide your distant personnel with a tablet or smartphone to stay in touch. It's not just about technology. In most cases, the remote worker is in charge of setting up their workspace in an ergonomically ideal way for productivity.
However, HR and head office can discover ways to simplify that. The accurate GPS and management tools can assist keep your team safe while on the road if your employees work remotely because they must travel for the firm.
Conclusion
As an HR, you have enormous responsibility to keep the remote workers engaged. Make sure to facilitate them with tools and updated information. The above-given tips will help you work efficiently.
About Author:
Emily Johnson is a reputable member of the perfect essay writing team. She writes informative content with extensive research and analysis. Her passion for work and positivity are a source of inspiration for all.
How to Boost Employee Morale at Work?
It is well known that employees are the most important part of an organization. If an organization is about to fall, it’s the employees who will play the role of the soldiers and prevent the company from crumbling. But all of these are only possible if they have positive morale towards the organization.
As per Gallup’s survey, around 51% of workers are completely unattached to their work due to reasons like no job satisfaction, toxic work culture, lack of recognition, etc. All of the said reasons are linked with employee morale, which we are going to discuss in this article.
You will understand the benefits of positive morale and different ways to boost employee morale. Let’s get started.
What is Employee Morale?
Simply put, employee morale is the overall outlook and satisfaction that an employee gets while working with an organization.
If an employee is not satisfied with their job description, company culture, or anything related to professional life, it will reflect on their work.
Benefits of Positive Employee Morale
Employee morale is directly proportional to various things, like productivity, creativity, engagement, etc. When tweaked the right way, positive morale can bring a lot of things to the table. Here are some benefits you can get if your organization fosters positive employee morale -
Increase in Productivity
One of the major benefits that high morale can give is an increase in productivity. When employees realize that the organization cares for them and that their roles and work are justified with that by the company’s vision, it gives them satisfaction and an urge to work harder. As a result, the employee engagement rate increases, further improving the team's productivity.
High Retention
Most employees are looking for a company change as soon as they join an organization. Why? That’s because they do not feel aligned with the company’s work culture or values. But, if the company has a good environment to work in, they will tend to stay. In addition, positive morale leads to higher retention rates that further prevent the need to spend money on hiring new employees.
Decrease in Absenteeism
When employees are demotivated or dissatisfied with their work profile, they are most likely to take leaves and bring in excuses. Such absenteeism can suffer a company’s growth, and only good morale can remove it. Conversely, employees who are highly motivated and satisfied with the company will take leave only when needed and complete their tasks on time.
Higher Motivation
As stated before, morale is directly related to motivation and creativity. A highly motivated team will surely think of out-of-the-box ideas and methods to solve issues. Besides, if the company is falling, they will be there to prevent the fall.
Stop Conflict Before it Begins witha Culture of “Thank You”
Does your organization foster a culture of micro-rewards and gratitude? If you’re not sure or the answer is “no,” your company culture could be contributing to workplace conflict. Building a culture of “thank you” can be difficult (especially with remote teams), but it doesn’t have to be! Learn more in our eBook, "10 Free / Low Cost Employee Recognition Ideas.”
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7 Effective Ways to Boost Employee Morale
Employees can either break or make the company. So, it’s up to the higher authorities how to treat them and get the results accordingly. So, here are the seven most effective tips that will help you improve employee morale in your organization.
1. Maintain Transparency Build Trust
It’s difficult to create a completely transparent environment suddenly, but you can start with small steps. For example, if there are problems in the office, let your employees know about them. Maybe they might have a good solution to the problem that will help you out.
Besides, when you enable transparency, it helps in building the bridge to cover the employee-employer gap. On the other hand, when you try to hide issues or news from your staff members when their morale is low, you are adding more damage to the lot. Doing so will break their trust.
So, it’s better to remain as transparent as possible and let your staff members know about all the good and bad about the company. It will help uplift their morale.
2. Improve Internal Communication
Employee loyalty and commitment to the organization may suffer when there is a communication gap between employees and management.
Therefore, there must be clear and open communication, not only amongst employees but also between employees and management. Many organizations have also started adopting a bottom-up approach for internal communication where ideas and perceptions of employees are taken into account to make the most informed business decisions.
Nowadays, technology is playing a big role in communication. Different communication channels have evolved like intranets, emails, voice calls, video calls, and a bunch of social platforms that make internal communication even more seamless. We’ll discuss more on technology later in this article.
3. Recognize Appreciate Employees
A lot has been said about employee recognition programs and methods, but none of them are fruitful if you do not implement them. Even if you cannot provide a full-fledged program for appreciating your people, the least you can do is write a personal note to them stating how their hard work has brought results.
Small gestures of appreciation like a pat on the back, a note of “keep up the good work,” or a note in the monthly newsletter can do wonders. It gives them a sense of belongingness and motivates them to work harder. Employee morale is all about how satisfied an employee is with their work, and proper appreciation helps them to know whether their work is helping the organization or not.
4. Empower Employees with the Right Technology
Yes, technology can help improve morale if you use it correctly. Try providing software and tools to help your employees organize their work, communicate effectively, and collaborate with colleagues. Here are examples of a few such tools -
Employee Engagement Platforms - We know how important employee engagement is to retain them. Proper employee engagement platforms where they can directly contact anyone in the company for guidance can do wonders to their morale. It gives off the feeling of transparent communication and removes the hierarchy rule as well. Platforms like LIKE.TG exactly do that.
Project Management Platforms - All-in-one project management applications help employees organize their work, manage tasks effectively, and deliver projects on time without delays. These tools help them finish their work on time ultimately increasing their productivity and morale. Tools like SmartTask help you exactly achieve that.
Communication Video Conferencing Platforms - We know how important internal communication is in the corporate sector. After the pandemic, keeping up with communication has been difficult during remote work. But, with tools like Slack and Zoom, you can remove the communication barrier with your remote employees and help them in their tasks, assign them new activities and conduct video meetings.
Document Management File-Sharing Platforms - Tools like Google Workspace and Microsoft 365 are great examples of document collaboration and sharing. Everyone can work on the same files without any hassles. A clean workspace prevents employees from stressing out and improves their morale.
5. Offer Learning Growth Opportunities
In the corporate world, employees should always have a learning attitude if they want to grow. On top of that, companies should also help them to adopt new techniques and skills.
The new generation is looking for organizations where they can learn new things and have consistent growth. By providing courses for learning new skills related to the employee’s field of work, you can help them grow professionally.
But how can these courses help you improve morale? By providing them with proper courses, paying off their tuition fees, or sponsoring their higher studies, you are helping them grow without financial problems. The gesture alone makes them feel grateful and loyal to the organization. Besides, they get a positive morale boost to implement their new skills for the company's betterment.
6. Ask Employee Feedback
There’s not a single company that doesn’t ask for employees' surveys, but only some of them implement the suggestions and improve their shortcomings from the feedback. When employees feel you are listening, it helps them open up and openly tell you the problems they face. Once you start acting on the suggestions and the problems are resolved, it makes your employees feel heard and improves their work morale as well.
When a manager solves an employee's problem, it gives the letter a sense of gratefulness that further takes the shape of positive morale. And, we know how helpful positive morale can be.
Moreover, feedback helps the management team and higher authorities grow as per the changing market. So, it’s a win-win for both employers and workers.
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7. Perform Team Building Activities
Team building activities help a lot in instilling a good work culture with a collaborative mindset. When employees are made to work with each other in a fun environment, they get to know their colleagues, and the professional bond gets stronger.
Companies can organize many team-building activities, like trekking, treasure hunt, and other adventurous games. Besides, you can also let the employees put in their choices, and you can randomly select one for the day.
Team building activities remove the feeling of loneliness in the office and make way for transparent communication. Besides, employers understand their employees and know whom they can rely on for help with difficult tasks. All of these things improve employee morale in the organization and foster a good work culture with no toxicity.
Conclusion
Positive employee morale begins with a positive work culture. When you foster a good work environment, have transparency in the company and trust your employees, you are giving them a morale boost.
Workers with a good morale boost will remain loyal to the organization and help to recover the losses during any falls. No matter how big an organization is, the company's growth suffers if the employees are unhappy. That’s why the management and HR team must maintain positive morale within the organization
Best Remote Work Security Practices Every Employee Has to Know
In many ways, remote working is the future. Remote work opens up a world of endless possibilities for flexible work, especially for people often excluded in the traditional workplace. However, it does open remote workers to risks that must be managed to protect yourself and your company's data.
According to Gallup's 2017 State of the American Workplace report, 43% of American employees tried working remotely in 2016. Up from 39% in 2012, experts expect the remote working trend to continue, with more than half of all employees having a remote jobby 2025.
There are several reasons why companies are starting to focus more on hiring remote workers. With remote working, employees can save time, effort, and costs from traveling to and from the office. In addition, remote working makes working more accessible for those who typically struggle to work in traditional office environments, such as people with disabilities and single parents.
However, while there are many benefits to working remotely, there are also security risks that employees should know and manage. Here's why it matters.
Why good security practices matter for remote workers
In 2017, Symantec reported that nearly a quarter of organizations had experienced increased attacks targeting remote workers. One of the reasons for this is that remote workers often use their own devices, which may not be as secure as devices issued specifically by companies. Additionally, they may not have the same level of access to security resources as on-site employees.
According to the 2019 Cost of a Data Breach Report from Ponemon Institute, the average total cost of data breaches is $3.9 million. With this, it’s no wonder that companies are starting to realize how preventing security issues is always better than dealing with its poor aftermath, especially those which have embraced remote work. This article will discuss the best remote work security practices to protect your and your company's data.
Invest in a virtual private network (VPN)
One of the essential security practices for remote workers is to use a virtual private network (VPN), a secure connection that encrypts data and routes it through a secure server.
Although VPN can't completely prevent hackers from accessing your device, it can help discourage anyone from intercepting your data. While some employers provide their employees with a VPN service, many free and paid options are also available.
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Enable two-factor authentication (2FA)
Another important security practice is to use two-factor authentication (also known as two-step verification). 2FA is an extra layer of security that requires you to enter a code in addition to your password when logging into accounts.
With 2FA, codes are sent to your phone or email or generated by an app such as Google Authenticator. With two-factor authentication, you can protect your accounts even if your password is compromised.
Avoid unsafe network connections
Employees working remotely should also be aware of public Wi-Fi risks, often unsecured and unprotected. However, hackers can also still intercept your data using supposedly safe and password-protected Wi-Fi, such as hotels or cafés.
If possible, it's preferable to bring your Wi-Fi stick or use your phone mobile hotspot instead of networks owned by other people. With this, you significantly reduce your risk of hackers infiltrating your device.
Be wary of social media
While everyone seems to be on social media, it's important to remind employees that anything you post on social media is public information. Generally, it's best to be mindful of webcam protection and be careful about posting sensitive information that could reveal company documents, private meeting rooms, etc.
Aside from this, it's best to avoid posting your precise location, especially when you're on holiday, which can inform thieves that you're not at home. With this, they are more likely to target your house for theft.
Create strong passwords
Hackers commonly gain access to accounts is by guessing or brute-forcing passwords. To avoid the risks of weak passwords, here are some tips on how to create strong passwords:
Use passwords at least eight characters long.
Combine uppercase and lowercase letters.
Add numbers and special characters.
Don’t use obvious passwords, like your name, birthday, or pet’s name.
Avoid using the same password for multiple accounts.
Alternatively, you can invest in password managers to quickly generate and keep strong passwords for all your online accounts. Lastly, it's best to never share your passwords, even with those you love.
Keep software updated
Among the variety of ways hackers typically gain systems access, outdated operating systems is one of the most common. In numerous instances, hackers can exploit vulnerabilities in devices to access your device, which may include company information.
Aside from investing in antivirus protection, updating your software can help protect yourself and your company from known vulnerabilities. Thankfully, many software programs have automatic update features that can help make this process easier.
Regularly back up data
While it's crucial to purge files from your device regularly, it's also essential to ensure you don't lose the important ones. By backing up your data, you can protect yourself even if your device is lost or stolen. In addition, if you ever become a victim of ransomware, backup data helps make sure your company isn’t inconvenienced during the investigation.
In general, there are two main ways to backup data: hardware and software. For example, you can use a USB, external hard drive, or cloud storage service for your important files and documents.
Although there are many options to backup your data, the most effective one will always be the method you can commit to regularly doing. With this, it's best to choose a backup plan that is right for you and your lifestyle.
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Conduct regular virus scans
Since remote teams often use their own personal devices, it's important to remind them to scan their machines for viruses regularly. While it’s not always possible to monitor your device 24 hours a day, there are plenty of apps which have breach notification features.
Viruses can sometimes slip through the cracks, primarily if you work in public areas and use Wi-Fi in hotels or coffee shops. If possible, it's best to invest in apps that you can use to scan your device on-demand or do it automatically.
Be careful what you install
When working remotely, you must be careful about the applications and programs you install on your devices. Hackers often develop apps that look similar to legitimate apps to avoid. Here are some ways to avoid downloading questionable apps on your device:
Download apps from the App Store, Google Play, or other trusted platforms.
Avoid purchasing activation codes from third-party sellers.
Read the app permissions carefully.
These ads, apps tend to ask for access to your contacts, location, and other personal information, even if they're not necessary for the features you need. Aside from being careful what you install, it's best to only grant permission to apps you trust that need the information.
Introduction to Conflict in the Workplace(and How it Erodes Productivity Culture)
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Watch out for phishing scams
These days, companies should also train employees on how to spot phishing emails. Phishing is a type of online scam where criminals send emails that appear to be from a legitimate source. However, these emails are used to trick people into giving them personal information or money.
While these emails can look very convincing, there are usually some red flags that you can identify. Here are some of them:
Typos or grammatical errors
Words with wrong spelling
Suspicious attachments or links
If you receive a suspicious looking email, do not open it or click on any links. Instead, report it to your IT department for threat management. Afterward, you can proceed to delete the email and block the user.
Protect your device from theft
Because remote working lets you work from home or anywhere with a stable internet connection, many remote workers tend to go to places like coffee shops or co-working spaces. However, these places can also invite enterprising thieves looking to make a quick buck.
Even when you're not using your devices in a public place, it's essential to keep them with you. Avoid leaving your laptop, mobile phone, or tablet when you use the restroom or buy a drink. If you must go and leave your device in a public place, lock it up, hide it from view, or ask a friend to watch it for you.
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Conclusion
When it comes to staying safe while working remotely, it is best to approach internet security holistically, all days a week. Aside from increasing remote work productivity, it's also essential to know how you can keep yourself safe from hackers and other bad actors.
Although no method can guarantee to prevent all security threats, taking multiple precautions can significantly reduce your risk of becoming a cyberattack victim. Using Workmates by LIKE.TG, you can help engage your employees with regular tips on how to protect themselves while they're working remotely.
About Author:
This article is written by a marketing team member at LIKE.TG. LIKE.TG is a leading provider of proven HR solutions, including recruiting, onboarding, employee communications engagement, and rewards recognition. Our user-friendly software increases employee productivity, delivers time and cost savings, and minimizes compliance risk.
Stop Conflict Before it Begins witha Culture of “Thank You”
Does your organization foster a culture of micro-rewards and gratitude? If you’re not sure or the answer is “no,” your company culture could be contributing to workplace conflict. Building a culture of “thank you” can be difficult (especially with remote teams), but it doesn’t have to be! Learn more in our eBook, "10 Free / Low Cost Employee Recognition Ideas.”
Learn how!
5 Ways to Customize Your Onboarding Process to Individual Employees (and Why You Should)
The majority of employers consider the onboarding process necessary, but many of them don’t seem to adequately prepare individual employees for a new position. Gallup found that only 12% of organizations do a great job of onboarding recent hires, and they often suffer as a result.
Research by Brandon Hall Group showed that organizations with a strong onboarding schedule improve productivity by 70% and new hire retention by 82%. When an employee is faced with a weak onboarding process, they’re more likely to lose confidence and quit within the first year.
But a generic process can be just as destructive as a poor or unstructured one. If individual employees are trained similarly to their peers, even if it’s for the same position, it could lead to inconsistencies in performance and knowledge. That’s because your employees aren’t alike.
The best employee onboarding examples have a few things in common: a diversity-first workplace, a longer or fully online onboarding process, and a customized onboarding schedule.
However, personalization isn’t just about putting a person's name in an email. It’s about understanding each individual’s needs to help them reach their goals. Fortunately, creating a customized onboarding process is easier and cheaper than ever before, thanks to technology.
Why is an Individual Employee Onboarding Process Important?
Great onboarding leads to lower turnover, an authentic work culture, and better engagement, but any good onboarding process can do that. Why is a custom process necessary?
Employers Should Foster Unique Skill Sets Instead of Stifling Them
Modern employees look for employers that champion diversity, but diversity goes beyond what a person looks like. It’s unlikely a born-and-raised Nigerian woman is going to have the same experiences as an American man. Listening to new perspectives and thoughts is beneficial, and not just for business reasons. With new ideas, humanity, in general, can grow and succeed.
However, if an employee is taught to keep their options to themselves, directly or indirectly, it prevents their personal growth and the potential growth of the company. Your employees won’t be able to lead a project if they can’t vocalize or beat the competition in your industry.
The onboarding process sets the tone for your employee's experience. It’s vital to encourage new hires to ask for help or give their opinion. Otherwise, they may feel it isn’t wanted.
Now, their special skill set, whatever that may be, will stay unknown to the rest of your team. Instead, ask the right questions to find the right candidate during the interview stage and affirm that their skills are needed during onboarding. Be clear that they can express themselves.
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Employees Respect Employers Who See Them as Individuals
Every single person, no matter how alike they may seem at first, is a unique individual with their own thoughts, feelings, and preferences. When individuals are treated as a collective, they often feel less important, but that doesn’t necessarily make our staff selfish, narcissistic, or hard to work with.
What this does mean is we value those who treat us as individuals rather than as part of the group. This is reflected in everyday life. If we group people and judge them based on what we assume they’ll be like, it causes unnecessary arguments, undue prejudice, and potential harm.
But If you listened instead of assuming, you’d be able to respond to what they actually believe and what motivated the individual to think this way. In the end, you’re showing that you respect them and their opinion, and respect is often rewarded with loyalty and kindness in return.
If you want to keep someone engaged in the onboarding process, you have to offer the same respect to your individual employees. Employers should prove to their employees that they made a great choice choosing their company.
Individual Employees Don’t Learn at the Same Rate
HR professionals agree that most onboarding processes should take three months, but two-thirds of hiring managers spend less than a month onboarding new employees. A short onboarding process leads to lower productivity, a toxic environment, and poor relationships.
While it makes sense why employers would want their new employees to learn a task as quickly as possible, it actually causes a lot of stress for you and your workplace. For example:
A rushed employee is more likely to make mistakes or not read the material properly. Someone who is unprepared or unable to perform adequately may feel like they aren’t meant for the job they occupy. In the end, they may develop imposter syndrome or quit.
If employees are confused and discouraged from asking for help, they may pretend they know how to complete a task. This may cause them to make more mistakes or ask their coworkers for help, which makes them appear incompetent when they aren’t.
An employee who falls behind needs help, not a threat. If an employee is left to fend for themselves, they’ll feel their employer doesn’t care about their personal wellbeing.
Onboarding processes should be slow and calculated. If you push too much too soon, you’re more likely to overwhelm new employees, which leads to negative results. A self-paced onboarding schedule that works with an individual's abilities and work style will enable a new hire to find their place sooner.
“As soon as we saw LIKE.TG’s Onboard demo, we knew this was the perfect solution for us. We loved that it was extremely simple and powerful out of the box, but that we could customize it with advanced capabilities to make it work in our company setting.”
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How to Customize and Personalize Your Onboarding Process
Personalization works, whether you’re a small business or a large enterprise. However, you need to apply specific onboarding techniques to keep individual employees engaged.
1. Use Data and Tags Throughout the Onboarding Experience
If you use onboarding software (and if you don’t, you should), you know that you can create sign-up forms that include the user's information, such as name, email, and job title. Using tags, you can insert this information on the program’s welcome page and throughout modules.
When your employees are greeted by name on the dashboard, they’ll feel like your training programs were designed especially for them. However, personalization may not be enough, as person-to-person customization won’t prepare you for future hires or new training programs.
Using data, you can populate information and training preferences based on a person’s current role, where they’re located, industry, company, and team. With this data, you can tailor and simplify the onboarding experience for new and current employees transitioning into new roles.
2. Segment Individual Employees Based on Their Personality
Most personality tests aren’t accurate, but the DiSC assessment seems to match employees to the correct personality type 90% of the time. You can use the DiSC test to assess how a person manages conflict or takes direction, which is very important during a training session.
For example, a Dominate (“D” in DiSC) person will feel comfortable asking questions, while a Steady (“S” in DiSC) may be afraid to ask a question out of fear they’ll upset you or the recruiter.
Or, you could ask how they prefer to be managed, but a direct question could intimidate new employees. With DiSC, there aren’t any wrong answers or incompatible personality types.
DiSC is great at providing non-judgmental information you can use to train more effectively.
3. Further Segment Employees By Their Motivations and Goals
We all have career goals, and many of them are shared with our peers. Even so, that may not mean you and your coworkers are in a similar position. In fact, your peers may be much closer to the finish line than you, but that doesn’t mean you’ll never succeed at your goal.
It just means you need to take more steps to get there, and any onboarding program you’re a part of should be aware of your unique starting position. With this knowledge, your recruiters can help you succeed. If you’re the recruiter, use this knowledge to shorten or lengthen training.
For example, if your software engineer doesn’t know how to use one of the three programs they need, spend more time training in that one program. Then, provide them with a brief overview of the other two programs. Not only does this prevent boredom, but it also decreases downtime.
4. Communicate Using Personalized Emails and Messages
Individual employees may receive the same generic welcome email during the initial stages of the onboarding process, which can feel a little lazy. With all the data you’ve gathered, you should be able to offer personalized suggestions for their next steps or hold a conversation.
Here’s a few ways you can personalize email or message communication:
Show them what the next three months will look like with a schedule
Introduce them to their mentor if you’re using a mentorship program
Encourage them to take full advantage of their benefits and perks
Schedule an end-of-week meeting with their supervisor or mentor
Talk about something you have in common to show you’re listening
Building rapport with your employees is just as important as getting to know your clients. You’re putting your trust in them to help run your company, and it’ll only benefit you to truly know them.
5. Meet Your New Employees Face-to-Face (or Through Video)
Face-to-face communication, whether it’s done in person or through a screen, can help you build stronger connections with your team. It’s easier and quicker to problem solve when you’re speaking to someone in real-time, making Zoom or in-person training sessions more effective.
As another positive, in-person conversations are easier to personalize and can help potential hires feel like they’re having a casual meeting. While you should follow a loose script for consistency, make parts of the training more casual to encourage your employees to talk.
If time zone differences are preventing you from chatting live, record product demos or training modules that use the trainee's name. Use data to create the best video for their needs.
Author Bio
This article is written by a marketing team member at LIKE.TG. LIKE.TG is a leading provider of proven HR solutions, including recruiting, onboarding, employee communications engagement, and rewards recognition. Our user-friendly software increases employee productivity, delivers time and cost savings, and minimizes compliance risk.
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7 Employee Engagement Metrics You Must Track at Your Organization
Employee engagement refers to the connection or relationship that employees have with an organization. Low employee engagement can result in low productivity and lower revenue. It also results in lower employee satisfaction.
Employee engagement is crucial for an improved employee experience, a productive workforce, low employee turnover rates, and overall employee well-being. That's why organizations are beginning to pay more attention to employee engagement levels. One way to monitor employee engagement is by tracking several metrics.
This article will cover seven employee engagement metrics you should track at your organization. Let’s dive in:
1. Productivity and Workload Balance
Productivity and workload balance are some of the most important employee engagement metrics to monitor. There is a strong relationship between employee engagement and productivity. The percentage of employees that can deliver output consistently and efficiently needs to be measured. This can show you how engaged your team members are.
You can measure employee productivity in different ways, depending on the type of business and goals. For example, you can measure productivity by the objectives reached or profit. You can also use quantitative measurements, like how many calls or products an employee processes in a week or month. Engaged employees can offer higher levels of productivity than disengaged employees.
Apart from productivity, the workload balance is another metric that can show the levels of employee engagement. One of the things that can affect employee satisfaction negatively is overwork. According to a study, 77% of employees have experienced burnout at least once in their current jobs. Team members who are overworked or at risk of being overloaded are likely to have less job satisfaction.
The workload data offers insight into work distribution. It should identify overworked employees and those who do minimal work.
Also, the work-life balance should be kept in check. There should be a healthy balance between the personal and professional lives of the employees in your organization. When there is a disruption, it could affect employee engagement and retention.
2. Employee Health Index
The employee health index is another factor to consider when measuring the employee engagement rate in your organization. The employee health index evaluates fatigue, burnout, and the physical and mental health of the current employees in an organization.
The general well-being of individual employees is critical to having an engaged workforce. This is why it is crucial to have frequent check-ins to measure the well-being of your employees. An assessment will point out the gaps between employee well-being and the efforts taken by the organization to support it.
For example, investing in virtual assistants may help to reduce the workload of overworked employees. Automation tools can also reduce workload and boost employee health index.
Ask work-related and non-work-related questions to ensure each employee receives the support needed to be productive at work. Employee surveys can help identify the percentage of employees facing high stress and anxiety at work.
Questions such as “Are you comfortable with the number of tasks assigned per day?” or “How would you rate the workload assigned to your team?” can be helpful here.
Check out the top reasons for burnout at the workplace in the image below.
What does it mean if more of your employees are reporting these issues? Well, chances are you have a poor employee health index. That could also mean you’re about to have a disengaged workforce. Something needs to be rectified.
You should measure how satisfied your employees are with the workload and their general well-being at the workplace. Your organization can formulate an action plan based on employee feedback. You can provide resources such as wellness programs to create a happier workplace.
Improving overall employee health and welfare is vital in changing workplace culture.
3. Rewards and Recognition
This is another factor for monitoring the employee engagement rate at your organization. You must track if your employees are adequately rewarded. Aso, if they feel acknowledged for their work. Employee recognition results in improved employee engagement.
Confirm if there are effective employee recognition programs in place. This is even more critical for employees who have gone the extra mile and have contributed to meeting company goals. Workplace recognition will also help to track productivity and the percentage of engaged employees in your organization.
Employees who feel adequately compensated for their efforts will be motivated to put in extra effort in the future. Employees who are frequently recognized for their efforts will also feel valued by the organization. The markers of employee recognition include retention rate, employee loyalty, and motivation.
To track this, hand out questionnaires to individual employees. Ask them how satisfied they are with the existing employee recognition system. You can also ask them whether they found the recognition or rewards valuable. You can also ask them if they think they get recognized frequently enough.
A positive score will indicate that your employees are happy with the level of workplace recognition. The results may also show how your employees would prefer to be recognized and how often they would like to be recognized. You can improve your rewards and employee recognition programs based on those results.
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4. Employee NPS
NPS refers to Net Promoter Score. This metric is widely used across different organizations to track the levels of employee engagement. Employees with a high NPS score are generally considered engaged.
NPS is often measured through employee engagement surveys. Employees are asked questions like “On a scale of 1-10, how likely are you to recommend this company to a friend or company?” You can then categorize the responses into promoters, passives, and detractors.
Promoters refer to employees who indicate that they are satisfied with the organization and are very likely to recommend the company. For example, on a scale of 1-10, employees who select 9 or 10 are promoters. Promoters are engaged employees.
Passives refer to employees who are neither satisfied nor dissatisfied with the company. While they are not likely to recommend the company to a friend, they also won’t discredit the company. On a scale of 1-10, scores between 7 and 8 are passives.
Here’s a Net Promoter Sample from Contact Monkey:
On the other hand, detractors are employees who are unsatisfied or unhappy with the company. Employees who give scores below 6 have poor employee satisfaction. The NPS can be calculated using this formula: Employee Net Promoter Score = (Promoters – Detractors) / Total respondents. An NPS score above 50 is excellent.
Tracking the NPS also allows you to follow up and find out why certain employees are unsatisfied. Through feedback, companies can devise methods to increase their employees' satisfaction levels.
5. Performance Review
Performance review is another employee engagement metric to track at your organization. Successful organizations are filled with highly engaged employees who perform their jobs well. Tracking performance reviews can give more insight into the level of employee satisfaction. Generally, performance metrics can be divided into four categories:
Work quality metrics: This includes results such as NPS, number of errors, and general feedback.
Work quantity metrics: This includes results such as the number of units produced. It could also be the number of conversions or sales.
Work efficiency metrics: This balances the work quality and quantity metrics to measure efficiency. Progress tracking software, for example, can be used to track work efficiency.
Organizational performance metrics: This includes project results, revenue per employee, and the return on investment (ROI) on human capital.
Timely performance reviews will benefit both the employees and the organization. When you track how well employees perform, as well as the organizational performance metrics, it can help measure employee engagement. Check out this performance review template from Indeed.com:
When employee engagement improves, it is likely to reflect on performance. Bad performance reviews may indicate employee disengagement.
6. Employee Retention Rate
Employee retention rate refers to an organization's ability to retain its employees over a period. The retention rate can be used in measuring employee engagement levels. Disengaged employees are more likely to leave the company for a better organization.
A good retention rate benefits the company by reducing onboarding and training costs for new hires. In addition, when valuable employees leave an organization, it reflects on the productivity and sustainability of the workplace. A good retention rate means having long-term employees who are familiar with the internal processes and company values and goals.
Employee retention rate can be calculated using this formula:
Employee retention rate = (Total number of employees – Total number of employees who left) / Total number of employees x 100.
Tracking the retention rate helps you know how to work on issues that can lead to employee turnover. The retention rate varies by industry and sector. However, every organization should strive to retain valuable employees for as long as possible. Generally, a retention rate of 90% is excellent for most companies.
Listening to employee feedback makes it possible to improve employee engagement and retain engaged employees.
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7. Employee Engagement Surveys
Employee engagement surveys are crucial in tracking the engagement levels of your employees. An engagement survey lets you know what employees feel about the organization. It provides an effective way of gathering employee feedback across every department in the organization.
Regular employee engagement surveys provide an easy and comfortable medium for employees to express their thoughts and opinions about the workplace. An engagement survey should cover employee satisfaction, relationship with team members, personal growth, individual needs, and communication.
The form below gives an example of an employee engagement survey:
Conducting regular surveys means getting regular feedback from employees. The survey results can indicate the level of employee engagement at your organization. Based on the results, you can create an action plan for implementing changes that can improve employee engagement.
In Closing
Tracking employee engagement is important in every organization. The level of employee engagement at your organization has a huge impact on productivity, retention rate, and much more.
Productivity and balanced workforce, employee health index, rewards and recognition, and employee NPS can help you measure employee engagement. Timely performance reviews, employee retention rates, and employee engagement surveys are also effective ways of measuring employee satisfaction.
Tracking your engagement score isn’t enough. You should create action plans to improve employee engagement and resolve issues that can lead to disengagement.
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6 Factors That Affect the Employee Engagement Process
Employee engagement truly matters. In the modern age, people are starting to understand this to a much higher extent than historically within workplaces. Undeniably, companies get better results if they have a team of engaged employees working for them, who care about the company and what happens within.
It stands to reason, if you are running a team full of people looking to move away or not really buying in or engaging with the process, there is every chance the business is going to fail, or at least struggle to meet its objectives when it comes to productivity.
Trust in the Business Leaders
Within a team or within a business there is always a message that comes from the top. In any hierarchy structure, the leaders are often the ones who are setting the tone and this means that they are a big factor in whether or not people are motivated.
Trust is a big part of employee engagement. If they constantly feel like they cannot confide in their management or their leaders, or that they don’t have a good enough relationship with them to know what their plans are or where the team is going then there is every chance that the engagement levels will drop.
Leadership is an absolutely huge part of a business, and in virtually every team there is at least one leader setting the tone. While some managers or small business owners are still of the opinion that they should rule with an iron fist, this rarely gets results, especially when trying to manage a team and its engagement.
Good Communication and Relationships
Business leaders are just one part of the jigsaw when it comes to good relationships and communication between the team. Social chemistry has a big impact, and this includes people in management or supervisory roles.
To keep employees feeling engaged and like they are part of the process, it is a good idea to try to cultivate good relationships. Give people an opportunity to get to know each other and host team events and social activities. It is worth investing in the relationship and encouraging clear communication in the workplace.
Some studies have shown that the majority of workers within a workplace consider themselves to be lonely. This is a big issue for a lot of people, and social wellness is not something employers should ignore if they want to improve their employee engagement. Even if it means dedicating time when employees are being paid to improve relationships and allow people to build up those relationships, it is always good to invest in your people.
Support and Equipment
If you have ever worked in an environment where you do not feel like you are properly supported, you will probably know how stressful and difficult this can be. Support is about knowing that those around you will have your back and that they are understanding. For example, if you needed some time off due to a family illness or wanted to adjust your working hours to allow you to manage childcare, would that support be on offer?
Employees tend to have a feeling that there is a real sense of giving and take within a business and it is not just about what you can give the business and the team you’re working in, it should be about a mutual relationship. If times are hard and you need support, not getting it is a surefire way for engagement to drop among employees.
Support also extends to things like equipment and the right time and resources to do a job effectively. If an employer makes unrealistic demands of their employees then there is every chance that gradually they will lose some of their faith and some of their engagement. Not getting the right support to do their job is one of the ways that they can lose passion for the role or decide not to put in the sort of effort that might be required.
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Recognition
All too often this is something that is ignored in the workplace. When somebody does a good job, spends some extra time and attention on something or goes the extra mile, do they get the recognition they deserve? If not, it can lead to employees feeling isolated or even bitter towards those they work with.
A lot of us have experienced this before. Imagine working incredibly hard on something, presenting it to the company, and then not being thanked or recognised for the work. Recognition comes in many forms, and of course, most employees appreciate things like pay rises based on their performance, but that isn’t always necessary. Sometimes, simply discussing the work someone is doing, thanking them for their extra work, and showing them that it has been considered and appreciated can be enough.
Recognition can come from those in the same team but it also means a lot when it comes from above, with supervisors and managers really needing to think carefully about the people they manage. Are they getting the recognition they deserve?
Opportunities to Advance and Train
A lot of people take on a job with a view to turning it into a career and as such value progression routes. For many employees, it is not just about making some money while they are at work and then going home at night to relax. It is about building a career, learning, and advancing into other positions.
For some companies it is harder to offer this, it depends on things like the management structure, of course. However, employees appreciate knowing that they can move forward if they wish, learn on the job, train to a higher standard, and move forward in their career rather than stagnate and stay in the same position.
Employers can provide things like training courses, certifications, and hopefully even pay rises and the opportunity to continue to advance within the company. It is good to garner this kind of buy-in from employees, who will wish to stay in place and engage with the business and its goals far more if they feel there is a clear way for them to be a part of the future.
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Company Culture
Great company culture sounds like quite an abstract thing, and it can be difficult to pinpoint and cultivate. However, if you have a lot of good people involved and they are all working towards a common goal, it tends to be easier to build the sort of relationships required.
Some of the company cultures will come from things like the rules, and how strict things are around the office, as well as the impact of the leaders on the business. For instance, if the culture in a business involves poor habits and leaders not taking responsibility this will inevitably spread.
Sum Up
By giving people plenty of support and respect, and allowing people to have their say on how the business or an office is run you can also help to create a good company culture where people feel valued. This is bound to greatly help with employee engagement and allows people to buy into the projects and mission of a company or other organisation.
The Relationship Between Employee Engagement and Mental Health
Stress at work affects 83% of Americans and while all jobs have their stressors, if left unchecked these high levels of stress can cause reduced employee engagement and mental health struggles and this can have a direct impact on employee engagement at work.
What Does Employee Engagement Mean?
What do we mean when we talk about employee engagement? Many people assume employee engagement means employees feel happy or satisfied at work. However, this isn’t strictly true.
Employee engagement is when an employee feels emotionally committed to an organization and its goals. In other words, an engaged employee cares about the company they work for. They don’t just come into work at 9am, leave at 5pm and count down the days until their next paycheck. They are fully engaged and committed to the company and its future aspirations.
The Relationship Between Engagement and Mental Health
We can’t mention employee engagement without mentioning mental health. After all, there is a direct link between these two things. When an employee is struggling with their mental health they are more likely to be:
Depressed
Disengaged
Unmotivated
Distracted
Emotionally volatile
Withdrawn
Anxious
Uncommunicative
There are many signs and symptoms of mental health struggles and it is very likely there may be employees in your workplace who are silently struggling. So, it’s important to know your employees well so that you can note any changes in their behaviour that could signify a problem.
If you notice an employee who is showing signs of mental health issues and struggling with workplace engagement as a result, it’s important to be proactive.
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How to Prioritize Employee Mental Health to Increase Engagement
The health and wellbeing of your employees plays a vital role in workplace productivity, engagement, and success. If you haven’t given this much consideration before, it’s time to prioritize employee wellness and mental health.
In America alone, one in 25 adults live with a serious mental health condition that significantly impacts their daily life. The cost of mental health struggles to an employer, through loss of engagement and productivity alone, is higher than most other health issues. So, providing the proper care and support for struggling employees is essential.
If you take the time to prioritize the care of your employees’ mental health, you will build a happier work culture, retain employees for longer, and see your company succeed as a result of high levels of employee engagement. But how do you prioritize employee mental health? Well, we have listed a number of very effective strategies you can utilize below.
1. Offer Mental Health Days
Mental health affects everyone differently and everyone uses different strategies to cope. What we can all agree on, however, is that sometimes you just need to take a day off. If you want to support your employees’ mental health and wellbeing in order to promote better engagement at work, you should offer mental health days.
According to the Cleveland Clinic, a mental health day is “a day that doesn’t involve engaging with major sources of stress or frustration. It’s a day to relax, decompress and take care of yourself overall. If you notice that you’re easily agitated, physically or mentally exhausted, anxious or unable to focus, you could probably use a mental health day.”
Employers should recognize that offering mental health days is just as important as offering physical sick days. Taking a day out for mental health reasons ensures employees can return to work refreshed and better able to engage.
Stop Conflict Before it Begins witha Culture of “Thank You”
Does your organization foster a culture of micro-rewards and gratitude? If you’re not sure or the answer is “no,” your company culture could be contributing to workplace conflict. Building a culture of “thank you” can be difficult (especially with remote teams), but it doesn’t have to be! Learn more in our eBook, "10 Free / Low Cost Employee Recognition Ideas.”
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2. Provide Flexible Working Options
Allowing work-from-home days can make all the difference to employee mental health and engagement. Not everyone works best between the hours of 9am-5pm and many people find the noise and distractions of the office difficult for concentration. Mixing things up by providing flexible working options can make all the difference.
It shouldn’t matter whether your employees prefer to work from home, a bustling cafe, or a park bench. The most important thing is that they can choose where they work best and have the option to do so a couple times a week.
If you’ve noticed an employee becoming disengaged and detached from colleagues, it’s possible they could be struggling with their mental health and withdrawing as a result. Consider suggesting they work from home a couple days a week. Simply offering this flexibility can make all the difference in helping employees take charge of their mental health to more effectively engage with work.
3. Permit Time Off for Treatment
People experiencing mental health challenges often fail to seek the support they really need. So, when an employee approaches you requesting time off for treatment, this is something to celebrate!
If you want to increase employee engagement at work, you need to ensure everyone receives the treatment they need to succeed. Whether your employee is struggling with anxiety, PTSD, depression, burnout or addiction (to name a few) they may request time off ranging anywhere from a couple of days to a couple of weeks to seek the treatment they need.
Burnout is one of the more common causes of employees requesting time off work. “Experts have identified six key domains of a person’s life that are related to burnout.” According to LuxuryRehabs.com, “Stress within these areas may represent a risk factor for developing symptoms”:
Workload
Control
Reward
Community
Fairness
Values
Permitting employees time off to receive treatment is essential. Not only will this ensure your employees receive the help they need, but it will also encourage others who may be struggling to come forward and seek support.
4. Prioritize Clear Communication
Communication is one of the most important aspects of being an effective employer. According to the Corporate Wellness Magazine, “more communication about mental health benefits and resources means more people know about the care options available to them and can seek them out when needed.
Clear communication in the workplace is especially important when it comes to tackling mental health as it allows you to avoid misunderstandings, communicate care to your employees, and form healthy relationships in the workplace.
Often, we resort to emails or text messages during the busyness of any given day. However, these communication channels can make anxiety or mental health issues worse as it can be hard to read emotions behind the words on the page, which can often result in overthinking and high levels of stress - particularly from anxious employees. This is why it’s always best to communicate in-person where possible.
5. Destigmatize Mental Health at Work
While mental health issues are easier to spot in some people than others, it is essential you create a working environment where employees feel safe and supported, no matter what they are going through. Reducing the stigmas surrounding mental health is a great first step towards this goal.
To destigmatize mental health at work, we recommend running team training days or workshops focused on mental health, how to spot the signs, and how to offer support. Doing so can encourage struggling employees that it’s okay to seek the help they need.
According to Forbes, “mental health remains a stigmatized topic. If you’re a leader, you can influence mental health stigma through both policy and cultural change. Reducing mental health stigma is not only the right thing to do, it also helps people perform at their best.”
Final Words
As you can tell, there is a close relationship between employee mental health and engagement at work. We hope that by following the strategies outlined in this article, you can make positive changes to your workplace that help increase employee engagement for the long term.
Stop Conflict Before it Begins witha Culture of “Thank You”
Does your organization foster a culture of micro-rewards and gratitude? If you’re not sure or the answer is “no,” your company culture could be contributing to workplace conflict. Building a culture of “thank you” can be difficult (especially with remote teams), but it doesn’t have to be! Learn more in our eBook, "10 Free / Low Cost Employee Recognition Ideas.”
Learn how!
The 30 60 90 Onboarding Plan: How to Gradually Guide Your New Hires
The first impression your employees get of your business and how it works is through the onboarding process. Although they may have met your hiring team or members of your human resources department during the application process, it’s whilst onboarding that new hires set the foundations for a strong work ethic and approach. Getting your onboarding plan right can integrate new hires into the team seamlessly, motivating them and helping them find job satisfaction.
Each new hire adapts to your business differently, yet there are common goals and targets that everyone needs to meet to take on their new role. These are often thrown at new hires immediately, expecting them to understand online phone systems, team hierarchies, and project software in a few weeks. However, for the onboarding process to be a positive experience for everyone, staggering these goals with a 30-60-90 plan may be more effective.
What is a 30 60 90 Onboarding Plan?
As a strategy for helping your business to effectively and efficiently guide new hires into their roles, 30-60-90 onboarding breaks it down into manageable sections. These sections set targets for the first 30 days, 60 days, and 90 days of a new hire’s employment with your business, helping them to engage with your onboarding without overwhelming them.
The 30-60-90 method helps new hires to understand the basics and initiate training elements and learning that may take longer. Highlighting different focuses for the first months can be useful for both new hires and those overseeing the onboarding. Doing this removes the pressure for new hires to understand everything instantly. Instead, they concentrate on:
Day 1-30: learning about the company, how it’s structured, and what their role is within it.
Day 31-60: implementing their learning and taking on tasks according to their position.
Day 61-90: setting longer-term goals and becoming a reliable part of their team.
How to Use 30-60-90 to Guide Your New Hires
Give an Overview
In the first few days of your new hire’s employment, schedule time to give them an overview of the onboarding process. This ensures everyone’s on the same page from the start and sets expectations of what needs to be covered over the coming months. Your overview should focus on how the 30-60-90 onboarding plan works as well as a general background of the company.
Make sure you choose the most effective way to give your overview. A phone call may prove to be limited if you plan on using visual aids. A video call with a screen-sharing option would be a better option and allow you to provide an overview to a number of users at the same time.
During this time, work with the new hire to establish a reasonable workload and introduce them to your project management software to help them oversee their onboarding. You don’t want to overload them with responsibilities and tasks, so it’s better to underestimate their capabilities. If necessary, you can add more responsibilities and tasks to their workload over time if they can handle it.
Schedule regular catch-ups using a VoIP phone system to make sure your new hires feel comfortable and not overwhelmed by their new responsibilities. You could even send text messages as a quick way to check in as long as you have their permission and it’s within work hours.
If you use multiple communication channels in the workplace, you may need to talk them through what is CPaaS platform and how you use it internally. New hires may find using different forms of communication overwhelming, and you want to ensure as smooth as possible a transition.
Set Targets
The 30-60-90 plan is built around target setting at a reasonable and achievable rate. You may have general targets for the onboarding period, however, ensure you also make specific targets too, using the SMART method to dictate a timescale and how you measure achievements. What type of targets you set depends on the stage of the onboarding process the new hire is in.
30-day Targets
Targets for the first month of employment should center on learning and acquiring knowledge. This could be through training sessions and online courses, as well as ensuring new hires know where to ask questions in the future. Your new hire won’t acquire all the knowledge they need for their position within the first month, so the 30-day targets can be ongoing.
In this period, your new hire’s targets should cover getting to grips with the structure of your business alongside its values. Particularly if you use recruitment automation for hiring so the new employee hasn’t met many people in your business, this is essential for making introductions and highlighting what people are responsible for. From here, the new hire’s targets can move on to learning about your products, how to set up caller ID on their desk phone and mobile devices, and the responsibilities of their role.
If they will be using their personal mobile phones for work, consider moving their number onto your business phone service provider. You will be able to check phone number portability before, and this way, they won’t be charged for any work-related activity. It can be a nice perk to offer new hires too.
60-day Targets
Your 60-day targets focus on integrating new hires with their team and taking on the responsibilities of their position. Therefore, these targets are going to be more task-based and set the groundwork for how they work with the rest of the team. This starts to form work habits and routines, so new hires need to get them right and address any issues early on.
Some of the crucial 60-day targets need to include setting up regular one-to-ones and meetings, identifying ways of addressing issues with the team, and discussing what feedback is most useful to them. Other practical targets may include using call software functions from your hosted PBX provider, using your email finder, and meeting deadlines for tasks or projects. These enable the new hire to work effectively in their team.
90-day Targets
During the third month of your new hire’s onboarding, they should be used to their role and able to set long-term targets. The focus should be on managing their responsibilities effectively and ensuring their quality of work meets your business standards. These help your new hire become a valuable team member, matching the accuracy and consistency of their colleagues.
Targets for the 90 days can, again, be ongoing, setting expectations of the level of work the new hire can complete in their workday. For example, the targets set an amount of sales conversions the new hire wants to reach or use metrics to measure their productivity and efficiency within the team. These may be similar to other employees’ targets, based on the feedback of their manager.
Provide Support
You should support all your employees in various ways however, for new hires, this support needs to be even more evident. Whether they have questions about where to find specific documents for a client like a release of liability template or a vendor agreement, want to shadow someone running a project, or need encouragement as they take on new tasks, your teams need to be on hand to help. Not everyone has to be constantly available, but the new hire should know where to find support.
One way of supporting new hires is by assigning them a buddy - someone from within their team to answer questions and show them how things work. During the first 30 days, this buddy may reduce their workload with the help of productivity tools to dedicate time to the new hire. Over time, the buddy will gradually return to their work routine, although still looking out for the new hire when possible.
Check-in
As the 30-60-90 onboarding plan centers around target setting at a steady pace, it’s important to check in on these targets and see how the new hire is hitting them. Reflecting on the new hire’s experience so far provides an opportunity to encourage them, track how much information they remember during onboarding, as well as plan their route forward.
Whilst checking in with your new hire, you may need to adjust some targets. This could be because they aren’t achieving what you initially anticipated. Slowing their onboarding or focusing on one part of the role can help the new hire become familiar at a more gradual pace. Alternatively, the new hire may beat their targets, needing more challenging goals to be created.
If you choose to check in using your small business phone system consider using call recording. This way your new hires can listen back and review their targets before each meeting. Just make sure your call quality is good enough for them to do this.
Collect Feedback
If you want to keep improving your onboarding and refining your 30-60-90 plan, having feedback can direct your attention. Asking new hires who’ve just gone through the onboarding process about their experience and what could be improved can emphasize where the plan is unclear or useful additional resources. This feedback could also be generally about the business, such as ensuring your unified communications as a service software connects remote workers to the network too.
Asking for feedback can also make your new hires feel like a part of the team. Rather than feedback being one-way comments on how the new hire can improve and adjust to their role, receiving their feedback acknowledges that team integration is a group responsibility. It also shows that your business values the opinions of its employees, acting on their feedback.
Gradually Guide Your New Hires With the 30 60 90 Method
We’ve all been the new hire at some point and onboarding has such an impact on the rest of your experience with a business. The information you learn and the people you meet can shape a new hire’s perception of a company as well as influence their new work routines. Rather than making joining a new business an overwhelming experience, gradually guiding new hires into their roles can create a more seamless and positive transition for everyone involved.
Introducing the 30-60-90 onboarding plan to your business doesn’t necessarily disregard your previous onboarding strategies. Instead, it acts as a way of pacing the information and tasks you load onto your new hire, giving them time to adjust and become familiar with them. This can work alongside employee handbooks, training schemes, and other onboarding approaches to build an informative and engaging program, whilst helping your new hires to avoid burnout.
Author Bio
John Allen is a driven marketing professional with over 14 years of experience, an extensive background in building and optimizing digital marketing programs across SEM, SEO, paid media, mobile, social, and email, with an eye to new customer acquisition and increasing revenue
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15 Amazing Tools to Scale Employee Collaboration
In any business, there are tasks which involve different teams and external stakeholders. Most times, such tasks can run simultaneously. Managing such tasks via email and over the phone is not only difficult and time-consuming; it also leaves open the possibility of everyone not being on the same page. Add to that, in a post-COVID world where employees often work remotely, it has become essential for organizations to invest in an efficient employee collaboration tool.
While it is easy to acknowledge the need for an employee collaboration tool like an employee app, it is quite difficult to choose products that can effectively scale up the collaboration amongst employees. Depending on your business, you may need tools that provide video calling, group access controls, bookkeeping reports, and software integrations. In fact, you may very well need more than one tool to arrive at an appropriate solution. Let’s look at 15 amazing tools you can consider for scaling up employee collaboration.
Workmates
Workmates by LIKE.TG is a powerful intranet platform that helps boost employee engagement using announcements, rewards, and recognition. Management and HR professionals love the built-in analytics and reporting which allows you to easily see metrics related to onboarding, collaboration, and ROI.
The collaboration metrics in Workmates let you see how employees work together. You can also integrate 3rd party analytics to gain even more insights.
Pros: Great onboarding and support make it possible to get up and running in a matter of days.
Cons: There are many features and options so administration may seem overwhelming for some.
Slack
Communication is one of the most important aspects of collaboration, and there is hardly any application out there that does it better than Slack. Often touted by its fans as the best messaging app for businesses, this powerful application can serve as a full-fledged collaboration tool for companies of disparate sizes.
From early-stage start-ups and small businesses to some of the largest companies in the world; Slack today commands a loyal user base that swears by its expansive range of features. From video calls to instant messaging to file sharing and task management, Slack covers nearly every basic collaboration feature you might think of.
However, what makes Slack so popular with its user base is its capacity to integrate different tools and create workflows. The Slack App directory boasts of over 2200 apps to integrate different platforms in quick time. For example, if you want your entire marketing team to know how your Twitter feed is performing, you can just integrate it with a Slack channel and everyone on the team can view live updates and share their views on any post.
Pros: One of the best collaboration tools in the market. Easy to use, and fit for everyone.
Cons: Not much unless you end up creating multiple redundant conversation channels.
Microsoft Teams
The Redmond based software giant first introduced Microsoft Teams in 2017 with an eye on making a mark with its existing enterprise clients who were running Office 365. The tool has become increasingly popular with the general public who have lapped up its free edition. The application offers a robust collaboration tool with features for video calling, screen sharing, integration with Outlook calendar, and effective features for document management especially in conjunction with SharePoint.
Teams is a great option for businesses including enterprises that already run applications from Microsoft. For example, a user who is running Outlook can seamlessly integrate with this sophisticated platform and plan Teams meetings from right inside Outlook itself.
Pros: Great for enterprise users and firms using Microsoft 365
Cons: Not an ideal solution for small teams and has limitations related to numbers of channels, permission settings etc.
Twist
For those of you who prefer structured conversations, Twist comes across as a great collaboration tool. The application sports an uncluttered look and uses a thread-based message system for managing communication and tasks amongst team members. It offers comprehensive video calling features and comes equipped with features like channels and message search.
Pros: Simple to use, offers a more laid back approach to collaboration.
Cons: Does not offer detailed workflow and automation features
Trello
If you are looking for an absolutely easy-to-use collaboration tool that does basic collaboration tasks quite well then Trello can be a great choice. The application builds on the concept of the Kanban method of work management wherein you utilize poster boards and sticky notes to manage to-do lists. It works exceptionally well for small firms and simple projects but is not really suited for complex activities. Trello offers Power-ups to extend its functionality and add features like Automation, Charting features, etc.
Pros: Ease to use, lightweight application, free for small teams
Cons: Not suited for complex tasks, very limited project and employee management and communication features.
Wire
With a focus on enterprise customers, Wire offers a highly secure collaboration platform that is protected by end-to-end encryption. Some of the features it sports include secure guest rooms, file sharing, video conferencing, etc. If you want, you can choose to deploy the application on your own servers or even on a private cloud.
Pros: Highly secure platform fit for enterprise use
Cons: Not suited for small teams, limited feature range
Bitrix 24
If you are looking at a collaboration tool with a full-fledged CRM and elements of a marketing suite then you should look no further than Bitrix24. It’s a powerful platform that is suitable for businesses of any size and integrates several solutions into one platform. As opposed to most collaboration tools which tend to run from the cloud, this platform can also be hosted on your own servers.
Pros: Exceptional marketing and collaboration platform suited for enterprise and large firms.
Cons: Small teams can get lost in its sea of functionality.
Nifty
Often regarded as one of the best project management tools in the market, Nifty has over time emerged as a great collaboration tool. It boasts of an array of communication and scheduling features including meetings, chats, and calendar options. It further allows you to integrate different apps and extend the functionality of the tool. For example, you can link up your Zoom account with Nifty and initiate calls right of project discussions or even direct messages.
Pros: Excellent document sharing and collaboration options, exceptional project management, and time tracking tools
Cons: Resource heavy, not suited for small teams. Does not offer a free edition.
Flock
If you are looking at a comprehensive communication solution at a reasonable cost the Flock application comes across as a robust solution. It encompasses an array of features like project management, video conferencing, workflows, and integration with other platforms. In some ways, it mirrors the feature set offered by Slack but at a lower price point. In fact, the free starter package of Flock is exceptionally good with reasonable limitations.
Pros: Good for small teams, cost-effective over more established competitors like Slack
Cons: The tool lacks sophistication in many aspects like notifications, file sharing, etc.
Chanty
Chanty combines a host of advanced communication and collaboration features in one neat package. It offers you an easy-to-use interface, team spaces, and powerful video calling features at rock bottom prices. Add to that it has a forever free plan which is exceedingly popular with small teams, individuals, and freelancers who find the software convenient for most of their needs.
Pros: Free and Low-cost pricing options. Great for small teams and start-ups
Cons: Lacks the capability to handle complex projects
Zoho Cliq
Designed to handle collaboration in a structured manner, Zoho Cliq comes loaded with a host of features like video conferencing, real-time chat, calendar management, channels for teams etc. The tool supports integration with other Zoho products and offers support for slash commands and SSL encryption.
Pros: Easy to use, attractive pricing, ideal tool for existing customers of Zoho products
Cons: Limited features for task management.
Asana
Counted amongst one of the finest workflow management tools in vogue today, Asana boasts of a range of collaboration features like project conversations, task comments, and support for rich text. It allows integration with video tools like Zoom that can then directly be initiated from its meeting options. The application offers convenient features for file sharing, team management, and task management, etc.
Pros: Great for Overall collaboration and Project Management. Offer integrations with a range of popular tools. Can be used in specialized tasks such as lead generation, event management, etc.
Cons: Communication features are slightly limited unlike some Asana alternatives that offers more team workflow collaboration tools.
Cisco Webex
Considered amongst one of the earliest employee collaboration and video conferencing tool ever introduced for the web, Cisco Webex continues to find a loyal user base amongst enterprise clients and large firms. For over two decades some of the largest companies in the world have relied on this venerable product to manage team meetings across different locations. The application now boasts of a range of features like screen sharing, whiteboards, options to create spaces for different teams, etc.
Pros: Great tool for enterprise with focus on video conferencing
Cons: Limited features, legacy design issues
Zulip
If you are looking at an open-source collaboration tool that is easy to use and offers a forever free plan, then Zulip would come across as an ideal choice. The application is completely open-source and you can host it on your own server too. It is ideal for small teams, especially those who are technically savvy and can work with the integrations offered by the platform.
Pros: Open Source, comes with a forever free plan
Cons: Limited features, not suited for enterprise use.
Missive
Missive is an innovative collaboration platform suited for start-ups and companies focusing on a lot of social interaction. It offers you the flexibility to integrate social channels such as Twitter and Facebook along with email into a one comprehensive dashboard view. The tool is a boon for marketing teams looking to quickly manage their tasks and improve response times. The application offers integration options with popular tools and offers support for automation.
Pros: Easy to use, ideal for tracking marketing activities, sales, and lead generation activities
Cons: Not suited for enterprise or complex workflow management tasks
A Few Last Words
At times you may need to find the right mix of tools based on your budget and business goals. It makes sense to try out free editions or trial versions of all collaboration tools to shortlist before making a purchase decision. Tools by themselves can only do so much and it is critical for teams to invest in products that work for them.
15 Ways to do Employee Appreciation for the End of the Year
Every year Employee Appreciation Day is on the first Friday in March, and with it comes the opportunity for companies to show appreciation for their most valuable resource—their employees.
According to research, organizations with effective recognition frameworks experience a 31% reduction in voluntary turnover. It also contributes to employee morale.
So on Employee Appreciation Day, show your team members how much you appreciate them. Here are a few suggestions that will appeal to everyone in your company.
Employee Appreciation vs. Recognition
Typically, employee appreciation is about rewarding employees’ general contributions to the workplace. Employee recognition, on the other hand, usually focuses on a specific achievement of a single individual or team. Both are crucial for a positive company culture.
First, Create a Culture of Appreciation
Celebrating Employee Appreciation Day is a bit misguided if you don’t already have a culture of appreciation established. And that starts by setting an example at the top of the organization.
Regularly acknowledge individual and team achievements during meetings and by personally express gratitude for employees' efforts in day-to-day interactions. Establish an employee recognition program, such as peer recognition platforms or award nominations, and ensure that it’s actively used and promoted.
The more you foster an environment where gratitude is the norm, the more authentic Employee Appreciation Day feels.
Tips for Employee Appreciation Day
Start planning several weeks in advance to ensure all details are covered.
Tailor activities and gifts to suit the preferences and culture of your team.
Establish a budget to guide your decisions on activities and gifts.
Plan a variety of events to keep the day interesting and engaging for everyone.
Customize thank-you messages or gifts to add a personal touch that employees will value.
Encourage all staff to participate in planned activities to boost engagement and fun.
Publicly acknowledge the hard work and achievements of individuals and teams.
Offer gifts that employees will genuinely appreciate and find useful.
Gather feedback after the event.
Don’t forget remote or contract employees!
1. Special Event or Award Ceremony
Since Employee Appreciation Day is a special day, it’s the perfect time to host a special event or award ceremony to publicly recognize and celebrate employee achievements. Some ideas of what to include in the presentation include:
Individual awards
Team accomplishments
Milestone employees
New employees
Launch a new benefit
Introduce a recognition program
2. Bonuses
Money isn’t the most original incentive, but there are few employees who’ll find disappointment in a cash bonus. Show that you recognize employees’ value and the work it takes for them to help your company reach its goals with the gift of cash.
You can also complement the financial rewards with some additional perks for your most valuable employees, such as additional vacation days or vouchers for various online retailers.
3. Gift Cards
Sometimes, bonuses aren’t in the budget. Still, if you like the idea of employee appreciation gifts, you can give your employees gift cards. Instead of giving every employee the same generic T-shirt or water bottle, gift cards allow employees to select incentives with personal significance.
4. Gifts or Care Packages
Some of the most successful employer brands are those who take the time and effort to get to know their employees. Then, when the time comes for your HR team to start generating employee appreciation ideas, this data will be invaluable.
Personalized rewards make all the difference in outreach attempts such as care packages. A care package is a particularly useful employee appreciation idea, particularly for remote employees or teams.
While you don’t need to make care packages hyper-personalized, you should still acknowledge the individual’s unique traits, values, interests, and core drivers.
5. Pick-a-Prize
Allowing employees to pick their own gift can significantly enhance its value, as it ensures that the reward is desirable and useful. This approach not only empowers employees by giving them a choice but also demonstrates the company's commitment to catering to individual preferences.
6. Catered Breakfast or Lunch
Providing breakfast or lunch on Employee Appreciation Day is a thoughtful and inclusive way to celebrate, offering a shared meal that fosters camaraderie and a sense of community. Plus, it creates an opportunity for employees to bond and relax together, enhancing employee experience and facilitating team dynamics.
7. Happy Hour
Hosting a happy hour for employees allows them to unwind and socialize after work hours. It can be held on-site with options like craft beer tasting and cocktail mixing stations, or off-site at a local pub or restaurant, providing a fun break from the usual work routine.
8. Snacks or Dessert Bar
Setting up a snacks or dessert bar offers a delightful treat for employees, featuring a variety of options such as gourmet cookies, artisan chocolates, a build-your-own trail mix station, or a selection of local ice creams.
9. Spa Services
Provide in-office services such as chair massages, manicures, or reflexology sessions. This offers staff a chance to relax and de-stress right at the workplace and shows the company’s care for its employees' health and well-being.
10. Company-Wide Email
Send out an email highlighting individual and team accomplishments to the entire organization. This could include a summary of achievements, personal stories, and photos from the past year, making everyone feel valued and reinforcing the company's appreciation for every team member's hard work.
11. Video Tribute
Similarly, you can create a video montage, compiling clips from managers and colleagues expressing their gratitude and appreciation for the team's efforts. This video can be shown at a company meeting or shared on internal communication networks, providing a personal and heartfelt recognition.
12. Say “Thank You”
Simply saying “Thank you,” in person to each employee can have a profound impact. Leaders and managers can make a point to visit each team or department, expressing their gratitude directly and personally, which can significantly boost morale and make employees feel genuinely appreciated.
13. Personalized Notes
Write personalized notes to each employee (bonus points for handwritten!), recognizing their specific contributions and achievements. These notes can mention particular instances where the employee excelled, showing that their efforts are noticed and valued.
14. Game Day
Organize a game day with board games, video game setups, or outdoor sports to make the day fun and engaging. It's a chance for employees to interact in a non-work context, which can improve team cohesion and offer a stress-relieving break from the usual routine.
15. Go Outside
Encourage employees to go outside together, whether for a group picnic, a team-building activity in a local park, or a volunteer day supporting a community project. Activities in a natural setting can reduce stress, increase creativity, and enhance team dynamics in an enjoyable and healthful setting.
16. Offsite Activity
Plan a fun activity away from the office, such as a day at a team-building retreat, escape room, bowling alley, cooking class, or local amusement park. This provides a change of scenery, fosters team spirit, strengthens relationships, and allows employees to create memorable experiences together.
17. Donate to Charity
Allowing employees to choose a charity for the company to donate to on their behalf can be a meaningful way to show appreciation. This approach not only honors the employees but also aligns with their personal values and interests.
18. Volunteer
Organize a volunteer day for employees to give back to the community together. Whether it’s helping at a food bank, cleaning up a local park, or building homes for a housing charity, volunteering fosters a sense of purpose and teamwork that extends beyond the office walls.
19. Social Media Shout-Outs
Giving shout-outs on the company Facebook, Twitter, or LinkedIn involves highlighting an individual’s or team’s achievements. This can boost their professional profile and make them feel celebrated not just within the company but by the broader public, enhancing their sense of pride and accomplishment.
20. Extra Paid Time Off
Taking a break during long hours of work will certainly help your employees to contribute in a more productive way. Offer late starts, longer lunches, or early quitting time, which is especially appreciated on a Friday.Another option: Many companies designate an Employee Appreciation Day as a full-paid day off where team members can participate in things they've always wanted to. Besides providing a vacation from work, hobbies can assist staff in learning new abilities that will benefit your business in the long run.
21. Company Swag
Distribute high-quality company-branded items, such as branded apparel, tech gadgets, or personalized items like engraved pens or custom notebooks. Quality swag items aren’t just practical; they also serve as a daily reminder of the company’s appreciation.
22. Use Employee Engagement Software
Implement employee engagement software—like the one LIKE.TG offers—to enable continuous and real-time recognition among colleagues. Features can include peer-to-peer recognition feeds, reward systems, or communication tools that facilitate celebrating small wins and major milestones alike.
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About the Author
This article is written by a marketing team member at LIKE.TG. LIKE.TG is a leading provider of proven HR solutions, including recruiting, onboarding, employee communications engagement, and rewards recognition. Our user-friendly software increases employee productivity, delivers time and cost savings, and minimizes compliance risk.
Six Must-Have Features for an Effective Crisis Management Software
A crisis cannot be always predicted, including when it may hit and how long will it last. Your company should be prepared for such situations, aided by effective crisis management software to manage unfamiliar interruptions and ensure business continuity.
A sudden and unexpected event happen may hit at any time which makes it challenging for companies to redirect their operations and manage communication protocols for business as usual. This necessitates the need for a two-pronged approach - crisis management software and a crisis management plan. While a crisis management plan entails a clear playbook outlining the procedures and policies in place for any unexpected event, crisis management software facilitates communication channels through cloud-based networks to ensure an aligned workforce and business continuity.
A crisis communication tool is a clear and concise way for leaders to transparently deliver information to employees during a time of crisis. This allows employees to stay calm and focused and provides them with the support they need to coordinate a crisis response for the organization.
Strong Imperative for a Crisis Management Software
The findings of a Global Crisis Survey conducted in August 2019 showed that an overwhelming majority (95%) of companies believed they would face a crisis of some kind in the future. The findings were proved right. The survey also highlighted that 69% of companies faced a crisis during the last five years.
Which Companies Need Crisis Management Software?
Every business in general stands to benefit with the capability to not only maintain but also ensure strong communication in the event of a disruption. Many businesses and industries with frontline workers operated during the COVID-19 pandemic. The right software connecting these workers helped them stay up to date on information affecting their work as well as safety, whilst supporting the operations of the organization. You should select a communication tool that confers certain capabilities and ensures that all the employees are aligned with a unique and well-drafted crisis communication plan.
Mobile App for Emergency Communication
Emergency management software is a crucial tool for any business, but it provides particularly helpful for organizations whose employees are constantly on the move. For example, frontline workers make up 80% of the world’s labor force and are often the ones who suffer the most during a crisis since they can't just stop working. Frontline workers include healthcare professionals who are on the frontlines of the battle against the pandemic, and they are the ones leading the charge. They take care of the sick and drive ambulances, making up 20% of the world’s frontline workers. Another group of people who have been working hard during this time is retailers. With grocery stores being one of the few retail industries permitted to remain open, retailers have strived hard to disinfect stores, order supplies, and stock shelves.
A mobile employee communication app helps in creating a unified response during crises situations by aligning every employee with regular updates from the leadership. Prioritizing communication is indispensable. With the right mobile software, leaders can create a culture of safety throughout their company, connecting with their dispersed workforce. By using an iOS app builder, leaders can quickly and easily create custom mobile applications, making it easier to communicate important safety information to employees. This helps in sharing critical information, uploading safety training videos, and issuing real-time alerts during a crisis, right from an extreme weather event (higher incidences due to climate change) to a contagious infection that can affect employees and customer service.
Dependable Platform That Can Handle Extraordinary Situations
A company may encounter different events that can impact various aspects of its operations at any given moment such as legal, financial, brand reputation, data security, facilities, as well as safety. To ensure an effective yet seamless transition from day-to-day operations to emergency crisis communication, the role of digital tools that can also serve as emergency communication software is crucial. This way, you and your team will be able to communicate with one another quickly and efficiently in the event of an unforeseen crisis.
A cybersecurity crisis can severely impact a company’s operations and cause sensitive data leaks, affecting the brand reputation and also customer base. A robust and effective internal communication tool with key featurescan aid a seamless transition to support business operations during a contingency. These features should include the real-time ability to deal with the rapidly evolving situations, confirmation campaigns to make sure employees mandatorily read the alerts and messages, group chat for collaboration, and a repository for sharing and updating crucial safety information.
Two-Way Communication Channel for Employee Well-Being
A digital tool that allows for two-way communication helps businesses create an inclusive environment on a daily basis. This strategy delivers positive outcomes, such as increased employee engagement, a more collaborative workforce, and improved customer service. When a crisis occurs, it's even more important for organizations to have a channel that frontline workers can use to voice their concerns.
Surveys are a great way for leaders to keep track of how their employees are doing during a crisis.
By asking questions and getting feedback from frontline workers, managers can make more informed decisions about how to proceed.
Peer-to-peer chat and communication help create a supportive structure for colleagues working from different locations.
A workforce app can also provide a space for employees to voice their concerns and feel more secure in their work environment.
After a crisis has passed, leaders can use post-crisis response feedback to assess their crisis management plan and see how it worked out in practice.
Crisis Management by Leveraging the Power of Analytics and Data
Being able to communicate with your employees is a great foundation, but having a fully-functional crisis management service with an analytics dashboard will provide you with more detailed information about your team. Analytics can help you understand employee engagement during regular business operations, but in a crisis, everything changes and it can be very hard on your employees. They may become anxious or lose focus, hence it's important to have a system that can help you monitor these things.
An analytics dashboard as part of your crisis management service can get you a clear picture of what's going on with your team and identify any areas of concern. This way, you can address any issues that may come up and help keep your employees calm and focused during a time of crisis. Even during a crisis, employee engagement is still key. Make sure that you check how your employees are managing and use your communication tools to reach out to them. This way, you can provide the support they need during this difficult time.
Right Tool for a Resilient Workforce
When it comes to choosing a digital crisis communication solution for your business, it's important to find one that will support your needs and help you stay organized. Create dedicated crisis streams and alerts, but don't forget to maintain a sense of normalcy in your communication. In other words, keep up with your day-to-day strategies and practices to keep your workforce engaged. This way, you'll be prepared for anything that comes your way. Also, ensure that the tool will help your company in employee recognition, promote collaboration and create a channel for employee feedback.
Business Continuity with Cutting-edge Features
Crises are unpredictable by nature, which means they can hit unexpectedly and last for an indefinite amount of time. Many companies faced major disruptions to their workflows due to lockdowns imposed during the Covid-19 pandemic. The right incident management software can play a key role in business continuity at all points during a crisis. Here are some of the features that you should look for while choosing software for this purpose:
Automation capability
Business continuity is vital for keeping things running smoothly, no matter what type of crisis may arise - whether it’s a natural disaster, extreme weather event, data breach, or a sudden need to disperse your workforce. When a company has an internal communication tool that can automate even a routine administrative process such as payroll, then a transition to a crisis will have comparatively fewer disruptions. This level of automation in place will help to keep your business running as usual, even when faced with difficult and unforeseen circumstances.
Cloud-based operations
A crisis can often make traditional communication methods, like email or landlines, inaccessible. With a cloud-based network, employees are always reachable through their smartphones, can continue to communicate with colleagues and managers through apps like Slack or Google Hangouts, and access important documents and information stored online through cloud storage like Dropbox or Google Drive.
Manage work schedules
An effective workforce communication platform can enable workers to manage their schedules on their mobile devices which can help to reduce absenteeism during a crisis. Employees can continue to receive their work schedules and swap their schedules directly with colleagues.
Messaging across multiple channels
Employees can use different communication channels throughout the day to accomplish their work. This could be in the form of voice messages, group chats, or direct messaging. With a strong platform, businesses can be assured that communication will not be interrupted and work can continue as usual.
Crisis management is one of the key factors in managing an organization. With the help of efficient crisis management software, you can prepare your organization to face any unexpected situations, keep employees engaged, preserve your brand reputation and provide timely products and services.
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Benefits That Increase Employee Retention
As a business professional, you might often ask yourself “what can we do to increase employee retention”? While there are several different ways you can go about it, one of the most successful things you can do is take a look at the benefits you offer your employees and update them.
Simply ask your most tenured employees which benefits they love and which benefits they wish were offered. You can gather a lot of useful information through an anonymous survey and it will likely be the best way to get authentic feedback. Another helpful strategy is to compare your benefit structure with what your competitors offer. This may be a reason your retention is lower than you’d like.
Let's explore what your next steps should be and take a look at some of the most popular benefits companies will offer their employees and why these will likely boost your retention rate.
Educate Your Employees
Start by educating your employees as to what their current benefits are. A survey from Voya Financial claims that over one-third of employees do not understand the benefits they’re enrolled in. This is concerning for any business because this means you are not doing your job to offer clear, easy-to-understand benefits that your employees value.
The human resources (HR) department is responsible for taking on this task and ensuring there is clarity around current and new benefit structures. HR is also responsible for informing everyone at the company about what and when open enrollment is - start with the basics, such as by answering “how does open enrollment work” to gauge your employees’ knowledge base and go from there. Since the answer is this is the timeframe when employees can apply for benefits, doing this education ahead of your open enrollment period is the perfect opportunity to educate everyone about what their benefit options are and how to use them.
Popular Benefits Offered by Companies
As mentioned before, benefits are a part of your employee's “pay” and should be treated as such. Take a moment to consider these popular benefits that may contribute to boosting retention rates.
Insurance
There are several types of insurance, but the most important ones that should be offered include medical, dental, and vision. Some added coverage you can also provide your employees with are life insurance and disability insurance. Adding on these extra coverage plans can make a huge difference to employees and will allow your company to stick out against your competitors.
Paid Time Off (PTO)
This is one of the benefits that can fluctuate the most company-to-company. Depending on your industry you may be limited to what you can offer here, but be sure to take into consideration the personal life of your employees and how you can support a healthy work-life balance. The most important thing is that you verify employees have enough vacation time to support their well-being.
The two most popular types of PTO structures include unlimited PTO and PTO which is offered based on tenure. Either has its positives and negatives, but ensuring there is a good structure of tracking and allocating PTO is the most important. Invest in a time-off tracking software to help keep track of all your employees and ensure PTO is being used, but not abused.
Flexible Work Schedule
Flexible work can mean so many different things. This is also another benefit that will depend on the type of work you do, as that will directly sway if and how it’s offered. First and foremost, offering employees the ability to work remotely is number one. This can look several different ways, but some types of remote work can be very appealing to employees and can ultimately weigh heavily in their decision-making when applying for jobs.
It can also mean allowing employees to work flexible hours. While this isn’t always possible it can be super beneficial to them to be able to work around their schedule, especially for those who have children or live busy lives. This is a benefit that is essentially free for you to offer but can be the deciding factor for your employees on whether or not they can work for you.
Mental Health Wellness
Supporting your worker's mental health is just as important as supporting their physical health. This can be done by offering mental health days or just simply ensuring your health insurance covers mental health services. Recently, this has been something more and more employees are requiring from their employers and is another way your company can stand out. Not only this but supporting your employees' mental health shows you truly care and can make a huge difference in the quality of work they produce.
Retirement Plan
Though retirement savings may not be at the forefront of everyone's mind, it is one of the most financially responsible ways to prepare for the future. As an employer, offering some sort of retirement plan such as a 401k or Roth IRA, and matching contributions is a simple, yet impactful way to invest in your employees. This is something many employees look at when applying to jobs and can be a great strategy to use through recruiting. Ultimately investing in your employee’s future shows them that you care about them and will go a long way.
Other Areas of Improvement
While offering your employees tangible benefits is a great starting point in increasing your retention, there are several other non-tangible things that will keep your employees around longer and can even attract new ones.
Employee engagement and workplace culture are two areas that have a heavy weight in the day-to-day operations of your business. Not only will this create a fun atmosphere for you and your employees, but it will also be a great thing to highlight and can directly contribute to the success of your business. Check out these best practices to improve employee engagement and you’ll be well on your way to creating the ideal workplace.
“Our staff has praised the increased communications level Workmates delivers. We use it to communicate important project matters and give staff specific ‘kudos’ or even recognize their birthdays. More importantly, we use Workmates to clarify important project details that needed rapid dissemination among the entire team.”
Use These Techniques in Recruiting
Once you’ve done an internal review of your benefits and made some changes for the better of your company, you can now turn and use these to help grow your business. Recruiting and hiring are two areas that will directly have an impact on your retention rates. Ensuring best practices are followed in these areas will allow you to bring on the best employees that align not only with your business values but also have the eagerness and desire to be successful alongside you.
Some various ways you can adjust the method you currently hire is through your recruitment process. Take a look at ways you can take advantage of recruitment strategies to be successful in the hiring process. This is where you will make the biggest impact on the future of your company and placing high emphasis on hiring the right people will directly improve your company's turnover.
With that said, the first step is to ensure you are providing your employees with the benefits they need but also providing them with things that not every other company does. This is the best way to make your company stand out from competitors and is the best way to gain top talent and retain it.
Next steps: Begin research on other factors that influence employee retention and start working to improve those!
Employees Are Burnt Out — Here’s How HR Can Offer Support
The COVID-19 pandemic changed the way that many employees think about work. When the virus swept across the globe, people started to realize that there is more to life than just going to a job every day for a company that doesn't really value them as people. This is more than just a fad, and there is even a term for the massive exodus of employees leaving their jobs. It’s called the Great Resignation.
The fact is that many employees are burnt out, and they want to find a company that appreciates their efforts. By understanding burnout and its consequences, your organization can make the changes necessary to turn things around and bring on more qualified candidates. Let’s talk about burnout and how HR can offer its support.
Your Employees Are Likely Experiencing Burnout
The first step to creating a more productive work environment is to understand that many of your employees are likely experiencing burnout or anxiety. Burnout can happen if a worker is pushed too hard with unnecessary tasks, required overtime, and extensive micromanagement.
Burnout can also happen if an employee goes to work every day and does their job but feel that their work is not valued or appreciated, or they believe that they will never evolve past their current role. These are the reasons for the Great Resignation, and your HR team needs to start making changes from within.
It is easy to believe that since the work is getting done and employees are friendly with one another in the lunch room that there is no issue with burnout at your company.
However, the signs of burnout are not always visible, and many employees don’t feel comfortable enough to speak to their managers or call HR to advise that they are feeling burnt out. In fact, even if you send a survey asking them, many employees may feel like their opinion doesn’t matter, and they won’t respond.
Some don’t even realize what burnout is, so burnout is underreported in workplaces. Employees just don’t feel like themselves. Thus, realizing there is an issue and being proactive is key. Teach staff how to recognize that they are experiencing burnout themselves, and take note of patterns in behavior to catch burnout in employees, yourself.
How Burnout Affects the Company
When an employee is burnt out, it will show in their work. Sometimes, an employee may feel like their work isn’t helping the company succeed, and so they may decide to give only half of the required effort. Other times, they may feel like they aren’t appreciated, and so they might intentionally do their work incorrectly. Sometimes, the issue may be that they aren’t excited to go to work anymore, so they might call out more often, so your production timelines take a hit.
The role of the HR team is to talk to every member of the organization and understand their concerns so you can speak to those needs directly. Management and HR need to have an open-door policy where employees feel comfortable enough to come to them at any time and talk. Then, they need to know that management will provide a solution. Employees who feel like HR is lording over them instead of acting as their ally will show their disapproval through their work.
The solution is to help the team feel better mentally and physically and to help them excel in their careers, so they want to help the company succeed.
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Help Them Excel in Their Careers
Now that you know the problem, you need to take action, and you can begin by showing each employee that they are a valued member of the team and that their contributions matter. To do so, open up multiple possible channels of communication, starting with emails and telephone calls. Many remote employees may feel isolated or that they have been forgotten about, so take extra time to find ways to communicate and keep them as valuable members of the team.
Managers can set up instant messaging channels where employees can ask questions and talk about their lives. It is also a good idea to have a video conference at least once per week over Zoom or a similar program, where your team can talk about their accomplishments and maybe share stories about their weekend. That way, they can see their team members face to face and feel like they are present and valued.
Management and HR also need to show empathy to employees when they come to them with concerns. Instead of only listing out the requirements of their job and scolding them if they do not perform, ask them why they are struggling and what management or HR can do to help them out. The solution may end up working for the other members of the team as well.
It is also important to help employees to evolve in their careers so they can feel a sense of meaning in their jobs. Conduct annual reviews and provide feedback whenever possible so they know what they are doing well and how they can improve.
It is also a wise idea to sit them down and ask them where they see themselves within the company in a year. If they want to be promoted, then lay down the steps that they can follow to do so. Do whatever you can to improve the employee experience on a personal level.
You can also try cross-training initiatives or provide opportunities for the employees to network with others in the organization to see if they can find a position that suits them best. If you choose to do so, then you need to set them up for success. Teach them healthy networking strategies, like how to be themselves and start a conversation.
You can also teach them about the dangers of drinking too much alcohol during an event or how to deal with anxiety. Do your part to help them succeed, and they will be forever grateful.
Improve Employee Mental Health
Human resources can also ensure that the employees are feeling good on a personal level and that they aren’t feeling mentally burnt out day after day. You can accomplish this through your benefits program. Make sure that your team has enough sick and vacation days so that overburdened employees feel comfortable enough to call out and refresh their minds so they can be more productive when they return.
Also, ensure that your workforce is provided with plenty of employee mental health resources, including the option of different types of therapy. There are different forms of therapy that can help an employee that is experiencing burnout, including Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), which can help the employee to manage their difficult feelings and improve their mind frame. Sometimes, just talking to someone can make all of the difference.
Finally, consider the fact that some employees may benefit from a flexible schedule. During the pandemic, many working parents enjoyed the idea of working from home and taking care of their kids during the day. Now that they are back, some employees may still have responsibilities at home, and if they cannot assist their families, then they may be stressed at work.
Consider offering your teams a flexible schedule if they need it. That may mean that you allow them to start later in the day and make up their time at the end of the shift. Or it may be a hybrid schedule where they work part of the week at home and the other part at the office. Studies show that employees are happier overall when they have a flexible schedule, so consider it, and you could see a more eager and productive workforce.
As you can see, it is essential that your HR team is able to identify when employees are experiencing burnout throughout your organization and solve the issue. Focus on the health and happiness of your employees, and they will show their appreciation through their work.
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Tips For Being Productive While Working Remotely
Remote work has only increased throughout the past few years and shows no sign of slowing down. When COVID-19 hit, it led to many companies shifting their employees away from the office and into working from home. Working from home has become the new normal for most, and in many cases has proven to be successful. However, there are now many other aspects to consider when it comes to overall productivity. Compared to working in the office, it’s now easier for people to get ready and start their day without having to budget their time for commuting to the office. It’s also common to have at-home offices that allow for limited distractions and a way to separate work from your personal life. While working remotely has proved to be beneficial, there are times when it can be difficult to stay productive. Continue reading to learn about different ways to increase productivity for yourself while working from home.
Design an Office Space
In an effort to improve your productivity while working from home, it’s important to ensure that you have a proper space to do your work. If you find yourself unable to focus while working from home, it may be because of the lack of a conducive work environment. In the office, it’s easier to get work done because you feel pressure from those around you to be productive; it’s a quieter environment with fewer distractions. It’s important to create a similar office space in your home where you can work without distractions or interruptions as well. Dedicate a room for your workspace so you can have a space to focus on work and nothing else. Make sure the area that you choose for your office is disturbance-free and functional. If the space you're currently using or thinking about using is full of clutter or being used as a multipurpose room, take time to declutter and clean the room so that you are starting with a clean, fresh slate.
While some may have an extra room in their home that they can convert into an office, others may not. If you don’t have a space that you can dedicate as your office, you might have to consider building an additional room or extensively renovating your home. If you’re tight on money or need some financial assistance, consider using a fixed-rate home equity line of credit to help fund any renovations needed for your office space. This allows you to borrow money against the equity of your home as needed to use for a variety of purposes, whether it be for soundproof panels for your workspace, or for buying office supplies. Using this funding option will allow you to be able to finance your office renovation and not have to worry about handling the cost on your own. You can also ask your employer if they offer a home office stipend that can help cover the costs.
Create a Schedule
Working remotely does hold many benefits, but it also brings many challenges. Since you don't have to wake up and get ready to go into an office, you may find yourself putting less effort into your morning routine. While it is easier to be able to wear whatever you want when you work from home, it’s still important to create and stick to a good morning routine. Taking the time to plan out your day the night before will allow you to feel more prepared going into the next morning and help you be more productive throughout the day. When crafting your morning routine, it’s important to create a schedule that works for you and is reasonable. Think of things that you always want to do, but feel that you don't always have the time for. For example, right when you wake up, instead of checking your phone or turning on the TV, take some time to plan out your day with a to-do list of tasks.
When first waking up, it’s a good idea to avoid using your phone right away because it’ll only encourage the prolonged use of electronic devices throughout your day and disrupt your body from properly waking up. Taking the time to plan out your day right when you wake up will help you feel more put together at the start of your day and be able to manage your time more effectively to fit in everything that needs to be done. Another aspect you should include in your morning routine is making an effort to get dressed and ready for the day. Working remotely means that you don’t have to dress up as you would at the office, but setting aside time to get ready can help you to establish that your workday is about to begin and helps to shift your focus into that work mode.
Introduction to Conflict in the Workplace(and How it Erodes Productivity Culture)
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Establish Good Habits
Even though you're working remotely, make sure that you’re establishing good habits for your workday so you can ensure that you're staying on track. Working remotely offers more flexibility than working in an office, but at times, it can be more difficult to step away from work at the end of the day, or harder to realize when you may need a break. It’s important to schedule breaks throughout the day so you can step away and reset for a little bit, and come back feeling more refreshed and ready to continue working. Different ways to incorporate breaks in your day can be through taking a lunch break away from your desk, going for a walk, stretching, or going to get coffee. Being able to make time to step away is important so you don’t become burned out over time.
Burnout is very common these days and has increased over the last couple of years. The risk of burnout while working at home all day every day is rising. A survey by Monster.com found that 69% of employees are experiencing burnout symptoms while working from home. To reduce the risk of burnout, you should take time for yourself and find ways to alleviate stress throughout the workday. You could also speak with your employer to figure out ways to provide more support for employees so they feel as though they’re not being forgotten about. Having an open line of communication with your employer and coworkers is essential when working from home.
Set Goals
A large part of a company’s success comes from the goals set for themselves. It’s important to set smart goals not only as a company or team but also as individuals. Companies use goal setting as a way to plan out what they want to accomplish and create a plan for how to get there. Similarly to how companies set goals, you should also determine what you want to attain for yourself in your professional career. It’s crucial to write the goals that you want to accomplish down so that you'll be more motivated to get smaller tasks done. You can choose to set long-term and short-term goals that you can track over time and see your hard work pay off. Having short-term objectives to reach at the end of every week or month will push employees to be more productive because they'll want to hit that mark and meet their deadlines. Meeting or exceeding that expectation boosts morale and gives you a sense of satisfaction that you’re achieving something and making strides in your work. Setting achievable goals also provides you with a sense of purpose. There should be an effort made by the company to show employees that the work they’re doing matters. Showing the correlation between the work of individuals and the success of the company for a specific project or task creates value allowing you to see the impact that your work has. Rather than doing the same thing every day with no goal to reach, setting different benchmarks will allow you to feel that you are working towards something.
Along with setting achievable goals, establishing objectives for yourself to meet will motivate you to want to accomplish more and continue to push and even surpass expectations. Having a set list of things to accomplish, it’ll be easier to plan out your days and weeks since you'll have a set amount of time to get things done. This will help you to improve your time management skills as well. Tackling multiple tasks at once requires finding ways to balance your workflow and forces you to avoid procrastinating by getting things done when you have the time instead of feeling overwhelmed because you waited until the last minute.
Working from home has become a norm in society and has proven to be very effective. Yet, there’s still the fear of a lack of productivity while working remotely. To improve remote management, it’s best practice for employers to speak with their employees about ways to improve their productivity skills. Learning how to be more productive while working remotely will allow employees and employers alike to not only feel more comfortable in their roles but also help them to better manage their time and stress.
Introduction to Conflict in the Workplace(and How it Erodes Productivity Culture)
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How to Build a Strong Culture Through Better Technology
As technology advances, so does our opportunity to provide solutions that bring the entire organization together.
By understanding your team’s core needs, pain points, and long-term goals, you can find the best technology to meet them where they are now and in the future.
But with so many SaaS tools and apps appearing left and right, it can be difficult to know which ones your team would thrive with most. From productivity platforms to time trackers to schedule builders, the number of tech options on the market are endless.
However, it’s not necessarily about the tools you choose, but rather why you choose them.
It is about looking for tools that do more than just help you become more productive and focused at work. Finding technology that helps you fulfill your goals and connect your team helps build a strong company culture.
That is why we’ve put together this simple guide to help you build a strong work culture through better technology.
Offer remote and hybrid-work options
Using the right tech tools can offer employees the flexibility to work from home, either full time or part-time.
But you may be wondering … why is that important?
Well, a whopping 97% of surveyed employees stated that a flexible job would result in a huge improvement in their quality of life.
With 41% of workers saying that they’re more likely to consider joining a union now than 3 years ago, it’s not unreasonable for companies to expect a push for workplace rights to guarantee employees a healthy work/life balance. And yes, that means offering remote and hybrid options when possible.
Practically speaking, this could mean offering the option to work from home full-time, part-time, or letting the employee choose their own schedule and workplace. Offering a 4-day in-person work week with the option to work from home on Fridays could be another opportunity to promote flexibility and autonomy.
To encourage a healthy work exchange in any of these scenarios, it’s pivotal to get your hands on team collaboration tools that can help keep everyone engaged, connected, and in the know.
For instance, we recommend looking into remote and hybrid tools, such as monday.com, ClickUp, and Basecamp. These tools have powerful team collaboration features that can keep your entire crew in the loop, productive, and can encourage high morale and employee happiness.
Keep everyone's data safe
Protecting your employees' privacy isn’t a nice-to-have. It’s a must if you want to stay in business, build trust, and promote an environment where your staff feels safe — all of which directly contribute to a strong company culture.
One way you can keep employee data safe is by focusing on providing better data storage. Look into a colocation data center, a facility in which a business can rent space for servers and other computing hardware. Having better data storage and security can lead to better functioning teams and fewer compliance headaches.
Applying change data capture can help you make faster and more accurate decisions with real time data movement so you can process data from a variety of sources — including your SaaS apps.
These data tools may sound a bit extreme, but they don’t just help you house employee data; they can also house other pertinent data, such as proprietary information and customer information.
Other tools you might find helpful are VPNs (virtual private networks) which act as protective data tunnels, and digital data platforms which keep your data safe in the cloud.
Choose technology specific to your industry
There’s something about a tool made just for your industry that makes work easier and more fulfilling than a generic tool ever could.
Industry-specific apps are built with your work in mind so your team can benefit from personalized features they’ll need most.
For instance, transportation and logistics companies use vehicle fleet management software, an advanced technology that optimizes pickup and delivery routes with real-time GPS tracking, weather, and traffic overlays. This kind of tool helps improve drivers' performance and makes their work more efficient and engaging.
And teachers use EdTech software, technology designed specifically to help teachers and students navigate the online classroom. With EdTech on their side, teachers can plan lessons, assign homework, monitor exam progress, and communicate with students and parents as needed.
From the chiropractic industry to retail to banking to even floral design, there’s a tool out there with your industry’s name on it. All you need to do is carve out some time to search for niche-specific software in line with your goals.
When looking for industry-specific technology, keep the following tips in mind:
Look for an app that’s been around long enough to have credible reviews and ratings
Review every tech tool carefully, do the features line up with your needs?
Give the technology a try before investing in it (look for tools that offer free trials or free demos)
Ask your team what they think of the tool
Choose technology that specializes in team building
Form a cohesive unit amongst your team by adding team building technology to your suite of tools.
Team building apps have features intended to help your employees interact with one another in an effort to form meaningful relationships.
One of our favorite team building features is the ability to congratulate or recognize team members for a job well done. Our Workmates solution offers these features which can help promote camaraderie, gratitude, and intrinsic motivation. Basecamp and Asana are examples of two other tools that also offer these features.
When looking for team building tools, consider your staff. What do their personalities, work styles, and strengths look like? What ways would they enjoy connecting with their peers? If you’re unsure, just send over a quick survey or questionnaire so you can hear it from them directly.
Let your seasoned employees have a say
Promoting employee autonomy and trust is essential to building a strong working culture.
When you strike the right balance between employee independence and team collaboration, you create harmony and flow. Every team member has unique gifts and skills, some of which work best in an independent setting and others that are highly effective in a group setting.
That’s why it’s important to let seasoned team members have a say when it comes to the tools they’re going to use.
Seasoned employees understand their roles inside and out. They’ve done their jobs enough times to understand what features they need for autonomous work and which features they need to thrive when working with others.
To help initiate this, consider hosting a few brainstorming sessions where employees can get together, sign up for free trials or demos, and test and rate each tech option.
You can ask your employees to document their thoughts along the way or take it a step further and have them write up some formal reviews.
After your team’s tested a variety of apps, get together for one last meeting to finalize the tools you’re going to use.
Use tools that omit information silos
Information silos wreak havoc on even the best companies’ culture.
Not only do silos contribute to employee confusion and frustration, but they also facilitate a disconnect among teams.
Other than highly sensitive company information, your employees should have open access to all of the data, resources, and tools they need to perform their jobs well.
All-in-one workspaces, a Work OS, and team collaboration tools can help provide employees with the information they need to thrive at work.
Technology can also help omit information silos by:
Providing company-wide status updates
Displaying employee schedules and availability
Providing a central location for handbooks and other important company docs
Tracking task completion in real-time
Displaying assignments, projects, and due dates in real-time
Wrap up
As technology advances, organizations are given a prime window of opportunity to provide solutions that promote a strong company culture.
With an understanding of your team’s core needs, pain points, and long-term goals, you can implement technology that carries them through all phases of their work journey with you.
Are you ready to build a strong culture with better technology?
Here’s a quick recap of how to do just that:
Offer remote and hybrid-work options
Keep everyone's data safe
Choose technology specific to your industry
Choose technology that specializes in team building
Let your seasoned employees have a say
Use tools that omit information silos
And that’s it for today. Thanks so much for reading — we truly wish you nothing but success!
How Employee Engagement Plays an Important Role in Mitigating Workplace Violence
Most people do not expect to be a victim of workplace violence. Some jobs, such as police officers, members of the military, and first responders, may expect to experience violence from offenders. However, offices, restaurants, or healthcare workers often find themselves unprepared in the case of workplace violence. Unfortunately, workplace violence can be a problem worldwide in all industries.
As a result, it is crucial to use an employee engagement strategy to mitigate workplace violence. You can significantly reduce workplace violence by properly communicating with your employees and educating them on proper behavior with training videos. Posting a guide with steps to follow and who to consult in the case of violence, installing panic alarm systems, and fostering teambuilding shared experience are all proactive solutions to mitigating workplace violence. While there might still be breakthrough cases, violence will occur at a lower rate.
Train Employees and Workplace Standards and Violence Reduction
Employee engagement is your number one tool to mitigate workplace violence. Preventative measures are crucial to eliminating violence in the workplace. As a result, classes and training videos on workplace standards and violence reduction should be a part of employee training.
When employees start working for a new company, they often need to complete training courses and general requirements before beginning in the new position. Regardless of the position, they need to learn the ins and outs of the company so that they are prepared to do their job to the best of their ability. During training, you can incorporate lessons on violence reduction.
Types of Workplace Violence
Violence in the workplace comes from one of two places. Firstly, employee-on-employee violence can occur and is the more challenging version to eliminate. However, the other version, customer-on-employee violence, is easier to avoid.
To avoid customer-on-employee violence, you can teach your employees about conflict resolution. Teach your employees how to understand and recognize anger. By learning how to recognize anger, employees will be able to notice when situations are getting out of control.
Once employees know how to recognize anger, you can look at best practices for informal de-escalation training. Teach your employees how to find the real cause of frustrations so they can talk with the customer about a solution.
While these solutions are great for when anger arises from customers, you can also use them when employees have arguments among themselves. However, since these relationships are more interpersonal than those with customers, mediation is also important.
Teach Employees About the Importance of Mediation
If an employee notices a conflict growing between them and another employee, they need preparation for what to do next. Level-headed employees who have received mediation and workplace violence training will be able to resolve the problem before violence ensues.
Calling for a mediator is one way to troubleshoot a conflict and engage employees in important workplace violence avoidance. An employee can bring in a manager, supervisor, or another employee to resolve the situation.
However, many conflicts may need resolutions from superiors than other employees; this is when a supervisor should step in as a mediator.
When an employee brings in a mediator, that individual should leave all assumptions about the employees and situation behind them. They should enter the situation with an open mind to accurately determine how to proceed.
Encourage Employees to Engage with Supervisors and Human Resources If a Situation Gets Out of Control
Employee engagement is crucial to mitigating workplace violence. As a result, when employees go through their training videos, you can teach them to engage with supervisors and human resources in uncomfortable situations.
If employees have access to a workplace communication network, they are more likely to engage with it. The network must be easily accessible, or they are unlikely to bother with it.
Additionally, members of the communication network must be understanding and friendly. If they are confrontational, aggressive, and quick to blame the person coming to them with the problem, employees will resolve conflict in their way.
If you are a company owner, you are responsible for hiring the right people as managers and supervisors to maintain good company culture. While these people are in charge of your employees, they need to treat them like equals. If managers treat their employees right, those employees are more likely to come with them when they have concerns about their coworkers.
Install Violence Prevention Devices
Customer-on-employee violence is more likely to occur, and customers are less likely to listen to reason than employees. As a result, you can install workplace safety devices to avoid conflict.
Use Workplace Bonding Activities to Engage Employees and Build Relationships
The best way to engage employees is with each other. If you notice workplace violence is higher in your workplace than is acceptable, you need to ask yourself what the problem is. While it is not easy to eliminate toxicity from the workplace, you can change things with new employees.
When new employees start in the office, hold group activities, so everyone can get to know each other. A monthly all-hands meeting with food and drinks would be a good way to foster casual interaction and help form bonds. Playing games and creating friendly competition are good icebreakers and help employees learn about each other as people.
The game does not matter as long as it is fun and encourages employees to laugh together. Friendship is the best mitigating factor against workplace violence. Team building and shared experiences foster relationships and understanding among coworkers.
Final Thoughts
Workplace violence is becoming more prominent throughout all industries. While it is impossible to eliminate it from every workplace completely, there are things you can do as a boss to mitigate it. Employee engagement is the best tool at your disposal to mitigate workplace violence.
Required training for all employees, knowledge of the proper steps to take in a potentially violent situation (such as consulting with a mediator), installing devices such as wireless panic buttons within the workplace, and shared team-building experiences between employees are all potential ways to engage employees and reduce violence in the workplace.
How Much A 4-Day Work Week Saves in Times of Recession
Let's face it. Times are changing and along with it is the way we view work. In today's economy, the needs of employees are changing. Many employees are now willing to stick with companies interested in their personal development and in improving their work-life balance. And companies need to reassess older workplace traditions and move to more modern ones.
Around the world, the concept of a four-day workweek is gaining popularity rapidly as many employers believe it improves employee engagement, productivity, and work-life balance. But what do employees themselves think about the prospect of moving to a four-day workweek?
A survey showed that 92% of employees in the United States would happily welcome a shorter workweek. And as we all know, keeping your employees happy is key to the success of your business and achieving your goals.
According to Colin Palfrey, CMO of Crediful, "Many employees are changing the way they want to work, and if you want to keep them happy and committed, then adopting a four-day work week might just be the way to go."
The days when the traditional 9 to 5 worked for employers and employees are slowly fading away. Many people working 40 hours every week argue that they do not need all that time to finish their job and can achieve the same results by working part-time.
But how does a reduced work week affect a business's bottom line, particularly during an economic downturn? In this article, we will explore the benefits of this shorter work schedule and the cost savings of a four-day workweek in times of recession.
Advantages of a 4-Day Work Week
The idea of a four-day workweek has been around for quite some time. Even though it has yet to materialize on a large scale, many companies have been experimenting with it to find out how it can improve employee happiness and productivity and make the workplace more appealing.
Below are some of the numerous benefits of a four-day workweek and why you should consider implementing it in your workplace.
Better Employee Engagement
Undoubtedly, many employees will jump at having a four-day workweek and a three-day weekend. By knowing they have a three-day weekend, employees will be happier, more motivated, and more engaged.
A study found that implementing a flexible working arrangement, like a four-day workweek, and giving employees praise and recognition can significantly increase employee engagement. It's important to remember that a company's success depends on the levels of their employees' engagement.
According to Ben Michael, Practicing Lawyer and Founder of Michael and Associates, "Every company looking to create a happy work environment, produce better quality work and outperform its competitors must continually strive to keep its employees' engagement. And one of the best ways to achieve high employee engagement is by adopting a four-day workweek arrangement."
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Reduced Employee Burnout
Employee burnout leads to poor performance because employees are less creative and productive and can't give their best. Employees who work too many hours risk higher stress levels and burnout. By reducing the number of hours worked, there will be a significant reduction in the number of employees feeling burned.
Not only does burnout affect employees' mental health, but it also affects their physical health. By transitioning to a four-day workweek, businesses will help employees feel less stressed, happier, and better mentally and physically, enabling them to give 100% every time they show up to work.
Improved Employee Retention
In today's world, it takes more than just a good salary to attract and retain the best talent. Many employees now factor in perks that can improve work-life balance. And one of the most important perks these days is a four-day workweek.
According to Anthony Martin, Founder and CEO of Choice Mutual, "Many employees give high regard and want to work for companies that show genuine interest in flexible employee schedule and work-life balance. Adopting a four-day work week will surely give you a great competitive advantage when retaining employees."
In fact, according to a 4 Day Week Global study, 63% of businesses reported that they could attract and retain talent easier with a 4-day week. There is enough evidence to suggest that a four-day workweek is a solid incentive to keep your employees on board.
Reduced Carbon Footprint
Now, more than ever, climate change is a defining issue in our lives, and there is a continuous search for measures to remedy the situation. And one of the many benefits of a four-day workweek is a smaller carbon footprint, which is just what the environment needs.
Shortening the work week means that employers and employees don't have to commute as much, and large office buildings are used one day less. It might not seem like much, but every reduction in carbon dioxide emissions is a win for us and the environment!
Potential Cost Savings of a 4-day Work Week During Recession
During an economic downturn, companies must adapt and adopt measures to sustain company growth. A 4-day work week has been proven effective in helping businesses save costs and keep their operations going in times of recession.
Here are a few potential cost-saving effects of a 4-day work week.
Increased Productivity
Increased productivity is the best way a four-day workweek can save you money. If your business is productive, it implies that you are using fewer resources to complete tasks without compromising quality.
According to Stephan Baldwin, Founder of Assisted Living, "Adopting a four-day work week at your company is a great way to make employees happy and motivate them to give their best to bring more productivity to your business. This way, you'll earn and save more."
In addition, employees who work five days a week are usually overworked and less productive on average compared to employees who work four days a week. Offering employees a four-day workweek is a great incentive to push them to work harder and more diligently.
Saving on Hiring Costs
A 4-day work week greatly benefits employees and motivates them to work and stay longer at your company. Thanks to a 4-day work week, you will see a significant increasein employee retention, engagement, and loyalty. And consequently, you will save costs associated with hiring and training new employees on your company culture.
According to Jim Pendergast, Senior Vice President of altLINE Sobanco, "The best option for a business looking to save on hiring costs is to retain good employees rather than trying to replace them, as this will almost always benefit your business in the long run. If you keep maintaining and building on the talent within your company, success will follow."
In this era of the Great Resignation, where it is becoming increasingly difficult to find the right recruitment strategies for successful hiring, moving to a four-day workweek can help your company stand out and help keep your current employees happy and productive.
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Lower Office Running Costs
Shifting to a four-day workweek reduces overhead expenses such as electricity and other office costs. Cutting such costs would save you a lot of money with time.
In addition, office supplies will last longer, and equipment such as printers, scanners, and copiers will depreciate slower. Fewer work days also mean you have to spend less on Janitorial services. By adopting a four-day work week, you'll be surprised with how much extra you will have in the bank.
Save more on Employee Perks
Employee perks are great, but they can quickly consume your budget. But by cutting a day out of the work week, you can reduce the financial impact such perks have on your business.
For example, some businesses offer their employees commuter benefits, catered lunches, and gym reimbursement. By dropping one day out of the work week, your company will save thousands - if not tens of thousands - on these perks, depending on your size.
Conclusion
The four-day workweek will only get more popular as more companies strive to find better ways to cut costs while maintaining or increasing productivity. Even though there is no one-size-fits-all approach to it, taking advantage of the numerous cost-saving opportunities of a four-day workweek is what you need to save in times of recession and propel your business to the next level.
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