Employee engagement matters now more than ever. Companies with engaged employees outperform those without by 202%, says Business 2 Community.
You don’t want to lose these star employees. So how can you keep them? The good news: Not just a higher salary, says Lisa Sterling, Chief People Officer at Ceridian.
“While salary creates a baseline for happiness at work, it isn’t everything. Organizations looking to retain their most effective employees need to invest in a culture that will make them happy,” she says.
In other words, when you make employees’ happiness a priority, they’ll work harder for you. Here are a few common office policies you may want to rethink for your top talent’s happiness.
1. Abiding by the 6-month rule
If your company is like most, employees can’t transfer or get promoted until they’ve been in a position for six months.
Why this is a problem: If an employee is a motivated, creative staffer but is stuck in a role he or she isn’t fit for, you’re going to lose that employee.
Sure, this might have worked for older generations entering the workforce, but not today. People are more likely to quit and find something else rather than wait for the 6-month rule to kick in. It should be up to you to decide when an employee should move onward and upward.
2. Restricting Internet use
Most rules are set in place for one reason: Because somewhere along the line, someone abused something – like the Internet. But that doesn’t mean everyone abused it, so why should everyone be held accountable?
Don’t draw the line in the wrong place for Internet use.
Let your employees see you trust them enough to use the Internet on their breaks and for work-related research.
3. Not allowing self-expression
Take a look around your office. What do your employees have in their workspace? If their desks are pretty sparse, there may be a reason why. A lot of companies don’t promote self-expression, which is critical for engaged, long-term employees.
People need to feel like themselves to flourish, and they can’t do that unless you let them. Encourage your team by setting the right example. Add a few simple yet personal touches to your desk, whether it’s a picture of your family or a quote you like.
The same can be said for dress codes. If your employees aren’t meeting with a client every single day, do they really need to dress in business attire?
“Hire professionals and they’ll dress professionally,” says Travis Bradberry, co-author of Emotional Intelligence 2.0.
4. Rigid requirements for days off
Employees are salaried because of the work they do – not the amount of time they spend at their desk. So when an employee gets a tough time for showing up 10 minutes late (even though he or she stays late during crunch time or is willing to work weekends) it sends the wrong message.
The staffers feel like policies are more important than performance, and it leaves a bad taste in the person’s mouth. Be flexible when you see fit.
Making these small but meaningful tweaks can transform your workplace into a productive and pleasant one that will keep your best people with you.
