Employees are the most important asset to a company; without them the company wouldn’t have the resources to operate effectively and serve its customers. Because employee morale has a strong connection with success in business, it is important that companies dedicate resources to building a productive, team-oriented and positive culture.
Here are five ways managers destroy employee morale, and five better ways to boost it.
Destroying Morale (Infographic from Open Forum)
1. Not Accepting Responsibility: Mistakes happen in the workplace and it is important to address them as they occur, but playing the blame game rather than taking responsibility as a team creates a negative environment.
2. Calling Employees Out: Instead of embarrassing an employee in front of coworkers, pull them aside and talk to them privately. Public embarrassment causes fear and stress in the workplace.
3. Setting Impossible Goals: It’s important to set goals for performance management, but when goals aren’t achievable employees feel discouraged and become unmotivated.
4. Threatening Their Jobs: Making an employee feel that their job is in danger causes distrust and anxiety, giving them no incentive to perform well.
5. Micromanaging: Failing to trust employees enough to manage themselves throughout the day will cause them to feel disempowered and dissatisfied with their job.
Boosting Morale
1. Celebrate Accomplishments: It is important to celebrate accomplishments as they happen to show employees that their hard work is appreciated. Taking the time to reflect allows them to realize how much they have achieved and will encourage them to perform well.
2. Train: Allowing opportunities for employees to develop their skills will help them to feel their education and interests are valued.
3. Allow Time Off for Passion: Granting time off for employees to take on a personal project will leave them feeling energized and may be a good source of innovation for a company. Google’s success in innovation is contributed to their 70/20/10 model. Under this model, employees devote 70% of their time to their core competency, 20% on related projects, and 10% on learning new skills and working on side projects.
4. Have Fun: Find ways to incorporate fun activities into the workplace, such as Friday Trivia or team building activities. A simple change of pace from normal workplace activities will help employees to feel engaged and motivated throughout the day.
5. It’s More Than a Job: Remind employees that what they do at work has a greater purpose. Knowing that their hard work is having a positive impact will boost morale and help them to feel valued as an individual.
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Image Courtesy of: Open Forum