Some employers consider their relationship as purely transactional workers: The company pays employees for their services, and staff members are responsible for obtaining their job. Happiness does not even enter into the equation, but now we know it's a mistake.
Many studies have found that employee happiness has a dramatic effect on performance. A study published in the Economic Research Institute University of Warwick Journal of revealed, "human happiness has large and positive causal effects on productivity ... Positive emotions seem to energize people, while negative emotions have the opposite effect. "
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So, how companies can promote happiness in the workplace? Here are five good business practices can use to promote the happiness of employees in the workplace :.
- Give people choices People like to have a say in the development of their working day and control their own destiny . Daniel Pink, author of New York Times bestseller Drive: The Surprising Truth About what motivates us , drew on four decades of scientific research to discover that the autonomy is one of the three pillars of "motivation formula."
employees autonomy means giving control over when they work, where they work, and they work. This means for self-determination and flexibility, and focusing on results rather than face time. Choice and autonomy proved to be powerful engines of the employee motivation and performance.
"We found that knowledge workers whose firms allow them to help decide when, where, and how they work were more likely to be satisfied with their jobs, better results, and saw their businesses more innovative than competitors who do not offer such choice, "writes Diane Hoskins in the Harvard business Review.
- Help people achieve emotional well-being. The World Health Organization has concluded that cost of stress for US companies is as much as $ 300 billion. And felt that two-thirds doctor's office visits are stress-related conditions. These visits are costs to soar in the form of reduced productivity and absenteeism.
Stressed employees do not work at their peak level, and it does not matter if the stress is directly related to work. For example, money problems is one of the most powerful sources of stress there. The American Psychological Association reports five of the eight major sources of stress in America are financial. If an employee is worried about their personal finances, stress will be reflected in their work.
As an employer, it is in your interest to help your employees achieve emotional well-being. It is important that employees do not feel overloaded or overwhelmed by their work. They need time to relax, or outside the office. And since the socialization and exercise are known reducing stress, you can promote emotional well-being by encouraging employees to participate in these activities. In addition, many successful organizations provide confidential counseling services by a third party.
- Cultivating purpose and meaning. One of the other pillars of employee satisfaction and happiness is ending. Harvard Professor Rosabeth Kanter wrote that people want to work for companies where they feel they are making a significant difference in the world. People who believe in what they do are happier, more motivated and more productive.
Employers can cultivate effect in the workplace by writing a meaningful mission statement and placing it in the office. This will help remind employees on a regular basis why they are there and why they do what they do.
The next step is to ensure that employee goals are aligned with the goals of the organization, which is best done through a meeting where individuals can share their thoughts with their managers, and feel that their voice is heard. Managers can also instill a sense of purpose by giving each employee the opportunity to use their strengths.
- Spread happiness. Put someone in charge to spread happiness - the appointment of a "happiness evangelist" - can be an extremely effective way to promote a cultural change. Most leaders have a high amount on their plate, and do not have the bandwidth to devote to "softer" issues like how people feel. Moreover, they probably are not trained to do.
Happiness Evangelist (or in the case of Google, the Jolly Good Fellow ) is responsible for the creation of an environment where people feel valued and happy. They can undertake initiatives to improve job satisfaction, such as catering lunch, regular happy hours, or working from home on Fridays and eliminate sources of dissatisfaction. This person ensures that employee happiness is a priority and prevent festering problems to the point where performance is compromised.
- reward and recognize. It is in human nature to respond positively to the recognition and rewards. An analysis of Gallup which lasted 10,000 business units found that "the act of recognizing the desired behavior increases the repetition of the desired behavior, and therefore productivity." The employee recognition leads to greater employee satisfaction and pleasure of working, better teamwork, the highest retention, the negative effects of reduced absenteeism and stress, and even higher loyalty and customer satisfaction scores.
Incentivizing employees and celebrate success makes employees feel valued and builds confidence. It helps them to feel a sense of accomplishment, which is a powerful motivator and strengthens their sense of meaning and joy in their work. the rewards and recognition can take many forms, including gift cards, free time, public recognition at a meeting of the weekly society, course promotions. In all cases, they inspire employees to do their best.
The impact happy employees on an organization is dramatic. A Russell Investment Group study found that stocks for companies on the Fortune 100 "Best Companies to Work For" list significantly outperformed the average. Taking care of employee happiness is not only the "right" thing to do, it is the smart thing to do business.
Next Read: Work hard, work happy: Secrets to more productive employees
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