Managers who fail to recognise the importance of office morale could be doing a huge disservice to their workforce and business alike, studies reveal.
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A report in the Houston Chronicle looked at statistics from 2009-10. These showed a clear drop in employee satisfaction and engagement levels, with 40% suggesting that negative changes in their pay and benefit packages were impacting on their work quality and customer service. In short, poor morale can result in demotivated, uncooperative staff and this in itself can cost businesses dearly. What can management do to improve morale in their offices?
Importance of the role
Employees become disengaged if they believe their work is menial and has no purpose; therefore, it is important to brief them on how the work they have done has progressed and benefited the company on a larger scale. Recognising and celebrating their achievements is also a good way to make them feel valued and appreciated.
Personalised projects
Where possible, it can be prudent to allow employees time away from their daily duties to pursue the projects that interest them most. Taking time to assess the interests and strengths of your workforce not only means that you are able to pick the right people for the job but also gives them work that engages them, resulting in a happier and more productive team.
Team bonding exercises
The concept of ‘away days’ may seem like an outdated concept, but studies show just how important these days are in forging solid relationships between colleagues. Usually team bonding exercises are centred around collaborative tasks or activities that allow employees to work together, get to know each other and discover more about each team member’s unique skill set. Not only can this improve performance at work but also it encourages positive relationships to flourish – positive staff relations certainly have a huge effect on general office morale. Activities such as corporate days out in Dublin with Davis Events are one way of getting team members together for corporate days out in Dublin. Other companies hold their own team bonding exercises in the workplace.
Training
Believe it or not, staff training exists to encourage employees to retain and display a positive outlook at work. Promotional videos based around inspirational events can be shown to staff in an attempt to cheer them up and spur them on.