Employees spend the majority of their life at work, seeing colleagues and managers more than loved ones. Therefore, it is essential that employers have a positive workplace culture, moving away from the out-dated attitude towards work. Yes, work is completed on time, but often by unhappy employees who have one eye on the clock, and one foot out of the door. This is not conducive to any business.

Let’s turn this on its head, the work is still being completed on time and is of a great quality, but the staff are also happy! Not only are happy staff more productive, businesses who have a positive workplace culture will also benefit from higher staff retention, a better reputation amongst clients and deliver better customer service. Therefore, a happy workforce means a happy boss. (https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbescoachescouncil/2017/12/13/promoting-employee-happiness-benefits-everyone/)

So, although creating a positive workplace culture may seem a secondary concern, it should be a priority. Here are some useful tips on how to do it:

Value your staff

Managers & business owners should get to know their employees, find out what they are interested in, do they have a family, enquire on a Monday whether they had a good weekend. It’s the small gestures that often make the most impact and it doesn’t cost anything.

Staff members often come from all walks of life, with different upbringings, ethnicities, educational backgrounds and viewpoints. Celebrate this diversity, get people talking with teambuilding and communication exercises, as well as away days and other fun events. A HR consultant can give you some great ideas and advice on how to do this.

Celebrate victories, don’t despair at defeats

Tell your staff when they have done a good job, celebrate their successes as well as that of the overall Company’s. This is crucial for a positive workplace; the appreciation of your staff or team’s work will go a long way to making them feel valued and create a happy, productive workforce.

You can also look at implementing a benefits system. Remember, a reward can be as small as some friendly praise and congratulations or as large as a holiday, prize, bonus, or pay raise.

Listen

Another way is to create a culture of trust, encourage your staff to raise any concerns they may have; but make sure they are listened to and feedback is given. Even if you are not able to change things, by listening and providing feedback this is sometimes all that is needed. In France, workers’ representatives are placed on company boardrooms to ensure their interests are met. While there is no obligation to do this in the UK, it is important to meet staff interests wherever possible, and let them know you listen.

By doing these small things, it will make a big difference; there is a lot more that can be done to take this one step further.

If you need any further advice and a HR consultant to assist you in creating a positive workplace culture, then speak to us. Get in touch with Farsight HR today.