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Executives Brainstorm to Find Creative Ways to Improve Employee Morale by Christine Harrell

Workers are the lifeblood of a company and eroding morale quickly becomes eroding business performance. Employees are worried about their jobs and futures but organizations don’t have the funds to spend on lavish displays of employee appreciation. Executives are joining business advisory boards to discuss inexpensive ways to motivate their workers.

Treating Employees like People

Some executives become distanced from the staff and that distance creates a barrier between them. It’s not necessarily a deliberate act. Upper level managers are involved with the company on a different level and can become detached from lower level staff. When executives take time to socialize with employees it often generates more respect from workers and improves business performance.

Managers on all levels should take the time to get to know their people. While it might not be practical for a CEO with a thousand employees to know them all on a first name basis, efforts on the part of management to be one of the gang can build trust. Especially in today’s financial environment, employees have become suspicious of executives who give the appearance of superiority.

Recognizing Efforts

We all want to be appreciated for our hard work. Employees who feel valued improve their productivity and that improves business performance. When workers are taken for granted, they lose motivation to work hard and may even leave for companies that show better employee appreciation.

Acknowledging employees doesn’t need to involve a ceremony or big bonus. A simple “good job” goes a long way with most people, but it needs to be genuine. Workers see through fake compliments quickly and such actions will do more harm than good.

Talk is cheap though and recognition should be backed by something more concrete to show your trust. Giving employees more leeway in their actions and having faith in their judgment demonstrates that your words have real meaning. Delegating task improves business performance in two ways, one by making employees feel important and the other by freeing up a manager’s time.

Responding to Layoffs

Reductions in force have a devastating effect on business performance and not just from the lost productivity of the workers who have been let go. The blow to morale that comes with it can cripple a company’s operations. How workers are treated during and after a layoff is critical.

Management usually wants to hide information on company financial operations, often because it reveals erroneous decisions, but that makes the problem worse. Executives should be as transparent as possible during a layoff process. When they trust employees by honestly answering their questions during this crisis, a bond is created that strengthens a company.

Companies are discovering innovative ways to boost employee morale during these economic hard times. Business owners working with business advisory boards can come up with even more creative solutions to keep their business performance strong.

Author is a freelance copywriter. For more information on business
performance, visit http://www.thealternativeboard.com/.

Article Source: Life Is Cheerful