Company Culture: The Secret to Employee Loyalty

If you’re seeing a high employee turnaround in your business, the problem may have something to do with the workplace environment. People are less likely to stay with an organization if they feel unhappy, pressured, or stifled by a negative company culture. If this seems like a possibility, there are a few things you can do to boost morale and improve relationships among your employees.

Seek Input on the Company’s Goals

The success of any business relies heavily on the business owner’s ability to establish the company’s goals and develop strategies for accomplishing those goals. However, setting out those strategies and demanding that employees follow them can leave your staff feeling more like servants than like valued members of the organization. You can fix this by holding meetings and asking for input on the best way to reach those goals. Your employees may even come up with more efficient methods for overcoming challenges.

Keep the Lines of Communication Open

Let your employees know that you have an open door policy and mean it. Employees will feel better, if they’re in a situation in which they express their grievances and concerns with someone in authority. Conversely, if they feel they have nowhere to turn, their morale and productivity will begin to reflect those negative attitudes. Eventually, they will seek positions with organizations that have a reputation for having a more positive company culture. You can also promote better communication by making rounds once in a while and asking individual employees for their feedback.

Permit Off-Topic Socializing

Any good HR guide will point out the importance of breaks and socialization in keeping employees productive. This is because occasional breaks can disrupt a sense of monotony and can even stimulate creativity. When the employees return to their workstations, they’re often more productive and ready to jump back into their duties with renewed vigor. You can promote this type of situation by providing a nearby area for workers to congregate and socialize. You may even join them from time to time, as a means of learning more about each employee’s personality.

Encourage Healthy Lifestyles

Your employees will feel more like they belong to the organization, if they feel that management cares about their welfare. If your break rooms offer vending machines, make sure there are healthy selections available. You can also organize outdoor walks to take place between shifts, or during lunch breaks. Providing an opportunity for your employees to stretch their legs and get more exercise will do more than help their health. It will recharge energy levels and improve productivity, as they get back to work. A walk at lunchtime can help chase away the dreaded mid-afternoon blahs.

Establish an Emergency Fund

As an added benefit, you can set up an emergency fund and ask everyone, including managers, to contribute to it. Perhaps the company can match contributions up to a predetermined percentage. The fund should remain untouched, except to aid employees, who are facing a sudden financial emergency. Employees facing serious medical conditions, displaced from their homes, or dealing with a terminally ill loved one may be facing financial worries that affect their work productivity. However, if they know there will be additional assistance available to them, during times of need, they will feel more confident.

Express Gratitude

It can also help improve the company culture in your business if you make a point to thank employees for a job well done. If you have a special product that requires additional hours of work, make a point to thank the employees, who volunteer for the project. Perhaps buy their lunch, after the job is completed, or offer some other gesture of gratitude. When employees feel their work is appreciated, they’ll feel better about their jobs and that can give overall morale a big boost.

In a large part, the company culture in your business will depend on how your employees relate to one another. However, by becoming involved in a positive way and promoting open lines of communication, you can help boost morale and guide the workplace culture in a more positive direction. In many cases, this doesn’t require spending money. It just requires listening and considering new points of view.