Are Your Employees Excited to Come to Work?

January 23, 2018, by HR à la carte | Work Environment and Policies

With all the talk about the upcoming talent shortage, the fact that Canada is experiencing its lowest unemployment rates in years and that the vast majority (89%!) of employees would take another opportunity if it presented itself (according to the latest salary survey from Hays Canada as outlined in this Globe and Mail article), the answer to that question is more important than ever.

What makes employees want to stay at your organization?  If they’re not excited to come to work each and every day your organization is at risk of losing talent.  Compensation is only a small piece of the puzzle.  “Money motivates neither the best people, nor the best in people. It can move the body and influence the mind, but it cannot touch the heart or move the spirit; that is reserved for belief, principle, and morality.”  Dee Hock, former CEO of VISA.  Paying market competitive wages is a minimum requirement.  Some other factors to consider are the following:

• Do employees have a voice in your company?  Does what they say matter to you and are they able to bring ideas forward and have the empowerment to implement their ideas?
• Do your employees know how their role in your company impacts the bottom line – are the dots connected enough for them that they can see that their daily efforts are making an impact?
• Do you treat your employees as adults?
• Do you celebrate their wins?
• Do you allow them to make mistakes and then learn from those mistakes?
• Do you coach and mentor your employees?
• Do your employees feel like they are learning new skills at your company?
• Do your employees feel like management applies policies consistently?
• Do your employees fully understand your company’s purpose and mission?
• Do your employees feel a sense of ownership over their work, such that they are deeply invested in the company’s success?

If you answered no to any of the above, you have some work to do.  Creating a work environment that is conducive to engaged and motivated employees can be difficult as there’s no hard and fast route to get there.  But the efforts will more than pay off when your top employees make the decision to stay with your organization even if they are offered an opportunity elsewhere. 

I’ll leave you with another Dee Hock quote:

“Simple, clear purpose and principles give rise to complex and intelligent behavior. Complex rules and regulations give rise to simple and stupid behavior.”

Is your organization’s purpose and principles simple and clear to all who work for you?  That is a great starting point on the road to creating an engaged work environment.

Other Articles of Interest:

Flexibility Matters to Employees, and Why Employers Need to Take Heed

Don't Leave Your Employees Hanging, The Importance of Follow Through

12 Great Questions to Ask Employees to Assess Employee Engagement

What are some of your ideas around engaged work environments?