Elevate Workplace Well-Being to Drive Productivity || Business blog Business consulting development Marketing
- Nov 29, 2024
- 3 min read
By adhering to the recommendations in this business blog, organizations can improve workplace well-being and subsequently increase productivity.
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Here are five ways to boost employee productivity:
1. Establish a foundation of trust through open and reciprocal dialogue.
Trust can be a driving force for high employee productivity. A 2023 survey from Slack involving 10,387 global employees shows feeling trusted in the workplace is the most important factor influencing employee productivity. Workers report two times greater productivity and four times greater overall satisfaction with their work when they believe their bosses trust them. Meanwhile, those who don't feel trusted report higher stress and anxiety and a lower sense of belonging.
"Feeling trusted breeds hard work, which leads to more trust," says Slack's Research and Analytics SVP Christina Janzer in the survey. "This is a virtuous cycle all leaders can take advantage of to boost employee performance and well-being.”
The research identified transparent, two-way communication between leaders and employees as the foundation of a trusting, healthy workplace culture.
2. Give workers the right tools to make their jobs easier.
Employees want tools that help them work smarter, not harder. Challenges can come up when there's a lack of integration between the tools they use for different tasks.
Another factor that can slow down productivity is employees' inability to access the data they need to work effectively. One strategy is to set up a single source of truth (SSOT), which centralizes internal data in one location that everyone can access. This saves time when dealing with problems caused by using different sets of data.
3. Improve the effectiveness of leaders.
Poor leadership can erode employee morale and lowers productivity. It's prevalent in many workplaces. According to an August 2023 FlexJobs survey, 87% of 8,400 working professionals said they have worked under at least one toxic leader at some point in their career. The negative impact included increased anxiety, mental fatigue, and a decline in engagement, productivity, and performance.
You can offer leadership development programs and proactively protect workers by holding managers accountable for creating an encouraging work environment where people thrive and want to work.
The growth of remote work, technology disruptions, and the increasing need for speed and business agility have all altered the nature of the modern workplace. However, having a good boss is paramount is still often crucial to a healthy workplace.
4. Create a culture of recognition.
Employee recognition is a low-cost, high-impact strategy for boosting employee well-being and increasing their desire to go the extra mile.
Easy actions for making your workers feel valued can include:
Be timely. The most effective recognition is the one that comes as soon as possible after the fact.
Be specific. Details can make the recognition more authentic.
Be public but take care to ensure you don't embarrass an introverted employee.
Show how the employee's achievement contributes to the company's overall success.
Show appreciation for big and small everyday achievements.
Carefully select who will deliver the recognition. You can consider the value of appreciation from the company's senior leaders as well as the employee's direct manager.
5. Allow workers greater freedom.
Greater autonomy at work can contribute to employees' well-being. Conversely, having little control over one's work can lead to feelings of helplessness and a loss of motivation to excel, resulting in declining productivity.
As a leader, you can provide worker autonomy within boundaries by setting clear guidelines. You can offer training to help employees develop the required skills to excel in an autonomous work environment. Such training could include essential skills to function independently, such as time management and decision-making.
The Key Points
Focusing on workplace well-being and mental health in the current business landscape can significantly enhance employee happiness, productivity, and retention. An ideal workplace is where everyone can contribute their best selves.
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