What plays a huge role in most jobseekers’ decision to join companies?
Salaries? Nope!
Rather, professionals place a high priority on workplace culture throughout their search.
Trends have changed over the years. Back in 2012, candidates often looked at benefits among other factors in choosing companies to work in. Employees needed to know what perks came with their jobs. Salaries were not enough to retain employees. Fast forward to the present, workplace culture has been cited as one of the factors, if not the most important factor, to consider in job seeking. Gone are the days when jobhunters and employees were satisfied with and motivated by compensation and benefits. They need to know if they would be a good fit in the organisation. Are their principles and beliefs aligned with those of the organisation? If not, then they may think twice about joining.
Employees of a company take pride in sharing activities and practices in their respective companies. Organisations benefit from it as their culture is shared through word of mouth. More and more individuals would then be enticed to join organisations knowing employees are treated well and given many opportunities.
Wouldn’t it be great if you can turn your organisational culture into one that attracts talented candidates and retains employees?
1. Communication is Key
Communicate
Transparency and openness are valued by employees. Whether the news is good or bad, employees would like to hear about it – some would even say it is their right to know about what is going on in the company especially if it involves them the slightest bit. Communicate changes, make announcements, have an open forum, hold a townhall, send an email blast. Let them know that you will work with them in the transition whether it requires training, revisions, or more time to adjust.
Listen
Once you have expressed your thoughts, it does not end there though. Hear them out! Communication is a two-way street. Find out what they think of the new policies, ask them if the current procedures are working, see if the process is needing improvement. Be open to what they have to say. They may surprise you with several suggestions and offer different perspectives as they have done the legwork and you have only scratched the surface.
2. Empower your Employees
Lead
Be the change you want to see. Create a culture that you believe in. Highlight your core values. Emphasize the organisation’s mission and vision. Identify best practices so you can relay them to your team. Share some tips and techniques you have gathered along the way – this will prove useful in their work moving forward, plus it shows how consistent or uniform your team is when already dealing with customers. Develop your line managers to bring your vision to life and ensure every activity done by their teams serves a unified purpose.
Follow
Being a leader does not necessarily mean you always have to make decisions on your own. Your team can offer ideas you have never even thought of. Let them know what you need to work on and ask them if they have any thoughts on it. Brainstorm together. Show them what you have been working on so far and ask them what they think. Getting their feedback and buy-in makes their opinions feel valued. You do not always have to go with what they say, but the fact that you took the time to hear them out means you can count on them – and sometimes, that is all they would ever want from you but not say out loud. Trust your employees to do their jobs and help you with yours.
3. Help Your People Grow
Train
Our employees have areas for improvement, and that is fine! That is completely normal. The good thing about that is that there would always be opportunities to grow. Find out which areas they lack training in, what skills are needed to perform their roles better, which tools are faulty or needing an upgrade, and who they can approach for queries in case you are unavailable.
Provide Opportunities
No employee wants to be left stagnant in their roles for years and years to come. Eventually, employees seek additional responsibilities, higher-level skills, promotion. After they get trained or upskilled, what’s next? What other roles or responsibilities can they take on? You have evaluated their performance and see that they may be fit for something bigger, isn’t that great? As a leader, it’s important to pave the way for your team to get better to discover and maximize their potential. Get them excited by giving them an idea of what’s in store for them!
4. Rewards & Feedback
Assess
People make mistakes, your employees are no different. Constructive criticism should be carefully done and delivered with sensitivity. Different employees react to feedback differently. Understand how you should approach them. Do it in private. Review performance and have a factual basis for your feedback. Work together in setting goals and a timeline to improve on things moving forward. A follow-up assessment may be necessary to see how things are going.
Recognise
Show your appreciation in many ways. Find out what works for you and your team. If they did well, let them know! Do it in public. Do it promptly. Encourage them to keep trying and doing their best. Celebrate small wins!
5. Get to Know Them
Acquaint
Employers and leaders taking the time to find out more about their employees are highly appreciated. Know what type of leadership style works for your team. One size may not always fit all. Get to know their strengths and limitations so you know which tasks to assign them with and which areas they work best. Understand that everyone has limitations but that your team may welcome learning and guidance so they can manage other things moving forward.
Be Flexible
After finding out what works and what doesn’t work for your employees, do something about it! An employee is a single parent of four? Allow flexible working arrangements. Another employee has trouble working on Microsoft Excel. Pair them up with a senior member who can guide them. A newcomer has low energy and confidence? Check-in on them now and then and ask what help you can provide to make them feel more comfortable. Employees experiencing burn-out? Think of ways to promote work-life balance!
These things matter! It may take time in adjusting to every employee’s needs, but it will be worth it in the long run. Invest in your people. Treat them well and see how happier they are which in turn will positively affect their productivity and loyalty to the company.
As a motivational speaker and bestselling author, Simon Sinek highlights, “Corporate culture matters. How management chooses to treat its people impacts everything – for better or for worse.”
Have more questions about ways to foster a positive culture? We can help every step of the way, from strategy to execution. Email us on info@snk.ae today for a free 30-minute consultation.