Producing happiness for others produces happiness for ourselves
A great employee experience is key to attracting and retaining talent, boosting productivity and delivering better services to customers. In other words, it’s a vital component of sustained, long-term organizational success. So, how can you enhance your organization’s employee experience?
1. Ask for employees’ input to change the organization for the better
Given the constant, complex and chaotic uncertainty that exists today, it is vital that leaders engage employees in dialogue about organizational change. “To alleviate uncertainty and anxiety employees need to be involved in change that affects them and their work rather than change being imposed on them,” says Julie Hodges, professor in management at Durham University Business School in the U.K. “This means creating time when people can discuss and share ideas about what needs to change, why it needs to change and how it will change.”
Hodges advocates the creation of “safe spaces” that allow employees to raise their hopes, fears, and concerns about change – and, importantly, be listened to. “Space for dialogue about change needs to be done both in-person and online,” she says, “with managers listening without judgment and then creating opportunities for individuals and teams to take forward their ideas whenever feasible to do so.”
2. Walk the talk (particularly if you talk the talk)
What companies claim in their values statement and communications needs to align with what employees actually experience at work – particularly when companies talk a good game.
“Just as consumers pick up on it when brands attempt to capitalize on social and environmental issues through woke-washing and green-washing, employees can tell when there is a discrepancy between rhetoric and reality,” argues Karoline Strauss, professor of management at ESSEC Business School in France.
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For example, a company may claim to value employees’ work-life balance and provide equal opportunities for women and those with caring responsibilities. Yet if it continuously promotes those who work the longest hours and are available on the weekend, it fails to fulfil the promises it has made. And when organizations set expectations that are not met, they lose the trust of their workforce.
“Violating what has explicitly or implicitly been promised results in employees becoming distrustful, less satisfied with their job, and more intent on leaving the organization,” notes Strauss. “Well-intentioned statements are only meaningful to employees if they are seen as authentic and align with their actual experiences at work.”
3. See improving staff satisfaction as a two-way street
“Improving staff satisfaction may be key to retention and productivity, but it has to be a two-way thing,” says Kathryn Bishop, associate fellow of Oxford University’s Saïd Business School in the U.K. “The employer is involved, but the employee is key in this equation and must take some responsibility for their own work design, productivity and satisfaction.”
A good starting point is to a hold a genuine conversation where employers listen and employees acknowledge that there is a psychological contract, as well as an employment contract. Bishop says: “If employers can generate a range of options for contractual terms to allow employees some degree of choice, employees should acknowledge the organization’s needs as they craft their jobs to make work actually work for them and for their employer.”
4. Create routines, rituals, and surprises
Keeping employees engaged at work requires the right balance between routine work, rituals – such as casual drinks, birthday celebrations and Christmas parties – and surprises. “Employees need workplaces that are predictable, to enjoy effortless routine work,” says Benjamin Voyer, full professor at Europe’s ESCP Business School. “Regular rituals contribute to a pleasant and engaging workplace. But surprises are what reconnect us with the unexpected, human side of a company.”
He adds: “Whether it’s bringing pastries to work one morning, sending everyone off home early on the first summer afternoon, or giving away free concert tickets, unexpected rewards can go a long way to reconnect employees with the company.”
5. Make happiness – not success – a priority
“The research on happiness and wellbeing shows again and again that producing happiness for others produces happiness for ourselves,” observes Bülent Gögdün, director of corporate programs at German business school ESMT Berlin.
Gögdün believes that “being beneficial for our fellow humans, supporting and helping them is the ‘X-factor’ of happiness”. The workplace, he says, offers many opportunities in this respect.
“We can help others learn and grow,” he explains, “we can provide support to someone facing challenging times or difficult situations and we can contribute to the success of a team – all enhancing our happiness and fulfilment.”
In contrast, Gögdün argues that the happiness that comes success can be very fleeting. This is because we get used to things or, because of our raised expectations, we end up getting disappointed at some point in time. “The happiness that comes from growing others can last much longer,” he says.
