A Time Magazine poll found that less than half of American workers are satisfied with their jobs. The lost productivity of actively disengaged employees costs the US economy $370 billion annually. In many cases, there is a direct correlation between employee engagement and satisfaction and the growth and success of a company, but how do companies keep their employees both engaged and satisfied?
Work Life Balance
A survey by the National Life Insurance Company found that four out of 10 employees stated their jobs were "extremely" stressful. Those in stressful jobs are twice as likely to quit. Having a strong and consistent work life balance can help keep employees engaged and reduce overall stress in the workplace.
This work life balance can be created and maintained by companies in a variety of ways from employee lunches to flexible work hours to occasional time off for activities that may be important to that employee. At The Karis Group, we encourage employees to have a firm foundation of work life balance—even our founder, Dr. Tony Dale, will take a break during the day about once a week to play squash on the University of Texas campus.
Companies can also work to incorporate the families of employees into their culture. Welcoming spouses, significant others and children into work functions helps an employee and their family feel a part of the organization.
Values
Strong core values, including work life balance, can help an organization stay accountable to employees as well as helping ensure employees feel they are accepted and valued by an employer.
Some businesses incorporate their core values as a part of the hiring process to ensure that the candidate is a good fit for the business. This practice also helps the applicant decide if the business culture is a good fit for them before ever accepting an employment offer.
Social
Companies can also hold social and wellness events to bring employees outside of the office environment into a reduced stress, social environment. A recent study found that employees who know their managers as "People" are more likely to be engaged. Bringing employees and management to social and wellness events where employees at all levels are challenged to work as one can help build respect and bonds throughout the company.
Companies with a highly engaged workforce improved operating income by 19.2% over 12 months. Creating highly engaged employees can help companies grow from within, so ensuring your employees are satisfied and engaged may hold key to a company’s success.
For more information on employee work life balance and engagement visit The Social Workplace and Work Life Balance. To find out more about The Karis Group’s values and culture visit our Who We Are section.
