Ways to Improve Employee Experience

It will come as no surprise to you when I tell you that staff satisfaction is important.  

But how do you go about ensuring your employees are happy in their place of work?  

How do you keep that level of contentment in the workplace?  

And if you feel like things could be better among your employees, what can you actively do to improve employee experience?

According to the Undercover Recruiter, the average cost of hiring someone who’ll earn a £27,600 salary will equate to close to £50,000 in their first year of employment. For any business – let alone small ones – this is a huge sum of money.  

It’s vital, therefore, that once you have managed to recruit the ideal candidate, you make sure they stay, and they’re happy and productive too. Here are five ways in which you can help make sure this is the case...

Employee Wellness

A healthy work environment is paramount if you want to keep your staff’s mental health and productivity levels in good shape. So, what can you do to help improve employee wellness? How about investing in -

• Lunchtime groups such as yoga, meditation, walking club, art class
• Conduct regular surveys where your staff are able to safely voice any concerns they may be experiencing
• Wellness treats such as a chair massage or Indian head massage
• Quiet spaces where staff can break out if they need to concentrate
• Flexible working options – can they work from home/can hours work to suit them

Internal Communications

If there’s little communication between departments, staff, and management, it can be easy for people to quickly feel isolated. Good communication ensures staff feel connected to the business, and understand what their function is, and what they’re working towards. Overall, it helps to ensure your staff feel valued in their work and this means they’re much more likely to stay. Try implementing weekly newsletters, interviews with different staff members, and making sure your business’s intranet is easy and enjoyable to navigate.

‍Listen to Feedback

Employees who aren’t listened to aren’t going to feel valued. There are often ‘customer satisfaction forms’, but how often do companies take a look at themselves on the inside? Regular opportunities for staff to give feedback that is listened to and acted on when needed will have huge benefits to staff satisfaction levels.  

If you have a company intranet, you could have a permanent form available here for staff to access when they feel the need. Alternatively, a CEO who lets staff know they’re happy to receive feedback can do wonders for a staff’s sense of appreciation.

‍Career Development

Most people want to move forward, achieve goals, and advance in their career. If your business isn’t able to offer any opportunity for career progression, this can lead to employee dissatisfaction. And when staff start becoming disgruntled, they will likely start looking for opportunities elsewhere.  

If you’re able to offer the chance to go on training courses, move up through the organisation, or give more responsibility to people who’ve earned it, you should also ensure your employee experience levels remain high.

Make it Meaningful

Meaningful work is always going to make employees feel good. Even the most basic of work can be made to feel more meaningful simply by looking at things a little differently. For instance, if there’s a problem in the way things are being done, ask your employees for their suggestions.

This involvement should instantly make staff feel valued and part of the bigger picture. You could even offer a small incentive for the best idea. You could also ensure staff are able to take ownership of certain aspects of the business.  

For instance, if they’re able to look after a product or service from start to finish, they will likely feel a greater sense of achievement having seen the whole thing through to completion. Finally, give staff the opportunity to challenge and push themselves – work that’s too easy can quickly get boring for enquiring minds.

Conclusion

Hiring staff is just the beginning. Keeping them with your business takes time, effort and commitment. Invest in opportunities to improve employee experience and don’t let the good eggs get away.