Even with a totally unique and clever business idea, it’s hard to find success and growth as a small business without the help of a good team. Well-established companies are often praised for their company culture, values and collaborative, team-based environments. If you were to ask someone what their favorite part about their job is, there’s a fairly good chance that they might respond with “Well, the favorite part about my job is interacting with fellow co-workers.” Ideally, it should be the goal of any business owner for their own employees to say this about their workplace.
While job duties, challenges, and expectations are very important aspects of a certain position, employee happiness often boils down to who someone works with and how they get along with everyone else. So, if you’ve found that your some of your small business employees are dragging themselves into work, going hours throughout the day without even so much as a hint of laughter, it might be time to spice up employee morale at the office.
Say Thanks To Your Small Business Team This Thanksgiving
In light of Thanksgiving being just around the corner, your go-to small business lending specialists here at The Commercial Finance Group want to help you give thanks to your co-workers and an incredible team of employees this holiday season. Expressing gratitude is an effective way to help boost employee morale, and we’ll get to some other great pieces of morale-lifting advice in today’s blog post. As a trusted invoice factoring company here in Burbank, The Commercial Finance Group leverages years of experience to help your small business grow and thrive. Learn more about money factoring, off-balance sheet financing and accounts receivable factoring by visiting here.
In light of this wholesome holiday filled with gratitude, let’s look at some ways you can show appreciation for your employees.
Creatively Celebrate Employee Accomplishments
As a forward-thinking entrepreneur, it’s probably natural for you to focus on what’s ahead rather than reflect and appreciate how much has been achieved. Taking even just a little time to reflect helps your employees appreciate how much incredible work they’ve done, helping put their value and position within the company into perspective. Whether you have your team of employees create a list of their major accomplishments or you even create small gifts that are tailored to match each significant achievement, celebrating employee contributions is a great way to improve office morale.
Give Time To Employees To Pursue Their Passions
Personal projects are a good thing, and can even supplement strictly work-related projects. This is because personal projects can provide a refreshing, energizing break from regular responsibilities and can also serve as a creative source of innovation for your company.
The Sydney-based software company Atlassian has been encouraging the creativity of its employees through its annual “FedEx Day.” During the FedEx Day, all employees of the company can work on anything that excites them, so long as it is at least somewhat related to Atlassian products or processes. The project must also be fun and completed in a rough 24-hour time period. In a presentation at the end of the week, participants of FedEx day then show off the results of their projects. Indeed, from these idea presentations, Atlassian has adopted more than a dozen projects into their software products, ranging from product upgrades to process improvements. The best part of all is that the consumer of the product benefits from improved services inspired by happy, creative employees.
Taking A Break And Having Fun
Your employees are sure to get quite burnt out if they’re just blankly staring at a computer screen for hours on end, seemingly unable to solve the problem at hand. Research has proven time and time again that employees are more productive and happier when they’re able to take breaks at their own pace by stepping away from their desk or workstation. Consider having a dedicated break room that has things like a pool table, a ping pong table or foosball for employees to use at their convenience. So long as projects are being completed on time and the quality of work goes above and beyond the customer’s expectations, there is hardly anything wrong with playing a few games at the office.
Even having a dedicated employee fun day or employee gameday once every month or two is a great way to inspire great ideas and open, honest communication between co-workers. The enhanced camaraderie and general health of the workplace vastly outweigh any “wasted” time from company events like these.
Have Team Outings Or Take Your Employees Out
There is some interesting research out there about the benefits of hanging out with co-workers outside the context or physical environment of the workplace. When your team is out at a bar or a coffee shop, for instance, it provides a place that’s immediately distinct from the familiar office. This can help employees feel more relaxed and comfortable, able to discuss things that they might not otherwise mention at the office.
Now, professionalism can fall into somewhat of a grey area when it comes to spending time with fellow co-workers outside the office. It’s very important to keep in mind that what is said outside the office can still make its way back to the office. Just because some co-workers are openly discussing a work-related situation outside the workplace does not necessarily give them immunity from any potential consequences. Make sure that this understanding is clear among your employees and there should be no issues with spending time with each other outside of work.
If Your Employees Are Working On Thanksgiving…
Believe it or not, according to a 2014 poll, roughly one-quarter of Americans are required to work on Thanksgiving, Christmas or New Year’s Day. Even more so, about 45 percent of respondents reported that there’s a chance they’ll have to work during at least one of these holidays. If your employees are working during Thanksgiving because you’re open, it’s absolutely crucial to let them know just how much you appreciate their hard work and dedication. As a small business owner and a boss, it’s imperative to remind your employees how much you appreciate them year-round as well, not just around the holidays. In whatever else you do around the office to celebrate Thanksgiving, just make sure that gratitude for your amazing team of workers comes first.
Get Additional Working Capital During The Holidays With CFG
Being thankful during this special time of year is great, but our factoring company in Burbank can help improve your cash flow in ways that showing appreciation for one another just can’t. Learn more about our money factoring and business line of credit services by contacting the off-balance sheet financing specialists today.
