Getting employees excited to come to work is largely about what their bosses can do to create an interesting company culture. Work-only corporate environments are much harder to sell to employees than those that offer a more enjoyable ambience. Consider Google, which is consistently rated the top company to work for: It’s known for providing a hip and fun atmosphere that allows for creativity and innovation without sacrificing work and efficiency. If you’re trying to get employees passionate about coming to work, take a look at these five ideas for changes you can make:
1. Provide incentives
Showing your sincere gratitude with business thank you cards is one of the best ways to make employees feel proud of their accomplishments, but providing incentives is another great option. Perks like being able to work from home, bonuses and half days are all things employees will be excited to work toward. You can even hold contests between different teams to promote working together and have a little fun. Congratulate the winners with a party, free lunch or anything else they’d want to work hard to win.
2. Promote from within
Another way to incentivize employees and keep them enthusiastic about the jobs they’re doing is to promote from within when you can. When employees know they have opportunities to move up and work toward other positions in the future, they’ll likely feel much more passionate about the work they’re doing right now.
3. Make adjustments to the office
The office environment is surprisingly important to the overall happiness of the employees working there. If you have dull decor, out-of-date equipment and the bare minimum of amenities, you may find your staff to be apathetic or bored. Consider redecorating, upgrading anything that needs an update and letting employees spruce up their own work areas. If you have cubicles, consider whether an open office may be more effective for helping employees connect with one another. Also, create a common space where employees can eat lunch or let off steam, and provide free snacks, coffee and other small luxuries.
4. Look to the management
An employee’s relationship to his or her manager is one of the most important indications of how happy he or she is to work for a company. That’s why a strong and positive management team is so important – but it’s also a tricky balance. Your managers and team leaders should be providing positive reinforcement, assistance, and an open and honest atmosphere while keeping employees responsible for their work at the same time.
5. Measure employee engagement
Remember that every office is different, so it’s hard to know exactly what will get employees excited to come to work every day without trying a few different ideas first. As you’re implementing contests between teams or putting a bonus structure in place, do your best to measure how the employees’ engagement in their work and the business in general is affected. You’ll know exactly what works and what doesn’t, which will help you keep them enthusiastic long-term.