Win-win morale

Culture in an organization builds positively or negatively over time. It takes time to degrade and conversely it takes longer to repair. Employee morale drives the culture in an organization. Every employee has a hidden gem within waiting to be uncovered. Reveal these gems and now a treasure chest of opportunity lies abound ready to be fostered into productivity, efficiency and profits. Empower your employees and earn their respect. Engage your employees and instill ownership. An enthusiastic member of your team is productive. One bad apple can pull many enthusiasts down. Winning over one advocate for the company can convert a whole team. Morale starts from the top down reflecting how management directly handles situations within the company whether they are positive or negative. Implement some of the following ideas to assure you are continually building your morale positively.

All the literature states that the best metrics are a reflection of your company’s goals and this is the correct philosophy for managers and leaders. In the manufacturing area posted metrics should be set up to instill friendly competition between shifts or production teams. Front line supervisors, working together, can encourage competition between teams to achieve small increments towards greater productivity goals. Metrics used correctly can play a vital role in building morale and strong team spirit.

Proving to direct employees that getting on board is worth the effort is very important. Winning teams that meet or exceed goals should be rewarded. Not all rewards are monetary. Recognition and sometimes just a simple “thank you” or reiterating “good job” is the best reward a manager can give. We all work for money but job satisfaction and a feeling of accomplishment means just as much. In addition, prizes and gift cards set in a competitive atmosphere outlined to achieve goals played out on weekly or monthly bases returns high rewards at minimal cost. Think about it, what is the cost of an “out to eat” gift card for two.

How and what you do as a manager directly reflects the attitude returned by direct employees. You should always treat employees how you would want to be treated. Use your knowledge to gain respect and it will be returned. This doesn’t mean you are going to say what they want to hear but you say it firmly and you are fair across the board. Always lead by example.

Because everybody loves pizza this is my favorite. Try “lunch and learn”. Attendance is optional and it is held over the lunch hour. Attendees stand up and offer knowledge to earn their slice of pie. Talk about anything from how to calculate spindle speeds to debates about the parking lot. Anything that has to do with life at the job and stuff you face with pepperoni and anchovies.

A company newsletter can be used to communicate all kinds of pertinent organizational information from changes to employee benefits, next weeks holiday schedule and operational views from the president. The newsletter can be used to improve moral by listing promotions, employee’s birthdays, employment anniversaries to recognizing employees for business and home accomplishments in sections of the newspaper. The list goes on… This is a great way to stop gossip in its tracks.