Many studies have been released that indicate employee happiness should be at the forefront of your company's agenda. Increased engagement has been linked to lower turnover, higher productivity and lower costs. Here's why engagement is so important, and some handy tips on how you can improve it at your organisation.
Employee happiness should be at the forefront of your organisation's agenda. Multiple studies have been released in recent years that indicate the happiness or otherwise of the people who work for you can have a huge impact on productivity, turnover, and ultimately the success of your company.
Let's take a look at these in more detail to see just how important employee happiness can be, and why incentives and other rewards can be the difference in whether your team enjoys coming to work or not.
Happy employees = successful company
1) Productivity
Much research has been conducted into the productivity of happy or unhappy employees, with a clear correlation between increased productivity and happiness. For example, a study by the Social Market Foundation found that happy employees are up to 20 per cent more productive than unhappy employees. Meanwhile a Warwick Business School survey found that happier workers are 12 per cent more productive than neutral ones, while unhappier workers were 10 per cent less productive.
2) Lower turnover
High turnover is extremely expensive. According to ERE Media, it costs between 30-50 per cent of an annual salary to replace an entry-level employee, upwards of 150 per cent for a mid-level employee, and up to 400 per cent for someone who is senior or specialised.
Increased employee happiness naturally leads to lower turnover, because people are more willing to stay in a job that they enjoy.
3) Lower costs
All of this leads to significantly lower costs for an organisation that can get its employee happiness right. In fact, Gallup reports that lost productivity due to employee disengagement can cost more than $300 billion a year. Think how much you could save if your employees are happy!
The $300 billion question: How to keep your employees happy
You've heard of the $1 million question - well if disengagement costs $300 billion a year, finding out the answer to keeping your employees happy is genuinely a $300 billion question. And it's not as difficult as you might think.
In Patrick Lencioni's book 'The Truth About Employee Engagement', he boils down happiness at work to three things. Each individual must:
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Feel like who they are matters.
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Feel like what they do has an impact.
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Feel like they are making progress.
Employee incentives form one means of fulfilling each of these three goals. Rewarding employees helps them feel like they matter because you are showing you value them and the work they do on a frequent basis. The best employee incentives programs will offer your team members a choice of prize, showing you don't see everyone as a homogenous group but that you understand they are all individuals with their own preferences and tastes.
By rewarding your team members you are showing that what they do on a daily basis genuinely has an impact, so much so that you are willing to spend money to incentivise them to do it more.
With a rewards system that's directly linked to KPIs and other metrics, your employees can really feel that they are making progress. As they hit each KPI they receive a prize, meaning they can tangibly link their progress to that reward.
With a rewards system that's directly linked to KPIs and other metrics, your employees can really feel that they are making progress
Power2Motivate's Employee Engagement Solutions
At Power2Motivate, your employees can choose from a huge range of prizes in our Global Rewards Gallery. This includes travel, event tickets, electronics and household appliances. Our Employee Rewards and Recognition Programs involve a peer-to-peer recognition element that allows people to nominate coworkers for positive behaviour. Meanwhile, a Years of Service program will help to reduce turnover by showing your team how much you value their loyalty to your organisation.
For more information about any of our incentive programs, reach out to Power2Motivate today.