A positive work culture can go a long way toward not only making your place of
business one that employees enjoy coming to, but also boosting its more creativity and productivity.
According to Harvard Business Review (HBR)*, "Too many companies bet on having a cut-throat, high-pressure, take-no-prisoners culture to drive their financial success. But a large and growing body of research on positive organizational psychology demonstrates that not only is an environment harmful to productivity, but that a positive environment will lead to dramatic benefits for employers, employees, and the bottom line."
HBR cites a number of studies and statistics to support the thesis that a positive
work culture is better for business. These include:
- Health care expenditures at high-pressure companies are nearly 50% greater than at other organizations**
- Over $500 billion is siphoned off from the U.S. economy due to workplace stress, and 550 million workdays are lost each year due to job-related stress***
- A link between leadership behavior and heart disease in employees****
Those are just a few of many studies cited that illustrate the theme of a negative work culture being detrimental and costly.
Promote Work-Life Balance
Promoting work-life balance among your employees is a great start for fostering a positive work culture. This can include flexibility in work hours, time off, and remote work, if and when possible. If remote work is already a big part of your operations, encourage employees to firmly separate work and personal time. For example, let them know if it's OK to wait until they're on the clock to pay attention to work emails and messages. You can also encourage breaks, vacation time, and the occasional mental health day, within reason.
Be Empathetic
Show empathy to your employees and colleagues. This will make your team feel better about working for you and most likely get them to respect you more.
"Being unapproachable and unwilling to listen causes low employee retention rates and low company morale," says Shaan Rais at Entrepreneur.***** "Everyone comes to work knowing they have to walk on eggshells because their boss isn't going to understand that an unexpected family emergency is the real reason why the assignment was a day late. As the leader of a team with varying emotional needs, you must step up to the plate and develop your empathetic side. Empathy is a crucial quality for any leader who desires to build trust, rapport and understanding with their team."
Be Helpful to Team Members
Don't just be empathetic, be helpful, as well. If you see areas where people are struggling with tasks, offer some assistance. If you don't have time, appoint someone to help or let them know you'd like to set up a time to talk about the issues and help them figure out how they can perform better. Keep the conversation positive and let them know you want to help rather than reprimand them.
Remain Open to Communication
While it's important to set boundaries to help with your own productivity and mental health, your team should know that they can always communicate with you, and that you're open to hearing what they have to say and answer any questions. Respond promptly when you can. Let them know that you are taking them seriously, and that you will speak with them as soon as you can.
Celebrate Milestones and Special Occasions
It can be fun to celebrate milestones and special occasions in the workplace, whether it's a birthday, a work anniversary, or a goal that has been accomplished. You can schedule a special dinner or event, throw a company party, buy the team lunch, or simply bring in donuts in the morning. Gestures like these show that you care about your team and can also give the team an opportunity to get to know one another better outside of work-related tasks and conversations.
When there's a positive work culture, employees tend to care more about their work, and this makes them more productive. Give them a culture they enjoy being a part of, and your business stands to benefit.
* https://hbr.org/2015/12/proof-that-positive-work-cultures-are-more-pr
** https://bmcpublichealth.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/1471-2458-11-642
*** http://www.apa.org/news/press/releases/stress/2014/stress-report.pdf
**** http://ki.se/en/news/poor-leadership-poses-a-health-risk-at-work
***** https://www.entrepreneur.com/leadership/how-to-be-the-empathetic-leader-your-team-needs/439968
