It may seem a little cliché, but if you’re going to spend the majority of your waking hours running your business, it should be one that brings you personal joy, satisfaction, and reward. And when it comes to the workplace itself, your responsibility as the owner of the business is to ensure that you promote trust and respect among your employees and create a culture that values their contribution.
In this post, Elaine Hirsch, a writer who describes herself as a “jack-of-all-interests from education and history to medicine and video games,” describes how workplace trends point toward the desire among employees for deeper engagement and greater stakes the success of their companies. She also provides examples of successful programs in large enterprises and lessons and insights that small business owners and entrepreneurs can apply in their own ventures.
The days of a company being just the place a worker spends eight hours during the day have passed. More businesses are finding that when they make the workplace engaging and fulfilling for employees, they can reap great benefits. The trend of making the work beneficial to the employee beyond drawing a paycheck has grown stronger in recent years, with a host of new ideas and flexible benefit programs for employees. This has shown positive results in terms of increased performance at companies rated among the best places to work.
One doesn't have to earn a human resource management PhD online to know the cornerstone of all great workplaces is trust, both between employees and management on a personal level and trust in management’s strategic decisions. Part of this entails creating a culture that values employees and their contributions. Many companies on the lists of top workplaces offer benefits beyond the traditional time off and health insurance. Several extend insurance coverage to domestic partnerships. Many others have joined the trend of workplace wellness programs, made even easier by the growing number of health care companies offering these services. Companies are even hiring their own wellness coordinators, a dedicated position that improves employee health through initiatives like in-office nurse visits for basic physicals, wellness events like walks and workouts, and classes on stress management. These investments can also have a cumulative effect, as healthier employees cost the company less in insurance payments and time off, and yield greater productivity.
You might be thinking that as a small business owner, you may not have the resources or your operation may not lend itself to implementing sophisticated wellness programs or beyond-the-basics health coverage. However, you can create unusual perks tailored for your business that can pay for themselves, too. For instance, you might ask your employees for ideas to save the company money. Employees could be placed in pairs or small groups and asked to come up with as many ideas as possible. The team with the most total ideas and the team with the most implementable ideas could both receive cash prizes, a day off, etc. You stand to find significant savings through employees' suggestions and your employees will appreciate just being asked for their input. This kind of exercise also helps build the level of trust needed to create a great workplace.
Some ideas about great workplaces take a more extreme approach. Jody Thompson, an author and human resources expert, came up with an idea she dubs the "Results-Only Work Environment (ROWE)." This approach abandons the convention of a set workday or even a physical workplace, instead letting employees complete their work how and when they see fit. The approach has brought positive results to companies that have implemented it so far. Thompson reports that companies with a ROWE increase productivity by 35 percent and see voluntary turnover rates drop 90 percent.
ROWE may not be for everyone as it could be difficult to implement for many types of businesses. But it serves as inspiration to spark unconventional, out-of-the-box ideas that could potentially benefit your small business. Take the idea of telecommuting, which has grown more popular as gas prices rise and new technologies make it easier to connect workers to the workplace. Though researchers have found that pinpointing the exact number of people who work primarily from home is difficult, the U.S. Census has found the number has increased steadily in the last five years. The Telework Research Network, an independent research advisory firm dedicated to studying and advocating for telecommuting, found several benefits to companies that let workers report from home. Employee satisfaction is higher, attrition lower, and unexcused absences drop when employees can work from home. Companies taking this approach also see a rise in productivity.
An example of innovative HR in a small-business setting can be found in the Motley Fool's benefits package and company culture. Located in Alexandria, Virginia, Motley Fool is an online investment advisory service. At the Fool, employees get benefits, including:
- Unlimited paid time off
- Cheap health insurance
- Company outings
- Child consultants for parents
- Monthly peanut and butter jelly sandwich days with over 25 varieties to choose from
- Basketball, soccer, yoga, and tai chi
- Financial support for new parents
- In-office gym
Although this may seem excessive (and easily taken advantage of), Lee Burbage, Senior VP of HR at the Fool, says that his company spends 22 percent of salary expenses on these perks (compared to the industry average of 30 percent). Furthermore, these perks are essentially investments in the long-term health of the Fool's employees. As a company which values the creativity of its employees, providing an environment which facilitates sound minds and sound bodies seems like the obvious thing to do.
For companies looking to improve productivity and make the workplace better, the right benefits can make the difference. However, this doesn't have to mean putting in new and expensive programs. For many companies on the best workplaces lists, it was small initiatives like ice cream days or employee recognition awards that went a long way in creating a positive office culture.
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