Company morale is essential to productivity and success. A new article, however, suggests ways you might be destroying people’s spirits without realizing it.

As part of the Refresh Leadership blog, the piece warns about three problem areas:

By Fostering an Environment of Anonymity
Companies that stick to all work and no play could be fostering an environment where anonymity – when an employee feels that no one sees or cares about them at work – thrives. And that can make for miserable employees.

By Failing to Convey Job Purpose
Studies show that money can’t buy happiness. Having a sense of purpose on the other hand, can have an impact on how happy we feel. Employees who understand their purpose at work and why it’s meaningful are often more engaged, motivated, and happy.

By Missing Autonomy at Work
A recent report by the Society for Human Resource Management found that autonomy – or the freedom to make choices in the workplace – had significant correlations with work satisfaction, commitment, retention, and low burnout. Other studies have found that those who feel they have the ability to make decisions and be accountable for them at work are happier and more productive.

These might sound like no-brainers, but it’s actually pretty easy to create a workplace where people have no sense of individual identity, no clear understanding of their job purpose and feel that they lack independence.

The blog post does provide some good pointers for how to address these issues. However, we at Slaughter Development feel that there’s one action an employer can take that tackles all three and more. Ask an employee to select a process they’d like to improve, and then suggest they take ownership of positively transforming that workflow .

When stakeholders are actually empowered to do work, they feel like real people, not just numbers. When they have an assignment that has true significance to the organization, they feel a sense of purpose. And when employees have ownership, they don’t need direction. They become leaders all their own.

Improve morale at your company. Talk to experts in employee engagement and process improvement. Contact Slaughter Development today!

❖ ❖ ❖

Tags: anonymity, autonomy, employee satisfaction, empowerment, job description, morale, turnover