How to Increase Your Employees’ Satisfaction Without Giving Them a Raise
It's not just about the money
Source | www.entrepreneur.com | Chirag Kulkarni
It’s a common misconception that money is the main driver of employee satisfaction. It is, after all, a fairly reliable measure of how much a company values its employees. Naturally, employers would think that a pay raise is the best way to boost employee productivity. They’re often confused when that turns out not to be true and surprised to learn that the secret to improving productivity isn’t more money at all.
The fact is that a productive business takes more than well-paid employees; it takes happy employees. For those surveyed in a 2014 TINYpulse poll, responders said that peers — not money — are the number one influence on workplace satisfaction and the drive to go the extra mile. Therefore, employers should look beyond salaries and seriously evaluate their company culture and leadership styles to focus more on their employees’ true satisfaction.
With these five tips, employers can take a significant step toward changing their company culture for the better.
1. Create opportunities for connection.
Personally interacting with your employees in the workplace is perhaps the most important factor in good leadership. Attend brainstorming sessions, go out to lunch with team members and maintain an open-door policy so employees can drop in to say hello or tell you if they need anything.
This cultivates an atmosphere of collegiality throughout the office and clears the way for you to help employees in their personal lives when appropriate. Zeynep Ilgaz, president of Confirm Biosciences, says putting people over profit is one of the core values of her company. “The more [employees] grow their own unique personal capabilities,” she says, “the more they can bring to the professional table.”
