Employee Satisfaction through Trust

Employee satisfaction is usually on people’s mind since it is important to their business.  Why? Employees are what make you succeed. The best way to create employee satisfaction is through trust. Employees need to know that what you say, do and act is the truth. Not only in regards to the truth of  your words but also true to yourself, who you are. That may sound “fluffy” or “new age” however, from working along side you day after day, employees will learn about who you are and what you value and need to see that reflected in your behavior.

Trust as defined by Merriam-Webster Dictionary is:  assured reliance on the character, ability, strength, or truth of someone or something or one in which confidence is placed.  Now if you look at this in terms of Leadership and Employee Satisfaction it makes sense.  People need to trust you, your character and your abilities as well as place confidence in them.

How do  you do this? Several small ways:

• Honest conversations – if you are not happy with someones performance or attendance, for example, just tell them. Be consistent, don’t tell one person they need to come in on-time and not the another person who also has tardiness issues.
• Explain decisions – if you made a decision to either cut staff or no longer offer a benefit, explain why. Now, you don’t have to get into the exact numbers of your business but you can say “I’m sorry our sales are down by 15% and we couldn’t afford to keep them”.
• Admit when you need help – sometimes as a leader we may think that we need to know everything.  While that would be great, it is not realistic.  So if you need marketing ideas for example, ask those around you. 
• Be Yourself– I know, again with the “fluffy” stuff. Here is what I am getting at.  If you are a jokester, be a jokester in the office (but be serious when needed).  If you are a serious person, be that person don’t try to fake being a jokester – it will look and feel unnatural to you and those around you. If you are passing along news that has effected you, it is ok to show some emotion.

As you can see, you shouldn’t have to try to hard to establish trust.  It can be very easy as well to destroy it.  So keep it in the back of your mind when going about your business.

Also, as a side note – your customers will also like it and it will help create loyalty.

The Unexpected can make us Happy!

Doing the unexpected for your employees can make them happy!

I know it sounds simple. Why does the execution have to be complicated?  It doesn’t.  Show your employees your appreciation by random acts. It’s ok if they are preplanned as well.

For example: It’s Friday, summer hot outside, and it was a good week.  Stop by the grocery store and pick up some ice cream, whipped cream and go all out with the sprinkles.  Once you get back to the office announce a Sundae break.  What do you think will be reaction of your employees? Happy, positive, thankful and possibly a little more inspired to do well the rest of the day.

As you can see this won’t cost much dollar wise, however what you receive back will be priceless.

This is just one example. Here’s another. 

When was the last time you sent a handwritten Thank You note to an employee, co-worker, supplier or anyone else you have contact with? Maybe the question should be – Do you remember how to hand write a thank you note? With email, it is becoming a lost art.  It’s unfortunate as this gesture puts a huge smile on their face. Taking the time to hand write a note shows you were willing to take the extra time and effort just for them. Wow!

Tell us about your unexepected random acts. Does the other person still remember?

Employee Surveys the good, the bad and the ugly

Want to know what your employees are thinking? Want to ask them in a way that they will feel free to share without repercussions?  Do a survey!

Here’s the thing about surveys – know what you are getting into before you start.  In other words only ask if you really want to know and will take action on the feedback.  I know for some of you that seems obvious, just understand the good, the bad and the ugly of employee surveys. 

The Good: if you ask the questions, really review the answers and take action (where you can) – you have won the loyalty of your employees.  They now feel you are truely interested in what they have to say. Summarize the findings and pass it along, they will provide you feedback any time you ask for it.

The Bad: you ask the questions, but not the tough ones.  You are asking questions to show on the surface you have an interest – they can see through you.  No more sharing, a decrease in morale.  Or worse they think “OK, he got his ego boosted – now what”.

The Ugly: you ask the tough questions, you don’t look at the results and you don’t follow up.  No more sharing – not now or even when walking out the door to a new job.  You have lowered morale to its lowest point and will not take any future surveys or questions seriously.

If you have been in the bad and ugly category – you can recover but over time.  Start doing it right and they will come around.