January 5, 2021
Employee Engagement - Adding Some Fun to the New Year
With 2020 behind us, it’s time to start off the new year on the right foot – including in the workplace. It’s not surprising to hear that 70% of HR professionals polled by Lattice reported employee morale as a major concern in 2020.
Studies have shown that happy employees are more engaged, which positively impacts an organization’s productivity and profitability. According to a Gallup study, teams in the top quartile in employee engagement are 21% more productive and 21% more profitable than teams in the bottom quartile. In addition, these organizations tend to see lower turnover and absenteeism.
Elements typically associated with satisfied, engaged employees include benefits, time off, flexible work schedules, open communication and competitive salaries. All of these are vital to the success of employee engagement, but if you’d like to try and sprinkle in some more creative ideas you could try some of the following:
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Observe some non-traditional, “fun” holidays throughout the year. For example, celebrate International Thank You Day on January 11 and Take a Walk in the Park Day on March 30. A complete employee recognition calendar can be found on Terryberry.com.
- Share an inspirational quote or video with your team, or try a “word of the week” that employees can attempt to incorporate into their conversations.
- Institute a daily “brain break” to encourage employees to walk away from their computer or workstation for a brief period of time through the day.
- Post a weekly riddle or puzzle. Jill Welch, Sr. Consultant at HR/Advantage Advisory recalled when the HR Director at her former employer posted a weekly riddle in the copy room. “It never failed to start a conversation among employees while waiting for their copier to finish. It created a sense of friendly competition and teamwork throughout the office. It always got people talking and gave us a short break from our work to think about something else.”
- Create an environment of kindness and empathy. For example, encourage managers to write a thank you note to an employee for a job well done.
Regardless of how you decide to approach the new year, know that there will continue to be obstacles ahead and keeping the lines of communication open with your employees will be imperative to help employees feel comfortable, productive and engaged in their work.
Sources: Halo Recognition, “3 Big, Not-So-Obvious Employee Engagement Trends for 2021” Humorthatworks.com, “101 Ways to Create Humor at Work” Bonusly, “ The Importance of Having Fun at Work” Business News Daily, “12 Secrets to Keeping Employees Happy Without a Raise”
The views and opinions expressed in the article represent the view of the author and not necessarily the official view of Clark Hill PLC. Nothing in this article constitutes professional legal advice nor is intended to be a substitute for professional legal advice.
