There is a lot said about positive work environments these days, and this is because they can be tricky to create. However, they are very valuable to employers. The reason is because the more positive the environment, the more conducive to work it’s likely to be. Something that means better productivity, job satisfaction, and morale. With that in mind, check out the tactics described below that can help you to have a more positive work environment in your business.
Offer a basic level of comfort
I once worked at a shop where they liked to keep the front door open, to welcome customers in. Even in the winter and with our uniform being thin cotton shirts, the door was always open. Indeed, during this period I had several discussions with management about the tiny heater we had. Management thought the heater was a waste of money and regularly took it away. Suffice it to say that such behavior did not win over my loyalty or make me feel valued as an employee and I left soon after.
The reason that I am regaling you with this story is to demonstrate that you must get the basics of comfort at work right for your employees to have any chance of being happy at all. What this means is noise levels, equipment and even the temperature of your premises need to be comfortable if you wish to create a positive work environment.
Of course, concerning temperature, this means installing an HVAC system so the heat can be turned up in the winter and cold air provided in the summer. Although, once you have an HVAC it’s vital that you also have a 24 Hour AC Repair contact on your books. After all, it won’t do much for employee morale if it doesn’t work!
Be responsible when it comes to health and safety
Health and safety go further than merely making sure that your employees are comfortable. It also involves taking care of their short and long-term well-being and health as well. Indeed, not only are you keeping to certain standards of health and safety required by law but doing so also sends a clear message to your employees that you respect and value them.
To that end, it is important to appoint someone to be responsible for health and safety checks within your business. Of course, these will differ depending on the type of organization you run. After all, those with office-based businesses will largely be concerned with manual handling of loads, and desk and monitor ergonomics. While those operating construction sites will have many other issues to consider such as working safely with heavy machinery, working from heights, and dealing with hazardous substances.
Provide motivation and reward
Finally, if you are striving to create a positive work environment do not forget to tend to people’s psychological and emotional well-being. Indeed, one of the most effective ways of doing this is to offer them additional motivation for the tasks they are doing in the form of a reward.
Now, this doesn’t have to be a financial reward. Instead, praise, or tapping into intrinsic motivation by aligning tasks with workers’ values can be a very useful tool here, helping to keep your business’s environment as positive as possible.
