How to Get the Most Out Of Your Employees

employee team

marketing planA high level of employee productivity can make or break your growing business – follow these proven ideas to maximize your employee potential with your small business

Your employees are the very heart of your business. What’s more, the top leaders and performers are absolutely essential to the long term success of your company. It’s for this reason that keeping your employees happy and giving them the incentive to maximize their productivity is so important.

While there are numerous ways to accomplish this, the following four actions are proven winners.

Offer Great Benefits

The greatest advantage of offering a well rounded benefits package is the effect it has on employee morale. By providing benefits, you show your workers that you care about them — this increases loyalty and you get their best work in return.

Although some benefits are required (such as unemployment insurance and workers compensation), paid vacations and holidays, health insurance, and 401(k)s are what really make your business more attractive to employees. If you really want to attract top talent, in addition to these benefits, offer perks such as paid parental leave, student loan reimbursement, and paid volunteering time.

Offering benefits may cost you money initially, but the long term advantages greatly outweigh these costs. You’ll end up with healthy, happy, dedicated employees who take their jobs seriously and see far less turnover within the company.

Let Them Work Remotely

Speaking of awesome benefits, if you want to see a boost in overall productivity, let your employees work from home. Cramped conditions, intrusive coworkers, and the constant high level of noise makes an office the mortal enemy of productivity. Allowing employees to work from home not only blows these distractions out of the water, it’s also been proven to reduce stress and improve morale.

Besides increased productivity, remote work also benefits the company in both lowered overhead costs and staff turnover. The need for less office space and fewer office supplies can save you a lot of money. Turnover plummets because working from home makes employees happy, and pretty much anyone who gets to work from home would never dream of giving it up. Remote work makes for loyal employees.

Give Them Autonomy

Autonomy is strongly linked to productivity and employee happiness. Letting employees make some decisions on their own leaves them more satisfied with their jobs. A Taiwanese study found that the more autonomy employees had at work, the less likely they were to transfer or leave their positions. The freedom to choose how they did their jobs caused them to be happier, more committed, more productive, and loyal.

Each employee has different skills, personal preferences, and a way of working. They will naturally differ when it comes to when, where and how they complete their work. Where appropriate, your employees should be free to choose how they complete a task. If you understand these assorted attributes — and choose to capitalize on them — your business will be able to adapt, innovate, and succeed.

Treat Them With Respect

A study from Harvard Business Review revealed that employees who were treated with respect by their leaders reported better health and well-being, higher enjoyment and satisfaction with their jobs, and far greater focus and prioritization. Furthermore, those who felt respected by their leaders were more likely to stay with their companies than those who didn’t.

It’s not a complicated concept. Employees will always respond positively to being treated well. Being treated with respect makes them both enthusiastic about their work, and more productive — they want to put their best foot forward for those they feel appreciated by. On the flip side, employees will resent those who don’t respect them, and a negative attitude doesn’t promote productivity.

If you don’t already have one, a master’s degree in management is a great way to gain knowledge in theoretical management topics, such as leadership styles. It can help you find new ways to connect with your employees and really motivate them to do their best work.

Getting the most out of your employees really boils down to making them happy. If you offer them great benefits, allow them to work from home, give them plenty of autonomy, and treat them with the utmost respect, you’ll create an entire company full of happy employees who are extremely loyal and willing to go the extra mile to help you succeed.

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Liz Greene

Writer, Marketing Specialist
Liz Greene is a writer, marketing professional, and full blown pop culture geek from the beautiful City of Trees, Boise, ID. When she’s not stalking the aisles of her local Ulta, she can be found shoveling down sushi while discussing the merits of the latest Game of Thrones fan theories.