There are plenty of studies to support the importance of creating a so-called workplace culture, with one exhaustive report The Conference Board, Sirota-Mercer, Deloitte, ROI, The Culture Works, and Consulting LLP highlighting that disengaged employees cost US companies up to $550 billion a year.
This, along with the costs associated with absenteeism in the workplace, can cause huge issues for businesses, creating the need for employers to create an engaged workforce who are able to optimize their productivity.
But how do you go about creating a positive workplace culture? Here are some ideas to keep in mind:
Invest in Your Office Interior
The chances are that the nature of your workplace will change post-Covid-19, particularly as remote working becomes more commonplace and your office occupancy levels begin to fall slightly.
This may create a need to invest in and reimagine your office interior, with a view to optimizing any newfound space and encouraging continued collaboration between the staff members that remain.
In terms of aesthetics, you can also create a positive culture simply through the process of internal branding. This will require the use of brand colors, while you could also invest in modern office furniture to create a vibrant and engaging space.
Even on a fundamental level, this creates a workplace where employees want to be, which is crucial when looking to establish a viable culture.
Create an Inclusive Workspace
The word ‘diversity is widely used across a number of industries, but this is far from a simple piece of jargon that’s considered to provide positive optics for a business.
In fact, a diverse workforce is an inclusive one, which is open to people from various backgrounds who have very different outlooks, soft skills, and life experiences.
This can prove crucial for any aspiring business, as it creates a diverse and positive culture in which differences are celebrated and companies can benefit from a unique combination of transferable skills.
Just remember that diversity extends far beyond race, as your business should also be open to people from different backgrounds and individuals who have forged variable paths towards career success.
Create an Employee Recognition Program
Increasingly, it has become apparent that employees are motivated by far more than salary alone, which is why we’ve seen the development of diverse benefits packages that include a number of variable rewards.
The premise here is simple; you give your employees something extra to work towards while creating additional rewards that can augment a standard monthly payslip (such as discounted gym membership or cycle to work incentives).
To achieve this, you could introduce and implement an employee recognition program, which identifies talented and high-performance staff members and seeks to incentivize these with tailored rewards.
Over time, this can also create a competitive culture where hard work and achievement are celebrated, encouraging employees to make the most of their time and optimize their own productivity levels.
