Create a Culture That Employees Will Love!
A company's culture is its calling card. It attracts top talent, minimizes employee turnover, and can make every day more meaningful for employees and management. Executives and business leaders must continually seek new ways to enhance their company's culture without reinventing the wheel. Here are 20 practical ways to boost company culture that actually work.
1. Flexible Work Schedules
Allowing your employees some flexibility with their work schedules fosters trust and can make them happier and more engaged. You can use staggered start times, hybrid models, or summer schedules. Any of these can improve a company's culture.
2. Publicly Acknowledge Achievements
Public recognition for your employees who achieve something meaningful or overperform can brighten your company's culture. The recognition doesn't have to be expensive or outlandish. It can be a simple email or a small reward that will make them feel valued.
3. Offer Professional Development Opportunities
Providing employees with professional development opportunities that can help them grow or put them on the path to a promotion is a consistent morale-booster. You can hold workshops or provide a stipend for employees to seek out further education.
4. Host Team-Building Activities
Organizing activities for your employees where they can release some steam and connect is proven to boost a company's culture. It can be as small as paying for a company-wide lunch or organizing a softball game. The caveat is not to do it too often, as you don't want to encroach on your employees' free time or create an obligation to attend.
5. Access to Mental Health Resources
Making mental health resources, like counseling and stress management, available to your workforce proves your commitment to their well-being. Your employees will appreciate having the opportunity to tackle any mental health issues they might be experiencing, and compassion is always a great way to form a positive company culture.
6. Let Employees Enjoy Autonomy
Autonomy means an employee won't have someone micromanaging their every move. Micromanaging is a failure of management, and letting your employees work with autonomy will embolden them to work harder and not be scared to take a calculated chance or two.
7. Promote From Within
There are few things as demoralizing as an employee deserving of a promotion being overlooked for an outside hire. Ensuring your employees have a clear path for career advancement is key to every company's culture and can reduce turnover by a wide margin.
8. Update Employees on the Company's Performance
Keeping your employees up-to-date on how the company is performing can motivate employees and set clear goals of what needs to be achieved. The trick is to be honest, no matter how rough the numbers are, and stick to a consistent schedule. Quarterly updates tend to make the most sense.
9. Have One Day a Week Without Meetings
Some meetings are necessary, but others could probably be an email or a quick chat at the kitchen sink while getting a coffee refill. Most importantly, meetings can reduce productivity and interrupt a person's flow. Designating one day a week for working without meetings can do wonders for your company.
10. Encourage Personalization
Whether it's hanging some photos in a workspace or having some fun with profiles on the company website, encourage your employees to express their identities creatively. This personalization can cut through the blandness of a company's personality and culture.
11. Establish Feedback Loops
A feedback loop is designed for management to provide employees with valuable feedback, and also the other way around. Instead of constantly providing feedback to employees, provide them with an opportunity to give you insight into how you can improve.
12. Offer Healthier Office Supplies
Investing in ergonomic chairs or standing desks gives your employees some necessary support for their physical health. It can also improve your company's culture and increase productivity. If your company works remotely, offer a small budget to your employees to buy some items that will make working at a computer more comfortable.
13. Hold "Ask Me Anything" Sessions with Senior Leaders
An "Ask Me Anything" session is an opportunity for employees to ask any question they want to a senior leader, even the CEO. Few tactics will boost your company's culture more than valuing transparency and open communication.
14. Rotate Non-Work Responsibilities
When you work in an office, some responsibilities extend beyond your work deliverables. These might include loading the shared dishwasher or planning the holiday party. Whatever the responsibility, you want to be equitable and create a rotation where every employee is doing their fair share.
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15. Create a Mentorship Program
Mentorship is a proven engagement tool for companies. It helps employees develop their skills and invests in opportunities for them to move up the corporate ladder. A mentorship program is as simple as pairing experienced employees with newer ones, and the best part is that it can help both expand their skill sets.
16. Give Employees a Voice
When appropriate, let employees share their opinions and insights on matters that will change or shape the company. This ensures employee buy-in and can even result in uncovering ideas from those closest to the work.
17. Create a Network of Social Groups
Creating social groups, like book clubs or running groups, can deepen the connection between employees and let them forget about the stresses of work for a short time. Fostering better relationships, or even friendships, among employees will make a company's culture more enjoyable.
18. Encourage Guilt-Free Breaks
Employees often feel guilty about stepping away from their desks for a well-earned break. Management should encourage their employees to take breaks and not place an emphasis on being busy all the time. Short breaks can make an employee more focused and engaged.
19. Invest in Side Projects
Giving your employees the freedom to carve out a bit of time for a side project that could help the company is a smart investment. It lets them be creative and shows that management trusts their abilities to pursue some extra credit work that could prove beneficial.
20. Surprise Your Employees with Perks
Everyone loves getting free stuff, especially when it's unexpected. Surprising your employees with fun perks like movie passes, gift cards, or a free lunch shows your appreciation and can make your culture better and more fun.
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