Brad Wolff, Director Business Development, Jumpvine, Inc.
contributed the following article:
Keeping morale high in a down economy
Amid our current economic downturn, many managers are realizing
that keeping morale intact is crucial but more difficult to
achieve. Businesses have to motivate survivors of layoffs as well
as prepare to compete for talent when the economy rebounds.
With companies reducing their staff, it has forced employees to do
more work with fewer rewards in the form of bonuses, raises and
benefits than under normal times. As a result, companies are
faced with the challenge of producing equal or better products and
services under more hazardous conditions.
Sound fundamentals of human relations are of utmost
importance in managing through these challenges: Here are
three approaches that can have a positive impact:
1. Communication: Send clear, unambiguous and
well thought-out messages to staff about what's going on. A
monthly face-to-face "status update" meeting between staff and
executives to convey that there are no secrets at the company.
These steps can cut stress, boost transparency and shows convey the
message that we are "all in this together".
2. Fairness: A sense of fairness has a direct
influence on morale. This means communicating in a respectful and
kind manner, letting people voice complaints without repercussions,
explaining the rationale for job cuts, and making those cuts as
fairly as possible. Allowing the staff to participate in
solutions can go a long way when it is feasible. For example,
if you need to cut $1 million in salaries, you can let the staff
know that you need to either lay off four people or have each
person reduce his/her pay by 10% and let them vote on what they
prefer.
3. Acknowledgment of value: Providing positive
feedback and showing an interest in people's work has a direct
effect on morale because it increases their feeling of importance
and competence. Simple emails saying "Good job" or "Thanks for your
hard work" can go a long way. In addition, giving workers a
chance to enhance and broaden skills - by moving around within the
organization or working with different people - also helps them
feel less trapped in their jobs at a time that salary increases and
bonuses have been reduced or discontinued.
Here are three approaches that can have a negative
impact:
1. Social events: If it appears that social
events are used in lieu of more relevant measures, they can
backfire. It can appear that money is being poured into
socials instead of where it is more important. Having said
this, when employers follow the positive approach guidelines above,
social events can be helpful when they involve simple gestures of
gratitude at a small amount of money spent. Examples of this
would include things like a ping-pong tournament, scrabble contest,
softball game, picnic etc. Anything that allows people to
play together and interact in a fun way can foster good,
cooperative feelings that pull people together in appreciation of
their employer
2. Tolerating slackers: With employees
being asked to do more for less, workers who do not handle their
fair share or do poor quality work add an extra burden to those who
do. Don't let good employees carry weak performers.
Letting some people get away with doing less work can breed
resentment among harder-working colleagues. It is also wise to
balance out workloads if they appear uneven.
3. Abandoning normal practices that are positive in your
culture: Just because there's a downturn, it doesn't mean
you should eliminate things that are appreciated and not overly
costly. How well you manage people (or how your organization treats
people) in tough times impacts today's morale as well as your
reputation in the market and sends a powerful message that may well
matter when times improve.
Additional considerations of importance:
In addition to salary, rewards and benefits play an important
role in employee morale. Employees expect certain benefits
even under challenging economic times. The reality for
employers is that they pay a large amount of money for these
benefits, many of which are not truly valued. Since
what employees value changes over time the downturn might be the
right time to take an objective look at all of the things that you
provide for your employees and compare this to the things that your
employees truly value.
Providing a simple questionnaire for your employees to
anonymously communicate what benefits and rewards matter most
to them can be a starting point in gathering this
information. If what you offer now is not aligned with what
your employees value, you are investing your resources where they
do not provide the return on investment that you are seeking and
your employees are potentially not satisfied either.
With creativity and flexibility employers can often achieve
their desired result at equal or fewer dollars than they currently
spend. Since employees vary in what they value, honoring
these differences while keeping the value of the rewards fairly
equal can go a long way in improving morale and employee
satisfaction levels. For example, if you decide to cut back
on $2000/yr per employee in the benefits/rewards that are not
really valued per employee feedback, you may replace these with a
small variety of choices from which employees can select. One
person may want to receive this money in cash compensation while
another wishes to take an extra week of paid vacation.
Additional ideas that may have merit in your
organization:
1. Rewards programs that include bonuses for bringing
ideas that decrease expenses or increase revenue.
2. Telecommuting options
3. Four-day work weeks
4. Transportation subsidies
One final consideration before implementing changes in any areas
above would be to "think through" and get the advice of people you
trust before rolling out changes. If you currently experience
poor-morale, then thoughtlessly conceived changes can worsen morale
problems because employees can perceive them as insincere ploys by
management.
Contact Jumpvine for additional information or
assistance.
Office: 770-394-8536(direct) | Toll Free: 866-606-1205 | Fax:
770-394-8928
400 Northridge Rd., Suite 200, Atlanta GA 30350 | bwolff@jumpvine.net
www.jumpvine.net