9 Ways To Invest In Your Employees
How can business owners make their companies more profitable? The answer involves enhancing employees’ productivity and making them more efficient. This objective’s achievable when you’re ready to invest in your employees and convince them to stick with the company for a long time. Don’t forget that an average employee stays with a company for roughly four years. So, business owners can improve their workers’ loyalty and boost morale within the organization by investing in their employees.
However, our small-sized companies don’t have enough resources to invest in their workers. That’s why they require a bunch of easy tips for employee development. We have some easy tips for them in this blog.
How to invest in your employees?
Small-sized startups can’t afford to lose their employees once recruited. Don’t waste your money on the process of interviewing, short-listing, and recruiting a bunch of newbies every year, only to watch them leave quickly. Invest in them, hone their skills, and encourage them to stick with you for years. So, business owners can make their organizations more profitable by investing in the workforce. That’s how they prevent turnover, become more productive, and eventually turn into valued assets. Thus, you must not jeopardize the stability of your organization by ignoring to invest in your employees. We believe this can be one of the best investment decisions you will ever make. So, here goes the list for you:
- Develop them professionally
Invest in your employees’ professional development and let them hone their academic qualifications. A company should consider funding its employees’ education. Many employees may be trying to improve their jobs by obtaining specialized certifications such as CPA and CMA. Why not help them with the resources at your disposal now! So, give them access to prep courses such as the Wiley Efficient Learning program. Online courses such as this help your employees pass this exam and become valued members of your little startup.
- Know your employees
Business owners must become familiar with their workers. Don’t you know how it impacts an employee’s morale when the boss doesn’t even know their name? You can’t expect to cooperate with a bunch of people without learning a few things about them. The idea’s to realize their goals as well as passions; recognize what motivates them to become more productive. Assign them projects according to their skills, likes, and dislikes. That’s how you can invest emotionally in your employees.
- Define job roles
Employees are often discouraged and disengaged when they feel their jobs have no meaning! A company should define job roles clearly and help employees understand how they’re integral to the working of the organization. Show them why they matter and watch them become more productive.
- Promote mental health
Don’t underestimate the importance of maintaining your workforce’s mental well-being, particularly in the middle of COVID’s seventh wave. For instance, some surveys last year showed that one-third of American employees called the return-to-office phase mentally disturbing. So, offer workers access to therapy/counseling sessions. Cater to their mental health issues and create a secure place. Don’t forget to promote healthy snacks and discourage adhering to a sedentary lifestyle as well.
- Receive proper feedback
“I don’t understand that person suddenly resigned,” some business owners often exclaim. However, it only shows their ignorance of what’s happening beneath their noses! Do not get caught off-guard by a sudden resignation because it means you weren’t receiving feedback from your employees. Ask them how it’s hanging and observe the company from their perspective. That’s how you know if the workers are happy or not. Communicate with your workers and listen to their concerns properly.
- Host team-building activities
Remember that episode from The Office in which the gang rents a work bus? These activities make your job more entertaining and allow colleagues to bond with each other. Some business owners have a system where they pair recruits with veterans and try to make them “buddies.” It’s because an employee’s supposed to stick around if their friends work at the same office. These team-building and team-strengthening activities are fantastic resources for boosting employees’ faithfulness when coworkers start to become friends. So, don’t undervalue the significance of a company picnic as this might be the perfect method to prevent someone from handing out their resignation letter soon.
- Train your recruits
A survey shows that over 17% of recruits leave a month after being hired. A company can’t afford the cost of hiring new people, only for one-fifth of them to quit after a month! How can you discourage quitters? Well, business owners must train their workers. These youngsters are leaving because of being neglected by their employers. Focus on reskilling/upskilling them. Train them to hone their learning, and they will return the favor by staying with the company for years.
- Encourage more collaboration
Investing in employees will require business owners to allow colleagues to collaborate effectively. A company cannot thrive without fostering a culture of learning, creativity, and open-mindedness. Your employees must be empowered to share their ideas for the betterment of the organization. Maybe, an employee comes up with something that takes your company miles ahead of the competition. Thus, encourage more collaboration among workers so make them realize they also own the company!
- Offer some flexibility
Just because typical offices have a nine-to-five schedule, you don’t have to follow the tradition. Provide employees enough flexibility to get the work done right instead of working in a strict routine. Since COVID-19, startups have been focusing on creating hybrid workplaces. These workplaces have integrated office-based agendas with home-based programs. Understand that your employees have private affairs to settle and may get overburdened by a non-flexible business schedule. Cut them some slack by letting them discover a healthy work-life balance. That’s how your employees can be more productive and also trusty!
Conclusion
Why should business owners invest in their employees? Well, surveys show that 67% of workers now are disengaged at work and not interested in business activities. Investing in employees will make them more interested in their jobs, thereby enhancing your business profitability. Business owners must become familiar with their employees, promote mental health, receive proper feedback, and have a flexible schedule. Train every recruit and give their jobs some meaning! Encourage teamwork and motivate your workers to become friends with colleagues. Moreover, business owners should develop their employees professionally. Help them improve their educational qualifications and earn their loyalty in the future.
