As a business grows, in terms of physical location, number of workers, or profit earned, it can be difficult to maintain personal and meaningful connections with each of your employees. The daily operations of business tend to become less personal and more business-centric as your company increases in scale.
If you take these 5 steps towards establishing your small business as a great place to work early on, you will build a solid company culture that your business can continue to improve upon as it grows.
Appreciate Your Employees
While this first step may seem simple, you, as an authority figure, can become preoccupied with the hectic nature of your business and easily neglect to engage in simple acts of appreciation towards your employees.
To address this, you can:
- Host a monthly luncheon
- Offer an incentive to select employees who generate the most work
- Showcase employees on your business’s social media accounts
- Grant meaningful words of approval in person
Even the smallest acts of appreciation will give your employees the validation and respect they deserve.
Be Understanding, But Be Firm When Needed
If an employee needs to take time off on short notice, grant leniency when deemed fit. However, it is important to simultaneously be a responsible manager in order to ensure that your business has enough people on hand. Being overly accommodating and allowing employees to miss an excessive number of work days will force more work into the hands of other employees and create hostility and resentment.
If an employee is constantly asking for time off, hold a private conversation and explain how their absence negatively affects the company as a whole. Take appropriate action, like suspension or dismissal, when necessary.
Be Inclusive
If your business has different departments, encourage employees to interact with each other and become familiar with each other’s line of work. This will allow employees to help each other out, create new social connections, and understand how different departments come together to make your business’s operations run smoothly.
Listen to Your Employees
If your employees are voicing their opinions on how to improve efficiency with certain tasks, do your business a favor and take these opinions into consideration. Your employees have a solid understanding of your business’s operations and can offer a fresh perspective. Maybe you need to grant your employees more independence on specific projects or break an assignment up into more conquerable parts. Your business has room to improve and grow, so be sure to consider any valuable advice your employees have to offer.
Make Your Business Inviting
As important as it is to foster positivity and implement fair practices, it is also imperative to keep your business a comfortable place to be. If you are in and out of your business all day, you may be unaware of the less-than-ideal aspects of your business’s building. Your employees are spending a good portion of their day in your establishment, so be sure it is comfortable and promotes productivity.
Here are some specific suggestions you could implement:
- Update outdated furniture and repaint the walls for a lively work environment
- Invest in standing desks so your employees can avoid the health risks of prolonged sitting
- Ensure your establishment’s AC and heating systems are in working condition to create a more comfortable environment overall
- Get reliable access to electricity with Powersetter so your employees can efficiently complete work without any unwanted interruptions
Running a small business takes a lot of time and focused attention. Practicing these 5 tips for creating a great place to work will save you a lot of time and resources in the long run, and increase your business’s productivity!
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