Engaging and retaining your staff in 2018

Regular team brainstorming sessions help improve happiness and wellbeing

Post ‘Chrimbo-Limbo’ season, motivation can sometimes feel hard to muster during dark, blustery January days. Fortunately, Caroline McEnery of The HR Suite has some top tips on how to bolster your employees’ wellbeing and keep productivity on track

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Tips to engage employees

• Ensure that employees have everything they need to do their jobs. Just as marketplace and customer needs change often, so do employees’ needs.
• Managers should clearly communicate what is expected of employees – what the company values and vision are, and how the company defines success.
• Get to know your employees – what are their goals and fears? How do they define success and what direction do they see the business going in? Managers should show an interest in employees’ wellbeing; meet and talk with them on a regular basis and establish what makes them feel fulfilled in their role.
• It is important that managers know how to manage and engage their staff. Managers should receive regular in various people management skills training such as performance management and talent development. These skills will teach management how to interact with their employees effectively.
• On an annual or biannual basis, hold appraisal meetings and a development plan can be put in place for each employee. This will outline objectives for the employee and the supports available to the employee to achieve these goals. These goals and objectives will be created and agreed by the manager and the employee together.

Appraisals process

The start of a new year is the perfect time to conduct appraisals with your staff. The appraisals process benefits both staff and management as it allows for clear communication in a two way process where both parties have an equal opportunity to discuss the role, work performance, objectives and future goals.

At least one meeting should take place during the year to review the progress of the goals. Following the correct process and using the right performance review forms ensures consistency in the process.

Advantages

Conducting performance appraisals in your business has numerous advantages; it enables a structured framework to record feedback. It also allows the appraiser to receive feedback and to give feedback to the employees on past performance and to set out objectives for the future. Another benefit is that it allows the opportunity to identify training needs and to give employees an opportunity to improve. Appraisals likewise have positive effects such as improving staff motivation, performance and commitment to the company.

Although it is recommended to have a formal appraisal annually or biannually, remember it is important that communication is frequent throughout the year and that anything that needs to be addressed is done so at the time. Remind your staff that you operate an open door policy and that you are always available should they need to discuss something.

Personality assessments

Workplace personality assessments can be used with current staff as part of the performance appraisal process and are an effective tool for improving the current work environment. Once a company discovers the differing traits and characteristics amongst employees, they can put a plan in place to develop areas highlighted by the results. This can be done through targeted training and development or by consciously teaming up individuals with varying personalities, with the aim of employees learning from each other. Through personality testing, the employer can determine the role each individual adopts in teams and can learn how their employees reason, reach outcomes and intermix. Personality tests will also identify the leaders in the workplace. Once the employer has gathered all of this information, they will be able to create the most knowledgeable and multi-skilled teams. When creating these diverse teams, be mindful of the different personalities and assign duties and responsibilities to the most appropriate person.

Ensuring wellbeing is an essential part of your workplace in 2018. This creates benefits such as enhanced recruitment, retention of healthy happy employees, decreased rates of illness/injury, reduced employee absenteeism, better productivity, enriched employee relations, increased morale and satisfaction.

Improving wellbeing

How to improve your employee’s wellbeing in 2018:

• Culture: Create an open environment for employees to learn about their own wellbeing and share ideas with their colleagues.
• Training: Provide training on a number of topics to help reduce stress or to create awareness; time management, assertiveness, company culture awareness, wellbeing and mental health awareness, dignity and respect.
• Provide information: Many workers want to become healthier and would like to see their employers playing a role in this. Provide information on general wellness ideas i.e. fitness classes, group walks after work, charity events i.e. Darkness into Light.
• Communication: Have brainstorming sessions with your team for improving happiness and wellbeing at work.
• Identify and assess: Review the organisational structure and systems.

For advice on retaining your staff in 2018 or other HR-related issues for employers, contact any of the team at The HR Suite on 066 7102887 to discuss your requirements, or visit www.thehrsuiteonline.com for more information.

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