How Can You Make Your Employees Feel Valued?
If you’re a business owner, you may be facing some significant headwinds right now. Along with other macro issues like supply chain problems, you could also have a shortage of skilled employees. That means you really have to hold onto the ones you do have.
You want to promote productivity, engage and loyalty all simultaneously.
When employees feel valued, there will be more of a sense of trust they have with you as their employee. Employees who know they’re valued will strive to work their hardest and meet goals. They’re going to be personally invested in business objectives.
Valued employees, since they do tend to be more loyal and connected are going to help you reduce turnover. If you’re a company known for appreciating your employees, you will also have a strong brand and employer reputation.
So how can you do that, especially if you don’t necessarily have a big monetary budget to work with?
Offer Stock Options
One of the best ways to promote not only a feeling of ownership among employees but also to keep them connected and engaged is to offer stock options. When you offer stock options, your employees will feel like they’re compensated for their work and what they bring to the table. That’s important.
You’re going to be able to shift employees’ thinking from just being someone who works for you to being someone who helps drive your organizational success.
For startups, offering stock options can be critical to show you value and appreciate employees, especially when you can’t necessarily add more cash to your employment offers.
Other things to think about with your compensation packages include performance pay, health and wellness benefits, and flexible work options.
Give Employees Meaningful Work and Assignments
As an employer, try to take the time to get to know your employees and what motivates and inspires them. When you do that, you can give them assignments that will be personally meaningful to them.
Always Promote Work-Life Balance
If you want to show employees you value their contributions, you also have to be respectful of boundaries and the balance they need with their jobs and personal lives. If you’re expecting a response to an email during off-hours, this isn’t a sign of respect toward your employees.
When your employees feel like their life is fulfilling in all areas and their free time is treated as valuable, they will put forth a better effort when they are working.
As an employer, you can help promote work-life balance by having flexible work hours and remote work when possible. You should offer wellness days, and again, be respectful when it comes to your communication expectations during off-hours.
Be Intentional In Your Conversations
You may need to change your mindset as an entrepreneur and an employer. Don’t view every employee as replaceable. Right now, they truly aren’t, plus that’s going to come across in how you converse with and treat your employees.
You need to view each individual employee as highly valuable and integral to your organizational success.
Once you shift your mindset, convey this through purposeful, intentional conversations.
As you’re speaking to your employees, go beyond the basics. For example, if you’re going to assign them a task, tell them why they feel like they’re the best fit for it.
Outline the whys of what you’re doing and your decisions. This will show that you view your employees as an indispensable resource.
Offer Challenges
Employees appreciate challenging work. They want to step outside of the mundane, and when you offer challenges, you’re simultaneously indicating you know the employee is up to it.
You’re putting trust in someone and telling them you think they’re capable.
Recognize Employees On an Individual Basis
Team recognition for a job well done is great, but individual recognition is powerful too.
You want to single out employees when they go above and beyond or do something well.
You don’t want employees to think you’re playing favorites though, so make sure you actively seek opportunities to recognize everyone.
Invite Feedback
When you invite feedback, a few beneficial things happen. First, you’re able to learn more about your employees and what they want. The second is that you can use the information to make informed decisions to better your company.
The third is that employees know you value them enough to listen to what they have to say.
Develop Mentorships
Mentoring is powerful in the workplace. Some research shows 91% of workers with a mentor are more satisfied with their job than those who don’t. More than 40% of surveyed employees without a mentor have, on the other hand, contemplated quitting in the past three months.
Mentoring can help improve retention rates significantly.
Beyond retention, employees who act as mentors also have more job satisfaction. The mentor feels more valued because they’re being trusted to guide someone else in their career. The mentee feels appreciated because they see that you think they have a future in the organization and are willing to invest in their development.
When developing a mentorship program, you should make sure you’re carefully matching. You want communication styles and goals to mesh well together between the mentee and mentor.
Honesty and Transparency
If your company is one that even appears to be shrouded in secrecy you’re not going to be able to create a culture of value for your employees. People want to feel like they’re in the loop. They want to understand why things are happening, and they want feedback that’s constructive and honest as well.
Finally, offer training and development programs in addition to mentorship. This is another win-win. When you offer training and development, you can create an internal talent pipeline. Having an internal stream of talent will help you deal with challenges in the labor market.
Like mentorships, when you offer abundant training and development opportunities, it also shows your employee that you feel like they have a future with you and the company.