Your people are the lifeblood of business and their well-being is the key to productivity. Whether it is a mom & pop store, a VC-funded tech start-up, or a well-established financial services company it is the employees’ well-being that transcends into business growth.
2023 is a very important year. The last three years exposed us to unprecedented situations wherein almost every working professional rejigged their work style to cope with changing realities & work culture. As HR professionals we can help.
We ought to focus on employee-centric policies including & not limited to mental & physical well-being, upskilling, learning & development, and better employee experience for enhanced productivity, irrespective of function & role. Post-COVID, Equality, and Inclusion are also the top priority.
Employee Communications
Communication is always a two-way street. The rider of smooth employer-employee communication is the relationship between the two. Thus, brands should look beyond the newsletter approach for interacting with employees. There should be open channels of communication and a progressive internal communication strategy.
The communications should be built around challenges, appreciation, motivation, and engagement. When employees feel included in the business, they tend to be more productive. The brands should improve their employee trust and enable a path for smooth communication, sans any barriers.
Employee Well-being
The past two years have been challenging and everyone missed out on social interaction and working together as a team in a physical setting. As we all have begun to assemble & are working together from office now, the focus for 2023 has shifted to have more interactive and conducive sessions for employees’ analytical as well as physical well-being. There is a broader consensus and acceptance of the mental fitment of employees for enhanced productivity.
Organizations should conduct special events for mental health and support an open forum where employees can reach out for help. The causes of stress could be many, such as health challenges, obesity, financial distress, recurring personal life issues, difficulty in learning the latest tech stack, and many more. While no organization can solve all the interpersonal issues, but they can always create a lot of awareness around the dynamics.
Furthermore, expanding the list of employee benefit programs for insurance, pension, overdraft facility, maternity benefits, sport & recreation, offsite trips, community services, etc can also help mitigate many of the financial security & mental stress challenges.
Strengthening & Improvising Learning & Development
In 2023, it is vital for brands to encourage upskilling, learning & development, and make employee growth a priority. When the performance of an individual employee improves, the whole group benefits! Companies can go bottom-up or vice versa. For instance, frequently arrange manager-specific workshops & supercharge team leads to contribute to the growth of each member of their team. The culture of learning & growth can have far-reaching benefits.
As important as it is to add a skill badge, as is to stay updated on current trends & make innovations. Particularly in this age of digital transformation, it is important for employers to take a closer look at existing systems, and encourage change, tech adoption & new ideas. Every work cycle, companies should revise their internal communication & work on improvising employees’ understanding of how to be productive and contribute to self & business growth together.
Culture
Company culture is an echo of an organization’s values, goals, attitudes, and practices. Ideally, each employee reflects the company culture. In 2023, companies should ensure that brand communication should be precise and delivered across the functions. Only employees who feel connected with the brand will be able to decipher the culture.
Besides companies should also support a culture where people can openly talk about their emotions and stress levels & do not hesitate to initiate conversations. The concerns hampering performance could be many, such as personal, work-related, societal, financial stress…so on & so forth.
Further new joinees, especially generation Z are more susceptible to mental health challenges as they foray into real-life challenges. Call it changing lifestyle or digital habits, the needs of the new generation are very different from older millennials. It can be rewarding for a company to build a culture of smooth onboarding & open communication. Thus, inclusion in the workplace, as a valued practice & company culture can particularly help.
Measure Productivity & Appreciation
Appreciated employees will always deliver more than expected. It is thus important to define SMART goals that are specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound. The brand should not only measure the number of goals completed but also the quality of achievements.
There should be a rewards policy for innovators. The inter-team collaborations should again be highlighted and every effort beyond the call of duty should be recognized by organization. On-spot recognition will help workforce productivity of the highest standard.
Final Words- Post-COVID, many companies are facing a productivity slump. Plus, there has been a rise in news of mass lay off. All these HR challenges around productivity lag need not be permanent. Every feedback from employees should be used by organizations to improve productivity in the workplace and find forwarding solutions for employees.
As you know change is inevitable & growth is optional. By aligning righteous HR actions, growth will be the only rational.
