Communicate Often
Keep employees in the loop. Let them know what the company is working on; be honest about when things go well and especially when they don’t. Transparency and accessibility ensure that employees trust the direction that the company is going in. Establishing open lines of communication makes employees feel like part of a bigger picture and encourages them to contribute to the overall success of the business.
One easy way to improve communication is by encouraging the use of collaborative tools and software in the workplace. Applications like Slack, Skype, and Trello allow employees to quickly share important information to entire groups at the press of a button.
Transparency
A company that wants to build an office culture where everyone feels engaged needs to be open and transparent. Making sure that your office is positioned for growth means spotting and fixing problems before they knock everyone off course.
Being transparent means sharing the lessons from any failures or mistakes. When you hide shortcomings from employees, you’re only maintaining an office and not fostering a culture.
One quick way to get this ball rolling is to let employees submit anonymous questions that get answered by management at scheduled meetings.
Flexibility
Incorporating flexibility into the company’s work schedules keeps employees happy and energized. Flexibility has also been shown to reduce turnover, which saves businesses time and money. Consider starting with a few small changes, such as offering employees the opportunity to work from home one day a week, and then work up from there.
Many companies call this policy ‘Flexible Fridays’. Other companies do the opposite, instead allowing employees to work from home if they go into the office one day per week. Consider which strategy might work best for your employees’ needs (or simply just ask them!)
Be Genuine
The most important part of improving your office culture is to tackle each new change with a genuine goal of improving the workplace. Employees will respond better to changes that they can see are truly meant to better their experience at a company. Authenticity is crucial and takes effort; while these steps are simple, it will take time for the office to adjust. Improvements will happen more quickly and efficiently if there is real drive behind them.
Collect And Listen To Feedback
It’s important to collect feedback from employees, but it’s even more important to internalize it. Implement smaller suggestions whenever possible. Instead of saving feedback for a yearly performance review, be open and honest with employees about your expectations and their work. Constructive feedback can promote honesty and openness in the workplace. Feedback can be a useful tool to fuel workplace productivity when utilized correctly.
