Work Wednesday
A few years ago, my husband had a job that he hated. It seemed like every day he would come home in a depressed funk. I couldn’t understand it. The pay was good, the commute was short, the work was interesting, and his coworkers were nice. So what on earth was his problem?
It started out as a few minor annoyances. Arriving at the main parking garage one minute after 8 a.m. meant having to park in a garage a half mile away. Oh well. A little walk is good for the health, right? Then there was the absence of a water cooler. Employees had to supply their own bottled or filtered water if they wanted it. But there wasn’t enough space to store large bottles of water, and managing the “water club” dues was a bothersome task.
Pretty soon, the minor annoyances coalesced into a tidal wave of bitterness and low morale.
If you lost your pen, you were out of luck because three managers (who were never actually in the office) had to sign off on a requisition for a new box of pens. Higher-ups scheduled long meetings right in the middle of the day with hardly any notice and no snacks or breaks. The temperature in the office suite was always too hot and nobody seemed to know how to get someone to fix it. A computer glitch lost people’s security ID badge information and they couldn’t get into the office to work.
You might think that these are all things that could only happen in a huge, bureaucratic workplace, but I’ve seen the “little things” slowly erode morale in the tiniest of companies too. At a time when unemployment is high, it’s hard to complain about small issues on the job; at least you have a job, right? Stop kvetching or you might find yourself out on the street, wishing you were still sweating in that boiler-room-adjacent office you shared with 5 other people. But don’t let fear keep you from expressing legitimate concerns. Minor problems become a major problem for you and your employer if those problems affect your ability to do good work.
Even in tough economic times, it’s really not that hard for employers to get the small things right. As a business owner, you might not be able to afford the finest health insurance or the most generous paid vacation arrangements for your employees. But you can probably afford occasional deli lunches, water and coffee, and a well-stocked bin of pens. Identify opportunities to make employees’ lives a little more pleasant while they are working hard for you.
Most important, though, is taking the time to pay attention. Get to know the people who work for you. Find out what problems they are having and commit to doing what you can to try to solve them. Fixing air conditioners is a lot easier than fixing broken morale.
Even if you can’t easily make things right, your employees will appreciate the effort. For instance, if you see someone not performing as well as they usually do, find out what’s going on. That person will eventually appreciate your intervention (or won’t, but that’s another post) and so will her coworkers--because you noticed the problem and dealt with it before their resentment of the slacker grew into a huge problem.
If economic prospects are grim, it’s tempting to try to save money by getting rid of small comforts and benefits. But instead of trying to cut your losses, invest in the wellbeing of your people. They are the face of your company - and wouldn’t you rather that face be smiling than frowning?
Photo of low-morale puppy by Photosightfaces on Flickr via a Creative Commons license.
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