10 Ways to Keep Employees Happy

10 Ways to Keep Employees Happy

You have seen it in the headlines?for months now.?Retail employees are quitting?their jobs in record numbers.

The cost to merchants is staggering.?Reduced store coverage, shorter operating hours, investments in hiring & training new employees, lower productivity, the list is long and troublesome.

Why is this happening now??Frankly, turnover in retail has always been a problem. However, it’s been magnified by the pandemic, as employees have been exposed to many new challenges including longer hours, understaffed stores, unruly customers, pay cuts, and the need to “police” social distancing and masking rules.

The obvious goal?is to minimize the impact of this worker exodus on your business. In?Issue #5 of All Things Retail, we discussed how?people are the lifeblood?of every company. There is no greater asset. So, the question is?what can be done?to get your employees to the point they believe they are respected, valuable, engaged, and yes, happy at work?

We know how much a team member is paid?impacts turnover (your people need to earn a competitive wage), but surprisingly is has less impact on team morale than one might think. It’s a starting point, but by itself, it will not solve this challenge. Just like when you compete on price alone, your advantage is only effective until some other business lowers their prices below yours (or in this case, raises their wages above yours). So, offer fair pay rates for your markets, but read on.

OK, let’s jump into our Top 10 Ways to Keep Employees Happy & Engaged:

1. Onboarding New Team Members:?begin your?team culture?messaging on day one of employment for every new associate. Beyond proper team introductions and communication of the job responsibilities, expectations, and business philosophies, create a?swag bag?or similar as a?welcome gift?for each new employee. Include a welcome note from the manager, some branded elements like a t-shirt, notepad, sticker, water bottle, and even a gift card for a local lunch spot. This?small investment?can go a long way in making your new people?feel great about joining your business.
2. Say Thank You:?it’s amazing how many employee efforts are taken for granted. Don’t be that person. Go out of your way to verbally?show appreciation?for a job well done (large or small) by thanking your people for their efforts loud (let others hear it), often, and in a sincere manner. It’s a sign of?respect?that will?strengthen the bond?between you and your people.
3. Food:?this one?targets the team?rather than the individual, but it works. Provide a bagel platter for early shift team members, or a pizza lunch / dinner for workers later in the day. Do it randomly so it doesn’t become expected and be sure all team members know it’s simply another way for you to?thank them for their hard work and dedication?to the business.
4. Celebrate Milestones:?we all want employees to stay with us for the?long term. So, why not celebrate the steps to achieving this goal? 30 days with the business? Perhaps a branded hoodie or backpack to recognize this achievement. 1 year? How about a gift certificate for a fancy dinner out for the employee and their significant other? 2, 3, 5 years? Wow… plaque, pin, watch, days off??Be creative, be generous, and recognize the achievement in front of the entire staff.?Honoring the?commitment?and?loyalty?of your team members will pay huge dividends.
5. Invest Time:?get to?know your people?beyond the 4 walls of your business. Make a commitment to?spend 30-60 minutes with each new hire?after the first few weeks. Schedule overlapping coverage and take them for coffee, one on one. Ask them how they enjoy their job, what could make it better, and in general get to know them, their aspirations, what they do for fun, etc. This small investment in time will?strengthen the bond?with your associates, create greater loyalty and most likely will help you learn a bit more about your business. Repeat this every year or so (more frequently if you prefer) and keep it informal and casual.
6. Recognize Wins:?in many workplaces, employees certainly are made aware of when they mess up. Let’s flip that and spend more time recognizing wins, both large and small. Chat with your team for 5-10 minutes each day. In addition to discussing priorities for the day (the value of “Daily Huddles” will be in a future issue),?call out the achievements, successes, and wins?from the previous day. Ask your team to pile on and mention other achievements they may have participated in or witnessed. It could be a great selling effort, converting a return into a sale, super-fast freight processing, identification of a cost-saving idea. You get the point. Create a?culture of success?and it will feed upon itself.
7. Written Thank You Notes:?if you take the time to?hand write a thank you note, your team will take notice. While you cannot write notes as often as you verbalize “thank you”, chances are you can do it more often than you do now.?Invest the time?in hand-written notes and I’ll bet you many are saved by the employees for years to come.?They are that impactful. How should you deliver these notes? How about attaching to the team member’s paycheck? Or mailing to their home? Better yet, mail one to their significant other saying what a great job they are doing.
8. Company Apparel:?people?love to feel part of something, a team for example. You can?build that team spirit?by offering various forms of company apparel (or similar swag) to your associates. The products should be high quality and should feature your branding in a cool manner. These offerings should be a step-up from what is provided in the onboarding swag bag and can be provided free from time to time (possibly as a means of celebration) or even for purchase (ideally at your cost). Again, this makes the bond between the employee and your business a bit stronger.
9. Town Hall Meetings:?otherwise known as “all hands” meetings, these are a?superb way to communicate?the same messages / updates to all team members and allow for?open and honest two-way communication, Q&A, etc. Coordinating these is a bit tricky for retail businesses but early mornings, pre-opening can work well. Begin by highlighting company and individual successes, discuss priorities for the next several months and then open the floor for questions and feedback. It may be quiet at first but keep at it and before long you will have a?meaningful dialog?happening. The bond will become even stronger. I’d do these meetings 2-3 times a year at minimum and please be sure all employees are paid for their time.
10. Scheduling:?time is our?most finite resource, and your team members are as entitled as anyone to be able to?plan their personal lives?around their work commitments. This means that you need to use best efforts to provide your associates their scheduled shifts well in advance and then stick to them. I know, it’s not easy, but work hard at it. It’s a meaningful?sign of respect?for your associates. When you do need to make short-notice changes, say thank you loud and often and consider other types of recognition if an employee needs to step up to fill scheduling gaps on a regular basis.

As usual, there are plenty of ways beyond these 10 ideas to keep your team members happy and engaged. These are my top ten based on years of experience. That said, what is most important is that you recognize the need to proactively address this challenge and then walk the talk.