Life, Work, Happiness :: Combined!!!

Earlier this week, we were at a client’s place and the impression the environment at the office left on us was “happy, vibrant, happening, relaxed, bright and smiling employees all around!

This was our team’s first presentation about a month after we had taken on this project. And, as always while we had done our homework, had discussions, done the entire demo-run of the presentation, drilled holes et al, we went in there wanting to create a great impression and hence, a little nervous.

As we were waiting in the reception area, the first greetings we received were from the Security Guard and the lady at the front desk – who were very welcoming and ‘happy’ and ‘empowered’. Together they asked us not once, but a few times, while we were waiting as to our comfort and anything we may need. My colleague told them that we were early and it was OK for us to wait, however they went out of their way to ensure we were comfortable.

When the individual whom we had to meet, came in and called us to the meeting room – he was excited and was possibly so enthusiastic about having us there that his demeanor rubbed off on a couple of us.

As soon as we then entered the office floor, the first thing that greeted us were TV screens and boards all around which proclaimed all around “Thank you so much for submitting your ‘self-appraisals’ in time! And in all shades and colors. The second post that came up on these screens was about the milestones the organization had reached vis-à-vis the goals and Thanking the employees for the same, and a line underneath which said, “Feel good first and then let’s together march on towards the next success”.

The office was done up in colors of red, black, grey and white mostly and appeared very vibrant and it was an open office with almost 90% natural lighting. The seating on the floor was distributed to give ample space to each individual. There were lovely break out areas overlooking the ‘outside’ and with natural plants all around.

The gentleman who was our point of contact and the Head of the Department, even as were walking to the meeting room, was patting folks on the back, ‘hi-fiving’ a few others, stopped at an employee’s desk to wish him a Happy Birthday and almost the entire floor got up to wish this employee the same, there was lots of clapping (we joined in the same) and the Head of the department told everyone to ensure the Birthday Boy throws a lunch party and that the birthday boy is shunted out of the office at 2 pm so that he goes back home and enjoys his birthday with the family!

And then our meeting started. At one point in time when we were discussing a point around compensation – we made a suggestion wherein we proposed that possibly the organization could take up 50% of the said contribution (towards a retirement benefit we had proposed) and the response was so positive. The discussion was all about how to ensure ‘change’ in any area should not ‘unnecessarily burden’ the employees in anyway – as the objective was to streamline policies and processes at this stage of the organization’s life. No wonder, the organization is looking at a 300% growth in the next one year!

While we will be further fine-tuning the proposed ‘change offerings’ at our end, what we took back with us was

• The implicit trust and confidence that we had developed with the client exhibited by their openly sharing some of their internal concerns and asking for our inputs. 
• We being treated by the Management as an ‘integral part’ of their team and system and very happily & unquestionably so

As per a Harvard Survey conducted in early 2019 - What Employees Want Most from Their Work-spaces, the following were the key findings.

• Emotional wellness: Give employees access to natural light, and quiet rooms where they can comfortably focus on their work.
• Physical wellness: Provide people with healthy food options, and ergonomically designed workstations.
• Environmental wellness: Make sure your work-spaces have adequate air quality, light, temperature, and proper acoustics.

Isn’t it simple and practical? If we want an engaged and happy workforce, paying attention to considering how you can get back to the basic’s employees want, and investing in the core areas that will have the most impact, is what should be done.

Consider what you and your employees can collectively do to infuse more happiness into your everyday operations.

You'll see a definite impact on your work, life and bottom line in 2020.

Happy Life and Work 'Combined' to all of you!

Best wishes always, Take care, Be good and Do good!