Knowing how and when to boost your team’s morale can be key to raising the level of productivity in the workplace and reaching your business goals.

There are numerous ways that you can improve your employee’s experience whilst at work to encourage better productivity, lower staff turnover and Meet business objectives.

In recent years we have seen popular TV shows addressing employment issues, with undercover bosses coming out of top floor offices and onto the front line, to see What life is like at the bottom of an organization. Undercover Boss has highlighted some of the hair-raising secrets of large businesses. More importantly though, it can teach small business owners some very valuable lessons about taking care of your team, and growing a company from baby steps, to leaps and strides.


As a small business owner you have something powerful on your side that large businesses don’t- agility. You have the ability to make a difference quickly without the need to try and change the accumulation of many years of bad business habits.

One of the main ways small to medium-sized businesses are now stimulating their employees to be happier at work, and output a higher level of productivity is by holding out of office events. Through putting on events out of working hours, you are giving your team the opportunity to get to know each other and develop friendships which flourish when back in the workplace.

You can throw regular events which can be as simple as a gathering your team at a local bar, which doesn’t have to be a costly affair. You can specify that on arrival the first drink will be free of charge, just to give your team members an incentive to come along and socialise.

 

 

You could also make arrangements for slightly more extravagant gatherings, where you may treat the team to a meal at a local restaurant, perhaps annually or every 6 months. If you organise in advance you may be able to make an arrangement and save on the total cost (depending on the number of people attending).

Christmas Parties

As the year draws to an end it is important that you can create the ‘family feeling’ in your small business. Christmas is a time for celebration, reflection, and most importantly a time for everyone to relax and re-energise for the year ahead. Sending the year out on a high note is something which great businesses do well.

You have to make arrangements early on to ensure that the night will run as smoothly as possible. Many companies leave the office Christmas party planning until autumn and find that only the less popular venues are left, and the arrangement becomes stressful.

You can promote a secret Santa to get the team anonymously buying gifts for each other for the event. As more companies tighten their belts, seeing the office Christmas party as a luxury, event companies have created economical alternatives to the exclusive lavish Christmas party that once was. Shared Christmas parties are an arrangement where two companies share a venue and have a much lower cost per head, with all the extravagancies of an exclusive corporate party.

Nothing is more important to a business than the people within it. So if you want them to stick around, perhaps you should consider some activities out of the office to lift morale, boost productivity and lower staff turnover.

 

Tom Clark writes on developing productivity in the workplace through team building in small to medium businesses. He particularly enjoys writing about office Christmas party planning to develop better working relationships.

(Image credit to Hamad Al Mohannna)


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