For businesses to stay competitive, they must find new ways to increase job satisfaction which is critical for high productivity, low employee turnover and an improved corporate image. Money is no longer the principle source of job satisfaction. Employees want to be able to use their talents and engage in challenging projects that ultimately lead to a company’s success.

Negative attitudes within the workplace can lead to many problems from a poor working environment to a declining morale. There is this belief that our mindset determines our behaviours. However, a change in behaviour could potentially lead to a change in attitude. But by getting employees to share the same values (integrity, community and service) as the company through action, it is feasible to develop the right attitudes. By implementing actions to change this, it provides a positive working environment which in turn can affect productivity.

According to The Alternative Board (TAB), 86% of people say that they believe company culture directly impacts productivity. Employees tend to be more satisfied and happier at work when they connect or find commonalities with their co-workers, peers and supervisors.

Additionally, employee engagement leads to being satisfied. Employees who engage in their work are those who care about their jobs, products, co-workers, employers and their managers. Being able to participate in decision making and workplace changes has an impact on how employees view their jobs.

U.S and European cultures value empowerment, whereas Eastern European and Asian cultures undervalue employee engagement. By understanding different cultures views, it allows business owners to modify their relationships with different employees to get the best of each person.

According to the International Journal of Business and Management, work recognition was found to have a major impact on employee motivation.

Praising others for their good work helps them to be effective in their job and encourages others to do the same with their working relationships. It is valued because it represents informal or formal acknowledgement of a team or person’s behaviour or effort they make towards the business’ goals and values. Researcher from the Canadian Center of Science and Education found that motivation leads to a higher level of job satisfaction.

Not only does employee recognition improve job satisfaction but it increases higher loyalty from employees, team work and retention of quality employees.

With employee retention as a priority, education and training are the keys to a satisfied workforce. 84% of the world’s top companies offer training and leadership development programmes to their employees.

However, many companies give new employees an overview of the basics and leave them to their own accord from then on. Although this may be a way to cut down on the costs of training, it may not leave the employee feeling valued.

Humans are innovators and love to progress and develop themselves, especially in the work field. They want to be able to grow in their position and feel good about what they are doing. Therefore, implementing formal or informal training programmes will not only have the employee feel appreciated, but it will provide employees what they need to succeed within the company.

For an employee to stay motivated and loyal towards a company one of the key factors is job satisfaction. There are many ways a company can directly or indirectly influence satisfaction levels by actively implementing changes in the workplace to create a positive working environment. Which in turn increases employee retention, engagement and productivity.

References

• Get Happy (https://gethppy.com/employee-engagement/5-simple-principles-improve-company-culture-workplace-satisfaction). 5 Simple Principles to Improve Your Company Culture and Workplace Satisfaction.
• Zefits. (https://www.zenefits.com/blog/company-culture-linked-employee-productivity/). February 28, 2018. Sarita Harbour. Company Culture is Linked to Employee Productivity.
• Talentlms. (https://www.talentlms.com/blog/how-why-ongoing-training-lead-job-satisfaction/). March 29, 2017. Nikos Andriotis. How and why does continuous training lead to job satisfaction.
• Naylor. (https://www.naylor.com/associationadviser/employee-training-retention/). November 2, 2017. Scott Conley. Employee Training and Retention Go Hand-in-Hand.