The success of your business hinges on having a creative team of loyal and happy employees. Every single one of them plays a unique role in your company’s continued growth. This is why you should put employee satisfaction at the same level of importance as customer satisfaction. When your employees are confident that you value them, as well as hear and consider their ideas, they will be more invested in the company’s success.
With a good, cohesive, and innovative team, your company will soar.
But how can you go about building such a team? Here are four strategies that you can employ to keep your employees happy, productive, and creative.
Encourage Creative Thinking
If you want your employees to start thinking innovatively, you should be receptive to their ideas. You can’t ask for innovation if you’re going to shoot down your employees’ ideas and solutions. The biggest detriment to creativity is negativity and indifference. You should support innovation, and at least be willing to consider the ideas of your team.
Take proposals and recommendations seriously and reward them with both tangible and intangible honors. You do not have to work on every suggestion, of course; however, once your employees know that they can present ideas in a welcoming environment, they will be more confident and more willing to share their potentially game-changing ideas.
Another way to encourage creativity is with transparency. This way, you bridge the gap between management and employees to ultimately encourage teamwork. Since your team feels included in the decision-making process, they will want to help by presenting their own solutions.
More often than not, creativity stems from a person’s individuality. You should encourage that individuality by allowing your employees’ distinct personalities to shine through, thereby forming a diverse, dynamic, open, and receptive environment. You need to recognize each employee’s unique qualities and use those traits to add value to the team.
Create Ideal Workspaces and Foster Positive Work
Environments
Having a variety of workspaces can help your teams work more creatively and efficiently. Both closed and open workspaces appeal to the different personalities of each employee. To apply this in your office, you can have the traditional cubicles, as well as hangout lounges, quiet rooms for small groups, and long table workstations. Make sure to create communal spaces where your teams can take breaks and collaborate on projects.
You should also consider allowing your team to work remotely. When employees can work anywhere, from their condo in Quezon City to their designated space in the office, you not only save money but also increase productivity and foster creativity.
Ultimately, a good workspace means nothing if the work environment is stressful or even depressing. A positive work environment is essential, as a mindset that is too serious can hinder creativity. In fact, according to a study published in Psychological Science, a journal of the Association for Psychological Science, a positive mood can stimulate creativity. With a positive mood, people are more open-minded, flexible in their thinking, and more willing to explore alternatives. With that in mind, you should implement team building activities or retreats every once in a while. Activities like these can jumpstart your employees’ creativity.
Get the Right People in the Right Roles
No matter your industry, getting the right person in the right job is crucial. Everyone has their own set of strengths and weaknesses. When a person’s personality and work ethic fits the role they are in, they prosper. Otherwise, they might struggle with their job.
If you want your employees to do well, you should assign them to a post that is relevant and meaningful to them. This means that you should learn about each employee and assess their work in different roles around the office. If an employee is comfortable in their role in the company, their creativity and productivity will swell, to the advantage of the company.
Give Supportive Feedback
Giving positive feedback and encouragement is vital, not only for creativity but also for morale. Much of the stagnancy in a workplace can be traced to employees feeling frustrated because their efforts and achievements aren’t recognized. When employees feel appreciated, they are more likely to stay with the company and are often more productive. You should always be aware when an employee is doing things above and beyond their call of duty, and rightfully commend them for their efforts.
While you can encourage and recognize good work with bonuses or office upgrades, sometimes saying a simple “thank you” is enough. Those two words can go a long way. Additionally, you can commemorate personal and team milestones with a little office celebration.
Your employee’s engagement with the company is inherently intertwined with their creativity. So, the more an employee is ingrained in the company, the more creative and innovative they’ll be. Exert effort towards employee engagement, and you will soon reap its rewards.
