Does March Madness Boost Morale in the Workplace?

It is that time of year again when college basketball fans brace themselves for March Madness.  However, can all of this excitement affect morale in the office?  Learn more in the following post. Continue Reading

Employees on a Morale High

Employers believe their workers are feeling good on the job.

The mood around the office water cooler is generally positive, new research suggests. In an Accountemps survey, nearly four in 10 (39 percent) workers described the morale at their companies as very good. Forty-two percent of people interviewed said workplace morale is somewhat good. Continue Reading

Underperforming Employees Cost Managers About One Work Day a Week

When employers don’t hire the right candidates for the job, it may cost them some valuable work time.

Managers asking themselves “Where does the day go?” may now have an answer. Chief financial officers (CFOs) recently surveyed by Robert Half International said that, on average, supervisors spend 17 percent of their time — nearly one day per week — overseeing poorly performing employees. Continue Reading

Workplace Humor Is Key Part of Cultural Fit, Executives Say

Is it good to LOL at work? A new survey from Accountemps suggests it could be. Nearly eight in 10 (79 percent) chief financial officers (CFOs) interviewed said an employee’s sense of humor is important for fitting into the company’s corporate culture.

CFOs were asked, “How important is an employee’s sense of humor in him or her fitting into your company’s corporate culture?” Their responses: Continue Reading

Where’s the Loyalty?*$! How to get the most out of your team even in the most trying times

Lack of loyalty is a serious problem in organizations everywhere today.

No longer do people join a company and devote the rest of their working lives to it.   Companies are, of course, not exactly known for offering up thirty or forty years of employment, a gold watch and pension plan.

Times have changed.  Businesses appear and disappear at a dizzying pace. So do the jobs they offer. People no longer expect to spend their entire career with the same company.

Organizations preoccupied with short-term, bottom line thinking often view their employees as little more than resources to be hired, fired, and manipulated as the need arises.

Both sides pay a price for this lack of loyalty. Workers are naturally less happy on the job when they sense little or no loyalty from their employer. I agree with Carmine Coyote about how the negative impacts on productivity are truly alarming: Continue Reading

Job Satisfaction: What Workers Want

Have you ever thought about what you want out of a job?

Professionals interviewed by OfficeTeam identified work/life balance (28 percent) and opportunities to learn and grow (27 percent) as the top contributors to their job satisfaction. The results are in line with those from a similar survey in which managers were asked about the factors most tied to employee morale.

Workers were asked, “Aside from salary, which one of the following aspects of your job is most tied to your satisfaction?” Their responses: Continue Reading

Top 10 Tips to Employee Engagement

As the labour market tightens and the economy continues to grow, there has never been a greater need to determine how best to motivate employees. While Australia was spared the worst of the Global Financial Crisis we were certainly not exempt – employers had to make some tough decisions and, on the whole, employees lived with these to ensure their job security in difficult times.

However, as the balance of power shifts back to employees and the changing dynamics of an intergenerational workforce becomes more apparent, it is important for employers to understand how they can best tap into the psyche of their employees. Recognition that every plan is motivated by different things, the challenge is to piece together an effective yet agile strategy to get the best results. Continue Reading

‘I Hate My Job, But What Can I Do About It?’

The late comedian George Carlin once said, “Do you hate your job? Sorry to hear that. There’s a support group for that. It’s called EVERYBODY, and they meet at the bar!”
As a consultant on employee engagement to major healthcare companies, Melissa Evans understands that feeling well. Her solution to it, however, is a little “uncorporate.”

“It’s a fact that most people don’t like their jobs,” said Evans, also author of Sole to Soul: How to Identify Your Soul Purpose and Monetize It . “According to a recent survey published by Time Magazine, fewer than half of American workers – 45 percent – are satisfied with their jobs. This is the lowest percentage since 1987.  Gallup reported that this phenomenon also hurt businesses in a significant way. Companies with large numbers of dissatisfied workers experience greater absenteeism and lower productivity. These workers create a turnover rate of 51 percent. Can you imagine working at a company, or trying to run one, that loses half its staff every year?”

That turnover isn’t just from firing or layoffs. According to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, the number of people who quit their jobs from June 2010 through October 2010 was actually larger than the number of people who lost their jobs. Gallup says all these disengaged employees cost the U.S. economy upwards of $370 billion annually. Evans believes that one key way to turn this around is for employees to look inward before they look outward. Continue Reading

Four in 10 CFOs Say Employee Morale Has Improved at Their Firms

Does your employer know how you’re feeling in the workplace?  Some executives believe employees are more satisfied on the job.

The still uncertain economy hasn’t kept some workers from smiling a little more at the office. Four in 10 (42 percent) chief financial officers (CFOs) interviewed for an Accountemps survey said employee morale has improved at least somewhat in the last 12 months. 53% percent of respondents said the mood among their teams is unchanged from a year ago. Continue Reading