Do your employees have a voice when it comes to making decisions such as which benefits they have a preference for, or how their workspace is set up? According to CNNMoney, there is much research that shows many people – millennials specifically – want to say in these types of decisions, so large and small companies are trying to give more room for employees to make some of these decisions.
One way to implement this way of employee involvement is to allow for online voting polls. People do not enjoy being dictated to, and when people get a say in feel their opinion is considered, they feel empowered. This can lead to better overall performance of your employees if they feel they are contributing more to the company. When decisions are made for people, they feel undermined and weakened. While there needs to be clearly defined leaders, there also needs to be a sense of communal decision making process. By incorporating an online polling system, it creates a simple, easy way to get your employees’ opinions and voices heard, leading to a happier workplace.
Another great idea is to allow your workers to design their own office space, working to personalize it and create a space where they feel they are concentrated to get their work done. Again, if your workers are not comfortable and motivated in their workspace, work will not get done. We all want our workers to be happy to come to work and feel good about what they are accomplishing. This will increase their own creativity to inspire more productivity.
While it is important to provide some democracy in the office, certain decisions must be left to the president of the company. These decisions include hiring, firing, promotions, and bonuses, which can create a rather uncomfortable tension and fear if these topics are open up to general discussion.
Involving workers in various decisions and topics that will affect them leads to higher retention, increased trust, and overall happier employees, which we all want.