Why Employee Satisfaction Can Make or Break a Business

SHARE THIS

FACEBOOK

  DELICIOUS

  SU

  REDDIT

Job satisfaction is not always a given. Usually, we go to work because we need the money, although there are some people who do genuinely love their job, and even when we hate the job, we stay until something better comes along.

Some employers don’t care whether their employers are happy. They know that if an employee leaves, someone else will come along and take their place. This is common in minimum wage jobs where there is a high turnover of staff and working conditions are often unsatisfactory. However, these employers are missing an important point, which is that happy employees can boost a business’s profit margins.

How to Keep Employees Engaged and Happy

Good pay and employee benefits are always important, but surprisingly, they are not the only factor in keeping your staff happy and motivated. Employees also want to be treated with respect at work, trusted to do their job properly, and to work in a healthy, safe environment. Employees need to know their job is secure – nobody wants to go to work every day, wondering whether there is still a job waiting for them. Lastly, employees who have the opportunity to achieve promotion tend to be happier in their job.

Why is Job Satisfaction So Important?

Employees are a business’s main resource. Without the workforce, you won’t be able to service clients, sell products, deal with the admin, and whatever else your business does on a day-to-day basis.

– Happy employees usually stick around. This is good for business, as every time an employee leaves, you have to find someone to replace them. A high turnover of staff is hugely disruptive, which is bad for business.
– Employees who love their job work harder and are more productive. Hardworking employees generate more sales, which in turn directly affects your bottom line. Unhappy employees are less productive and therefore not inclined to care much about how much profit the business is making.
– High levels of job satisfaction tend to lead greater employee loyalty. A happy employee is unlikely to leave to take up a job with a competitor without giving you any notice. Happy, satisfied employees usually support the business in any way they can.

It is relatively easy to keep employees happy. As long as you pay them a fair wage for the job they do, show them respect, provide a safe, working environment, and offer plenty of career advancement opportunities, your employees should be happy. However, you can’t afford to rest on your laurels because there may be issues in the workplace you are unaware of.

Conduct Regular Satisfaction Surveys

All businesses should make a habit of monitoring employee satisfaction levels on a regular basis. This can be done at appraisal meetings, or by asking employees to fill in online surveys (click here for more details). The information you receive will you to assess employee engagement and general satisfaction. Use this information to make any changes you deem necessary.

I hope that your staff are happy in their jobs, but if problems are identified, ignore them at your peril.