The Secret of Keeping Employees Happy…

 It’s about the money, or is it?

Employers are charged with the task of finding good employees, training them and then keeping them.  If you are an employer you know the challenge of finding good employees.  You haven’t found them sitting on the front steps waiting for you to unlock the front door first thing every morning to apply for a job.  You haven’t seen them walking by your office window with a sandwich sign that says, “I work hard, cheap.”  You don’t have a stack of impressive resumes to wade through every Monday morning. 

We all understand how difficult it is to find good employees.  A larger question is: Once we find and train them, how do we keep them?

The boss often replies,” More money, and I don’t have it.”

My response to the boss/owner, “How long has it been since you were an employee?”

Boss says, “Well it has been a while, 11 years.”  

Have you forgotten how it feels to be the employee?  Chances are good you have forgotten since your focus as the owner/boss has been on payroll, production and profit. 

What else is there, you ask?

Consider some research that has take place over the past 50 years:

A major problem for employers today is getting the best employees and then keeping them. How do you do this? By understanding what it is employees really want.

Here is what managers THINK employees want, starting with what they think is most important:

  1.  Good wages
  2.  Job security
  3.  Promotion/growth opportunities
  4.  Good working conditions
  5.  Interesting work
  6.  Personal loyalty to workers
  7.  Tactful discipline
  8.  Full appreciation for work done
  9.  Sympathetic help with personal problems
10.  Feeling “in” on things

Makes sense doesn’t it, Boss?

Sure, if you are the boss.

Now take a look at what employees say they want, starting with what’s most important to them:

  1.  Full appreciation for work done
  2.  Feeling “in” on things
  3.  Sympathetic help on personal problems
  4.  Job security
  5.  Good wages
  6.  Interesting work
  7.  Promotion/growth opportunities
  8.  Personal loyalty to workers
  9.  Good working conditions
10.  Tactful discipline

These studies have been replicated with similar results by Ken Kovach (1980); Valerie Wilson, Achievers International (1988); Bob Nelson, Blanchard Training & Development (1991); Sheryl & Don Grimme, GHR Training Solutions (1997-2001).

Wow

Employees, are looking for:

1.  A pat on the back once in a while.   

2.  An idea of what’s in the think tank.

3.  Yep, they want to cry on your shoulder once in a while (you can handle it).

4.   A sense that you intend to keep them around for a while.

5.   Good wages doesn’t mean top wages; it means the pay is competitive.

My friend Joe and I have had several discussions about this subject of what employees want.  We agreed to disagree after the first discussion.  Joe left saying they (employees) do it for the money. He came back a few discussions later with an “employee of the month” program.  It centers on key performance areas important to his business.  It’s his own experiment to test if his employees will pay closer attention to the work they do so that they each may be considered for employee of the month designation. This would be his test to see if money really is not as important as #1. Full appreciation for work done.

The first month’s competition sparked much interest in the workforce and speculation about who might win the prize of dinner for two on Joe.  I’ll keep you posted on the results of Joe’s experiment.

A pat on the back is good for everyone; I seldom here too much praise in an organization.  This applies to all organizations and people in them.  Dale Carnegie advised to be lavish with your praise.  He had it figured out, too.

Is it time for you to pay attention to what employees want in your business?  Give me a call if I can be of assistance in your new plan to help employee attitudes in you business.

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Consider what others have said about praise and money:

“The reward of a thing well done is to have done it.”
--Ralph Waldo Emerson

 If money is your hope for independence you will never have it. The only real security that a man will have in this world is a reserve of knowledge, experience, and ability.
--Henry Ford 1863-1947

 Creativity is so delicate a flower that praise tends to make it bloom, while discouragement often nips it in the bud. Any of us put out more and better ideas if our efforts are truly appreciated."
--Alexander Osborn