7. Choose a Group Community Project
Volunteering as a group is a great way to bring your team together outside of the workplace. If your team is local, you can offer your services to a nearby charity. If it’s remote, there are many remote-friendly volunteer options out there, too.
If your company is focused on corporate giving, consider letting your employees choose where that money goes. Platforms like Groundswell allow you to set up personal foundations for each of your employees, turning donor-advised funds (DAFs) into an employee benefit.
Working together toward charitable goals that matter to your employees is a great way to boost morale in the workplace. It brings your team together as they share positive, fulfilling experiences.
8. Avoid Micromanaging
This one goes hand-in-hand with empowering employees. While empowerment requires trusting your employees, micromanaging is more of a self-evaluating workplace morale activity.
As a leader, do you trust your team to get their work done? Even if you do, do you let them do so without excessive input or monitoring on your part?
A leader’s ability to let go and trust their employees to do their work well can be a critical factor in addressing flagging workplace morale.
9. Look for Incentives
Sometimes, all an apathetic employee needs is a little motivation to work harder. That’s when a good incentive can make a difference. This could be something as small as a word of praise. It could also be something with more tangible value, such as a coveted parking spot or a financial bonus.
Regardless of the specifics, try to always have a list of incentives on tap to pull out and spice things up whenever your team is feeling sluggish.
10. Build in Quality Breaks
Employees know that they need breaks. Often, the problem is concern over what the boss will think if they stop for a few minutes. As a leader, you need to communicate (see tip #2) that breaks are okay. In fact, when taken within reason, they’re a powerful productivity tool.
Even a break as short as 30 seconds long can improve productivity by up to 13%. Encourage your employees to give themselves chances to rest throughout the day. That is a great way to make them feel seen and supported—something that will naturally boost your workplace morale.
11. Facilitate Employee Development
Finally, make sure that your employees feel they are getting chances to learn and grow while on the job. The modern work world is always changing. Tech is in an ever-evolving cycle.
Employment standards are changing thanks to the Great Resignation. Remote work is creating a new kind of workplace environment.
If you want to foster good workplace morale, make sure you’re enabling your team to keep up with the change. This can come through offering ongoing training. It can also involve helping employees create growth plans and chart career development roadmaps.
Showing that you’re willing to invest your own time and interest in your employees’ collective well-being will lead to a reciprocating attitude in most situations.
Final Thoughts
There are many ways that employers and leaders can boost workplace morale. This all starts with the first suggestion on this list.
Gauge the morale of your team and consider what steps you need to take. Then, use this list to address the issue and keep your employees happy and productive each and every day as you work together.
