For many employees, work happiness is more important than a high salary. But how do you, as an employer, know exactly which factors influence work happiness? In this article we list the 10 most important ones factors by work happiness at a glance.
Trust is one of the most important factors when it comes to work happiness. It is mainly about the trust that you as an employer give to your employees and therefore less about the trust that the employee has in himself. Self-confidence is yet another factor. There are many methods to instill confidence in your employees. What you shouldn't do is micromanage and control everything an employee does. In a working environment where there is a lot of trust, employees show more commitment and perform better.
Connection is a major factor in work happiness. People are often herd animals and want to feel connected to their colleagues. Employees want to feel connected to the organization they work for. This means that they want to be aware of what is happening within the organization. And they also want to be informed about business developments and changes from management. Connection can be stimulated through an open and confidential work culture, or a culture where employees dare to ask questions or express their opinions.
This is one of the most important factors that influence employees' work happiness. The appreciation or recognition that an employee receives is reflected in almost every article about work happiness. This has its reasons. When employees feel valued and recognized, they often show extra commitment to their work. In addition, appreciation also ensures that people grow, gain more self-confidence and therefore perform better. Giving appreciation to your employees istherefore a must.
An employee experiences satisfaction when he or she really feels that the performance of the work contributes to a higher company goal. Satisfaction also ensures that employees get more energy from their work. Lastly, satisfaction also comes from achieving results. Satisfaction therefore goes particularly well with appreciation. When one of your employeesa chieves good results and you express your appreciation for this, this can be a major factor in increasing work happiness.
Autonomy and trust are very similar. Autonomy comes more from the employee himself and is a leading factor in work happiness, especially in the Netherlands. Autonomy is seen by employees as an opportunity to arrange matters or take action in their own way. It is also about the freedom that you, as an employer, give your employees to carry out work independently and that you recognize the professionalism of your employee.
Respect may sound like one of the easiest factors of work happiness that you can influence, but in practice it is different. There are still patriarchal companies where managers do not respect their employees, or where experienced employees do not show the desired respect to less experienced employees. When employees respect each other, they are often happier. When employees feel respected, they will also be more likely to give their opinion. Constructive feedback benefits the results of your organization.
Of course, the salary plays an important role when choosing a job. But once an employee has started working, enjoying your work is very important. Enjoyment is therefore a major factor for work happiness. Enjoyment has to do with the experience of the work. It is important for employees that they enjoy their work and that they work for an organization that they support. When employees enjoy coming and going to work, they also perform better.
Challenge is also an important factor of work happiness. If employees are not challenged, they quickly find their jobs boring. If, as an employer,you see that an employee always performs his or her tasks in a very positive manner and has time to spare, give this employee extra challenges. Make sure that you do not give such an employee too many extra challenging tasks that could be at the expense of their health.
A clear development plan is also a major factor in work happiness. An employee's development and growth path are related to someone's personal challenge and the appreciation that you as an employer express to this person. A clear view of growth within the organization through a personal development path ensures that employees are more motivated. When employees have no prospect of growth within the organization, they will often do the minimum. In short: by providing a clear development path and offering growth facilities, you ensure that your employees perform better.
The working environment is the last factor in work happiness , but it is certainly not unimportant. Hybrid working continues to gain popularity, but there are still many employees who work in the office 3 to 5 days a week. It is therefore very important that the working environment is stimulating. Or a place with good energy where people can work in a focused manner, where there is sufficient daylight and an environment where employees can also relax and have fun.
Of course, these are not all work happiness factors , but they are the most common. JobAligner has conducted research into the other factors that increase work happiness. This revealed no fewer than 40 other work happiness factors. JobAligner's Work Happiness App contains 50 happiness at work themes, with each employee answering a happiness at work theme every week. Periodically, the answers are analysed by JobAligner, giving the employer a crystal-clear picture of the work happiness factors that need attention. For these challenges, JobAligner draws up a practical improvement plan to improve the work happiness score in this area.
