Strengthening the Culture in Your Work Environment

It's Monday and many of us are off to work. In an ideal work environment,  our place of employment should be a space and place where everyone feels safe, comfortable, respected and valued. It’s also where each employee feels a sense of belonging.

Financebuzz completed a survey and discovered that 46% of workers feel isolated from their team and 30% felt it’s challenging to collaborate with their colleagues. Although work culture varies from place to place, a healthy environment should be built on the belief that we will support the joy and growth of the employees and foster a culture of collaboration, engagement and inclusion.

Forbes.com shared 4 tips to strengthen the culture in a workplace.  When you take these steps into consideration, it can build stronger, supportive teams.

1.  Frequent and repetitive communication.  A Salesforce survey was completed and it was discovered that 86% of employees cited there was a lack of collaboration and this was the cause for failure in the workplace. The more you communicate the same message, you’re less likely to have miscommunication.  A nother study was conducted with Elizabeth Gerber and Paul Leonardi on the outcome of managers who over-communicate.  They determined that supervisors who communicated the same message in a variety of ways like zoom calls, text messages and emails completed projects in a timely fashion. 
2. Let’s collaborate. Inclusive work environments focus on strengths rather than weaknesses.  Everyone, on all levels should feel empowered and contribute their thoughts and skills.  Teams that have a well balanced mix of skills and talents tend to be more successful.
3. I see you.  A Gallup poll pointed out that those who don’t feel recognized are twice as likely to leave their job.  Acknowledging people at work helps to maintain and improve productivity and motivation.  It also makes everyone feel like they are part of a team. Reward Gateway stated, “70% of workers say motivation and morale would improve if managers said thank you more and noticed good work.” Praise and recognition should occur frequently.  No more waiting until someone’s annual performance review.
4. It’s ok to be yourself.  Although we may have many things in common with our colleagues, we are all different.  Therefore, managers and supervisors should lead the task in maintaining good relationships with their team.  Get to know your team on a personal level.  We are all more than employees at a job.  We have hobbies and interests that we could possibly share.  In fact, working remotely has allowed teams to have a glimpse into our personal lives.  Hopefully, when we move back into what we once called “normal,” we can strengthen our relationships and better understand each other.

The steps above can move your team in the right direction.  If you want more collaboration with your team and increased productivity strengthen your team's relationships.  Research conducted by EY’s Center for Talent Innovation, shows that “39% of respondents feel the greatest sense of belonging when their colleagues checked in with them, both personally and professionally.” Furthermore, “when people feel like they belong at work, they are more productive, motivated, engaged and 3.5 times more likely to contribute to their fullest potential.” Let's do the work and make a difference in our work environments.