Keeping your employees happy on a budget

Keeping your employees happy is good for business, with an Oxford University study finding a direct link between happy workers and increased productivity. 

There are other benefits to keeping employees happy; they are more likely to remain in your business, saving you the time and costs of recruiting and onboarding replacements. 

Happy employees are the greatest cheerleaders of your business, working harder, producing higher-quality work, and offering free advertising by praising your brand online.

But when your business isn’t in the financial position to offer bonuses or salary rises, keeping your employees happy on a budget is essential. 

Here’s how to do it.

Keeping employees happy on a budget – good management

Through good management, keeping employees happy on a budget is easier as it’s a way to make them feel respected, listened to and valued without additional costs to your business.

Good management, such as managers who prioritise regular check-ins and performance reviews with employees to discuss role satisfaction and goals, can make a big difference to employee happiness. Giving employees work that aligns with their interests also helps.

Professional development and skills training are core to keeping employees happy on a budget, as you can boost motivation by giving them personal goals to achieve. Instead of expensive courses, managers with these skills can offer employees training sessions within the workday.

Creating a friendly, supportive and open management style empowers employees to discuss what might be affecting their happiness at work, allowing managers to deal with employee unhappiness before it becomes a risk.

Thanking employees for their good work is essential for keeping employees happy on a budget. Whether a private thank you, verbal recognition or company-wide email, it’s effective.

Keeping employees happy on a budget – rewards 

Keeping employees happy, even on a budget, can be done by offering rewards.

Here are a few simple examples for businesses in the construction industry: If employees are away from the office on a construction site, consider allowing them the flexibility to work the rest of the day remotely to save on wasted time commuting back to the office. This could make them feel less stressed and more able to get on with their work after the visit.

Another example for construction firms, and other more traditional industries, is offering employees remote working options for completing administrative tasks, as these don’t often require collaboration or teamwork in the office. 

Allowing a later start for employees the day after an industry awards event or a late client dinner is another good way to make them happy, as it shows understanding and respect.

If you can spend a little more on keeping employees happy, consider wellbeing activities in the office or via Zoom, such as meditation, breathwork and yoga classes, or even access to a counsellor. 

You can go further by allowing employees a small number of ‘mental health days’ to take off per year, which don’t count as a holiday, showing direct care for their happiness.

Keeping employees happy –  research

Another way to keep employees happy, even on a budget, is to do research, such as asking them what makes them happy in the workplace. Do this by creating a survey to send out to employees, which they can complete anonymously.

Once you have their feedback, you can implement policies that really make them happy. 

You might even find the most desired policies are also the most budget-friendly…

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