Categories
Wellness

10 office adaptations to improve workplace mental health

It’s estimated that 12 billion working days are missed each year due to depression and anxiety, costing $1 trillion in lost productivity annually. Needless to say, it’s pretty important that companies do what they can to address workplace mental health and support employees who may be struggling.

I knew depression and anxiety were bad, but I didn’t realize they cost the economy that much. It’s no surprise though, when you consider that almost half of employees feel their mental wellbeing declined in 2022, and 28% feel miserable in the workplace.

60% feel emotionally detached at work, too. And emotional detachment from things we previously enjoyed is a major symptom of depression.

So what can you do to support better workplace mental health?

Remove (or mitigate) distractions

Offices can be noisy, distracting places. Even the virtual office can bombard us with notification after notification. It’s easy for anyone to get distracted, let alone someone who’s already struggling to concentrate.

What distractions can you remove to better support workplace mental health? It may be worth asking your employee what distracts them the most, as the answer will be different for everyone.

Some examples include:

  • Bright lights
  • Loud noises
  • Lots of people coming and going
  • Slack notifications
  • Email notifications
  • Traffic outside the window

The solution might be to allow them to work from home, move the location of their desk, or have specific focus hours where others can’t distract them.

Utilize noise-canceling headphones

Noise-canceling headphones are magical, especially in noisy offices.

I couldn’t have survived working in an open-plan office without them because the constant shouting (yes, really) coming from other people’s desks made it almost impossible for me to concentrate.

Try fidget toys

I bought a fidget toy last year, and I regularly use it when I need to concentrate on editing something. I find it grounding, using it to keep my hands busy while my mind focuses.

It makes it easier for me to hone in on one task. So many of my friends were skeptical when I first got it, but they’ve tried it and since bought their own.

There’s a fidget toy out there for everyone, whether it’s a fidget spinner, stress ball, or something else. You could even order some with your company’s branding to distribute to employees in support of workplace mental health.

Buy supportive tech

My reMarkable 2 is my best friend. I use it every day to write what I have to do and what I have to remember. And I get a hit of dopamine every time I check something off my to-do list. If it isn’t on my reMarkable, it doesn’t get done.

What technology could you adopt to help your employees keep track of tasks? Is there an app, like ClickUp or Todoist? Or a piece of hardware like a tablet?

Something as simple as having an easy way to organize to-dos and visualize progress can boost workplace mental health.

Get a whiteboard

Tech is great, but sometimes it can also be handy to have something glaring and in your face so that you really can’t forget what’s most important.

An office whiteboard is a simple way for employees to see what’s been done and what still needs to be done.

Or even to jot quick notes to each other or play a game during some downtime. (Tic Tac Toe can be great when you need to rest your brain, whatever your age.)

Try sit/stand desks or anti-fatigue mats

Movement can really help our ability to concentrate. It’s also much better for our posture than sitting at a desk all day, and helpful for someone who’s feeling fidgety or restless.

So incorporating more movement opportunities into employees’ days can be great for workplace mental health.

Giving people the option of a sit/stand desk enables them to work comfortably based on how they feel physically and mentally. It’s great for their short and long-term health.

Anti-fatigue mats, meanwhile, can help employees who stand at their desks. The mats improve blood flow and are much more comfortable on employees’ feet than a hard office floor.

Embrace natural lighting

The best type of lighting for our minds—and eyes—is natural light. It’s very different from harsh, bright, overstimulating light that can add to someone’s stress levels if they already feel down, anxious, or ill.

Could you dim the lights in the employee’s space? If there’s no option to dim them, could you disconnect one or two to make it less harsh?

Also consider ways to take the glare off people’s screens from windows, such as screen protectors or moving their desk space. These are simple, no or low-cost adjustments that can make a big difference for workplace mental health.

Allow a support animal into the office

Hugging or petting an animal can calm our nervous systems, making it a quick and simple way to reset when we feel stressed. As a result, we can get more work done because we spend less time feeling anxious or worried.

Allowing pets in the office is also a good way to increase your talent pool. Some pet owners are unable to afford pet care, so enabling them to bring their pet with them can really help to improve workplace mental health.

Create private spaces

Sometimes, we just need to be alone. And once we’re alone, we can get so much more done.

But to get to that point, we need a quiet space to recharge and disconnect from the outside world. Something which is increasingly hard to come by these days.

Is there a quiet room you could allocate for employees to do some deep work? Or even allow them to nap or meditate when they need some alone time?

Could you use a room-booking software for it, to ensure that nobody disturbs them?

Make the work environment calmer

We live in a world that’s switched on 24/7. And that’s terrible for workplace mental health. Is there a way you can create a calmer environment?

Not to the point where employees feel like they’re going to fall asleep at their desks, but where their senses aren’t being bombarded all the time. 

For example, lots of posters or things to look at in the office can be overwhelming. Ditto to lots of smells or sounds. A calm color, and a landscape painting or two, is much more soothing.

Conclusion 

Supporting workplace mental health is about a combination of physical workspace transformations and actions that allow employees to work in a way that’s best for them. Every person’s needs will be different, which is why it’s important to listen and adapt things as needed.

If you’d like to offer more workplace mental health support, why not help employees connect with others through a mental health-focused ERG? While you’re at it, why not make it easier for the whole team to access programs, groups, and events related to their mental wellbeing?

Workrowd puts everything employees need right at their fingertips. Combine that with our easy, automated feedback opportunities, and you’ve got a flexible, turnkey way to improve workplace mental health.

Want to see how this can change the game for your organization? Visit us online or send us a quick note at hello@workrowd.com.

Benefits of providing a positive digital employee experience
5 strategies to better empower women in the workplace
4 employee experience challenges and how to solve them
Categories
Wellness

8 workplace accommodations for depression and anxiety

It’s no secret that mental health has become a major issue across today’s workforce. If you haven’t yet had to consider workplace accommodations for depression and anxiety, odds are high that you will soon.

Depression is one of the top three workplace problems employee assistance professionals face, rivaled only by family crises and stress.

But let’s face it: family crises can lead to stress, and stress can lead to depression. And depression can lead to stress. And stress can lead to family crises. So really, they’re all related.

If you don’t nip depression in the bud, it can spiral and result in decreased employee morale, increased sick time, and ultimately, higher turnover.

Depression also often goes hand-in-hand with anxiety. It’s one of the most common mental health comorbidities, with around 60% of people who have depression also experiencing anxiety, and vice versa.

56% of employees with anxiety feel it impacts their workplace performance, 51% feel it affects their relationships with their colleagues and peers, half feel it affects the quality of their work, and 43% find it impacts their relationships with their superiors. These are all pretty significant issues.

So, what workplace accommodations for depression and anxiety can you make to help mitigate—and hopefully, eventually eradicate—these challenges?

Come up with strategies together

Depression and anxiety can both come with sides of brain fog. That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t give your employee a say over their workplace accommodations, though. Not giving them a voice is only likely to make their mental health worse.

Instead, listen to them, let them explain how they feel, and see if they know what might help (from, say, reading a blog post like this one). Then, work together to come up with coping strategies.

Once you’ve devised a plan, write it down so you both know what you’ve agreed on.

Refer to the agreement regularly and check in to see if any further changes need to be made.

Communicate clearly and be specific

There’s nothing worse than someone saying, “We need to talk,” when you have anxiety. It can cause anything from mild panic to sheer terror. 

Please, when you schedule a meeting with anyone, tell them what it’s for. This is good for respecting employees’ time and helping mitigate any potential worries whether they have a mental health condition or not.

Even better, have a clear agenda that allows for all attendees to plan beforehand. (And maybe even give them permission to not attend any meetings that don’t have a clear agenda, so their time doesn’t get wasted.)

This is one of the simplest workplace accommodations for depression and anxiety, but also an incredibly important one.

Watch your words

Most people mean well when they say things like “You’re so strong for doing X while Y is happening.”

But when you’re on the receiving end of it, it can feel irritating and condescending. Especially if the person who says it doesn’t know the full story.

It also then means that that person may feel less able to be vulnerable in future scenarios, so it puts them at greater risk of burnout. 

It should be okay to be vulnerable. It’s being able to express those negative emotions that can lead to greater resilience and stronger mental health long-term.

Offer flexible working

A strict 9-5 schedule doesn’t work for everyone. And sometimes a person may not feel great in the morning, but they may be able to work later in the day.

Also, employees should be able to attend doctor’s or therapist’s appointments during working hours.

Many healthcare settings aren’t open outside of traditional 9-5 hours, which means that if an employee doesn’t have flexible work options, they have to use up their paid time off. Which is really unfair when a healthy employee doesn’t need to do that.

Having less paid time off to relax can have a damaging impact on employees’ mental health, making their situation even worse. Especially when their colleagues aren’t in the same boat. This is one of the workplace accommodations for depression and anxiety that can make for a more equitable company culture.

Allow regular breaks

Sitting at a desk for four-hour chunks at a time isn’t normal. No one should have to sit still for that long because of the numerous health issues it causes and exacerbates.

Let all your employees get up and move about; have a chat in the kitchen about what they watched on TV last night; make a drink to stay hydrated. All these things are good for everyone’s mental and physical health.

So long as they get the work done, that’s the most important thing, right?

Offer coaching

Sometimes, when we’re feeling stuck, talking our situation through with someone can help.

Coaching can be a great way to offer workplace accommodations for depression and anxiety. It supports people dealing with these challenges, and helps them find a path toward what they want to achieve while giving them something positive to work on.

Remove non-essential duties

When our mental health is struggling, tasks can take more energy.

To help, is there anything non-essential you could take off of your employee’s plate?

For example, do they really need to go to that meeting? Or could you share the notes with them after?

Meeting attendance often doesn’t need to be mandatory. Many attendees’ time could be better spent on their tasks, rather than sitting in a meeting where they can’t get a word in anyway as there are too many cooks in the kitchen.

Break down tasks into smaller chunks

Tasks can feel overwhelming when you’re short on energy. The smaller the chunks you break a task down into, the more dopamine it triggers in the brain. And therefore, the bigger the boost to mental wellbeing.

It also makes the task less intimidating and therefore easier to do. Getting the ball rolling can be the hardest part, so focusing on something smaller can really help get someone out of a funk.

For instance, when writing a blog post, I don’t list my task as “write a blog post.” Instead, I break it down into:

  • Research
  • Planning
  • Writing
  • Structural editing
  • Copy editing
  • Send to client
  • Client edits (if required)

These smaller chunks mean I can do one task a day, or do several a day, and still feel like I’ve accomplished things. Something as simple as making it easier for someone to see and track their progress on tasks can do wonders as workplace accommodations for depression and anxiety.

Conclusion

Depression and anxiety are horrible diseases that don’t just impact the person going through them, but the people around them, too.

It’s not always easy to ask for help when struggling, so offering to support employees in an empathetic way can help them get back on their feet.

But remember: they didn’t get to this point overnight, and they won’t get better overnight, either. Plus, while one employee is improving, another may be in the early stages of these challenges.

That’s why it’s important to document your workplace accommodations for depression and anxiety somewhere easily accessible, so everyone knows what’s available when they’re struggling.

While you’re at it, why not make everything employees need easier for them to find? Workrowd enables you to centralize all your employee resources, programs, groups, and events, giving team members one-stop shopping in a user-friendly hub.

You can securely manage versioning, track participation levels, and leverage real-time analytics to ensure your workplace accommodations for depression and anxiety are meeting the need.

Sound like this could be useful for your organization? Great! We’d love to learn more and discuss ways to partner on elevating your employee experience. Visit us online or send us a note at hello@workrowd.com to learn more.

Benefits of providing a positive digital employee experience
5 strategies to better empower women in the workplace
4 employee experience challenges and how to solve them
Categories
Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, & Belonging

6 challenges women face in the workplace and how you can help

Female leaders are leaving companies at the highest rate ever. For every female director who gets promoted to the next level, two female directors leave. It’s not all that surprising when you consider the wide array of challenges women face in the workplace.

These challenges don’t just hold women back, though. They can have a major negative impact on your bottom line as well. Let’s take a look at some of the challenges women face in the workplace, and what you can do about them:

We’re outnumbered

Just one in four C-suite leaders is female. And only one in 20 is a woman of color.

For every 100 men who are promoted from entry-level roles to manager positions, only 87 women are promoted, and only 82 women of color are promoted.

As a result, men significantly outnumber women at the manager level—and women can never catch up. Uneven promotion rates are often both a component and result of challenges women face in the workplace.

We’re perceived as less qualified

Women in leadership are more likely than men to have a colleague imply they’re not qualified.

And they’re twice as likely as male leaders to have someone mistake them for a more junior employee.

And they’re more likely to report that a personal characteristic—like being female or a parent—has played a role in them being denied or passed over for a raise, promotion, or chance to get ahead. Having multiple intersecting identities only adds to the challenges women face in the workplace.

Our DEI work is ignored

Women leaders do more to support employee wellbeing and diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI).

But 40% of them don’t feel the organization acknowledges this work in performance reviews. That’s a lot of time and energy spent on work that no one recognizes. And this is one of the challenges women face in the workplace that could make it harder to advance.

Women are also 1.5 times as likely as men at their level to have left a previous job because they wanted to work for a company with a stronger commitment to DEI. Given the stats, it’s hardly surprising.

We’re stretched thinner

Female leaders are more overloaded than men in leadership. 43% of them experience burnout compared to 31% of men at the same level.

We get less support

Women of color get less support, but are more ambitious. 41% of them want to be top executives, despite the challenges women face in the workplace. That’s compared to 27% of white women.

We want more workplace flexibility 

Just 10% of women want to work primarily on-site. As a result, women are more likely to stay at, or join, a company that offers remote or hybrid work options.

Working remotely some or all of the time isn’t just about the flexibility, though.

Women who work this way experience fewer microaggressions and higher psychological safety. This decrease is even more significant for women of color, LGBTQ+ women, and women with disabilities.

So, what can you do?

Those stats are pretty upsetting, right? So, what can you do?

To overcome the challenges women face in the workplace, it requires a team effort. Everyone has to do their part, regardless of gender. Or seniority.

Leaders must set an example. Everything from how they talk about diversity, equity, and inclusion, to if they challenge their own unconscious biases, can impact the behavior of their employees.

Challenge the stigma

It’s only when people step up and challenge stigmas that others notice their unconscious biases. It’s not always a comfortable conversation, but it’s an important one.

Can you hold unconscious bias training?

Or get a senior leader to talk about their experience facing bias?

The stories told by senior leadership can stick with employees. Especially when you factor in that we process—and remember—stories better than statistics.

When leaders share their challenges, it makes them feel more accessible to employees. It can also turn their problems from abstract concepts that happen to someone else, into tangible problems that employees should look out for.

Encourage DEI initiatives (and recognize those who run them)

What do your DEI programs look like? Really?

And, more importantly, do you recognize the hard work put in by the people who run them?

It’s important to recognize any extra work done by employees, whether that’s overtime, running an employee group, organizing charity work, or something else. This makes them feel valued and appreciated—and means they’re more likely to stay.

Consider a quota

I know, quotas sound questionable. But they work. And they don’t mean that incompetent women get in; in fact, they weed out incompetent men.

So, if you’re serious about helping eliminate the challenges women face in the workplace, is it worth giving quotas a go? Even if only temporarily?

Provide support (and listen to your employees)

Do you listen to employees when they give you feedback? Or do you collect it then forget it?

It’s important to act on the feedback employees give you, particularly if there are recurring patterns.

Making employees feel heard, and reducing the sources of their stress, can help prevent burnout.

Which, over time, can also reduce the money you lose to sick leave and employee churn.

Offer flexible working

Flexible working is more inclusive regardless of what your DEI goals are. It can also help address a number of the challenges women face in the workplace with one change.

Could you offer more flexible hours? A hybrid approach? Or even remote work opportunities?

Watch your words

The language we use creates a particular narrative in our minds.

If we spend a lot of time with someone, or we’re in a position of power, those words can also influence how people see us, themselves, and the rest of the world.

So, while you may feel fine using a word like “master” when you talk about “mastering a craft” consider the masculine undertones and the associations with slavery. Because while you may not notice them, words like that can and do affect your workplace culture. 

Conclusion 

The only way talented women will stop leaving companies en masse is if something changes.

That requires businesses to wake up to the challenges women face in the workplace and start supporting them how they want, not how businesses want.

Changes like offering flexible working and using inclusive language show employees you’re committed to making a difference in this area. This can change how they do things, too. But it has to start at the top.

If you’re ready to build a more equitable workplace, you need the right tools. Workrowd empowers you to target challenges women face in the workplace with training, ERGs, resources, and more.

Plus, our real-time analytics ensure you can track your progress over time, as you benefit from a more diverse and inclusive workforce.

Want to learn more? Visit us online or send us a note at hello@workrowd.com.

Benefits of providing a positive digital employee experience
5 strategies to better empower women in the workplace
4 employee experience challenges and how to solve them
Categories
Employee Engagement

5 tips for effective one-on-one meetings that drive engagement

95% of managers have one-on-ones with their employees. Just because they’re having them though, doesn’t mean they’re effective one-on-one meetings.

In the best cases, these meetings can be vital to an employee’s career trajectory. They keep team members focused and ensure they know what you expect from them in the short- and long-term.

These clear expectations, as well as support in their career, can improve employee engagement and productivity. It can even improve team members’ well-being.

So, how can you conduct more effective one-on-one meetings that drive employee engagement?

Have an agenda

Having an agenda for any meeting means that all parties know what type of meeting it’s going to be.

A one-on-one without an agenda can be a source of panic for employees, especially if they’ve previously worked at companies where one-on-ones consisted of their boss berating them for an hour.

Come up with a clear list of what you want to discuss. 

Ask employees what they want to talk about, too. 

That way, you both know what to expect and can do any preparation needed. Employees also get to feel like their voice is heard.

Create a welcoming atmosphere

Employees need to feel like they can talk to you. Otherwise, they’re going to shut down and you not only won’t get a lot from them in the meeting, but you won’t get the most from them work-wise, either.

Effective one-on-one meetings are the perfect place to discuss roadblocks or other workplace challenges. Just over 70% of managers feel this is a good way to use them.

But if an employee doesn’t feel you’re approachable, they’re less likely to talk to you if they’re stuck.

Instead of saying, “don’t come to me with a problem, come to me with a solution,” make it clear to employees that if they can’t think of a solution, you’re there to support them. But you’re also there to brainstorm and help them address challenges as well.

You can then encourage them to trust their instincts solving future problems.

Otherwise, they may waste more time feeling stuck because they can’t find a solution when you have one already.

Discuss the good and bad

The topics discussed the most in effective one-on-one meetings are:

  • Growth and development
  • Performance
  • Employee motivation
  • Connection to people and/or work
  • Autonomy and accountability
  • Alignment to company mission. 

These are some pretty meaty topics and can go in either direction. Getting the balance right requires giving effective feedback to help employees excel.

Many people are either better at giving criticism or praise. But effective one-on-one meetings have a balance of both. Employees need to know what’s pointing them in the right direction and what’s taking them off course.

If they’ve made a mistake or could have done something more efficiently, instead of dwelling on that, explain why it was less effective and teach them the better way to do things next time.

If you spend the meeting berating them or repeatedly telling them they were wrong, they’re far more likely to shut down and struggle to put what you say into practice.

So be sure to praise what they do right, too. Do they create a welcoming atmosphere for new team members? Are they quick to learn?

Soft skills are just as important as hard skills in the workplace.

Listen 

One of my strongest memories of a workplace one-on-one involved being talked at for an hour. I didn’t get a word in. 

I was told what I’d done right and wrong, and what I needed to achieve in the next year. That was it. 

I didn’t get a say; my thoughts, feelings, and opinions weren’t considered or even asked for. 

That shouldn’t be the purpose of effective one-on-one meetings, especially not in the modern workplace.

Instead, listen to your employee. What matters to them? What do they want to work toward, in the short- and long-term? What’s getting in their way?

How can you help them achieve their goals?

Give guidance

Sometimes, an employee doesn’t know what they want, either in terms of short-term or long-term career growth. Not everyone has a clear trajectory, and they shouldn’t be expected to map one out without support.

Expecting people to know where they want to go when they don’t know what their options are is like asking someone to cook a dish they’ve never heard of without a recipe.

Give them options for where they could go in their career. Consider positions that suit their personality, strengths, and motivations.

If someone enjoys the creative parts of being a marketer, there’s no point in suggesting they become a marketing analyst, for example.

Conversely, if they like the people part of marketing, they might make a great marketing manager or even salesperson.

Or, if you’re not sure what their future could look like, do some research together, or ask people within the business what they think.

Just because someone doesn’t have a clear career vision, that doesn’t mean they can’t do great things with a little help. Effective one-on-one meetings are a great place to start digging into these issues.

Come up with next steps

All effective meetings have a plan at the end. One-on-ones should be no exception.

Whether it’s a small task to be done for next week, like completing a brief, or a long-term plan to help them achieve their career goals, providing actionable next steps means employees know what you want from them, and enables you both to track their progress.

Conclusion 

Effective one-on-one meetings can play a huge role in an employee’s career development. Whether they want to become a manager, a subject matter expert, or something else, you have the opportunity to guide them through pivotal points in their career.

To make these conversations a success, employees need to feel comfortable opening up to you.

They also need to believe you’ll accept what they tell you without judgment.

The more you listen to them, the more they’ll open up, and the better they’ll perform in the workplace.

If you’d like to learn more about what employees want outside of effective one-on-one meetings, Workrowd can help. Establishing an ongoing culture of feedback with our automated surveys and analytics means you’ll always have a pulse on employees’ needs.

Plus, our employee program, group, and event management tools make it easy to design and launch initiatives in response to the feedback you get. Want to learn more? Drop by our site, or send us a note at hello@workrowd.com.

Benefits of providing a positive digital employee experience
5 strategies to better empower women in the workplace
4 employee experience challenges and how to solve them
Categories
Wellness

The HR burnout is real: 10 ways to take care of yourself

While everyone was worried about employee productivity and quiet quitting, a tidal wave of HR burnout was brewing. In fact, 98% of HR professionals report feeling burned out.

Oof, that’s a worrying number.

Burnout isn’t one of those things that goes away on its own.

And, without making permanent changes to how we do things, it will come back, too.

When I interviewed burnout expert Becca Syme a couple of years ago, she said that the people who burned out more than once were the people who tried to go back to their old ways of doing things when they started feeling better. Despite those habits being the reasons they burned out in the first place.

So, how can you take care of yourself and recover from HR burnout? And prevent it in the future?

Embrace technology

Is there some technology you’re resistant to that could make your life easier? Is there anything you could automate? Or streamline?

Could you workshop ideas with a generative AI tool, to help you explain your thoughts more clearly? (But make sure you edit it to sound like you after!)

Could you use a tool like Workrowd to save you time by taking over the admin side of managing and measuring your employee initiatives?

Technology can help with so many tasks to stave off HR burnout. The more we embrace it, the more time we have for genuine human interaction (which also benefits our mental health).

Outsource

If you feel you have too much work and not enough time, what could you outsource? Either to a colleague or a freelancer?

Your colleagues are there to support you.

And freelancers are there to assist you when you want to stay consistent but don’t need the help of another full-time employee. Sometimes offloading tasks is the shortest route to relieving HR burnout.

Get some movement in

Exercise gives us a physical outlet for stress, and therefore makes it easier for us to deal with it.

The more stressed we are, the more exercise we need to counteract it, according to Dr. John Ratey and Eric Hagerman in their book, Spark.

But something is better than nothing.

Even if all you do is walk to the end of the street, it’s still gotten you away from your desk and monitor, and stretched your legs.

Find what helps you disconnect

Time in nature is great for calming our minds.

Is there somewhere outdoors where you could take a walk on your lunch break?

Maybe you live/work near a beach and could walk there?

Or could you take a soothing bath—without your phone—to calm your mind and muscles? Disconnection can be key when you start to feel the strain of HR burnout.

Use your vacation days

Extended breaks are one of the most important elements of HR burnout recovery.

At the start of this year, I felt creatively burned out. I couldn’t even think about book writing, even though I’ve been doing it my whole life.

Taking a break from it (even though I loved it), and going on vacation somewhere totally disconnected, played a huge part in my recovery.

You don’t have to travel far, but a change of scenery and a week or two away from your desk can do wonders to help you recharge. (Just make sure everyone knows not to bother you about work-related matters while you’re gone!)

Be mindful

Mindfulness is all about focusing on being in the moment. What are you doing now? How can you do that to the best of your ability?

Techniques like circular breathing, moving meditations, or even fire breathing can help refocus your mind in just a few minutes. When you feel the HR burnout creeping in, try taking a few moments to decompress.

Prioritize 

Make sure you have a well-organized to-do list. Everything should be listed in order of priority.

Also accept that, no matter how much you want to, you may never complete everything on your list. Using something like an Eisenhower Matrix may help you work out what you need to focus on and what you can outsource or abandon.

I write down all my tasks on my tablet every day, then I number the top three and make sure I check those off.

If something has been on my to-do list for more than a week, I consider how important it really is and if it’s something I should drop.

If it’s something that needs to be done but isn’t urgent, I’ll put some time in the calendar for it or outsource it.

Leave your work at work

If you work in an office and need to disconnect, leave your work devices at your desk or switch them off at the end of the day.

This is a lot harder if you work remotely, but it isn’t impossible.

Consider having a hard cut-off time so that you have a few hours where you can fully disconnect from work. Draw that boundary and reinforce it, even if colleagues try to lure you back into work outside of your specified hours.

Take regular breaks

Throughout the day, make sure you take some time away. This gives your eyes a break from the screen and your mind a break from thinking about work (in theory, anyway).

These don’t have to be long breaks. It could be to make a drink, get some food, or pick the kids up from school.

Taking frequent, small breaks is just as important as longer breaks.

They’re particularly important if you feel restless and can’t concentrate.

Sometimes the solution to a problem is simple, but you’ve been working too hard for too long.

You may well find that solution faster if you take a break now instead of forcing yourself to keep going when you can’t think straight thanks to HR burnout.

Talk to your colleagues

If you’re the type of person to put on a brave face, your colleagues may have no idea you feel burned out.

That’s why it’s important to talk to them about how you feel. They may have solutions you hadn’t considered.

And, as the old phrase goes, a problem shared is a problem halved. Sometimes just talking about your feelings can lower your stress levels and stave off HR burnout.

Conclusion

Burnout, regardless of the cause, can affect every area of our lives. It’s important to look at what caused it and take steps to ease the burden now and reduce the risk of it happening again.

It can feel overwhelming, but there are systems and people out there that can help. While HR burnout may be different in that people are often looking to you to also solve employee burnout, you still deserve the same amount of care to help you recover.

If you’re looking for ways to reduce your workload while simultaneously connecting employees to more and better resources to fend off burnout, you’ve come to the right place. Workrowd has the tools you need to make everyone’s lives easier.

With one-click info and event sharing to all your important channels, streamlined processes for both you and employees, and automated data collection and analytics, you have more time to focus on the work that really matters. Or on yourself!

Visit us online to learn more, or write us at hello@workrowd.com. We’d love to chat.

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5 strategies to better empower women in the workplace
4 employee experience challenges and how to solve them
Categories
Employee Retention

10 tips to adapt your employee retention strategy to today’s talent

In today’s rapidly changing world of work, an effective employee retention strategy is one of the most important tools to have in your toolkit. When employees are engaged at work, they’re 87% less likely to leave.

With more jobs than there are employees out there, it means that people have their pick of the bunch if they do decide to leave. In other words: the stakes are high.

It’s no wonder that 87% of HR leaders have employee retention as their main priority for the next few years.

How do you build a future-proof employee retention strategy, though? Here are some tips to get you started:

Encourage upward feedback

If an employee doesn’t feel comfortable giving upward feedback, they’re 16% less likely to stay at their current job.

Feedback should work both ways.

No manager is perfect, just the same as no employee is.

Nobody can improve without open, honest, considerate feedback that’s designed to help them be the best they can be in their role.

Empowering people to reach their full potential is a key element of an effective employee retention strategy, and enabling two-way feedback is a crucial step.

Foster a culture of respect

Even if someone is below you in the workplace hierarchy, they still deserve respect.

Employees who feel there’s a low level of respect between colleagues are 26% more likely to quit their jobs.

Which is fair enough, really. Somewhere like that will have a negative atmosphere and be really bad for anyone’s long-term wellbeing.

Give employees a sense of purpose

If an employee believes their company has a higher purpose than just profits, they’re 27% more likely to stay.

Millennials and Gen Z-ers especially feel a sense of purpose is important in the workplace. They want more than just money from their jobs.

So making your mission clear is more important than ever, especially as more and more people become interested in causes outside of themselves.

Employees need to be clear on what you stand for. Don’t just change your social media banner for Pride Month, do something for it.

Start discussions; donate money; organize an event. Prove to employees and the outside world how serious you are about your purpose.

And be genuine about it. You don’t want to come across like you’re greenwashing to get points. Authenticity is make or break for both your employer brand and your employee retention strategy.

Recognize employees for a job well done

A little recognition can go a long way towards boosting someone’s confidence and mental health.

But when employees don’t feel valued at work, they’re almost twice as likely to search for a new role.

Sometimes all it takes is a thank you. A shout-out in a meeting or group chat. An extra day off. Or a box of snacks every now and then.

Teach management how to manage

Even though I freelance, I have many friends who still work 9-5. And their main complaint? Their manager never got enough (or any) management training.

As a result, their manager’s communication style is timid or unclear; they lack confidence, which makes their employees doubt their skills, and it makes them less effective/efficient managers.

And this really is a big problem. When managers lack the right skills, employees are FOUR TIMES more likely to quit.

On the flip side, employees are 23% more likely to stay if their manager clearly explains to them their role and responsibilities.

The simple solution, especially when it comes to your employee retention strategy?

Management training!

Invest in employees’ professional development

US employees are 70% more likely to leave for another opportunity if that company invests in employees’ professional development.

Much like how employees want a sense of purpose at work, they don’t want to stagnate, either.

They want to learn new skills and grow as people. When they feel like they’re progressing in their careers, they’re 20% more likely to still be at that company in a year’s time.

So, how could you invest in employees’ professional development?

Could you give every employee a training budget? Organize a lunch and learn? Set up a book club?

There’s an option suitable for every budget.

Update your remote working policy

While there may be a mass return to office going on, companies that allow employees to work from home have a 25% lower turnover rate.

Why?

Because it shows that they care about employee wellbeing and work-life balance.

It also takes distributed companies 33% less time to hire new employees. Just think of the impact on your employee retention strategy and all the money you could save.

Promote work-life balance

With burnout being such a global problem now, companies that encourage work-life balance can attract employees who work hard and play just as hard.

In fact, employees who rate their work-life balance more highly are 10% more likely to stay at their current company.

It’s a rare thing in the modern world for a company to encourage work-life balance and mean it. That makes it a perfect addition to your employee retention strategy.

Update your DEI policy

67% of job seekers consider inclusion and diversity when choosing their next workplace. So, if you haven’t already updated your DEI policy, now is the perfect time.

Don’t forget to check things like your job descriptions and even website copy for discriminatory language, too. The more we’re aware of these things, the more we can all improve.

And the clearer it’ll be to future employees and customers that you really are serious about your DEI efforts.

Give employees agency

Employees who feel in control of their careers are 20% more likely to stay in their roles.

In a world where it can sometimes feel like everything is spiraling out of control, I don’t blame anyone for wanting more agency where they spend most of their time and energy.

Giving your team members control (and guidance, when they need it) in their roles rewards them for their loyalty. Plus, it enables them to feel like they’re making a difference to their own life, their colleagues’ lives, customers’ lives, and maybe even the world itself.

If you’re looking to improve your employee retention strategy, you need the right tools. Ensuring you can maximize the ROI of your employee groups, programs, and events is key.

Workrowd’s all-in-one tool suite puts everything you need at your fingertips, including real-time analytics so you always know what’s getting results. Want to learn more? Visit us online or send us a note at hello@workrowd.com.

Benefits of providing a positive digital employee experience
5 strategies to better empower women in the workplace
4 employee experience challenges and how to solve them
Categories
Learning & Development

5 tips for building workplace book clubs, plus 10 titles to start with

Workplace book clubs offer a tried and true way to boost outcomes for your team and your bottom line. Reading reduces stress levels by 68%. And it only takes 6 minutes of reading to see that effect.

I can personally attest to this. On the days when I start my morning reading a book, or have a reading break at lunchtime, I feel calmer and more productive. I even find that it can inspire me to be more creative in my freelance and fiction writing.

It’s not surprising when you consider that reading fiction can make people better at decision-making by between 50% and 100%! Now that could make a big difference to workplace productivity and efficiency.

Reading is more accessible than ever, too. With ebooks, audiobooks, paperbacks, and hardbacks, there’s truly a way for everyone to enjoy a story.

So, let’s take a look at how you can build a workplace full of readers at your company by leveraging workplace book clubs:

How to build workplace book clubs

Find the right leaders

The person/people in charge of your workplace book clubs should already be fans of reading. In addition, they need to be willing to spread the word about how and why it’s great.

It also helps if they read in lots of different genres, because they’ll be able to keep an open mind to suggestions. Plus, that way they can introduce other members to genres they may not have considered before.

Pick how you’ll choose books

How often will you choose books? And, just as importantly, how will you choose books?

Will a different person pick the book each month? This is a good way to keep people involved and get them to share what they love.

Bestseller lists are also great places to find ideas, because chances are some employees may already want to read what’s on them to see what all the fuss is about (and if it’s justified).

When it’s time to share the chosen book of the month, make sure you have an employee group set up to keep everyone in touch. As with most initiatives, communication is key if you want people to stay engaged.

Invite people to join

Now, it’s time to recruit people!

You could:

  • Send a company-wide email
  • Post on Slack and/or Workrowd
  • Invite people during meetings/catch ups
  • Share it on social media (internally or externally)
  • Drop individual invites, particularly if you know someone likes reading

Decide how everyone will share their thoughts

Will you catch up over video call? In person? Just chat over Slack or on Workrowd? A combination?

Pick a system that works for everyone.

Create talking points

It’s important to have talking points about the book to get the conversation going.

Otherwise, you risk hearing crickets as nobody knows what they should talk about.

For nonfiction, you could ask:

  • What did you learn?
  • Will you be making any changes in your life because of what you learned?
  • Who do you think can benefit from this book the most?
  • Did you find the book thought-provoking?

For fiction, you could ask:

  • What did you think of the characters/who was your favorite?
  • How did you feel about the writing style?
  • Which scene or chapter stuck with you the most?
  • What did you think of the ending?
  • Did the beginning hook you?
  • How does it compare to the film (if there is one)?

Titles to start workplace book clubs with

Here are some titles—on a range of topics—to help you start your workplace book clubs off with a bang:

Big Dress Energy – Shakaila Forbes-Bell

This is one of those books that will always stand out to me because it inspired me to experiment with my outfits.

Reading it made me realize the impact clothes have on mental health and the difference wearing my power colors makes to my mood.

Two months later, I’m still power dressing!

High Performance: Lessons From the Best on Becoming the Best – Jake Humphrey, Damian Hughes

Looking at the worlds of business and sport, this book analyzes the key ingredients of high-performance people and teams.

It features interviews from people like Mercedes Team Principal Toto Wolff, host of The Diary of a CEO podcast Steven Bartlett, and Hollywood actor Matthew McConaughey.

I Will Teach You to be Rich – Ramit Sethi

An unusual way of looking at money management, but in the very best of ways. It’s funny, self-deprecating, and accessible.

No, really.

Atomic Habits – James Clear

A classic for a reason. The tips here work great for neurodivergent folks, too.

The Art of Rest – Claudia Hammond

Worried you’ve got colleagues who are at risk of becoming workaholics? Or don’t understand just how important rest is?

This is just the book they need to read.

I read this at the end of last year when I felt guilty for taking the time out to rest. It made me realize that rest makes me better at what I do and has a huge impact on my mental health.

Never Split the Difference – Chris Voss

Negotiation is a key part of the business world. And that’s exactly what this book teaches.

Written by a former international hostage negotiator for the FBI.

Talk Like Ted – Carmine Gallo

If you want to improve your public speaking skills, or someone you know breaks out in hives at the thought of public speaking, this book is perfect.

It’s all about how to tell the best stories—just like in a Ted Talk.

Or, if you’re in the mood for some fiction…

The Ghost’s Call – K.C. Adams

Okay, I confess: I wrote this one.

But it’s the perfect time of year for a ghost story!

It’s a little bit spooky and seriously sarcastic.

The Flatshare – Beth O’Leary

Romance with a twist: the two characters share a bed, but never meet. It handles mental health in a much more open and honest way than a lot of books.

It’s also been adapted into a TV show.

The Haunting of Hill House – Shirley Jackson

Absolutely nothing like the TV show or 90s adaptation, but full of spooky, haunting imagery.

This is classic horror in that it isn’t full of jump scares, but it will give you the creeps.

Conclusion

Workplace book clubs are a great way to connect employees and boost their wellbeing.

There’s a book out there for everyone. Sometimes we just need some help finding the right one. Workplace book clubs are the perfect place to do just that!

If you’re looking for a simpler way to organize initiatives like workplace book clubs, you’re in the right place. Workrowd’s all-in-one tool suite makes it easy to launch, manage, and measure employee groups, programs, and events.

You can send out announcements on all channels with a single click, organize all your events and materials in one central hub, and automate data collection and analytics.

Sound useful? Visit us online to learn more, or write us at hello@workrowd.com to find a time to chat.

Benefits of providing a positive digital employee experience
5 strategies to better empower women in the workplace
4 employee experience challenges and how to solve them
Categories
Employee Engagement

5 ways your return to office policy impacts employee engagement

In my previous post on the mass return to office, we looked at the impact it’s likely to have on businesses’ DEI efforts. In this post, we’ll look at your return to office policy from a standpoint of how it impacts employee engagement.

While many managers want employees to be present in person, this can be detrimental to employees’ mental and physical health. Which, ultimately, impacts your bottom line.

So, let’s explore how a return to office policy can hurt employee engagement:

Employees can’t take breaks when they need/want to

I can’t sit at a desk for very long. Usually, I’ll write/edit a piece, then take a break. This makes me look like a massive fidget when I work in an office.

But if I don’t take a break regularly, I can’t concentrate.

The longer I sit still for, the harder it gets for me to focus.

This is the reality for many people who are neurodivergent or have chronic health issues. Sitting still becomes physically and/or mentally uncomfortable.

Not to mention it’s terrible for healthy people, too, causing long-term health issues such as chronic back pain.

Back pain is one of the biggest causes of employee sickness in the US. All told, it costs the economy $250 billion per year. Yes, billion.

I thought I needed new glasses when I read that, too.

Back pain is also one of the leading causes of early retirement.

So if someone retires early from it, you lose out on their industry and company knowledge. Plus, you have to spend money hiring and training other employees to fill the gap.

The simplest way to prevent all this? Ensuring employees move more and sit less.

Spending too long staring at a screen can also lead to eye strain and headaches. This then further causes employees to need to take time off to rest. All because they can’t take a screen/desk break when they need to.

Employees need to feel comfortable taking breaks and stretching their legs (and minds) as often as necessary.

But if their boss believes they must be at their desk in the office at all times to do their job, it doesn’t allow for the flexibility people need to move their bodies and maintain their health.

Employees feel less trusted

Forcing employees back into the office when they’ve worked remotely successfully for several years sends a negative message. This extreme return to office policy suggests you don’t trust them to do their job without someone to monitor them in person.

This message that those in charge don’t trust them can damage their confidence. This is especially true when they may feel like they haven’t been doing a good enough job already.

If they’ve worked hard but it’s perceived to not be good enough, the hit to their confidence can cause them to be less productive and may lead to workplace-related depression or anxiety.

All this adds up to employees disengaging, taking long-term sick leave, or leaving altogether.

Over time, this turnover will cause businesses to waste money on hiring that could’ve been saved by working with employees to find a hybrid or remote working policy that suits everyone’s needs.

Underrepresented talent feels they have to conform

Subconsciously, in an office, we judge the people around us. We judge them based on how they speak, act, and even what they wear.

This forces people to conform. Especially in a conservative workforce, or one that isn’t very diverse (even if it’s trying to change).

This subconscious conformity has an impact on how people think over time, too.

When someone doesn’t express their individuality however they want/need to, it can impact how they think, too.

They’re more likely to second-guess their ideas. So they won’t share them.

Eventually, this lack of other perspectives could lead to groupthink.

And that groupthink will reduce employees’ ability to think creatively, innovate, and problem solve because they’re working with just one limited worldview.

Your return to office policy can make it harder for people to speak their minds, especially if they’re constantly immersed in a one-size-fits-all office culture.

Offices are distracting

I delved deeply into how offices can be distracting in my previous post, so I won’t belabor the point here. But the short version is that big, open-plan offices can be distracting.

Office-based working means it’s easier for colleagues to interrupt someone when they’re concentrating. If that person doesn’t drop what they’re doing to talk to their colleague, they risk being perceived as rude.

But what if they were in the middle of a massive breakthrough, and someone coming up to them, unprompted, broke their flow?

It takes us 20 minutes to get back into something after an interruption.

With the amount of distractions we can experience in an office, those 20 minutes can add up. Just think how much lost time your return to office policy can lead to throughout the working day, let alone a week, month, or year.

Commutes can be draining

Commutes can be draining, especially if there’s a lot of traffic or problems with public transport.

When I used to get the tram to work, if there was some sort of tram delay (which happened a lot), it meant I got into work late. I started the day already feeling stressed before I’d even gotten to my desk. 

My elevated stress levels meant I was more reactive to my surroundings. As a result, I was less able to concentrate.

Plus, I was worried about whether the tram issues would be fixed before the end of the day. And if they weren’t, how long it would take me to get home. And how little energy I’d have left when I got there.

None of these things are an issue with remote working. Instead, employees get more time to spend on what matters to them and don’t need to stress about their commute.

Office-based working vs employee engagement

While some businesses will always need employees there in person, for many modern companies, there’s just no reason to implement a full-blown return to office policy.

For in-person meetings, in most cases, it’s still cheaper to rent a space once a year, or once a quarter, than have a permanent office space that no one wants to use.

If an employee is among the few who prefer to work in an office, they could always find a nearby co-working space, library, or cafe. This is likely to be closer to them than the office, but they still get to be away from any potential at-home distractions.

Looking to balance the benefits of in-person work with the employee engagement perks of remote? Workrowd can help. Our all-in-one tool suite enables team members to find community no matter where or when they work.

Personalized dashboards ensure everyone is always in the loop, and custom analytics let you track your results in real time. Sound useful? Visit us online to learn more, or drop us a note at hello@workrowd.com.

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5 strategies to better empower women in the workplace
4 employee experience challenges and how to solve them
Categories
Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, & Belonging

Your return to office policy is hurting your DEI efforts – here’s why

Back in the dark pandemic days most of us would rather forget, those of us who dislike office-based working rejoiced when jobs moved out of the office and into the home. We were blissfully unaware at that point what a battle the return to office conversation would become.

Back then, we all thought that the transition to remote work would mean a massive shift in how businesses operated. We thought they’d finally understand the importance of remote working for employees’ mental and physical health, diversity, and business success.

After all, working from home doesn’t make employees less productive. It makes them more productive.

I recently spoke to a former colleague who said that the company now works mostly remotely, with occasional in-office time.

Why?

Because they found employees worked better when they worked remotely. At the same time, they did still need some people around for face-to-face interactions. In this situation, hybrid working was the perfect compromise.

So then, why is there a mass return to office going on? 

Even Zoom, the very company that enabled so many of us to work remotely during the pandemic, has mandated a return to office. 

There seems to be a discrepancy between what employees want, and how much managers trust them. 

But if managers don’t trust their employees, why did they hire them in the first place? 

I mean, I know places like this still exist. But do they have to make it so obvious? It’s not going to help their future hiring efforts with so many people now wanting to work remotely.

This is especially true when it comes to hiring talent from underrepresented communities. Here’s why mandating a return to office can be especially harmful to your diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts.

Not everyone works well in an office

There are very few people who concentrate better in an office. Those people make up around 3% of the population.

There are some parts of office-based work—like the background noise, or the overhead lights, or even using the wrong equipment—that we may not consciously realize impact our productivity. Especially if we’re used to blocking them out or just sucking it up.

But, over time, the impact compounds. It reduces how much employees can concentrate, and therefore how much work they get done.

When you force a return to office where everyone has to work in the same environment, sacrifices and compromises have to be made. 

Which means that there’s a high chance some employees will leave. 

For many people now, remote or hybrid working is a non-negotiable requirement when they job hunt. Which means if they already work for you and you change the rules, they’re not going to think twice about leaving you in their rear-view mirror.

It’s impossible to accommodate everyone’s needs in an office

Health and safety regulations, while important to follow, are based on what fits most people, not everyone.

We all have unique needs from our work environment. It’s the same way that some of us have different dietary requirements.

I once had a colleague who got relentless migraines because of how bright the new LED lights were. But HR insisted that the white lights were better for our long-term eye health. His migraines begged to differ.

Truth is, it’s impossible to accommodate everyone’s needs, especially in a larger business. Some people will always slip through the cracks for one reason or another. Which isn’t fair on anyone, and makes return to office a bad approach if you want to maintain and increase diversity.

Underrepresented talent is at a disadvantage in an office

When I asked Workrowd CEO Rachel Goor her thoughts on the current mass return to office, she said:

While it’s often overlooked in return to office discussions, where employees work actually has huge implications for DEI progress. For example, being in the office creates more pressure to conform with racially biased workplace expectations. It disadvantages caregivers who have to juggle commuting and being away from home on top of their familial responsibilities. It makes it more difficult for people with disabilities to access the necessary accommodations to thrive. Bottom line: if you want to recruit and retain talent from underrepresented communities, don’t mandate a return to office.

Offices can be rife with judgment and cliques. Whether this is conscious or not, it reduces psychological safety and makes the environment less welcoming for everyone. Societal pressures take up a lot of subconscious headspace that can have long-term impacts on someone’s emotional health.

Offering training around these issues can help. Ultimately though, employees need to want to understand and improve for it to make a difference.

Forcing employees to work in an office shrinks your talent pool

If you only hire people who can commute into the office, you significantly shrink your talent pool. Not just in terms of location, but in terms of skill set and experience, too. 

That means your competitors who accommodate remote work are more likely to find the best person for the job. 

After all, what are the odds the best candidate lives just down the road from you? Pretty slim.

Many candidates from underrepresented communities can’t, or don’t want to, work in an office. A single parent may struggle to be in the office by nine in the morning, but they could drop their children off at school and still get back to their desk at home on time.

With the average commute at around an hour, that’s a big chunk of someone’s day dedicated to traveling.

Office-based work simply introduces more variables

People want a better work-life. Remote or hybrid working provides that in a way a full-scale return to office never could.

A wheelchair user might not fit in your elevator, or be able to climb the stairs. If they work in their own space though, they can still get to their desk to work.

Spray air fresheners, or employees’ excessive uses of deodorant or perfume, may be unsuitable for someone with asthma or COPD. At home though, they have control of the atmosphere and what is (and isn’t) sprayed in it. Without you having to put policies in place to enable them to breathe.

I could go on, but you probably get my point. There are so many variables you have to juggle in an office. It’s never going to be as inclusive or as welcoming as allowing someone to work in their own space.

Conclusion

Some jobs, like manufacturing, require employees to be in a physical location. Office-type work generally doesn’t. And most people don’t like it either.

Foregoing your physical office space saves you money that you can spend on other areas of your business. This could include growing your DEI efforts through hiring, training, and employee engagement.

So why not boost your employer brand by giving employees what they want? If you’re ready to overcome misguided notions about return to office and build an engaged and inclusive hybrid and remote culture, Workrowd can help.

With a one-stop shop for all your employee programs, groups, and events, you can drive real belonging from day one, no matter where or when people work. Organizing your resources and announcements through a central hub saves time and ensures everyone is always on the same page.

Plus, real-time analytics empower you with the data you need to maximize your resources. Sound interesting? Visit us online to learn more, or drop us a note at hello@workrowd.com.

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5 strategies to better empower women in the workplace
4 employee experience challenges and how to solve them
Categories
Employee Engagement

5 ways to engage Gen Z in the workplace

Gen Z now makes up 30% of the world’s population. Of course, this also means an influx of Gen Z in the workplace. By 2025, members of this generation will comprise a quarter of our workforce.

This new wave of employees demands very different things from their employers than their predecessors. They have higher expectations and ignoring those, or being stuck in your ways under the guise of “tradition” puts you at risk of ending up like the steam engine or horse-drawn carriages.

If you want your business to survive, you need to engage Gen Z in the workplace sooner rather than later. They’re the future leaders, decision makers, and investors that could one day influence the fate of your business. The sooner you show them that you value their input, the sooner you’ll experience the benefits of a multi-generational workforce.

So, how do you engage Gen Z in the workplace? Here are 5 ways you can do just that:

Show diversity matters

Gen Z is the most racially and ethnically diverse generation ever. Half of its members identify as a racial or ethnic minority.

That means they care about what you’re doing to make your business more diverse. It’s not enough to just say you support diversity, or that your company is diverse. You need to prove it.

Some ways to do so include updating your hiring processes, creating ERGs, sharing employee stories on your social media pages, supporting a range of charities, or by getting your leaders to speak up about causes that matter to them.

On a deeper level, you need to embody diversity. You need to support employees who report a colleague for their behavior, whatever that may be. Don’t assume because they’re reporting their manager it’s because they don’t get along.

You also need to educate everyone within the business on things like microaggressions. Not everyone knows or understands how microaggressions can seep into everyday life. Just because they’re unconscious or unintentional, that doesn’t mean they’re not harmful.

HR teams need to work to address them, and not just because it’s key to engaging Gen Z the workplace. Ultimately, it’s just the right thing to do.

Update your hiring process

A company’s commitment to DEI is important to 83% of Gen Z in the workplace. 68% would be more likely to apply for a job with recruiters and materials that reflect a more diverse workforce. 

So you want to show them that you really are committed to it.

You can do this by offering different types of hiring based on candidates’ preferences. For instance, you could provide information in both video and written format. Are there ways you could make your hiring process more attractive to jobseekers with disabilities?

Less than a quarter of disabled people were employed last year, despite many of us being perfectly capable of working. We simply need to know our employer can work with us and not against us.

Consider what accommodations you can make to your hiring process, as well as to your workplace more broadly. And speak about it early and often. People with disabilities are likely to think your organization is not for them unless you show/tell them how you’ll welcome them.

And even if a prospective candidate doesn’t have a disability, they’re more likely to warm to your business if they can see that you enable different ways of working.

Also consider how inclusive your hiring team is. Is everyone from the same age group? Are they all from the same ethnicity? How can you broaden their experiences and backgrounds to get a more balanced view? It’s important to empower everyone to thrive, including Gen Z in the workplace.

Grow your groups

Unfortunately, more than a fifth of Gen Z in the workplace says they have no friends at work. Whereas baby boomers are nearly twice as likely to make most of their friends at work. 

This is a huge generational difference. Businesses need to work to change this. Loneliness in any guise can come with significant short- and long-term health problems. 

You could start by growing (or, if you don’t have any already, creating), employee groups. These communities give employees somewhere to get to know new colleagues outside of their immediate teams. 

They can connect with people who have similar backgrounds or interests to them, helping expand their friend group and reducing the damaging impact of loneliness.

Offer career advancement opportunities

76% of Gen Z-ers feel that upskilling is key to their career advancement. And 67% want to work somewhere they can learn skills that will advance their careers. 

So, if you don’t offer them this, there’s a high chance you’ll lose the interest of the next generation.

Gen Z switches jobs at a rate that’s 134% higher than before the pandemic. Millennials switch jobs 24% more. For boomers, that number is just 4%.

So, the more you can do to engage Gen Z in the workplace now, the sooner your business can grow and modernize to stay ahead of your competition.

Provide in-person training

Only 14% of employees want online training. 63% prefer in-person training. I can see why. It can be challenging to focus on an all-day training exercise, especially if that training is done at home.

Many trainings are hard to pay attention to, let alone when you’re getting bombarded with email and Slack notifications. 

Offering training in person gives employees a chance to meet their colleagues and get away from the office. This can help with idea generation and clearing the cobwebs away, as my nan used to say.

If employees go to an external training session, it allows them to meet people from outside of the company but with similar goals or roles to them. 

As well as providing them with the chance to make friends, this can also allow them crucial networking opportunities that may advance their careers further down the line.

Conclusion

Gen Z is the future of the modern workforce. One day, they’ll be the decision makers. The sooner you make your business attractive to Gen Z in the workplace, the more likely they are to rave about your business online. This will then attract more candidates from this next generation and all the benefits that can bring.

Ready to make your employee experience more attractive to Gen Z in the workplace? Look no further than Workrowd. Our user-friendly platform gives Gen Z one-stop shopping for all your employee programs, groups, and events.

That way, they can tap into what’s important to them from day one and easily form close connections with colleagues. Plus, real-time analytics let you know exactly what’s contributing to a positive experience for Gen Z in the workplace.

Ready to learn more? Visit us online, or just send us a note at hello@workrowd.com.

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