Our lives have changed completely in 2021, over the course of the year nothing is the same ever since the pandemic began. We are no longer as in touch with either our colleagues or our friends as we were before this pandemic hit us and everyone has been facing the brunt of endless Zoom calls. With these unprecedented times it is inevitable that HR practices change and adapt as well.
Before the pandemic hit last year most HR professionals were focused on one goal and that was to acquire top talent no matter what. With the dawn of a new work environment this has changed, the goal for HR professionals now is to retain top talent and this is increasingly becoming a bigger challenge. Some of the biggest challenges for HR professionals right now are
- Retaining your most valuable talent
- Create opportunities for employees to have meaningful connections
- Make sure that both the physical and mental health of employees is doing well
Recognition as a driving force for engagement
The way you engage with your employees is a huge factor behind employee retention. While things have changed drastically over the course of the last 12 months, an emerging trend is a need for employee recognition programs to increase employee retention. We will talk about some of the employee recognition strategies that we could use in order to boost employee satisfaction.
We need to create managers that recognize the efforts of their employees
When employees leave tasks in the hands of managers it is a clear sign that they are dissatisfied with the way they are treated. Rewards and recognition programs exist in numerous organizations, however, in most cases they are not utilized because managers are not taught the parameters for the awarding structure and are not taught how to award employees.
It is the job of the managers to create an environment where employees are encouraged to create meaningful relationships with each other. This is especially important in today’s digital world where the new norm is working from home. When an employee’s work gets recognized and appreciated it motivates them to further work harder and provide better results. When employees see their fellow colleagues being appreciated and recognized for their hard work it motivates them to do the same through a need of validation and recognition.
Create meaningful relationships with employees
A tool that could be used to increase employee engagement is creating hobby clubs. This is an excellent way of engaging with your employees and taking an initiative in their interests. As we are aware that a huge chunk of employees in numerous organizations will not be returning to the office and digitally engaging with their hobbies is one of the best ways of interacting with them. While it is true that each individual is vastly different and complex it is nonetheless true that engaging with and taking interests in each other will create an ever-lasting bond which is one of the best ways of keeping employees engaged with the organization.
Due to the fact that quarantine has reduced social interaction to a bare minimum we are losing what it meant to be coworkers. No one ever wants to be the one that drags on Zoom conferences with their personal chit-chat, however as a result, we forgot to talk about Mary’s infant saying their first word, or that Amir is flourishing in quarantine along with his new herb garden. These are the conversations that pop up at lunch, or whilst taking walks returning to your table from the meeting room – these conversations helped us to live related to each other’s personal hobbies, pastimes, and lives. Without those possibilities, it becomes impossible for managers to converse with their employees, form a bond and this simply increases friction over time.
Rewards and recognition platforms to increase retention
Work anniversaries are the perfect time to celebrate an employee’s accomplishments within the organization regardless of how long they have been within the organization. Celebrating those milestones is imperative to keep employees motivated and to make them aspire to achieve these milestones in their professional lives as well.
We are all aware of the fact that unexpected challenges throughout the pandemic have made it difficult for a lot of employees to achieve the milestones they set out to achieve. Employees need to be made aware of the fact that they are not there to simply clock in their time, they are a part of the larger vision that the organization has. It goes without saying that previously meeting every day and face-to-face interactions were very helpful in keeping this spirit intact and maintaining the vision of the organization, which is why there is a need for a very strong digital system where employees can interact socially. When employees experience positive interactions they extend the same towards others.
Engaging with the personal goals of employees
Every employee is different and has their own set goals. Some employees prefer a work-life balance while some strive for professional growth. This is why engaging with employees and making sure their personal goals are aligned with that of the organization is imperative.
Employee Rewards Platforms foster wellness among them
While curating rewards for your employees you need to make sure that there are a wide range of options for them to choose from, and at this same time enable the opportunity for employees to choose between rewards for themselves and for their wellness. Physical wellness could come from a range of rewards such as gym memberships and lifestyle products. Mental wellness may also be enabled through an innovative pottery class, or month-to-month artwork kits to create and discover with your family and emotional wellness is all based on connection, with yourself, and your cherished ones. Physical, mental, and emotional wellness are all incredibly important for an employee to perform at their best.
While 2021 has presented numerous challenges to all employers, they have also presented numerous opportunities to organizations to change and improve the lives of their employees through recognizing their efforts and rewarding them for the same. Aligning your rewards and recognition programs to suit the needs of your employees better is the best way forwards to have an active and engaged workforce. An engaged and happy workforce is one that would perform better and take more initiatives and would be one that would not only work towards achieving their own goals but also that of their organization.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR: ADVANTAGE CLUB
Advantage Club is a global provider of employee benefits. The platform serves to digitize all employee demands under one canopy through numerous employee engagement programs such as incentives, rewards & recognition, flexible and tax-saving modules. It now serves over 300 organizations in 70 countries and has over 10,000 brand partnerships.
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