The priorities of employees are changing. While bosses in the past could rely on motivating employees with salary increases, the modern workforce has other ideas. Employees today, consider a wide range of engagement factors when accepting a position within a company. These considerations typically include having a sense of purpose, a strong work/life balance, an inviting and inclusive work environment, and career advancement opportunities. While money will, of course, always be an important aspect of the work experience, here’s what to expect when you only count on money to win over your employees.
Significant Revenue Loses
Throwing money at a problem to win over your employees seems like an easy answer, and in the past it was. Getting employees to work longer and work harder was as simple as naming the right price. However, incentivizing employees to work around the clock tends to create more problems than actual solutions. Being constantly on call or working late hours day after day, month after month, and even year after year takes a mental, physical and emotional toll, and employees are no longer satisfied. Employees expect their offices to respect their work/life balance and recognize their needs away from the business. Overly investing in an organization today almost always contributes to disengagement, regardless of the monetary compensation. This disengagement tends to result in higher stress levels, decreased energy, and ultimately lower productivity.
A recent Gallup study estimated that productivity losses cost the US economy between $450 to $550 billion every year. A single disengaged employee can cost a company $3,400 for every $10,000 the organization spends on salaries. As employees begin to experience stress, anxiety, and unhappiness, they often reach out to coworkers and colleagues for support. This can increase feelings of discontent and irritability. Instead, try investing in real employee happiness and values. This will help your workforce stay much more focused, boost employee engagement, and improve productivity.
Poor Customer Service
When it comes to bad customer service experiences, there are almost never second chances. In fact, a recent study just noted that a single negative customer service experience can drive away over 82% of customers. Even if you have world-class marketing to promote a positive image, it is your employees that actually interact with customers. Generously compensated employees still struggle to maintain genuine brand loyalty and customer care when their opinions, values, interests, and concerns are not being recognized. Disguising unhappiness in front of customers only works so well, and instead of helping win over your employees, attempting to soothe over problems with money tends to increase resentment in the long run. You can use a collaboration tool like MangoApps to create surveys and polls to gauge employee opinions within the organization. These tools, combined with a caring and considerate management, help companies create long-lasting, authentic, and passionate employees.
Burnt Out Employees
Organizations with highly engaged employees typically experience more growth than companies with lower engagement levels. This is largely due to increased employee productivity, consistency, and dedication. Overworked employees burn out quickly, which decreases morale, diminishes productivity, and escalates employee turnover. Between recruiting costs and onboarding expenses, replacing an employee can cost on average 20% – 30% of the employee’s annual salary. And when employees are burning out left and right, those costs can quickly add up. Increasing turnover rates can make it very difficult to attract talented and hard-working employees. To read more, check out this article on the 7 warning signs of decreasing employee engagement.
So Now What?
While most employees today value work that provides freedom, flexibility, remote options, and a healthy work/life balance, the only way to truly know what your employees want is to ask. Anonymous survey tools are a fantastic resource for employees to communicate their challenges, opinions, interests, and needs. As you commit to working with your employees you will be able to build a loyal team that is dedicated to achieving long-term success.
MangoApps
At MangoApps, we believe open communication is the primary way to win over your employees. MangoApps is an employee engagement platform specifically designed to encourage, motivate, and communicate with everyone in your organization.
If you would like to learn more about how MangoApps can help improve your employee engagement, contact us, or schedule a demo today.
