There are a lot of people who will tell you that if you are doing something that you love, it shouldn’t matter about the money. And while that might only be true to a certain extent—after all, everybody needs at least enough money to survive—anyone who has experienced the world of work would almost certainly agree with that statement. As a result, many start-up owners are left scratching their heads in confusion when they experience a high rate of employee turnover, and find themselves unable to fix it by throwing money at people.
Sure, money helps a great deal when it comes down to feeling good about a current position, but when it is the difference between love and hate, it is rare that any amount of money (within reason) will make up for the worst job in the world. As a result, smart businesses and entrepreneurs looking to recruit will realize the importance of creating a good work environment. The best recruits have their pick of the best companies, and when it comes down to it, they will make their decisions based on which company will be the best fit for them personally. This means if the pay is competitive, entering an exciting working community can become the most important factor for the best and brightest talent.
Nine out of ten people have admitted to valuing job satisfaction highly when it comes to looking for a career.
Retain Your Best Assets
Perhaps more important than attracting new hires however, is keeping the old ones. Employee retention can be one of the most important facets of a successful small business, and while regular raises can be part of what creates a content employee, if you can offer competitive salaries, and keep an enjoyable and creative workplace, most people will stick to a company that they love rather than take their talents elsewhere.
We spend a ton of time focusing on customer retention and have created a whole entire industry full of CRM (Customer Relationship Management) software, but while there are employee retention-focused platforms and services, most companies are investing in one service and not the other. CRM’s are much more popular. And when the cost of losing an employee within the first year can be 3x the salary it’s not a bad idea to focus on your employees as much as your sales.
Care About More Than the Bottom Line
So how do you encourage job satisfaction? Well, the first step is to actually care about your employees. While good results are very important, if you let your company become the sort of place that does anything to achieve the bottom line, despite what happens to everyone else on the way, you will find that your business will struggle a lot more than it needs to. After all, it is the employees who make the company.
Regular employee rewards are another good way to increase job satisfaction. They do not have to be expensive or elaborate, but just simple rewards every now and then can be enough to show your employees that you not only care about them, but that you value the hard work that they put in, and all of the things that they do for the company.
When it all comes down to it, if someone is going to do something just for the money, they are not going to get very far at all, and they are not the kind of person that you want working for your company. You will soon find that the best employees will be the ones who truly care about the work that they do, and the people they work with. Reward them by treating them with the same amount of respect, and you will find that your company is not only a happier place, but a more productive one.