The new year is here, and with it many business owners are searching for success, but how about creating that feeling for your employees?
Now that the holiday season is over and much of the chaos that comes with it has begun to die down, it is time for small business owners to begin working on their plans for 2015. Involving your employees in this process will ultimately prove beneficial for your business. Not only will this ensure your staff is more productive, it will keep them with you longer. The best method for attracting and keeping talented employees is to make them happy. For more on how to make sure that your employees all find their own success in the new year, read some of the tips below:
1. Respect the culture
Don't lose focus on your business's vision and culture as 2015 comes around. The culture of your business is part of what keeps great job candidates looking at your company, according to Forbes. And those people can eventually become successful employees who keep your business going. Make sure that your vision for your business is something that everyone there can buy into and work toward. This will happen with you getting to know each and every member of your team personally. Figure out their goals, and what you can do to help your employees achieve them.
2. Connect the personal to the professional
Speaking of your employees' goals, another way to set the staff up for success is to draw a connection between those desires and where you'd like to take the business, Entrepreneur suggested. First you will have to figure out each of your employees' personal goals and think about how to help them achieve them. Once you've begun helping members of your team reach for their dreams, begin connecting their desires to the goals of the business. Share with your staff the heights that you'd like the company to reach, then explain how their individual jobs can help the business reach its goals. Tying the desires of your employees to that of your business will show them how important they are to your success.
3. Be transparent in your communications
One of the number one contributors to employee happiness is how transparent you are in your discussions with your team, according to a TINYpulse survey. While more money and offering promotions are definitely things that can put a smile on an employee's face, what many people want is to know what is really going on with the company. Improving transparency at your business costs very little to no money, but it will go a long way toward making your employees happy. It is a low-cost, high-reward way to set up your employees for success in the new year.
Sure you should work on your financial plan, marketing strategies and stock counts as 2015 begins, but don't forget about making sure that your employees are happy.