Warmer weather usually spells a summer slump in the office — longer vacations, shorter workdays, lowered productivity or less team morale. But as companies and employees battle the rut, experts say stagnant work levels in the summer can lead to larger effects into the fall.
“There’s more to do in the summer, and I think it leads to thinking about possibilities,” said Kelly McDonald, president of McDonald Marketing. “Things seem possible to people in the summer, which can not only lead to lowered productivity but more job hopping.”
The solutions and actions companies can take to boost productivity, company morale, and, ultimately, retain more people are free, said McDonald, author of “How to Work With and Lead People Not Like You: Practical Solutions for Today’s Diverse Workplace.”
“There are things you can do that don’t cost anything, and anyone can do them,” she said. The solutions are as simple as having conversations and making company resources more readily available.
Recognition is a highly effective, often-overlooked strategy
Recognition, often overlooked yet highly effective, is a crucial tactic companies can use to get employees in a high-performing groove.
“If you’re going to motivate employees, the first thing you do is tell your workers how important they are to the team and the organization,” McDonald said. “Everybody likes to feel important, but it’s critical if you want people to be engaged, happy, stay at your company and work productively with others.”
Summer is the perfect time to recognize employees and have open conversation between managers and employees, since there’s typically more downtime, McDonald said.
Another way to make employees feel recognized is through offering special flexibility and rewards to boost motivation and productivity, says Christina Gialleli, director of people operations at Epignosis, a learning management platform.
With vacation travel, offering flexible work arrangements or remote work options to allow employees to work from different locations and balance their work schedules with family commitments is a way to start, Gialleli said.
Some organizations offer company-wide vacations to combat dips in productivity. Starting last year, accounting and consulting firm PwC gave its U.S. employees two annual company-wide, week-long breaks in July and in December, on top of annual vacation time.
Conduct a ‘stay interview’ with employees
Providing recognition and giving feedback are the foundation for retaining employees. Gialleli says scheduling time to discuss an employee’s performance, giving guidance where needed, and offering training and career advancement opportunities, especially during the summer, is fundamental to retention as companies go into the holiday season.
“Recognition for their achievements and positive reinforcement are the best ways to increase motivation and productivity,” she said.
McDonald said companies need to conduct “stay interviews” during the summer season to combat low productivity. Stay interviews not only provide recognition and make employees feel important, but she says it’s a no-cost solution for HR professionals and companies balancing money constraints.
“It’s the opposite of the exit interview, it doesn’t cost anything, and it pays huge dividends,” McDonald said. “Every employer wants a no-cost solution, so the ‘stay interview’ is about making sure that you’re not waiting until somebody is out the door before you share with them the value they bring to the company.”
In a stay interview, a manager chats with employees, starting with the best people, and assesses their job satisfaction to understand why they stay at the company, McDonald said.
“We know why people leave — more money, new opportunities, they feel like they’ve plateaued, but we don’t necessarily know why people stay, especially your best people,” McDonald said.
If you understand why a top employee stays at your company, then you can understand what makes your company a good place to work for and then use that for all of your employees, she said.
“This helps build trust and increases communication between employees and management, so it’s a mutual conversation,” McDonald said. “Trust and communication that are established in stay interviews will, ultimately, lead to increased productivity and morale.”
Source: CNBC
