Building a Good and Positive Work Environment

Having a conducive working environment is a two-way street. It involves active participation of both the employer and the employees. The employees have to come together to give their best to the company and ensure that they are also at their best behavior whenever they are working. At the same time, the employer needs to ensure that the workplace is a suitable place for growth and productivity. This involves a lot of things such as a good living wage and trainings.

However, as a leader aiming for increased productivity and growth in your company, there are a few things you can do.

1. Give Quality Onboarding: most companies do not prioritize quality onboarding process and trainings. They just undergo recruitment and give out offices. However, onboarding and welcoming new recruits is more than that. New recruits need to be integrated into their new roles and also into the company as a whole. They need to know where they fit in the big picture.

This is where quality onboarding comes in. The first two or three weeks of a new recruit should be dedicated to incorporating them into the business of your company. That is how to build a good and positive work environment. Mere recruiting, giving verbal job description and a cubicle is not how it works. Have a scheduled time for onboarding. Also, be prepared to train new recruits. Understand that a quality CV does not equate good experience and your new recruits don’t have this experience so they need to know how things work from you. During the onboarding process, you should also create an avenue for social interaction so the new recruits can interact freely with the old employees and build a healthy work relationship.

2. Prioritize Communication and Expression: as a leader, it is very possible to get so overwhelmed with getting the job done that you don’t pay attention to your employees’ silence. This can be very unhealthy for your company. Part of a good and positive work environment is encouraging free communication and expression. Build a space where every employee can express their mind respectfully even when it is against the general consensus or what you as the leader have in mind.

If your employees don’t feel the work environment is safe, they will not communicate and instead of progress, you have a bunch of angry, unmotivated and grumbling employees working for you.

Also, free expression creates bonds between employees and creates a sense of community that helps every employee to draw strength from the other for increased productivity at work. This also helps new recruits to adjust to their new roles easily and enjoy their new roles.

3. Create Room for Growth: no one wants to be stuck in a particular space or role forever, not even your last ‘employee of the month’. Everyone want growth and they want to progress. They wat to be able to look back and see how far they have come. This is the innate desire of every old employee and new recruit.

As a leader, it is your job to meet these needs. Catering for the needs of your employees is part of building a positive work environment. This happens by creating room for growth. Let every employee know that if they do the work, they will not be denied their reward. Let them know that promotion is on the table if they do the work. Let them know that they can have a good leave when the time comes and not be indirectly punished for it. Let them know that you think about them ad you also want them to increase in capacity not just for the sake of your company but also for their own good.

Also, direct your employees to opportunities. Give them a chance to go on that business trip. Give them a chance to give an address at that conference. Let them head that part-time unit or department. Let them take the lead in planning the next conference. Giving your employees a chance to grow and shine is a very effective way of building a positive work environment for everyone.

Building a good and positive work environment is very important and directly relevant to how effective you can be as a leader and even as a company. Giving quality onboarding and trainings, prioritizing communication and free expression, and creating a room for growth and opportunities are sure effective ways to build a good work environment. You can get started today.