Companies opt for different strategies to improve the productivity of the organization. However, one aspect, i.e., employee satisfaction, which is directly related to the organization’s productivity, is usually neglected. Employees are an essential part of an organization. If employees are satisfied only, then they can produce a high level of output. Dissatisfied employees don’t put any effort into achieving the organization’s goals and look for reasons to postpone the work.
They spend their energies and efforts to look for another job. Therefore, an organization must look for methods to improve its employees’ satisfaction level.
Table of Contents
Definition
Employee satisfaction can be defined as the contentment that employees get from their job. Employees can be considered satisfied by their job if the job meets all their needs and desires.
What is employee satisfaction?
Employee satisfaction is how happy, and content employees are from their job. Therefore, employee satisfaction can also be referred to as job satisfaction. Companies use different methods to learn about the satisfaction level of their employees.
Various factors influence employees’ satisfaction levels, such as salary, colleagues, workplace environment, management, flexibility to work, compensation, acknowledgment, and growth opportunities.
Different factors have different impacts on the satisfaction level of different employees. There will be employees in your organization who will feel satisfied and content when compensated handsomely for their work. On the other hand, some employees feel happy when they are given flexibility and freedom to do their work on their terms.
There is no doubt that happy and satisfied employees have better productivity as compared to unsatisfied employees. Employees’ satisfaction level matters a lot, especially in the fields where they directly interact with the customers. For example, in the area of sales, employees meet customers on a day-to-day basis.
They must listen to the requirements and queries of customers patiently and provide solutions without getting annoyed. Only an employee who is happy and satisfied with their job can keep their customers happy.
Therefore, if you notice that your organization’s productivity is decreasing, then analyzing & measuring the satisfaction level of the employees of your organization can provide you a solution.
Difference between employee satisfaction and employee engagement
Many times, people make the mistake of relating the two terms. Even though these terms are related to one another, but that doesn’t mean they can be used interchangeably. There is no doubt that both employee engagement and employee satisfaction are necessary for an organization’s success.
Employee satisfaction is related to the contentment of employees with their work. Whether the employees’ needs are met or not. The satisfaction of employees is about their overall work experience. The central point of employee satisfaction is how they feel at work and their relationship with their employers & their colleagues.
On the other hand, employee engagement is referred to as the involvement of employees with their work. The engagement level of employees is beyond their happiness and contentment.
It is about how committed they are with their work. An engaged employee is satisfied and happy employees, but a satisfied employee does not need to be an engaged employee. Therefore, having an engaged employee is better than having a satisfied employee.
Why employee satisfaction in the workplace matter?
If employees perform their tasks on time and without any complaints and you compensate them for their work, what is the need for employee satisfaction at the workplace? Why is it important for an employer to take care of the satisfaction level of his employees?
Employees are human beings. They are not like the other resources that you can put anywhere and use anytime and in any way you want. Your employees make your organization. Even though you are the organization’s owner, but they are the ones who turn your dreams and plans into reality.
Satisfied employees are also happy employees. They will do their work by putting their 100% effort. They will search for creative ways to improve their work. An employee who is satisfied with his work will not look for other jobs. They do their work honestly and are loyal to their organizations. Moreover, only a satisfied employee can keep customers satisfied. They respond to all the customers’ queries patiently and happily.
On the other hand, if employees don’t feel satisfied with their work, they will look for other jobs and spend most of their working hours searching for better jobs. An unsatisfied employee also creates a hostile environment in the organization. They don’t do their work on time, and because of that, projects get delayed.
Sometimes, these employees go extreme and take actions to sabotage the image of the organization. They discourage talented people from joining your organization and influence other employees to quit the job simultaneously. Such employees are easy to identify, and your organization is better off without them.
However, unsatisfied employees who don’t take extreme actions are difficult to identify. They also impact the productivity of the organization and affect the work environment of the organization. Therefore, an organization needs to keep an eye on its employee’s performance level and make efforts to keep them happy and content.
What are the factors that affect employee satisfaction?
Many factors affect the satisfaction level of your employees. However, not all factors affect the satisfaction level of all employees. One factor might affect the satisfaction level of one employee and might not affect another employee.
As an employer, you need to be aware of all the factors that can make your employees unsatisfied. You can use this knowledge to enhance the satisfaction of your employees.
The following are the factors that affect employee satisfaction
1. Respect
Respect is one of the main factors that affect the satisfaction level of employees. People don’t like to work in organizations where they are not treated with respect.
Whether your employee is a manager or a watchman, he will not be happy with their job if they are not treated with respect. Treating your employee with respect might cost you nothing, but it will have a significant impact on their satisfaction level.
2. Acknowledgment
Another factor that affects your employees’ satisfaction level is whether they are acknowledged for their work or not. You can’t expect your employees to give good performance if you are not rewarding or recognizing their achievements.
Appreciating your employees from time to time will encourage them to work hard, and needless to say, appreciating your employees will cost you nothing.
3. Compensation
Being compensated well for the efforts that they put in their work is one of the main driving forces for many employees. An employee will always feel unsatisfied if they are underpaid for their work.
Therefore, make sure that you have a fair compensation policy if you want to keep your employees happy.
4. Empowerment
Empowerment means the freedom that you give to employees to make decisions and perform the work in their way. Empowering employees can get you great results in the satisfaction level of your employees.
Also, their sense of responsibility will improve if they make their own decisions and act on them.
5. Growth Opportunities
People don’t like to be in the same place for a long time. The same applies for jobs. Your employees will get bored if they do the same work and don’t get any chance to grow.
Providing opportunities that challenge your employees and offer them opportunities to learn something can improve the satisfaction level of your employees. In addition to this, paid skill courses can also boost the satisfaction level of employees.
How to measure satisfaction?
Measuring employee satisfaction is essential not only for the well-being of an employee but also for an organization’s prosperity. Employee satisfaction surveys can be used to assess the level of satisfaction of employees. These surveys can help you determine how your employees feel about your organization. Different strategies can be implemented based on the results obtained from the surveys.
However, creating a survey that will get you particular results is also necessary. For example, while creating a survey focusing on points that you can control is essential. Otherwise, the output of surveys will be scattered and difficult to interpret.
The issues that you can cover in an employee satisfaction survey can be the level of stress, expectations of management, relationship with coworkers, views about empowerment, communication effectiveness, and level of growth.
The points, like expectations of employees, should be avoided to include in an employee satisfaction survey because an organization cannot meet the expectations of all employees.
The issues that have been prevalent in the organization for a very long time and the problems that most of the organization’s employees have should be addressed through employee satisfaction surveys.
Ways to improve employee satisfaction
Satisfied employees are an asset to an organization. They not only keep customers happy but also create a positive work environment in the organization.
However, many employers make the mistake of thinking that employees’ satisfaction level is merely related to compensation. Attractive compensation might make you happy temporarily, but it can not guarantee long term satisfaction.
In this section, you will learn ways to adapt to increase your employees’ satisfaction level.
1. Give your employees a break from mundane routine
Routine kills the spark. Your enthusiastic employee can become disinterested if he is supposed to do the same work every day. However, as an employer, you cannot think of some new activity every day to entertain your employees. But you can think of small ways to surprise your employees.
For example, you can plan a meal with your employees on the last working day of the week.
Or merely ordering pizza for lunch can refresh the mood of your employees. In addition to this, activities like job rotation can also help break the routine for your employees.
2. Create a growth atmosphere
People spend a large part of their lives at work. Even though jobs are a source of income for people. But they always look for opportunities to grow and expand their knowledge.
Creating an environment where employees are provided with opportunities to learn new things and grow not only professionally but also personally can surely improve the satisfaction level of the employees.
Provide skills training to your employees and acknowledge and appreciate when they complete a course or achieve something.
3. Create a stress-free environment
Stress hampers the creativity of individuals. The productivity of people decreases when they are under stress. Stress also harms the health of your employees.
Therefore, the more stressed your employees are, the more will be the absenteeism. Therefore, encourage a stress-free environment in the organization. Implement anti-stress policies and interact with employees personally and encourage them to take a break if they are too stressed out.
4. Cut the unnecessary tasks short
Most of the employees’ time at work is wasted in attending meetings and doing the unimportant administration work, such as submitting weekly or daily progress reports.
These tasks can be avoided to make better use of the time of the employees. However, apply other ways to fulfill the purpose of meetings and reports. For example, you can share information by sending an email rather than conducting meetings.
5. Empower your employees
You can improve the satisfaction of your employees incredibly by giving power in their hands. People feel good when they can decide when and how they want to work.
Empowering your employees will not only improve their satisfaction level but also make them more responsible for their work.
Conclusion
Employee satisfaction is an abstract concept. The satisfaction level of each employee is different. Measuring and analyzing the employee satisfaction level from time to time is necessary.
The employee satisfaction strategies might get you positive results in improving the satisfaction level of your employees. But they might not work for all of your employees.
Therefore, having a personal connection with your employees is essential, so that you can learn what they think and how they feel and what you can do to enhance their satisfaction level.
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