As a busy line manager, If you actually had a spare 30 minutes in your workday, what do you usually do with it?
You may use it as an opportunity to catch up on your inbox, chat to a colleague, make a few calls or review an important document…. However, here’s a better way to make use of that free 30 minutes.
Spend time with your direct reports!
Why not spend the time having informal chats with your team to improve your employee engagement levels? Spend time with them, listen and learn. Ask them about their days, their weeks and projects that they’re working on.
Invest time in your people, people!
In our latest employee engagement blog, we explore some of the ways that you can use a spare 30 minutes to build stronger relationships with your team and help them to be more engaged with their work.
Celebrate Successes and Achievements
Sitting down for a quick informal chat with your team or a team member is an excellent opportunity to recognise and discuss the things that they’ve done really well in the previous month talk about areas for potential improvement (without it turning into a heavy 1-2-1) and listen to them.
It’s all about the magic effect of showing your appreciation, which is hugely important for employee engagement. Staff who feel valued and recognised are much more likely to go the extra mile for you and this can motivate them to hit even higher heights in the run up to your next chat!
This tip fits nicely into the Esteem element of Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs (which is all about recognition and pride) but as you’ll see, informal chats with staff can also feed into other aspects of our pyramid too.
Talk About How You Can Help
Informal chats are a good chance to check in with your staff and see if there are any areas that you can help them to feel more engaged with their work. This is really important if you’ve noticed any change in the attitude or behaviour that could indicate that they’re becoming disengaged from their role and the company. Remember too we always say that disengaged people don’t walk around advertising it, you’ll need to often draw it out of them.
Staff that feel appreciated and listened to will feel more invested in both their job and the company itself, and will want to help to make things be as great as possible.
It all boils down to the fact that spending a bit more time chatting and listening to your employees can potentially make a big difference to your company’s productivity and indeed its bottom line.
Why not try the “Recognition Cafe” approach?
Instead of having discussions in a meeting room (or another formal area), make the experience a whole lot more light by setting up a “Recognition Cafe” area in your building. This is an informal space to go for a cuppa and relaxed chat with members of your team.
The laid back feel of this area will help to build stronger rapport which might not feel as daunting to employees compared to a more formal setting. This should encourage them to open up more and feel valued.
Informal chats can be the perfect platform to show your interest in your staff and your appreciation for their hard work, and get an idea of how they see themselves in their role and within the company. The end result? A more actively engaged team and an all round better and kinder boss.
What are you waiting for? Get that 30 minutes started!