There has been a lot of talk lately about how disengaged employees are in the American workplace.
A recent New York Times article reported that salary and benefits are all well and good, but happiness is really the key:
"What was interesting, though, was that the majority [of employees] cared a lot about present benefits (such as doing something interesting with people they like) in their current job, but they expected not to care very much about those things in their future jobs. When envisioning themselves in the future, they predicted that they would almost solely be driven by delayed benefits like salaries."
It's the old adage of money does not buy happiness. Most people will agree that what they think of first when looking for a new job is money, but they need to think deeper than salary and so do employers!
As you are hiring new employees, keep in mind Topgrading. Topgrading allows you to gain a fuller understanding of candidates before you hire anyone.
Make sure you put the right people in the right seats to help employees realize their full potential. When employees feel happy doing what they are doing, they do it well.
You can also measure employee happiness using an Employee Health Index. Every week, ask your employees how they feel about their workload and their stress level.
One of our resident experts, Jessica Wishart, wrote a blog explaining why money won't motivate or make your employees happy; I would encourage you to read it!
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