Morale: the mental and emotional condition (as of
enthusiasm, confidence, or loyalty) of an individual or group with regard to
the function or tasks at hand (Merriam-Webster). The key to this
definition is the word loyalty.
We have talked in depth about spending
the time and money to get the right candidate in the door. How do we keep our
investment? Employee retention and morale are interchangeable. 59% of workers who believe they are paid below market still
report job satisfaction (PayScale). High morale equals
employee loyalty, which in turn means higher retention rates. Morale is the foundation of the Communication Center.
Many
times, an agency is in denial when it comes to employee morale or simply does
not devote enough time to increase morale because they are focused on other
issues such as software and training. Just as it is important to take a
critical look at retention rates, it is equally important to look out for
indications of low morale. According to Supervision Magazine,
here are some signs of low morale:
* Increased absenteeism
* Bad-mouthing among employees is
commonplace
* Growing friction among factions
* Limited socializing among employees
* High incidence of employee complaints
and/or grievances
* Increased appearance of graffiti in
the workplace
* Obvious boredom on the job
* Problems with litter and property
damage
* Growing incidents of insubordination
* An unusual number of transfer requests
* The absence of laughter in the
workplace
Although
problems with litter and property damage are not typical of a Communication
Center, the other points on the list are indicative of low morale. Low morale
not only affects employee retention but also affects productivity. “According
to the Gallup Organization, disengaged workers had 37% higher absenteeism, 49%
more accidents, and 60% more errors and defects. In organizations with low
employee engagement scores, they experienced 18% lower productivity, 16% lower
profitability, 37% lower job growth, and 65% lower share price over time” (Huffington Post).
Measuring
Employee Satisfaction
In
order to boost morale, an agency has to know the areas where they are lacking.
The most common way to measure employee satisfaction is through an anonymous
survey. It must be emphasized that the survey is truly anonymous and there is
no way for management to track the responses. Although there are a plethora of
companies that provide services to measure morale that even caters to law
enforcement, there are several free ways to create a survey. The first is to
have the old-fashioned paper survey. Although paper is antiquated, it is
comforting to an employee that there is no diabolical, mysterious way to track
their responses. There are other free digital options such as SurveyMonkey or
Google Forms. Whichever option that is chosen, the responses need to be
examined individually to accurately determine the results.
Key
Question in Employee Satisfaction Surveys
Committing
the time and possibly the expense if that agency chooses to hire a professional
organization, is simply a waste if the questions do not aim to get at the heart
of the issue(s). What are some key questions to ask? Your list can be more
in-depth or limited, however, here are some suggestions:
1. Do
you enjoy the culture (or atmosphere) of the Communications Division?
2. I
feel as if I am valued by my supervisor.
3. Do
you feel valued in the job that you do?
4. I
feel as if important information is communicated to me in an effective and
timely manner.
5. Do
you feel like you have the adequate resources to perform your job effectively?
6. Do
you feel you receive adequate training when you were hired?
7. I
feel as if I have a voice in important issues that affect me like scheduling
and new software.
8. Do
you feel you receive adequate ongoing education training?
9. Do
you feel the workload is adequately distributed?
10. I
feel that my responsibilities are clearly defined along with my line of
supervision.
11. Do
you feel connected to your coworkers?
12. Do
you feel you and your coworkers perform effectively as a team?
13. Do
you feel that your supervisor values your knowledge?
14. Do
you feel that your supervisor values your feedback?
15. Do
you feel that your other talents are being utilized by the agency?
16. I
am likely to refer a friend to work here.
17. There
are ample opportunities for growth within the agency.
18. My
supervisor has recognized me for a job well done in the past month.
19. How
likely would you be to leave for a 10% raise?
20. I feel
when I make a complaint to my supervisor, it is taken seriously and they take
action.
The
typical rating scale is of course 1 to 10. However, a broad rating scale may
not be the best option for a small agency. With a broad scale and a limited
number of responses, the true reasons behind the lack of morale may not be immediately
evident due to a wide variety of answers. Utilizing a smaller scale, such as
simply 1 to 5 might be prudent to accurately analyze the results. Analyzation
of the results will help ascertain the core morale problems and pointed
solutions.
The
Cost of Morale
Don’t
have an employee incentive program? It is time to institute one! 84% of HR Leaders say an employee recognition program helps
employee engagement (Globoforce). Merit programs and raises are an
anomaly of the past. Government agencies can no longer afford to grant merit
raises or incentives. However, It is suggested that 1% of a
budget should be used towards an employee rewards program. “HR leaders who have programs funded at 1 percent or more of
payroll are more likely to agree recognition programs are fully aligned with
the organization’s people strategy – meaning tied to important business metrics
such as retention rate of critical employees, strength of company
values, and employee happiness. Additionally, compared to cost-saving recognition
programs like “e-thanks,” programs at 1 percent or more of payroll are 86
percent more likely to be rated as good or excellent” (BusinessWire). One
percent is extremely nominal (i.e. $500K budget equals $500) and used wisely,
could go a long way. When presenting a budget proposal, include it with an
incentive program. Be prepared to have documentation exactly how the incentive
program will be administered. Additionally, if you have a union they may
require an Incentive Program policy to ensure equal distribution.
Although
$500 does not seem like a great deal of money, it can be used for other
incentives than the traditional “employee of the month” or “employee of the
quarter.” For example, one company created a rewards program based on points.
Each employee is given 20 points a month to give to their coworkers as
recognition for a job well done on a work chat channel (i.e. Slack, Google
Chat, etc). Once an employee has accumulated 15 points, they can turn them in
for a gift card, or just save them up for a larger gift card. The low-tech way
of accomplishing this could be done with poker chips. In order to simplify the
chip system, ideally there should be a different color for each month, however,
at least 2 colors would suffice.
Delegate
some of those funds to individual squads who then, in turn, do something unique
for their shift. For example, have a “Welcome to Work” day and with juice and
coffee at the door along with a sign “Our squad is #1” or something of that
nature (Insperity). The
shift supervisor can also give out “themed” thanks with candy such as
Lifesavers, Million Dollar candy bars, Smarties, and PayDay candy bars. A thank
you note along with a candy bar in their mailbox or randomly left on their desk
leaves a huge impact on the employee.
We
Have No Funding for an Incentive Program
There are
many ways to reward employees for free. Remember, all those fantastic ideas to
have fun during NTW week? Why not continue some of them throughout the year.
One classic reward to is to give out coupons for some kind of
privilege, i.e. jeans for a day, business casual for a day, etc. The caveat is
to make sure that the coupons do not have an indefinite expiration date. My old
agency used a laminated “nut card” that had a picture of Mr. Peanut and
allocated one per supervisor. When the employee redeemed their “nut card” they
had to give it back to the supervisor. When I gave out a “nut card”, I made
sure to remind the employee that the sooner they used it the sooner I could
reward another employee. Do not make the coupon or card virtual. The employee
needs to physically hold their reward in hand to make that psychological
connection that they are truly being appreciated.
Recognition
Another
way is to task management staff with regularly recognizing
employees. Employees who claim their managers regularly
acknowledge them for good work are 5 times more likely to stay (Qualtrics). Employee recognition must be consistent. For
example, supervisors must recognize an employee once a week and each manager
once a month. The recognition does not have to be fancy, but a
simple Division email describing what the employee did in particular and maybe
even a copy of the tape. Supervisors can also leave random post-it notes
thanking someone for a great job in unusual places for their employees as a
surprise. Remember, when we “reward” good behavior the person is more likely to
repeat the same behavior pattern.
Another
free way to recognize employees and boost morale is to create a weekly reward
or recognition that includes the employees. I stole this idea from a manager
who described passing around a huge bone and how his employees took pride in
having that silly bone on their desks. I created the “Big Dawg” of the week. It
was simply a picture of a bulldog that I put on the employee’s desk for the
entire week in recognition of doing a good job. Their reward was to leave 5
minutes early on their Friday. After their week was up, they had to select
someone else from the squad that they felt did an extraordinary job and then
give specific examples (to avoid them picking their friend). We stood up on the
Communications floor and passed the “Big Dawg” sign like an Olympic Torch with
the outgoing employee explaining why they chose the next person.
“Shout
out” boards are another way for employees to recognize each other, which can be
the highest form of flattery. The “board” can be a refrigerator and magnets or
a designated space. Have a creative form available by the board/space so an
employee can feel welcome to give someone a compliment at the spur of the
moment or have the form available on the computer for those who prefer to type
or do not want their handwriting to be recognized. There is an advantage in
making the “shout outs” be anonymous. If a compliment is anonymous, it ensures
that there is no whispering that two people are giving each other compliments
because they are friends.
Foster
Teamwork While Boosting Morale
Another
free way to boost morale is to create healthy competition between the shifts.
For example, have a coloring contest or a craft project like painted rocks to
cheer up the outside of the Communications Center. Another way is to have each
squad or shift decorate a console with the corresponding holiday. Since there a
holiday practically every month, having a theme would not be a challenge.
Although the agency may not be able to award the winner with a small gift card,
bragging rights are often enough incentive to spur the competition.
Although
“Bring Your Pet to Work Day” is not an option for most agencies (but is a huge
morale booster), there are alternatives. For example, have a goldfish in a bowl
(initial investment about $10-15) for each squad. Have an indoor plant for each
squad. These type of living things are inexpensive but gives each squad the
chance to bond with each other and nurture.
Create
a space where the squad can take funny candid pics of each other and then paste
it on the board. You could even modify that a bit and have squads try and take
pics of people on other squads and then paste it on the board and perhaps title
it “Caught In The Act.”
One
thing that I did with my squad was to have Tijuana Tuesday together. Everyone
from the squad would order Tijuana Flats on Taco Tuesday. One person would be
designated to pick up the order and although we were working, we all ate
together as a squad. There might have been 1 or 2 people that did not order
with us because they were either dieting or were tight on money. However, what
was awesome to see was occasionally either a single person or a couple people
pitch in a couple of bucks to pay for that person that was a little short that
week to make sure they were included in our family meal. For those who came in
early from midnights or stayed over on days, they knew about our tradition on
evening shift and would either order with us (days) or leave us money so they
could have tacos when they came in (mids). Even the dieters would heat their
food up at the same time and eat with us. It was funny to see that people on
the squad no longer liked having Tuesdays off and missing our taco day
together. Tacos definitely created comradery and teamwork on the shift.
Inclusion
Finally,
make sure that everyone is feels included- from the new guy to supervisors. For
example, at every shift change, I would have a “spotlight” feature that I would
put out bi-weekly on a single person. The spotlight would start with either a
new person or a new person on the shift that would be like a mini-biography.
After I was done with the new people, I would move on to my veterans, being
sure to include at least a fact or two from their childhood that no one knew.
Supervisors are usually the ones who are tasked with recognition, so make sure
that they are recognized for a job well done as well. We all want a pat on the
back every now and then! Finally, ask your employees how you can increase
morale. Some of their suggestions will undoubtedly be brilliantly creative.
Please
contact us to assist your agency with a morale survey or for more free ways to
boost morale!