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How to Improve Employee Morale Amidst Uncertainty

Employers and their employees have been working under a very unique set of circumstances over the last few years.

With the intersection of stressors including the pandemic recovery, the impact of the resulting economic downturn, political divisions, and social unrest, it may seem like a plunge in employee morale is inevitable, but is it? The short answer is it doesn’t have to be.

Managing morale in the face of challenges can be difficult, but it can also provide an opportunity for self-examination, realignment, affirmation, celebration, team building, and growth. It’s time to focus on resetting how you look at employee morale.

Self-Examination

Moments of crisis can be a great opportunity for self-examination. Leaders should take this time to think about whether their planned goals still make sense for their organization, their team, and themselves. Other employees can benefit from self-examination as well. The goals you set prior to any bumps in the road should be revised after going through any challenges. While working on setting new goals, look for opportunities for growth and innovation. Ask yourself: How have things changed and how can we come out the other side better and stronger?

With the economic downturn businesses may need to operate with a much smaller staff than ideal. Longer hours and additional responsibilities, coupled with pay and hiring freezes can lead to lower morale, however, opportunities still do exist.

Actively encourage and welcome creativity. Specifically invite employees who you usually don’t hear from for feedback. Quiet employees aren’t necessarily employees who lack great thoughts and ideas, but rather may be shy or uncomfortable speaking up. Consider developing a cross-training program where employees can learn from each other and explore other areas and positions within the company. This allows for strengthened institutional knowledge, better teamwork through increased understanding, and potential career growth leading to increased retention. It’s a win-win with minimal cost or risk.

Realignment

Now that you’ve thought critically about where you are and where you want to be, it’s time to realign your actions so they complement your goals. Every decision should support the end result for your team, department, and the organization as a whole. Communication is key. Employees can only support and work towards goals when they are informed and feel as though they can create change. Communicate change with honesty and transparency. No one likes bad news, but it is better received when employees know they are fully informed and can believe what they are being told. When employees are fully informed, they are more likely to think of themselves as part of the solution and act accordingly.

Affirmation

Affirmation isn’t just for times when morale is low, it can be a great way to motivate your team while increasing productivity and engagement. Authenticity matters. Affirm and reaffirm the truth. Ensure that your employees feel heard, seen, and most importantly, valued. Reassure employees the company is financially stable if that is the case. The point is to provide as much certainty as possible during an otherwise uncertain time.

Recognition/Celebration

During periods of lower morale, identifying genuine opportunities to celebrate team members is critical (and fun!) This is another opportunity to think outside of the box. With the economic downturn, many employers are not able to spend outside of their budgets. Additionally, the popularity of remote work, makes gathering together to celebrate in person a challenge. Neither of these things mean recognition and celebration cannot take place. This is your opportunity to get creative. Send emails highlighting a team member who went above and beyond, add a section to your internal newsletter (e.g., “The Kudos Korner”) where anyone can shower their colleagues with praise for anything they appreciate about them, host virtual celebratory sessions handing out “awards” for great customer service, teamwork, enthusiasm, etc. How you recognize and celebrate your employees isn’t as important as prioritizing recognizing and celebrating each other. This can help to boost employee confidence, engagement, and teamwork.

Team Building

When morale is low, it is easy for teamwork to follow suit. Strengthening the sense of team can be a critical component to reviving flagging morale. Feeling supported by colleagues can make a significant difference in surviving crises. Teams that feel connected and accountable to each other are more likely to boost each other up during tough times. Along with encouraging recognition and celebration of fellow team members, team-building exercises can be helpful. Consider intentional joint “breaks” from work where socializing is the only point of coming together. This “break” is not about celebrating or fun in the traditional sense of the word, the focus is connecting through conversation.

Growth

While an economic downturn resulting in competing crises may not seem like an ideal setting for growth, it is rife with opportunity for just that. Quantitative growth may not be realistic for some, but being able to grow in other ways can lead to improved employee engagement and spark the innovation necessary to take your organization to the next level.

Curious to learn more about enhancing employee engagement? Check out this post: Performance Management Trends That Lead to Increased Engagement.

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