Keeping Employees Cool in the Heat of the Summer

This time of year employees are itching to be outside so they can enjoy the weather with their friends and families.  More than likely you’ve had plenty of vacation requests. We all know that vacation is a vital piece of keeping a healthy employee and environment.  It's important to keep employees happy by granting those requests that are reasonable.  It's also important for a productive work place to have employees that know that they have a manager who is going to recognize their need for some time away to maintain a healthy balanced life.

Keep the work force and your clients happy by maintaining an organized system that allows your employees the ability to take advantage of getting away from the workplace without disrupting the actual workplace. At Herndon Recognition, we utilize a sign up calendar and submit vacation requests to management. The department manager then approves or suggests alternate dates to ensure there will be enough team members scheduled to attend to ongoing project details while the employee is on leave. This reduces stress for the company as well as the employee because it allows the employee to feel confident their immediate work is being attended to in their absence.

One of the best ways we communicate in the office environment while on vacation is to have the vacationing employee set up email auto responder and voicemail.  This communicates to clients and associates that the employee is away on vacation, listing dates and offering other team members to go to for urgent matters in their absence.

There’s no questioning that a rested, balanced worker is going to be more productive and contribute more than a disgruntled, over-worked employee. Create and maintain a system that will allow employees the much needed break from the workplace. Co-workers will be more likely to pick up the slack of the ongoing projects for their team members while away when they know they can be confident that they will be given the same support when they go on vacation. A well planned vacation can truly rejuvenate an employee.

For more information on how you can improve the workplace atmosphere, visit www.herndonrecognition.com.

Include Your Employees in the Conversation

Employee recognition is not just about showering your employees with gifts or bonuses.  It’s more importantly about making sure that they know that you value their contributions to the company.  Not only is it essential to receive feedback from your employees, but giving them a voice can bring new ideas to the table that could greatly improve your business.

Next time you hold a meeting about a new idea or the progress of the business, invite the employees in on the conversation.  Give them the opportunity to share their ideas on what they think can be improved.  You may find that their suggestions bring on a new perspective that you would not have otherwise considered.  It can mean a lot to the employee that you are including them and they will appreciate that you value their opinion. Times are still tough and chances are you have too much on your plate to think of every solution to every problem.  You hired your employees because they have the talent and expertise to keep your business running.  Put trust into their talent by opening up dialog so that valuable ideas on how to improve the quality and efficiency of your business are shared.

Improving the communication between you and your employees can make a world of difference and this is just one way to do just that.  Not only will you be getting value out of different perspectives but your employee will also get a deeper understanding of the business.  That knowledge alone can help them to be even more successful at their job.

For more information on how you can improve your employee recognition program, visit www.herndonrecognition.com.