By Ajay Kaul at AgreeYa Solutions
It is not enough for employees to simply like the work they do, they also want to be part of a company they love.
Employees often seek out companies that ensure financial stability, work-life balance, and career growth opportunities. Organizations that understand this can set themselves apart from the competition. At AgreeYa Solutions, we take company culture very seriously and have even been recognized as a dream company to work for in IT & software. In this article, we pull back the curtain and share how our commitment to employees have helped us secure top talent in the industry.
Organizations that are deemed a dream company to work for earn this recognition because they believe in the mantra that successful businesses need happy and healthy employees. Moving forward with this mantra will help you demonstrate commitment to your employees’ well-being and ensure a top-notch working environment.
This isn’t only beneficial for your employees, but also your organization. Various studies have shown that employees who are valued and taken care of by their organization deliver higher quality work. Further, many studies have seen a direct correlation between happy employees and happy customers. We all know that businesses need satisfied customers to be successful. But it all begins with happy employees.
To create a dream company culture for your employees, and even prospective employees, takes work. Based on our experience and the results we have witnessed in our organization, there are some best practices we can share to help promote employee productivity and uplift their spirits to continue to be happy and motivated at work.
Creating a dream company starts with a strong culture
Workplace culture says a lot about a company and how it treats its employees. Thus, the most important thing is to create a culture of support and treat your employees like individuals – recognizing their unique aptitudes and needs. Create an inclusive working environment that allows employees to leverage their talents and come together to deliver excellent results.
Establish a strong value system
Your organization’s value system should be driven by respect for your employees and customers. For example, at AgreeYa our foundation is built on integrity, commitment, advocacy, respect, and excellence (I-CARE). Once you have established your value system, share it with your team and customers and encourage buy-in from everyone.
Make diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) your pillars of success
Maximize the power of diversity and inclusion to drive superior business results and sustainable competitive advantage. Diversity, equity and inclusion are essential elements to maintaining a healthy workforce balanced by many different ethnicities, gender, age and education levels. Encourage a workplace where differences are recognized and celebrated. In addition, it is important to ensure that all hiring, promotion, termination, compensation, etc. decisions are made without bias.
Promote employee-centric policies to deliver excellence
Practicing employee-centric policies help foster employee productivity and growth. An employee-centric culture can also help maintain a high employee retention rate. Here is a list of a few guidelines that we use to put our employees first:
- Adopt an ideal workplace’s world-class standards.
- Offer a flexible working environment to ensure work-life balance.
- Benchmark employee policies yearly to stay one step ahead of general industry standards.
- Motivate your employees to provide referrals that impart a better sense of belonging.
- Keep your employees engaged and informed.
- Take feedback from employees to keep a real-time pulse on how they are doing.
Ensure consistent learning and development for the career growth of your employees
Whether your teams work virtually or in an office, ensure that learning and development are prioritized. Take concrete steps to guarantee that your employees have access to ongoing opportunities to enhance their skillset. This can include:
- Organizing role-specific virtual/in-person training: Plan customized training for your employees to foster holistic development. In-depth role-based training sessions will empower your employees to deliver better work.
- Providing interactive training and E-learning platforms: Leverage platforms like Microsoft and LinkedIn learning to make educational opportunities accessible to all employees – whether working from the office or virtually.
- Leveraging advanced technologies for the benefit of employees: Make best use of technology to ensure optimum employee productivity and data security for customers.
Continuously raise the bar by adopting industry best practices
Aim to constantly raise the bar and never limit yourself to conventional technologies and processes. Experimenting and evolving to keep your workforce updated about current industry trends goes a long way.
Prioritize employees’ physical and mental health
Your employees should be your priority. Regularly organize care seminars for your employees across the globe. Offer healthcare perks and incentives at par with industry standards. Here is the list of our unique initiatives that you can consider for ensuring employee well-being:
- Comprehensive medical insurance
- Special leaves for COVID-infected employees/emergency situations
- COVID-19/other emergency support team availability
- Available doctors for free consultations for employees and their family members
Apart from physical health, also focus on mental health. During the pandemic, we offered our employees several learning opportunities to improve company morale. Seminars can focus on a variety of mental health issues and ways to stay positive. To get the most out of them, create an environment where employees feel free and comfortable to talk openly and feel supported as they navigate through a struggle.
Do not keep fun in the backseat while working
People thrive in a workplace they love to come back to every day. Organize team-building exercises, fun parties, and festivities at the office. For employees working remotely, organize virtual team-building activities, online celebrations and festivals, and virtual games and quizzes to help create a strong bond while maintaining workplace camaraderie and friendships among colleagues.
Always keep the doors of communication open
Communication is key. Open communication is even more critical when most employees work remotely. Keep your employees informed all the time and encourage transparent and accessible communication. It is also important that the leadership team regularly interacts with the employees. To achieve this, you can leverage forums like town halls, reward and recognition programs, email, video meetings, and more.
Consider your employees as one big happy family
Employee engagement and team camaraderie are essential to work satisfaction. Employee engagement is the critical driver of business success in a competitive marketplace. The goal should be to have employees feel optimistic, team-oriented, solution-oriented and passionate about learning.
Closing notes
Continue to revisit and update your existing practices to ensure you offer the best working environment and add value to your workforce’s careers. Apart from providing a safe and nurturing working environment, ensure that the rewards and benefits are at par with industry standards.
Ajay Kaul is a visionary leader and trendsetter. As managing partner of AgreeYa Solutions, he has been instrumental in leading the company through solid growth and international expansion for the past 20 years. Kaul has three decades of experience building powerful and innovative solutions for businesses across various industries and verticals. His expertise and knowledge span across enterprise sales management, marketing and strategy, global delivery and mergers and acquisitions. Follow AgreeYa on social media @agreeyasolutions.
