During this recent period of economic hardship, a frequent question from our clients is “What can we do to boost staff morale without breaking the bank?” This is a great question at any time, but it applies especially now that many companies have gone through staff reductions, which always affects morale. Below is a list of compiled tips that you may find helpful in giving your employees the morale boost they need.
Ideas to boost morale at low cost
Just saying “thank you” doesn’t cost a penny and goes a long way. There are many creative ways to say thank you like:
* Write a thank you note
* Award a certificate of appreciation
* Leave a thank you note in the employee’s work area
* Announce your appreciation through the company’s paging system
* Publicly express your appreciation at a company meeting or event
Random Acts of Kindness (similar to the holiday favorite Secret Santa). Employees who choose to participate choose the name of another participating employee and at some point that week they do something for the chosen person. Some ideas are to introduce the chosen person, answer her phone, bring her a flower or bring her a donut and a cup of coffee.
Host a silly contest like; The ugliest tie, the dumbest socks, the ugliest pants or the ugliest sweater and award prizes to the winners.
Have “late Monday”. If possible, allow your employees to arrive an hour late on a Monday morning once a month, or leave an hour early on a Friday.
“Noon Movie” sponsored. Once a month (depending on employee schedules), set up a VCR in the dining room and show a funny movie at lunch. If time is limited, show reruns of “Seinfeld,” “Fraser,” or other comedies. You can also have employees sign up to bring their favorite movies to share with their coworkers.
Have a “Guess the Baby” contest. Ask the staff to bring in baby photos and hang them on the wall. Give a prize to the employees who can guess the most correctly.
Do non-monetary office groups at high-profile events like the Oscars, the Superbowl, or the NBA Championship.
Host a potluck, which encourages employee participation and is profitable. Also, there are a plethora of variations such as; breakfast or lunch, holiday themes, cuisine from different cultures, color-themed meals, or a potluck of desserts.
Installed in “Rincón del humor”. Designate a section of the office as the place for humor, and encourage employees to post cartoons, jokes, or other funny material. Buy some disposable cameras and ask employees to take random candid photos of themselves and add them to the “Humor Corner.” (Make sure you get permission from the employee in the photo before posting.)
Send birthday and/or anniversary cards to employees’ homes. This simple and sweet gesture will remind employees that you care about them as people.
Take your employee out for a cup of coffee, or if you have multiple employees, bring coffee and bagels one morning for the whole group.
Many of the suggestions above are contests, and of course, contests should have prizes. The prizes do not have to be elaborate and there are many low cost prizes, such as:
* A couple of movie tickets.
* An hour or two of paid time off
* Leave one hour early or arrive one hour late
* Grant an extended lunch period
* A special parking for a day, week or month
* Place a photo of the winners on the “Mood Board”
* Print award certificates
* $10.00 gift cards to a local coffee shop, yogurt shop, or gas station.
* Flowers or a plant for your desk(s)
* Box of chocolates or a jar of candy/trail mix