7 ways to improve employee satisfaction

My father is a CGA (Certified General Accountant) and has his own practice. He has four accountants working under him, including me and is always concerned about his employees' satisfaction with their jobs. He read an article on "employee satisfaction" and shared it with me, which I thought I should share with the class.

The article states that since employess represent the companies they work for, it is very important for the employer to make sure that the employee is happy with the job he/she is doing. Happy employees are a major contributor to happy customers. Following are the seven ways listed by the article:

1. Employees should be given more control - Customized work schedules and workstations are a great way to make the employee feel the control. Today, people have demading shcedules outside of work too and employees who have a good balance over their professional and personal lives are more happy than the ones who don't. Making sure the employee can maintain this balance is very important for the employee so he/she can fully concentrate on his/her work. The articles lists some examples explaining how employers can give employees more control over their work.
2. Decrease the stress arising from commuting - When employees are stressed while commuting, they arrive work in a lot of stress, which consequently affects their work and the company as well. Late arriving policies should be reviewed and made less punishing if possible because that also greatly affects their work.
3. Don't waste time - The article discusses that having shorter and more efficient meetings will encourage the employees stick to the agenda and their work. Some examples stated in the article were to have meetigs without chairs where employees have to stand the entire meeting, making phonecalls before lunchtime and at the end of the day to avoid unncessary chitchat, etc.
4. Encourage socialization - When employees are able to see and interact with each other, they feel more happy at work. The article brielfy discusses how employers can enocurage socialization. For example, celebrating holidays and birthdays, having lunch together, spending some time outside of office hours in volunteer programs, etc.
5. Encouraging good health - Employees perform better if they are in good health. The most imporant way, as stated by the article, is to educate employees about healthy lifestyles and how to bring about the necessary positive changes. Employers should have a kitchen with a refrigerator and microwave which can help employees in making healthy meals at work.
6. Encourage an environment of growth - According to the article, jobs are not only a "source of income", they are also "a venue for employees to grow and learn". If employees are not given opportunities to try new tasks and learn new skills, they will get easily bored from their routine job and consequently lose motivation. "Celebrating accomplishments" is also very important to make employees feel motivated and appreciated.
7. Surprise your employees - Surprises add to employee motivation and happiness. Small treats by employers make employees feel their work, contributions and they themselves are appreciated by their employees. Small gifts on accomplishing an important task or an ocasion are also a great way of showing appreciation.

http://www.inc.com/guides/201105/7-ways-to-improve-employee-satisfaction_pagen_2.html