Workplace Happiness and the Rise of the Concierge Employee Experience

By
Allison Christine
·
September 27, 2018

There are so many to-do’s cluttering our employees’ minds on any given day: remember to collect the dry cleaning; choose a good place to grab a quick lunch; decide who is going to pick up the kids from childcare, and so on. To navigate all the stressors inflicted by work and daily life is no easy task, and that is why companies know that providing a concierge employee experience is crucial to the retention of great talent. When an employee comes to work with ease of mind and less personal and professional stress on their plate, they will perform to the best of their ability and, consequently, help move the business forward. Here are some practical (and easily doable!) ideas to ensure that you are giving the best possible service to your first ‘customers’, your employees:

Build loyalty

An employee will have trouble being happy and productive when they are stressed out about a professional or personal issue. Take time to listen to their needs and assist where you can. A peer recently shared an experience involving a colleague who did not get her visa renewed so had to relocate to another company office in Canada. She had already built a full life in the States, so her new colleagues in Canada helped her with her apartment search and showed her the best parts of her new city. To care for the whole person is so critical, and it makes a difference in their loyalty to the company and the brand.

Transparency at all levels

Employees who commit to a company are more motivated when company leadership is able to share where they stand at all times, both good and bad. A great way to increase employee engagement is to encourage your leadership to hold global town halls where they share financial reports and/or acknowledge high-performing employees who are on the path to a bonus, if one is available. Additionally, helping your team carve out time for regular one-on-ones with employees goes a long way to making sure everyone is in alignment and has the support they need to be successful.

Express gratitude and allow your employees to do the same

Build a platform or mechanism where employees can thank and celebrate one another. Lean on the company mission and values to define what types of kudos to give, for example, positivity or humility. Provide small, company-funded gifts that employees can give to one another when they send kudos. Tools like JIRA make it easy, as employees can create a ticket sharing the accolades and then the office manager can manage posting the praise or sending the gift on their behalf. Coffee cards or Amazon gift cards in nominal values (and limited to per person per year) work great for this!

Help your employees to not have to sweat the small stuff

Wellness reimbursements and other self-care benefits are also key to having happy employees. Host weekly or monthly yoga sessions onsite with healthy juices after, sponsor quarterly office chair massages, or help your employees pay for wellness and fitness outside of work with a small stipend. Onsite lunches are nice but not always necessary every day; even better is promoting a culture where folks can gather in one place to eat and discuss their personal passions instead of just work. Some companies host weekly or monthly ‘lunch and learns’ so employees can present on topics they care about not related to the business.

If your team feels that they are cared for by the company, that folks recognize their contributions, and that they are respected, then, and only then, will they be on fire to work hard and represent your values and brand in the best possible light. It is the onus of company culture keepers to keep morale up and productivity high, and by applying some of the concepts listed above, your employees will continue to commit deeply to your mission and goals.

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