5 Important Elements of Employee Satisfaction

Employee satisfaction is an area of business  management that tends to receive a lot of attention without seeing enough follow-up.

As Elvis has been heard to drawl: "a little less conversation, a little more action please. All this aggravation ain't satisfactioning me."

Questionable grammar aside, the King had a point: talking too much about the value of employees without showing them that you mean it can quickly become a recipe for disaster.

Employee Relations: The Next Generation

There's little doubt that with a change in generation, there comes a significant shift in the way we view work. The "job for life" that was so often sought by our grandparents is now a faint memory for most, with employees regularly changing positions, and even companies, every few years.

Some of this can be attributed to the tough economic times of recent years, as well as a more general increase in information about open positions and online networking. More broadly, however, it signals a shift in the way workers and companies view loyalty to one another. It would be hard to argue that, in today's job sector, there's less of that being shown from both sides of the table.

That doesn't have to be the case, of course, as Marc Lore, CEO of Hoboken-based e-commerce site Jet.com, recently explained to the New York Times.  At a time when analysts find only one-third of workers in the U.S. to be "engaged" in their job, Lore has made it a priority to create an open company culture in which employee happiness is prized above all else.

Whether or not he succeeds, the commitment to take employee satisfaction beyond words and directly into the workplace is one that should occupy the minds of leaders in businesses both big and small.

5 Important Elements of Employee Satisfaction

There are many ways for a business to show that it values workers beyond mere words. From everyday employee perks to rewarding the best and the brightest at every level of the organization, concrete acts show that an employer means what they say.

As an example, here are five ways that we work to show the Capacity team we mean business when it comes to employee satisfaction:

1. Upward mobility in every role: Like the example of Jet.com above, we believe that every employee should have a career path. From the warehouse to the executive level, we want everyone to know where they're going and be rewarded when they take the initiative to reach that next level.

2. Performace-related pay: If you achieve more, you should receive more. It seems like a simple incentive but can be easily overlooked in a complex organization.

3. Paid holidays: We believe in making the work environment a fun place to be but recognize that, from time to time, everyone needs a break from work without a break in their income. 

4. Healthcare: A hot potato for politicians, to be sure, but a crucial benefit for our employees. The peace of mind that health insurance brings has clear benefits to employers, in terms of reduced stress and attracting new talent.

5. A safe and social workplace: Another that's easy to overlook because it seems simple, a friendly work environment that is free from harassment is easier said than done. That's why we work hard to achieve it and ask employees to tell us when we don't meet the high standards we set for ourselves.

What works for your organization may include some of these elements, or it could be completely different. The key is to understand what serves to motivate people in your industry and drive greater employee satisfaction by catering to some or all of these incentives.

For more information on working at Capacity and current positions currently open, take a look at our careers page.