As a business owner or leader, one of the most important and impactful things you can do is invest in your employees. Your employees are the lifeblood of your business, and they are constantly working to make your business’ success possible. Investing in your employees can help increase productivity, boost morale, reduce turnover, find hidden potential in employees, and much more.
In our most recent episode of the Team Building Saves the World podcast, we talked to Jim Frawley, founder of coaching company Bellwether and author of Adapting in Motion.
During our conversation, Frawley acknowledged the importance of investing in your employees, saying, “It all comes down to basic steps and tangible steps that we can teach our people so that they feel like they’re invested and they can use something tangible to elevate their product for whatever it is that the business needs.”
In this article, we’re going to focus on the importance of investing in employees and how to invest in your employees, as well as what employees can do to invest in themselves.
The Importance of Investing in Employees
First, let’s spend some time talking about why investing in your employees is important. The benefits of employee investment are numerous, and they can have a big impact on your bottom line, as well as the wellbeing of your employees.
One of the biggest benefits is increased productivity. Employee investment can improve productivity in multiple ways. For example, if you invest in training or workshops for your employees, those skills can directly benefit their work. If they learn better ways of doing things, become better at their role, and get a new perspective on things, it can help them speed up the rate of their work.
But it can also increase productivity in others, like via increased morale. When you invest in your employees, it makes them feel like you actually care about and value them. That boosts morale, but it can also change an employee’s mindset. It can make them feel like they are a key part of the business and motivate them to work even harder, which translates to increased productivity.
Another benefit of employee investment is reduced turnover. Investing in your employees helps show them that they are valued by their employer, but also that their employer brings value to them. If you invest in your employees, you’re providing them with new skills, education, training, and more. You’re showing them that this is a mutually beneficial relationship where you both help each other grow and succeed. That can have a huge impact on your turnover rate.
How to Invest in Your Employees
Now that you know the benefits of investing in employees, the next step is knowing how to invest in your employees. There are many different ways you can invest in your employees, so figuring out which ones are best for you and your employees is an important part of the process. Let’s look at a few of the different strategies you can use to invest in your employees.
Before getting started though, it’s important to mention that you should be thinking about your employees during this process. What do your employees value most? What are they looking for in terms of professional development? What skills or knowledge would help them in their roles? Asking questions like these can help figure out the best way to invest in your employees.
Provide Growth Opportunities
It’s no secret that professional development is incredibly important in the workplace. Providing growth opportunities like training and development and mentorship are great ways to invest in your employees. By providing growth opportunities, you are helping your employees get the skills and knowledge they need to continue growing professionally. This is valuable in numerous ways.
As is obvious, your employees will be better equipped for their jobs. If you provide them with opportunities to learn and grow, they will gain new skills that they can use directly in their work. In turn, that means you are getting more experience, knowledgeable, and productive employees.
On top of that, you’re also showing your employees that you value them and see their potential. If you’re willing to invest in an employee’s future, it directly shows that you see and value their future potential. That can be a huge confidence booster for employees, which can directly turn into increased productivity and motivation.
Encourage Work-Life Balance
Another way to invest in your employees is by encouraging a better work-life balance. Much has been written in recent years about the importance of work-life balance, and it’s something that your employees would certainly appreciate. But how exactly does that translate into a benefit for your business?
A better work-life balance can benefit your bottom line in multiple ways. Most importantly, your employees will feel better. They will have better mental health, a healthier relationship with their work, and will feel more engaged and motivated when they are at work. In turn, that means they are working harder and better than before, even if their work-life balance tilts away from work.
It can also help create a better, healthier, more psychologically safe workplace. A healthy and safe workplace can empower your employees to work comfortably, helping them become more efficient and productive workers. On top of that, a healthy work environment can improve communication across all levels, something that can be hugely beneficial for your business.
So how exactly can you provide a better work-life balance? One of the most common choices is with flexible work schedules and paid time off (PTO). Flexible work and PTO can give employees more control over their schedules and flexibility to deal with personal matters, spend time with family, and more. Some extra PTO and schedule flexibility can have huge impacts on work-life balance.
That’s not your only option though. In recent years, remote and hybrid work have become massively popular among employees. Remote and hybrid work gives employees even more freedom, helps them save money on things like gas, and gives them a better work-life balance. Remote or hybrid work may not be an option for all businesses or employees, but it’s a great option if it’s something you can do.
Employee wellness
Employee wellness can also be a way you invest in your employees. In 2023, more and more people are prioritizing their mental and physical health. Investing in employee wellness is a great opportunity to show your employees you care and help them better their health, mentally and physically.
The main way you can focus on employee wellness is by providing resources and starting company-wide initiatives. For example, providing counseling services to employees is something commonly used by businesses prioritizing mental health. Many employers have also started to offer gym memberships, fitness classes, and more as part of their benefits package. Some even opt to do team building events like Laughter Yoga.
While offering gym memberships and counseling is a great start, it won’t necessarily change your work culture at all. Initiatives are a perfect way to prioritize wellness in the workplace itself and not just at home. Something as simple as offering extra PTO or rewards for employees who walk a certain number of steps a day can help you make a change culturally, company-wide.
Team Building
Lastly, you can invest in your employees via team building. Team building is a great way to build relationships amongst employees, better communication, provide a break from work, and more. Depending on the activities or events you choose, you can better your employees’ skills while also giving them a chance to de-stress from work.
At TeamBonding, we have a large number of team building events and activities that are perfect for investing in your employees. Whether you want to focus on communication, team work, relationship building, having fun, creativity, or something else, we have an activity or event that can help you and your employees.
One of the best things about team building is that you can accomplish multiple things at once. While investing in your employees via team building, you are also bettering your employees, helping them grow, building relationships, improving morale, and more. Team building is one of the best and most rewarding ways to invest in your employees.
What Employees Can Do to Invest in Themselves
Before wrapping up, it’s important to note that you also need to invest in yourself. It isn’t up to the company to make all the changes, and you as an employee have a responsibility to invest in yourself as well.
This is a point Frawley emphasized in our conversation, noting that employees cannot rely on their employers to provide all the personal and professional development they need. Frawley said, “the company will never give you enough, right? But you don’t rely on the company for your own personal development.”
So what exactly can employees do to invest in themselves? There are a few obvious answers, such as getting further education, training, attending workshops, seeking mentors, etc. But what other things can employees do to invest in themselves?
Ultimately, it depends on where you are and what you need. For some people, further education might be exactly what they need. For others, it may be more time socializing and networking with others in their industry.
There is something that every employee can and should do though, which is making a plan. Create a meaningful and actionable plan to achieve your goals. A plan gives you the framework to actually work towards and achieve the goals you set. No matter what your goals are or how you want to improve yourself, creating a plan is step one.
Invest in Your Employees with TeamBonding
Investing in your employees is essential for any business. It can help you upskill your workforce, better their relationships, team work skills, communication, wellness, and much more. Managers and leaders should prioritize employee investment and implement it so they can be more successful.
If you want to invest in your employees and better your workforce, consider reaching out to TeamBonding. We have a multitude of events and activities that are perfect for investing in your employees. Build a better workforce today by getting in touch with TeamBonding.
