Overall environment at work important to most employees
By Andrea Kay
What would it take to make your time at work more to your liking? Based on my unscientific sampling of workers across the United States and Canada, it's not a fatter paycheck. Nor is it — although nice — free laundry service or pet insurance.
It comes down to the actual experience workers have at their jobs that makes the difference.
When I asked workers what one thing they'd change to make their workplace better for them and the health of the company, they asked for something that would enhance the physical space they inhabit, the overall environment or experience, their relationship with management or the way people interact with each other.
Lisa, who works for Hauser Group in Savannah, Ga., said she'd love a window. "I'd trade my small, 8-by-9-foot windowless office for a cube next to a sunny window in a heartbeat." To add light to what she calls her closet, she found a floor lamp that wasn't being used and "with my desk lamp it emits enough light to allow me to turn off the horrible florescent fixture."
But if only she could have natural light, "I'm sure I would be more productive and I know I'd be happier." She encouraged me to use her name "in the hope it gets me a window."
Scott, a manager at Mindbridge Software in Norristown, Pa., says he would like individual temperature controls for each desk or cubicle.
Sarah, who sits at a desk in an office in the heart of Boston, says, "I would love it if my workplace offered weekly massages." When she's not working at her desk, she's running from one meeting to the next or eating lunch at her desk. All of that adds up to stress, and a massage, she says, "would greatly help release the built-up strain in my hands, neck, shoulders and back." In addition, it would leave "minds better focused and less stress means better health, less sick days and lower turnover."
Companies that make their workplace fun seem to make it an inviting experience. Take Definition 6, a Web design and technology firm in Atlanta, where "dogs are allowed to bring their masters to work," says a public-relations representative. They also have flexible work hours so you might find employees' children among the working crew.
One company established an "e-mail free" Friday policy, in which no one sends e-mail that day. Mandated by Jay Ellison, executive vice president of operations at U.S. Cellular, banning e-mails on Fridays has encouraged face-to-face contact.
But what workers want most is to be heard by management. Ed, of The Idea Factory in Ottawa, went out on his own after feeling frustrated that the manager who had hired him to "bring new ideas to a traditional business" couldn't manage someone who thought differently than her.
Others just want a way to voice their opinions or offer innovative suggestions. Several corporations, including Georgia Pacific, Kraft Foods and Bristol-Myers, use a Web-based system that invites employees to participate in collaborative online brainstorming sessions.
But many companies fall flat in this area. In a recent survey conducted by the Society for Human Resource Management and CareerJournal.com, only 59 percent of employees felt their organizations listened to what they had to say.
Most of it comes down to feeling appreciated and wanting to make a difference. Is that asking too much?
Send questions to Andrea Kay at No. 133, 2692 Madison Road, Cincinnati, OH 45208 or andrea@andreakay.com.
