Your employees are the backbone of your organization, as each team member performs their assigned task to help your company operate and grow. Depending on the employee’s position, the tasks can involve adding new members to the team, creating marketing strategies, or implementing workplace safety rules. But if your employees experience burnout or appear less motivated than usual, it might be time to introduce workplace incentives to boost their morale and improve productivity.
In theory, employee incentive programs like bonuses or discounts may sound good, but they aren’t always enough to boost motivation. A workplace attitudes study found that the most important sources of motivation for Canadian employees are achievement (45 percent) and building interpersonal relations (22 percent). Here are a few effective non-monetary workplace incentives to boost employee motivation.
Flexible Working Terms
Offering employees flexible working terms and conditions can help them feel more comfortable performing their tasks. Offer a hybrid working model to motivate your employees and show them you care about their comfort and preferences. This involves the opportunity for employees to work from home on some days if they wish.
Many employees feel more comfortable and motivated when they work from home, as it saves the time and money spent travelling to work and gives employees the option to work around their loved ones. Working from home offers a better work-life balance and makes employees more productive.
Daily Catering Program
Lack of nutritious food can adversely affect how people work. If they don’t have access to nutritious meals and snacks, they may fall sick more often, resulting in lower productivity and more sick days acquired due to illness. Many employees may also skip lunch or consume food that’s easy to access, such as fast food. This can influence the way they work and affect their productivity and motivation.
Providing accessible meals onsite reduces employees’ time to fetch food while working. Consider partnering with a catering company to offer a daily catering program that allows employees to consume healthy and balanced meals at work. When looking for catering services in Toronto, find out if your caterer is flexible with menu options. It’s important to offer a diverse menu catering to employees with food preferences or intolerances. A company with extensive experience is likely to have the resources to customize menus based on your company’s needs.
Mental Health Resources
In Canada, employers are responsible for protecting the health and safety of employees, which involves fostering a psychologically healthy workplace that is a respectful and productive environment for better mental health.
Addressing personal issues can be challenging for many employers, but you can prioritize this support by offering mental health resources. This can include counselling services through telehealth providers, mental health education materials, stress management training, and paid days off for mental health recovery. Providing more and better resources will enable employees to feel comfortable discussing their mental health and seek help when needed. Access to mental health resources may help employees feel more motivated and increase productivity and employee retention.
Incentives involving monetary compensation, such as higher pay, bonuses, and rewards, can help your employees feel more motivated at work. But it’s equally important to offer non-monetary incentives to help your employees perform their best. Consider the incentives in this article to create a better working environment and watch your employees thrive!
