mollyfamwatA sense of belonging is the feeling of security and support among employees. It also means a sense of acceptance, inclusion, and identity of members of the organization. Research indicates that having a sense of belonging can lower the turnover rate by up to 50 percent. Long-term employees are more productive and can impact the company’s revenue positively.
A sense of belonging is an important element of employee engagement. It can also have a substantial financial impact on your company. Therefore, creating a sense of belonging at the workplace can lead to employee happiness, increased productivity, better performance, and increased employee retention. Here are four ways to help you create a culture committed to belonging.
1. Create a Psychologically-Safe Space
As a leader, employees’ well-being should be your top priority, and it is also your priority to help your team succeed and feel engaged at work. However, if you do not create a physiologically safe environment, such ambitions will not be possible.
Build your team based on trust because people don’t feel comfortable talking about how they are doing while at work. A physiologically safe environment lets employees freely talk about what they went through, what went wrong, and what they learned without judgment and criticism. A psychological safe space also creates room for improvement after errors which later creates a sense of belonging among employees.
2. Open Communication
If you plan to lead a successful team, you have to create an environment that allows open communication and trust. Open communication allows employees to understand their individual contributions are essential for overall business success.
Open communication allows employees to openly bring up issues, which can help you respectfully solve problems that could affect the company structure and culture. Open communication allows you to draw real solutions instead of always offering apologies and is vital in supporting leadership and teams.
Starting an open dialogue creates an environment that helps employees feel supported, accepted, and secure. While the future of work remains unclear, the biggest remote working experiment seems to have succeeded. Reports show that a percentage of workers prefer flexibility, and it’s clear that the future of work is likely to be flexible using technology. And when comparing UCaaS vs. CPaaS realize that both are cloud-based and offer customized communication solutions.
UcaaS is not a product but rather a strategy. Everyone is now talking about consuming services from the cloud. If you are working with remote teams, you can consume UcaaS functions from the cloud to drive better workplace collaboration and communication. UcaaS technology brings together internet telephony, instant communication, and other communication tools to help streamline business communication.
3. Check-In With People
Employees feel the greatest sense of belonging and inclusion when their colleagues check in with them, whether professional or personal. In some organizations, managers rarely check in with their teams.
As a manager, you should schedule regular meetings with your employees to help identify, track and maintain your company goals. Checking in with employees helps prevent miscommunication and ensures that everyone within the organization is engaged.
4. Avoid Micromanagement
Micromanagement is a management style that closely controls the work of employees. Micromanagement ensures the team performs tasks precisely and as the manager expects.
If you intend to achieve a sense of belonging in your organization, avoid micromanagement. Micromanagement has the power to destroy relationships and cause employees to leave; therefore, supporting your team without being a micromanager allows employees to overcome challenges on their own before asking for help.
Creating a Culture of Belonging for Everyone
As a leader, it is your responsibility to create a culture for your team. We all want to work with a team that feels happy every day they come to work. But it’s not enough for employees to feel happy; they need a sense of belonging to feel that they are part of the organization and feel a sense of purpose.
A sense of belonging brings meaning into lives. A sense of belonging can drive positive results for your business, reduce employee turnover, and increase performance. On the contrary, a lack of belonging can lower overall performance and increase employee turnover.
You can create a sense of belonging by allowing employees to show their vulnerability, seal the feedback loops by avoiding negative feedback and focus on practicing gratitude. Have a goal to increase employee happiness, create social bonds to foster a sense of belonging, and create a sense of belonging through shared experiences and shared stories.
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