A great place to work is one in which you trust the people you work for, have pride in what you do, and enjoy the people you work with.
— Robert Levering, Co-Founder, Great Place to Work®
The Great Place to Work® Institute maintains that from the Employee’s perspective, a great workplace is one where they: TRUST the people they work for; Have PRIDE in what they do; and ENJOY the people they work with.
Meeting the Great Place to Work criteria can seem a daunting endeavour- so what can you do to promote your own workplace and make it a Great Place to Work? Every employee, no matter how big or small their position is in the company, plays a role in overall business performance. I have listed a few points below explaining how I influence I.C.E Group and make it a great place to work.
Pride
Working with pride reminds me of one of the common sayings you might find in any public space. “Leave this place as you would like to find it.” From the teaspoons left on the kitchen counter to the report deadline I meet every Friday, it’s necessary to treat every task with honour regardless of its weight- and then check it over again- just to be sure!
Mutual Respect
Forget the hierarchy on this one. Everyone should be treated with respect because it’s a reflection on my personal character. Every new client/ candidate/ student/ visitor through the reception door should be received with the same “Welcome to I.C.E. Group, How can I help you?” Likewise, it’s easy to forget ourselves when under pressure. Let’s say a colleague asks you a question when you are in the throes of a headcount deadline. A polite “Thanks for your question-I am in the middle of completing something here and will contact you as soon as I am finished.” will assist in getting your point across respectfully without losing too much focus on your task at hand.
Comradery
Work can be challenging, but when you enjoy the people you work with, it keeps workers happy and can improve the overall atmosphere. After all, we spend a lot of our waking week at work. I find a hearty laugh over a cup of tea at break time is energizing and will help me through the more stressful times.
Forward Thinking
This is among the list of business clichés- in other words, keep with modernity. Give employees the freedom to learn and grow. Otherwise I would be handwriting this blog with a quill and inkwell on paper- and as a recruitment agency, we wouldn’t be in a position to manage a contingent workforce of over 605 staff, one inkwell at a time.
Sharing the WOOHOO’s
In our recruitment department, ICE Jobs, every time we recruit an agency worker we send out a “Woohoo” email to colleagues. This tells our co-workers what’s going on and spreads a positive message on a personal win-it’s like a high-five on email. Sometimes when I receive a “Woohoo” I even send back a “Good on YA!”
Honest Feedback
This fosters an environment of trust, because we know that we can verify an answer with conviction. Honesty needs to be approached carefully, because it could result in feelings being hurt- but if someone asks you if the formatting on their report is good enough- don’t be afraid to say it’s not.
Passionate people
I work with a lot of passionate people. I can see it in their eyes, in the positions of their shoulders, in the vigour of their walks- and this definitely reflects in their work. Those with passion will strive for it in the organisation. We recruit people not just on work experience and education- but also with passion in the job and the industry.
In short, your organisation can get the best results possible when employees feel their best and perform at their best. A Great Place to Work starts with you. Consciously commit making your workplace one with trust, pride and comradery and you will be doing what you can to make your workplace a “Great place to work”.
If you are interested in finding out how you can make your workplace a “Great Place to Work”, check out the course available from Pitman Training via the link below,
