​It is a common stereotype that millennials are ‘job-hoppers,’ fleeting from job to job trying to see what each company can offer. However, employers need to remember that some team members move on for a variety of reasons, regardless of their generation.

Millennials have been brought up in the ‘digital age’ and therefore, have different expectations than previous generations. Here are some tips on how to keep them engaged and loyal to your company:

Offer them guidance with their job as millennials want to feel supported within the company and they will appreciate your effort to help them progress. If you don’t have the time to offer guidance, assign a manager to aid employees.  

As well as guidance, it’s important for millennials to have opportunities that allow them to work their way up the company hierarchy. They want to be constantly learning and therefore providing training will keep them content. Training will give them reassurance that the company are willing to contribute to their professional development. Regular reviews are also imperative in keeping your team satisfied and gives employers an insight into how employees feel about the workplace.

Maintaining a good work/life balance is important for most professionals, particularly nowadays. Offering them benefits such as flexitime and an option to work from home will maintain motivation. Advancements in technology has made this easy and will keep your workforce happy.

Millennials are used to getting information straight away and they often rely on the internet for answers to their questions. If millennials work for a company that dodges questions and hide plans for company growth, they won’t be satisfied. Not being open with employees will prevent any trust from building, therefore stopping your workforce from being loyal to your company. Sharing future plans with the team will allow them to understand the direction of the company. Encourage managers to adopt a level of transparency with workers, as this will increase trust and loyalty throughout the workplace.     

Offering an extensive amount of benefits will prevent any employee’s eyes wandering towards competitors. Benefits such as flexitime, holiday pay and overtime will keep your workforce engaged. alongside flexibility, organise regular work lunches and after work drinks to enhance professional relationships. The stronger the work relationship, the more loyalty your team will have for the company.

Ensuring millennial employees develop motivation and trust will bring a wealth of opportunity to your business. All they expect in return is a promise of career development, training and plenty of working benefits. Taking the time to offer this will keep them engaged and stop them from veering towards those competitors who do. 

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​Creating a loyal team is important for the success of any company, as it will reduce turnover costs and improve work productivity. When employees develop a sense of loyalty, they begin to look at the business as though it’s their own and work hard to make it succeed. But how do you start to build a loyal workforce? Read on to find out:

The culture of a company should focus on maintaining a good working relationship between employee and employer. As a leader you must keep check of the office and ensure any problems are solved immediately.

Address any team rifts or personal prejudices between workers to help foster a more positive working environment. Hold meetings to reinforce that any inappropriate behaviour will not be tolerated. Your team are more likely to stick around if they feel comfortable in the workplace.

Maintain a good culture through regular employee feedback. This will give you an insight into staff needs, wants and expectations. Anonymous surveys, one to one meetings and team days will all help make improvements to the office environment.

Make sure to act on any negative feedback by developing a plan, which needs to focus on making changes based on feedback over a certain period of time.  

Showing an employee you trust them is essential for gaining loyalty. It’s important you don’t take over and try to do everything yourself, as delegating work to employees will give them a sense of accomplishment. This can be done by assigning a leader to each project or letting an employee lead a meeting.

Acknowledge birthdays and other significant times in your employees’ lives. Celebrating their work anniversaries by giving them a card and organising a team activity will make them feel valued.

Rewards build loyalty; however, these must be given for relevant reasons or your company may be accused of bias. Reward an employee if they receive valuable feedback from a client or make a win for the company. 

Offering worker benefits, flexitime, holiday pay and regular training will give your team the incentive to stay in the company. Regular reviews on employee performance and pay increases are essential for keeping your workforce.

A loyal workforce will have a ripple effect throughout your business and create a positive atmosphere. Happy employees will be motivated to please customers and clients and your team will strive to finish work to a high standard.

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​The season of sport is upon us: between the World Cup, Wimbledon and golf there is plenty to choose from. Whether you love or hate it, your workplace is guaranteed to be filled with a sports buzz.

Even though this brings an exciting atmosphere, it can also mean reduced productivity, an increase in ‘sick days’ and overly competitive behaviour. However, here are some ways to maintain employee motivation throughout the period: 

Stay up to date with sporting events which may impact your team’s productivity. Keeping a calendar will help you establish which events are likely to have an influence on your employees and put a plan into place on how to ensure tasks are completed to deadline.
 
If too many staff members are taking annual leave on the same date, make a compromise. Allow everyone to watch the match from the comfort of the office. Inform staff well in advance of targets that need to be hit prior to the game starting, before the influx of holiday emails start rolling in.
 
Don’t just notify employees of watching sport in the office, be clear about any changes to the workplace during matches. Reinforce any expectations you have during this period, for example: watching a football match shouldn’t decrease productivity and deadlines and daily tasks stay the same.  
 
Not all team members will be interested in sports, offer them another perk while the match is on. This could be an extra coffee break or an early finish. The non-sporty team members will appreciate the recognition which, in turn, will increase their motivation.
 
Compromising is an efficient way to maintain productivity, however, make sure that employees don’t take advantage. Keep check that work is being completed on time and at a high standard. Record any ‘sick days’ taken and ask for a doctor’s note as proof when the employee returns to work.
 
Organise a meeting to remind staff of the consequences of taking ‘sickies,’ how it can disrupt workflow and may result in missed deadlines. Raising awareness will make them think twice before taking a ‘sick day’ conveniently on the same day of a big match.
 
Organise some post-work drinks for matches after office hours as this is a good opportunity for team-bonding. Activities such as theme days or placing bets are effective ways to build working relationships. For example, give each employee a team and whoever has the winning team is given a prize.
 
Make sure workers keep the sports banter light-hearted, as some may overstep the mark by making offensive comments. Not only will this prevent any team-bonding but will create a tense working atmosphere. Any inappropriate behaviour should be dealt with through the company’s disciplinary process.
 
Use the sport season to encourage fitness. Organise sports days or challenges throughout the summer and offer incentives to the winners. Don’t stop at day events, start offering lunch time exercise classes, gym vouchers and healthy refreshments to enhance employee wellness.
 
Use this time to connect with your employees. Creating a fun working environment will keep them loyal and maintain motivation. However, make sure to not get too swept up in the sporting action by checking everything is kept running smoothly in the office.

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