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Boosting employee morale is an essential part of building an engaged, positive and productive workplace. According to research from Gallup, organizations with engaged employees experience an 18% increase in sales productivity and a 23% boost in profitability – demonstrating the impact of morale on business performance.
High morale can also improve employee satisfaction, foster team collaboration, and contribute to overall organizational success. By prioritizing these best practices to uplift and motivate employees, organizations can create an environment where people feel engaged, valued, and inspired to do their best work every day.
What is the meaning of employee morale?
Employee morale is the overall level of engagement, emotional attachment, and outlook that workers have towards their job. It encompasses their feelings of wellbeing and enthusiasm for their role within the company.
High employee morale often corresponds with productivity, improved team communication, as well as a lower turnover rate. On the other hand, low employee morale can lead to poor performance, burnout, and detachment to the company and the work at hand.
Ultimately, prioritizing morale is crucial for organizational health and success, and employers can gather timely data on employee sentiments through tools such as pulse surveys.
What causes low employee morale?
There are many factors influencing employee morale, and what matters to one team member might not have any impact on another. However, the following are key elements that universally lower morale:
- Burnout: It is highly detrimental to both employees and employers. According to a 2022 McKinsey & Company survey, one in four employees experience symptoms of burnout.
- Poor leadership: Few things have a greater impact on the employee experience than company leadership. Micromanagement, lack of transparency
- Lack of growth opportunities: If you don’t see ways to keep growing at your organization, chances are you won’t be thrilled about working there. Millennials especially value opportunities for professional development, and 60% would forego regular pay raises for a job with the potential for career growth.
- Micromanagement: It can cause employees to feel disengaged, less motivated, and burned out. Research from Harvard Business Review reveals that 88% of survey respondents said that setting a standard for perfectionism is “a mistake” that prevents employees from achieving their goals.
- Lack of communication: Without clear communication, employees may not get the regular feedback and timely information they need to perform well in their roles. It can also lead to feelings of isolation and detachment.
- Lack of trust: Lack of employee trust in the workplace has detrimental effects for both employees and management, leading to increased stress, micromanagement, lack of support, and lower engagement.
- Low motivation: When employees feel demotivated, they also feel disconnected from their role and the company, leading to lower productivity and a lack of purpose. Over time, this disconnection can lead to burnout as tasks will begin to feel stressful and overwhelming.
- Toxic culture: Company culture filled with negativity, unethical behavior, discrimination, and excessive demands can erode at employee wellbeing — leading to stress and burnout. Research shows that a toxic work culture is 10 times more effective at predicting employee turnover than compensation.
- Unrealistic workload: When employees face high pressure at work and excessive demands with unreasonable deadlines, this can lead to emotional and physical exhaustion.
- Lack of appreciation: When employees aren’t recognized for their work, it can lead to disengagement and burnout. Organizations can counter this by showing their appreciation for the work that employees do. Employee appreciation messages are more than just a gesture—they’re vital to preventing burnout.
Why is employee morale important?
While there are a myriad of contributing factors, good employee morale is linked to employees feeling supported, appreciated, trusted, and connected within their roles and the organization.
Employee morale is important because it helps create positive organizational cultures where people feel energized and enthusiastic about their role and look forward to coming to work.
It can bring a wealth of benefits to the organization, including employee retention and wellbeing, teamwork and collaboration, as well as customer satisfaction. After all, happy employees tend to be more loyal, want to connect more with their teammates, and become enthusiastic advocates for the company.
Top 12 ways to boost employee morale
Boosting employee morale is key to maintaining a positive and productive work environment. Here are the 12 top strategies and best practices to enhance employee engagement and satisfaction.
1. Prioritize employee recognition
Employees who feel appreciated feel happy. While a simple “thank you” goes a long way, making recognition a morale booster requires much more. It starts with encouraging timely and frequent recognition, with leaders playing a key role in this effort.
“As a leader, your recognition goes a long way. Whether it’s celebrating a milestone or giving a simple thank you note, every recognition has the power to impact employee engagement and morale.” – Jeff Cates, CEO and President, Achievers
It boils down to building a culture of recognition where everyone feels connected as part of a community. To accomplish this, you need comprehensive recognition software. Look for a platform that lets team members show appreciation anywhere, anytime, and that also makes publicizing recognition easy through a company-wide newsfeed and the ability to like, comment on, or boost specific recognitions.
2. Collect Voice of Employee feedback
Few things are more demoralizing than feeling like your opinion doesn’t matter. Employees want to have a voice, and they need employers to listen when they speak. Soliciting and acting on feedback increases engagement as well, and keeping employees motivated is just as important as keeping them happy.
Talking to employees in person and asking for their input is great, but it’s not likely to reveal their true feelings. If you want the insights from your surveys to be relevant and actionable, you need to deliver them frequently, not just once a year. Pulse surveys — short, focused questionnaires — are the answer, together with an always-on feedback channel that lets team members provide feedback whenever they have something to say.
3. Support health and wellness
It’s no secret that organizations should support employee mental and physical health, yet many have not effectively addressed these needs.
According to Great Place to Work, employee wellbeing is a key differentiator for organizations in 2023’s “Fortune 100 Best Companies to Work For” list. While 83% of employees at one of those top ranked companies say that their workplace is emotionally and psychologically healthy, only 52% at a typical US-based company report similar sentiments.
“Our understanding of the mental wellbeing of those around us is no longer about talking about change, but truly listening and acting on this intel. Empathy is our data set and it’s time we started using it to create sustainable momentum to lower levels of work-induced strain.” – Mimi Nicklin, Millennial Author and Thought Leader
Giving employees adequate resources, providing the flexibility and time off needed for a healthy work-life balance, and encouraging physical activity are all fantastic ways to support employee wellbeing.
To improve your employees’ mental health, help them practice mindfulness and self-awareness. These skills enable team members to stay in tune with their emotions and better address them. You can also train team members on emotional intelligence — especially managers — to build an empathetic, tight-knit workforce.
4. Live your culture and values
Employees who buy into your culture and believe in your values are happy to be a part of your company. Look out for ways to keep your culture aligned with your employees’ expectations and needs. Leaders — especially managers — play a critical role here.
To keep managers accountable for building the culture you want to see, ensure that they live your values daily and actively engage with employees on key aspects of your culture.
You should make a safe, welcoming environment a core part of your culture as well. In an organization that prioritizes psychological safety, employees are comfortable being themselves and expressing their opinions. Removing this huge source of potential stress does wonders for morale.
5. Emphasize communication and connection
In this era of remote work, building a sense of community throughout your organization is more important than ever to combat isolation and disconnection – which can negatively impact morale.
Encouraging transparent communication is a great way to counteract this. When employees can quickly access important information and see that leadership works to stay authentic no matter what they’re discussing, they’ll view the company — and their role within it — more positively. Using tools that make communication easy, no matter where team members find themselves, helps your employees stay connected as well.
6. Live your culture and values
Trust is the foundation of any successful workplace. Unfortunately, only 21% of HR professionals and leaders believe that employees really trust their organization’s leadership. It’s hard to keep your spirits up when you don’t believe in those who are setting the agenda and steering the ship.
The best way to establish mutual trust with employees is through employee empowerment. This can be done by:
- Giving employees space instead of micromanaging
- Coaching and delegating instead of doing everything yourself
- Encouraging employees to take ownership of projects
- Creating an environment of feedback that feels safe
- Offering opportunities for flexible work arrangements
Supporting professional development is also an integral part of empowering your employees and building trust. Offering employees advancement along clear career paths, providing continuous learning and knowledge sharing opportunities, and even supporting lateral moves are just some of the ways to keep morale high.
7. Promote transparency and trust
Being transparent can boost employee morale by building trust and fostering a culture of openness. When leaders share strategic decisions and performance metrics, it demystifies organizational changes and helps employees feel valued and involved. It’s an inclusive approach that can help employees align their professional goals with the organization’s overarching vision – giving way to higher engagement and motivation.
Transparency and trust have a significant impact on employee retention and engagement. In fact, according to a 2024 study from the American Psychological Association, 25% of employees that reported trusting their employers were motivated to work 57% harder. The same respondents were also 41% more likely to stay in their roles instead of looking elsewhere.
8. Run team building activities
Team building activities can be an excellent employee morale booster, as they cultivate a sense of community in the workplace while providing opportunities for teammates to build personal connections. This reduces feelings of isolation, improves communication channels, and lays a solid foundation for collaboration.
While there are many benefits to team building activities, it’s important to note that work-related social gatherings should always be voluntary while offering a variety of options that appeal to all employees. When organized in a thoughtful, inclusive way, team building can build trust, camaraderie, and in turn – boost morale and engagement amongst employees.
9. Celebrate employee milestones
Celebrating employee milestones such as a work anniversary, promotions, or completion of a project helps makes employees feel appreciated, valued, and creates a sense of belonging within your organization. It doesn’t just boost morale, but it also fosters a positive work environment where employee achievements are acknowledged and rewarded.
Ways to celebrate milestones run the gamut of:
- Formal awards ceremonies
- Simple gestures like a handwritten note
- Rewards such as extra time off
- Team rewards such as dinner or an outing
- Personalized career development opportunities
10. Celebrate achievements publicly
When an employee’s achievements are publicly acknowledged in front of managers and peers, it validates their contributions to the company. Public recognition isn’t just a highlight of individual employee success, but it also reinforces the type of behaviors and values that are rewarded within the organization. In turn, this fosters a culture of continuous improvement, motivating others to strive for the same level of excellence.
Celebrating achievements publicly also grants the opportunity for colleagues to celebrate each other’s milestones – creating a supportive work environment.
It’s worth noting that managers shouldn’t wait for major achievement milestones to offer praise, as research shows that 72% of employees that have “great recognition experiences” report that their organization celebrates small wins.
11. Prioritize management training
According to recent research from Gallup, 70% of team engagement is attributed to the manager – highlighting the integral role that managers play in boosting morale. Although engagement starts with empowering managers, only 30% of managers report feeling engaged, enthusiastic, and involved in their jobs.
Managers are well-positioned to drive engagement since they are aware of their team’s career goals and morale levels. Therefore, their job satisfaction should be a priority when implementing employee engagement programs, and this can be done through training and development.
Effective management training can boost employee morale significantly by equipping managers with leadership skills and a deeper understanding of team dynamics. When managers can provide support, clear guidance, as well as frequent and timely feedback – it creates highly motivated and cohesive teams.
12. Give recognition where it’s due
Recognition creates a positive feedback loop for great work – in turn —fostering a culture of continuous improvement. According to research, what gets recognized gets repeated. In fact, 92% of surveyed employees agree that they’re more likely to repeat a specific action that they’re recognized for.
Beyond recognition, employees also want to have access to a broad range of rewards options and get a morale boost if they do. According to our 2024 State of Employee Recognition report, employees that have access to an expansive rewards marketplace are “61% more likely to feel a strong sense of belonging, and 60% more likely to say they feel meaningfully recognized at work.”
How Wesley uses Achievers to boost employee morale
Wesley, a purpose-driven non-profit, uses Achievers to boost employee morale by building a comprehensive recognition and rewards program aligned with their company values and goals.
Their Achievers platform, called “Inspire,” was launched with the goal to solve staffing challenges nationwide by improving their employee’s job satisfaction and work experiences. The social recognition and reward platform allowed Wesley employees to recognize each other for great work, nominate coworkers for monthly awards, and earn points that can be redeemed for rewards that are meaningful to them.
The success of “Inspire” in boosting morale and engagement was evident in Wesley’s engagement survey. After implementing Achievers, their Employee Net Promoter Score (eNPS) leapt 18 points year-on-year, and the overall engagement index rose 19 points across the board.
Start boosting employee morale today
With the incredible capabilities of modern HR software, there’s no reason to delay putting the recommendations above into practice. Achievers Recognize is a complete recognition platform that lets everyone on your team show appreciation and give reward points anywhere, anytime. And Achievers Listen makes it easy to see what your employees truly value and keep track of how you’re meeting their needs through frequent pulse surveys and an always-on feedback channel.
Achievers customers are:
- 107% more likely to give their culture of recognition a high rating than organizations that don’t use recognition technology
- 2.5 times more likely to see increased employee retention
- 36% more likely to see an increase in employee engagement
- 3.6 times more likely than customers of other providers to give recognition multiple times each month
- 33% more likely to rate their employer brand higher than our competitors’ customers
Achievers Recognize even integrates with top platforms such as Workday and Outlook, helping organizations streamline their recognition and rewards programs in existing workflows.
Ready to see the impact of Achievers for yourself? Try a free demo today.
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