9 Elements of Great Work Environment
Whether you’re the boss or an employee, since you spend a lot of time at your workplace, it is really important that you feel comfortable there. Satisfied employees work harder, contribute more and perform better. Here in Kontra, we believe that atmosphere is one of the key ingredients for great business results. So, here are our tips for happy agency life.
#1 HONEST & OPEN COMMUNICATION
The most important element of a pleasant work environment is without any doubt good relationship with people you work with. During this process of making friends at work, honesty and open communication are by far tool number 1. Let your colleagues know what you’re doing and why you are doing it. If there’s something bothering you, you shouldn’t beat around the bush. Put your cards on the table, be honest about your feelings and doubts and see where it’ll get you. And don’t forget to always be respectful, even with your subordinates. We assure you, it will be appreciated.
#2 SHARED VALUES
If you want your employees to behave according to the company’s goals and mission, it is important for you to bring them closer to your company values. Good employers should enquire into candidate’s system of values at the job interview and make a decision if the person is a good fit for the rest of the team. It is important to decide if the candidates are a good fit for your company not just for their skills, but for their principles and personality also. The story shouldn’t stop there. Seeing that company develops with its employees, managers should make sure that values are included in everybody’s work every step of the way and make adjustments if needed. This is why it is essential to talk about those values on weekly or monthly meetings and improve them constantly.
#3 KEEPING IT CASUAL & HAVE FUN
We’re a small agency and it wasn’t difficult for us to connect on a personal level and develop relationships outside of work. As we are online 24/7, we communicate a lot even after the working hours, often about non-work related topics. So it’s not surprising that we feel comfortable in each others’ company and solve problems together, as a team, which results in more effective solutions. What’s more, having fun at work motivates a lot. If you work in this pleasant, fun and friendly environment, it won’t be difficult for you to take an extra task, stay longer if needed, and give a 110%. In the next few points, we’ll spice up our recipe for maintaining company’s morality high and creating beautiful and desirable working atmosphere.
#4 WINE FRIDAY / WHISKY WEDNESDAY AND LOTS OF FOOD
Here, we all love a good drink and a bite. Whether it’s an after-work beer, Friday afternoon wine or a good whisky, it’s very unlikely you’ll hear us turning it down. Probably the only thing we’re more enthusiastic about is the food. You can always hear someone rustling and munching, nibbling and snacking. We’re chocolate and snack addicts and devoted kebab lovers. Oh, even one of our Slack groups is food-dedicated.
#5 FURRY TEAM MEMBERS
Yeah, you probably guessed it right. Fluffy furry little bundles of joy – dogs! Lately, it has become a trend (especially in agencies) to bring your pet to work and we say it’s great! Unless one of your colleagues is allergic, we really don’t see any downsides to bringing your dog, cat, rabbit or miniature pig to the office. As long as your pet is well-mannered and as long as you clean after it, there are only advantages to having it with you. We have always been a dog-friendly agency and I can say that having a dog in the office isn’t just convenient for the dog owner, but it the whole company benefits from it. Dogs are great for productivity, they make the bonding process easier and help your creativity, but most importantly they reduce the stress you’re experiencing at work.
#6 NAPPING AT WORK?
We don’t have any single rule regarding taking breaks. There is no “half an hour break every three hours” rule. We work as long as we want, and take as many breaks as we need. We all have tasks and deadlines and as long as we stick to it no strict regulations are needed. Why do we do it like that? Not every worker is the same so it is left to the employee to decide how his or her breaks are going to look like. So for some, breaks are chilling on the balcony or having a cup of Joe at the bar across the street, and some of us prefer to take a short nap to recharge. We believe this is motivating and that it results in higher productivity and better working experience for our people.
#7 ME TIME
By now you got the feel about how easygoing we are. So in order to stay focused, we have some really important rules and one of them is ‘Me time’. It is a time when we don’t talk out loud and time when we are fully dedicated to our work. It lasts from 9 to 11 am and again from 1 to 3 pm. It doesn’t mean that we can’t take our breaks during that time. If we need a break we do it quietly and communicate via Slack if we want to share something with our co-workers.
#8 SUPPORTIVE ENVIRONMENT
If you work in an agency, you know how stressful it can get. You never know exactly what your next day is going to be like and term ‘working hours’ simply isn’t in your vocabulary. It’s super important to be resourceful and act fast. Sometimes there are situations when petting the office dog simply can’t help. You’re not tired but exhausted and that just doesn’t matter because tasks have to be finished and the deadlines are really passionate to meet you as soon as possible. Better done than perfect is our motto, so we help each other to complete our tasks. The mere fact that you know you can get help at any time means a great deal, doesn’t it?
#9 EDUCATION & POSITIVE AFFIRMATION
Lastly, we are taking a great care of educating ourselves and giving feedback on a regular basis. We’re the kind of agency that encourages its employees to read, learn and grow. This is why our employees need to get all kinds of certificates in our field and why we insist on frequent education. We believe that it is important for every team member to understand the big picture and that’s why everyone gets at least high-quality introduction to every segment of our work. Next, feedback is an inevitable part of the professional evolvement so we try to give it as often as we can, not only at our monthly meetings. It helps us improve and work faster, and relaxed atmosphere we create allows us to be honest and say what’s on our minds. Be sincere with people you work with and don’t ever forget to express your approval when they do well. Everybody likes to be appreciated for their time, effort and work.
There it is. 9 tips you can use to make your office a second home for your employees. Keep in mind: every company is different, so something that works for us won’t necessarily work for you. Make sure to modify these tips to fit your company and if you have some tips for us, we’ll be more than happy to hear them! You can contact us here.
