Many companies know that, to prosper and move toward success, it is essential to fully engage employees so that they are satisfied and happy. In general, business leaders understand that a lack of fulfillment at work creates numerous drawbacks that can lead to negative consequences for results, both for their team and for the company itself. Given this reality, it is clear that employees need to be happy, and to achieve that, sound management practices that support workplace well-being are undeniably required.
A preliminary clarification is needed when addressing the subject of performance. Indeed, for companies, taking into account performance criteria in their entirety, particularly the financial dimension such as margins, earnings before interest, revenues, taxes, depreciation and amortization, etc., is essential.
Added to these are other closely linked performance criteria, namely customer satisfaction itself, without neglecting human resources indicators such as staff absenteeism rates or employee turnover. It is also necessary to clearly define what workplace happiness means. It must take into account employees’ professional satisfaction, but should not be reduced to that alone.
In general, the positive feelings employees experience toward their company as a whole are part of this notion of workplace happiness. Organizational behavior and human resources management specialist Cynthia D. Fisher explains in an article published in the International Journal of Management Reviews in 2010 that, from a personal standpoint, three elements define the scope of happiness at work.
The first concerns engagement, meaning the pleasure an employee derives from the work he or she is assigned, as well as emotional and cognitive investment. The second relates to job satisfaction and refers, on the one hand, to salary and, on the other, to the work environment, line managers and colleagues. The third concerns emotional commitment to the company, namely the feelings an employee may have, such as a sense of belonging, attachment to the company, or shared values.
If one refers to the various surveys conducted on the subject, it appears that fulfillment at work is clearly determined by a number of criteria that have a direct influence on employee behavior in the workplace. These criteria include the tasks to be performed, potential career progression, possible continuing education, direct managers and colleagues, senior leadership of course, working conditions and pay, the sustainability of employment and actual working hours, as well as the employee’s specific place within the company.
According to the Dalai Lama, happiness stems from the satisfaction we feel with life. It means being able to live in line with one’s own values, feeling respected while enjoying stability in all areas of life in order to live in a better world. It also means taking part in one’s own happiness, but also in that of others, as a purpose in itself, and thus becoming more effective. Companies and their leaders are part of the evolution of the world of work through their contribution, which is inevitably reflected in society as a whole. The most powerful barometer of success is undoubtedly happiness!
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