Managing a small business can be an extremely challenging, yet rewarding experience. With limited resources and staff, small business owners need to find creative and efficient ways to handle all aspects of their company. From finances and marketing to employees and operations, there are many management techniques that can help entrepreneurs run a successful small business.
This comprehensive guide covers 121 of the most important management strategies and best practices for small business owners. By implementing even just a few of these techniques, you can streamline operations, improve efficiency, and position your company for sustainable growth.
Table of Contents
Define Your Business Goals and Create a Strategic Plan
The first step to effectively managing your small business is defining your short and long-term goals. What exactly do you want to accomplish in the next 1-3 years? Examples may include:
- Increase revenue by 30%
- Open 2 new locations
- Develop 3 new products/services
- Obtain 100 new customers
Once you determine your objectives, create a strategic plan outlining how you will achieve them. This will serve as your roadmap and help you stay focused on your top priorities.
Be sure to make your goals S.M.A.R.T.:
Specific Measurable Achievable
Relevant Time-bound
Also, review and update your goals regularly. Mark your progress and adjust as needed.
Organize Your Finances
Proper financial management is critical for small business success. Be sure to separate personal and business finances. Open a business checking account and get a credit card solely for your company.
Use accounting software to track income, expenses, profit/loss, accounts receivable, accounts payable, etc. Be diligent about bookkeeping – it will save you headaches come tax time!
Set a budget and review financials regularly to catch any issues early. Look for ways to reduce costs and improve efficiency.
Leverage Technology
Take advantage of technology to streamline operations and reach more customers. Useful software and tools for small businesses include:
- Accounting – QuickBooks, Xero
- CRM – Salesforce, HubSpot, Zoho
- Project Management – Asana, Trello, Basecamp
- Email Marketing – MailChimp, Constant Contact
- Website Builder – Wix, Squarespace, Weebly
Also utilize cloud-based solutions rather than physical servers to enable remote work and access. Migrate services to the cloud when possible.
Focus on Customer Service
Provide exceptional customer service to create lifelong, loyal customers. Reply promptly to inquiries and resolve issues quickly. Offer convenience through online account management, FAQs, and self-service options.
Solicit customer feedback via surveys, reviews, and personal outreach. Use this input to improve products and services. Aim to understand customers’ needs and exceed their expectations.
Train and Develop Employees
Hire slowly and fire quickly. Look for motivated, personable team players with strong work ethic. Offer thorough training on duties, systems, company policies/procedures, and your expectations.
Help employees reach their full potential through coaching, mentorship programs, and skills development. Encourage open communication and regular feedback.
Set Clear Roles and Responsibilities
Though employees may occasionally need to fill in where needed, ensure that each person has a clearly defined role. Document detailed job descriptions that outline primary duties.
Likewise, set distinct responsibilities for yourself vs. managers vs. staff. This prevents confusion and duplication of efforts.
Prioritize Effective Time Management
Get organized and work efficiently. Start each day by prioritizing your most important tasks. Schedule adequate time to complete them.
Limit interruptions by closing your door when working on a project or setting a designated window to answer emails/calls. Use timers to stay focused.
Take breaks to recharge. Work regular hours as much as possible. Don’t get burned out trying to do too much.
Automate Administrative Tasks
Look for ways to automate repetitive administrative duties. For example, use payroll software to calculate wages and handle tax withholdings.
Set up automatic reminders for things like meetings, reports, and payments due. Use templates for frequently sent documents like estimates, invoices, and contracts.
Automating admin tasks saves time and money while reducing errors.
Maintain Open Communication
Encourage employees to provide feedback and share ideas. Maintain an open door policy. Make yourself available to discuss concerns.
Communicate regularly about company news, changes, goals, and recognition. Use staff meetings, email, intranet, and instant messaging.
Foster collaboration through team-building activities and cross-training. Unified communication improves morale, efficiency, and results.
Analyze Performance Metrics
Identify key performance indicators for your business, such as leads generated, calls handled, or units produced. Track statistics over time to monitor progress.
Perform cost-benefit analysis of marketing campaigns, new equipment, pricing changes, etc. Review reports to determine what’s working well and what’s not.
Make data-driven decisions. Let performance metrics guide your operational strategies.
Seek Mentorship and Training
Don’t go it alone. Seek advice from experienced entrepreneurs who’ve built successful companies. Find a mentor. Attend small business workshops and seminars.
Join a CEO peer group like Vistage or Entrepreneurs’ Organization. Continuously build your leadership skills. Success requires lifelong learning.
Outsource Non-Core Functions
Focus on your core competencies. Hire freelancers or use agencies for non-essential functions like bookkeeping, HR, IT, graphic design, etc.
Outsourcing saves time and money while accessing specialized expertise. Just be sure to first put processes in place and clearly communicate needs.
Use Project Management Tools
Adopt project management systems and software to organize tasks, workflows, and teams. Popular options include Asana, Basecamp, Trello, and monday.com.
Centralize communication, file sharing, time tracking, checklists, and reporting. This fosters productivity, accountability, and collaboration.
Optimize Your Website
Your website is often the first impression you make on potential customers. Ensure it accurately represents your brand and offerings. Make it easy to navigate and mobile-friendly.
Include clear calls-to-action to contact, sign up, or purchase. Refresh content regularly. Use SEO practices to improve search visibility and traffic.
Diversify Your Marketing
Employ a variety of marketing tactics – not just social media. Options include blogging, email newsletters, events, sponsorships, direct mail, content marketing, etc.
Test strategies on a small scale first. Analyze results and double down on the most effective campaigns. A diverse strategy captures more eyeballs.
Network and Build Partnerships
Get involved with local business associations, chambers of commerce, and industry events. Introduce yourself. Exchange business cards. Start conversations.
Look for partnership opportunities through strategic alliances, channel sales, or joint ventures. Partnering allows access to new markets and resources.
Maintain a Positive Work Environment
Foster an uplifting office culture focused on mutual trust and respect between leadership and staff. Keep things upbeat. Infuse fun through team lunches, awards, competitions.
Provide opportunities for growth, flexibility, and work/life balance. Employees who feel valued and empowered are more engaged and loyal.
Reward and Recognize Employees
Catch people doing things right! Recognize contributions big and small. Give praise in front of peers during meetings or award Employee of the Month.
Provide monetary rewards like profit sharing, bonuses, gift cards, and extra PTO. Recognition boosts engagement, motivation, and retention.
Listen to Your Employees
Make time to regularly connect one-on-one with employees. Seek honest input about challenges, ideas for improvement, professional development needs, etc.
Be receptive to feedback, even if it’s negative. Then take action. When employees feel heard, it builds trust. Acting on their input leads to better retention.
Support Work/Life Balance
Support employees in achieving harmony between their work and personal lives. Offer flexible schedules when possible. Be understanding about personal needs.
Also, lead by example. Make time for your own family and interests outside of work. Protecting work/life balance for all improves productivity, health, and morale.
Develop an Employee Handbook
Create a handbook to outline workplace policies, procedures, benefits, dress code, time off requests, etc. This ensures HR consistency and compliance.
Upon hiring, review the handbook with employees and have them sign an acknowledgement form. Update regularly as policies change. Make it readily available.
Document Processes and Procedures
Don’t allow vital institutional knowledge to reside only in people’s heads. Document step-by-step processes, procedures, duties checklist, systems, etc.
Store documentation where employees can access it for reference. Update as improvements are made. Well documented procedures enable smooth operations.
Conduct Employee Evaluations
Perform regular reviews to provide employees feedback on performance, areas to improve, and goals for the next review period. Make it a two-way conversation.
Document key points and commitments. Reviews demonstrate management commitment to professional growth while increasing accountability.
Offer Competitive Compensation
Offer fair pay based on position type, experience, and geographic market rates. Research what competitors pay for similar roles.
Beyond base salary, consider annual increases, performance bonuses, and equity like stock options. Competitive compensation attracts and retains top talent.
Provide Performance-based Bonuses
Motivate and reward top performers with incentive pay tied to specific metrics like sales, profits, customer satisfaction, etc. Establish clear targets.
Bonuses reinforce key behaviors and achievements. They help align employee performance with broader organizational objectives.
Give Spot Bonuses
Spot bonuses are smaller, one-time rewards for notable accomplishments like completing a big project, generating brilliant idea, going above and beyond on a client delivery, etc.
They can be cash, gift cards, extra PTO, lunch with the boss – get creative! Spot bonuses recognize contributions in real-time when it matters most.
Offer Benefits and Perks
Provide quality benefits beyond basic legally required ones. Examples include health insurance, retirement savings plans, tuition reimbursement, gym discounts, etc.
Fun perks like monthly team lunches, remote work options, and ping pong tables also make your company an attractive place to work.
Support Professional Development
Dedicate funds for employees to take training courses, attend conferences, and pursue industry certifications. Tuition reimbursement plans help cover higher ed.
This shows your commitment to helping employees continuously enhance their skills. A culture of learning improves performance at all levels.
Practice Succession Planning
Have a plan in place for when key employees leave the company or move into new roles. Identify and develop successors to take on greater responsibility.
Cross train employees to fill critical functions. Update procedures documentation. Succession planning reduces disruption and retains institutional knowledge.
Set Up a Solid Onboarding Process
A positive onboarding experience makes new hires feel welcomed, prepared, and engaged in their new role and company. Assign a mentor to guide them. Provide the resources and training needed to ramp up quickly.
On their first day, have everything ready – computer, email, badges, introductions made. Make them excited to start contributing.
Offer an Employee Referral Program
Current employees often make the best recruiters since they understand your culture and needs. Offer a bonus for referring candidates that get hired.
This incentive motivates employees to help build a strong workforce. It also typically surfaces quality applicants at a lower recruitment cost.
Foster Diversity and Inclusion
Promote diversity and inclusion in your hiring practices and workplace culture. Seek those with varied backgrounds, experiences and ideas.
Ensure equal opportunity for professional growth. Embrace and value each person’s uniqueness. An inclusive environment drives innovation and profitability.
Have Regular Staff Meetings
Conduct semi-regular all hands meetings to share company news, recognize achievements, discuss challenges, and allow for open Q&A. Keep them focused.
Staff meetings align everyone behind priorities. They demonstrate transparency and openness. Employees feel more connected to leadership and each other.
Build a Collaborative Culture
Break down departmental silos by organizing cross-functional teams and group brainstorms. Collaborating on projects generates fresh thinking and taps broader skillsets.
Facilitate internal knowledge sharing through communities of practice, mentor programs, and internal social networks. Collaboration unlocks synergies and continuous improvement.
Celebrate Shared Successes
Commemorate company milestones like surpassing sales targets, process efficiency gains, new products launched or other achievements. Bring in lunch, have a party, hand out awards.
Celebrating together builds community, boosts morale, and fuels future accomplishment. Always making time to recognize shared wins keeps teams engaged.
Provide Useful Feedback and Praise
Offer regular, timely feedback focused on specific behaviors and actions – not the person. Be constructive yet sensitive.
Balance critical feedback by also praising positive contributions. Useful feedback followed by genuine praise drives growth, learning and motivation.
Listen More Than Talk
Resist the urge to always be the one talking. Actively listen to employees. Show you value their input by implementing suggestions when possible.
Listening demonstrates respect and care. It garners trust. Employees who feel heard are more loyal, engaged and willing contribute ideas freely.
Learn Employees’ Strengths
Get to know employees’ backgrounds, interests, aspirations, communication styles, strengths and weaknesses. What are they passionate about? How do they enjoy being recognized?
Use this understanding to play to their strengths. Assign responsibilities suited to their capabilities and motivators. People excel when aligned with their talents.
Coach and Develop Employees
Move beyond just telling employees what to do. Coach them on how to handle challenging situations and improve skills. Offer guidance, not directives.
Let them problem-solve independently when possible. They will gain confidence. Effective coaching builds capability, engagement, and readiness for advancement.
Provide Constructive Criticism
When improvement is needed, provide constructive feedback focused on specific behaviors, not the person. Be direct yet thoughtful. Suggest alternatives. Offer support and resources.
Following up shows commitment to their growth. Constructive criticism makes expectations clear and demonstrates belief in their potential.
Share Experiences and Expertise
Impart your knowledge, expertise and business experiences to mentor employees in their development. Offer insights on leadership, company history, industry perspective.
Sharing your know-how makes employees feel invested in. It also preserves institutional knowledge and wisdom as the company evolves.
Promote from Within
Support employees’ career advancement by promoting from within whenever possible. This builds loyalty, motivation, and empowerment.
Current employees already understand the culture and systems. Providing growth opportunities is a retention driver and cultivates future leaders.
Host Office Events and Outings
Hold quarterly or annual picnics, holiday dinners, bowling nights, happy hours, or other fun outings. These informal gatherings build camaraderie beyond the office walls.
Bring food to the office for events like Employee Appreciation Day, company anniversary, or new product launch. Events boost engagement, networking and morale.
Allow Flexible Schedules
Permit flex hours like later start and end times when feasible. Offer periodic remote work days. Relax rules against using sick time on short notice when needed.
Work/life balance is highly valued today. Flexibility provides needed breathing room. It empowers employees to manage their own schedules.
Support Health and Wellness
Promote physical and mental health by sponsoring exercise challenges, subsidizing gym memberships, bringing in health screenings and seminars. Stock healthy snacks.
Encourage using vacation time. Discourage excessive overtime. Supporting wellness improves concentration, morale and productivity while reducing absenteeism.
Be Transparent with Company Finances
Increase trust and reduce speculation by being open about financial realities. Share highlights of budget forecasts, operating costs, capital expenditures, etc. Explain financial decisions.
Reasonable financial transparency demonstrates your respect for people’s intelligence. It also builds buy-in for actions needed to strengthen the business.
Solicit Solutions to Issues
When facing a challenge, problem or process breakdown, avoid jumping to immediate solutions. First tap staff for ideas to solve it.
People support what they help create. Soliciting solutions improves engagement, innovation plus the quality of remedies put in place. Staff know processes best.
Provide Cross Training Opportunities
Have employees occasionally “shadow” those in other departments to understand their roles better. Or train backups for key positions to build bench strength.
Cross training fosters enterprise perspective. Having backups for critical roles also enables continuity when people leave or are out. A flexible team adapts better.
Offer Tuition Reimbursement
Offer to cover a portion of higher education tuition costs after an employee has been with the company for a set period, such as one year. Require a passing grade.
Investing in continuing education produces valuable outcomes for both employer and employee. It builds loyalty and enables employees to acquire advanced skills.
Provide the Right Tools and Tech
Equip your team with technologies that streamline workflows, improve data access, facilitate collaboration, and enhance customer service capabilities. Prioritize user-friendliness.
Using intuitive, integrated systems – rather than disjointed legacy apps – makes staff more productive, collaborative and satisfied in getting work done efficiently.
Empower Decision Making
Avoid micro-managing. Give employees authority over their responsibilities. Set clear guidelines, then step back and trust them to decide how best to take action.
Empowered employees who can make decentralized decisions quickly are huge assets. You hired smart people – now leverage their capabilities by granting autonomy.
Establish an Open Door Policy
Assure employees they can approach you at any time to discuss concerns, suggestions or questions. Mean it. Make yourself available. Close your office door only when necessary.
An open door policy enables transparent, two-way communication between staff and leadership. Employees want to be heard. Listening develops trust and sparks improvement.
Show Appreciation
Every employee wants to feel genuinely appreciated for their efforts and contributions. Recognize achievements publicly and privately. Send thank you notes.
Celebrate work anniversaries and birthdays. Small, frequent appreciations motivate and boost morale better than occasional, big rewards.
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Promote from Within when Possible
Before recruiting externally, first look to fill open positions by promoting from within. Current employees already grasp your culture and systems. Providing growth opportunities builds loyalty and empowerment.
Internal promotions also cultivate future leaders with longevity. Just be sure those selected are ready; provide training as needed. Promoting from within sends a strong retention message.
Make Values Matter
Clearly define your company values. Then model them genuinely and integrate into everyday operations. For example, if customer centricity is a value, recognize those going above and beyond for clients.
Authentically living values attracts talent who shares those priorities. Consistent modeling by leadership makes values part of your culture and guides daily decisions at all levels.
Foster Peer-to-Peer Recognition
Have employees recognize each other’s achievements through peer-to-peer programs. This might involve giving “gold stars” or nominating colleagues for “Employee of the Month”.
Peer recognition builds camaraderie and sparks motivation. The social validation of appreciation coming from colleagues often means more than just from managers.
Provide Yoga and Meditation
Consider offering onsite yoga classes before work hours or during lunch. Also create space for meditation, quiet reflection or prayer needs.
Yoga and meditation offerings demonstrate commitment to employee health and wholeness. They help people de-stress, renew energy and tap inner strengths.
Give Back through Volunteering
Organize or encourage volunteering programs where employees can give back together, such as planting neighborhood trees, volunteering at animal shelters or serving meals to the homeless.
Giving back deepens bonds between colleagues while benefiting the community. Seeing their company care about making a broader difference creates meaning and pride for employees.
Maintain a Clean, Comfortable Workplace
Keep the office consistently clean and sanitary. Make sure heating and cooling are adequate. Provide ergonomic seating and assess lighting needs. Supply functional breakroom appliances.
While often overlooked, a comfortable, tidy workplace demonstrates respect for those spending so much time there. Employees shouldn’t have to work around avoidable messes or discomforts.
Provide Child Care Support
Offer benefits that acknowledge the parental responsibilities many of your staff juggle. Examples include onsite child care, child care stipends and referral services.
Child care assistance conveys compassion for employees’ lives outside work. It helps parents minimize disruptions when child care issues arise and enables them to stay focused on work.
Set Realistic Deadlines
Set deadlines that allow a reasonable timeframe to complete assignments at a sustainable pace. Avoid routinely imposing overly tight turnarounds that necessitate overtime.
Short-interval deadlines pressure teams to cut corners and make mistakes. Allowing sufficient time prevents undue anxiety while enabling work to be done thoughtfully and accurately.
Collaborate on Goal Setting
Involve employees in crafting their own goals and performance metrics. Guide the process but incorporate their insights. Ensure alignment to broader objectives.
Collaborative goal-setting produces better buy-in than top-down targets. Employees have crucial operational insights you may lack. Together craft goals to push yet motivate.
Provide Birthday Time Off
Allow each employee to take their birthday off as a paid holiday or “floating holiday” to use on another day around their birthday.
Birthday time off is an employee favorite that shows you care about them personally. Who doesn’t love getting an extra day to celebrate their special day with family and friends?
Listen to Understand First
When an employee surfaces a concern, first listen closely to understand it fully before reacting. Ask clarifying questions. Paraphrase what you hear.
Seek true understanding before responding. Listening to learn leads to solutions better suited to actual needs. Employees want to feel heard more than anything.
ProvideEYECARE + Vision Benefits
Offer vision insurance and/or subsidized vision exams. Provide coverage for prescription eyeglasses, contacts and/or discounts on non-covered eyewear purchases.
EYECARE benefits demonstrate investment in employees’ wellbeing. Protecting vision health leads to greater performance, safety, and comfort in carrying out work responsibilities.
Offer Paid Sabbaticals
After a set number of years served, provide employees extended paid time off up to a month for rest, rejuvenation, professional development, volunteer work or personal growth.
Sabbaticals combat burnout and inspire creativity that lifts performance upon returning. Employees highly value extended time to recharge and pursue passions outside work.
Give Bonuses for Certifications
Offer one-time monetary bonuses when employees complete job-related certification programs that enhance their professional capabilities and value to the organization.
Bonus incentives motivate continuous learning. You benefit from staff advancing their expertise. Certification bonuses are recognition for dedication to mastery and career growth.
Provide Ergonomic Evaluations
Contract qualified professionals to assess office ergonomics and employees’ workspace setups. Provide appropriate chairs, desks, monitor heights, keyboards, etc.
Ergonomic workplaces prevent repetitive stress injuries and discomfort that hamper productivity. Healthy postures and proper equipment fitting alleviate pain and injury risk.
Install Relaxation Stations
Designate space where employees can do short meditation sessions or visualizations to take mini mental breaks throughout the day as needed. Outfit with comfortable pillows, blankets, soothing music.
Relaxation stations offer quick mental rejuvenation to then refocus fully on work. Short sensory respites relieve stress and boost productivity.
Allow Remote Work Options
Offer arrangements where employees can periodically work remotely. Set clear guidelines for determining eligibility, expectations, and scheduling coordination.
Remote work affords flexibility and work/life balance benefits. It also improves concentration for detail-oriented tasks. Output and availability matter more than face time.
Provide Care Packages
When employees are going through major life events like bereavement, divorce or illness, offer gestures like sending a gift basket or meal delivery. Make sure they have needed time off.
Care packages express empathy and compassion. Support through trying times builds loyalty and community. Employees remember how you were there in the difficult moments.
Offer Convenience Services
Provide onsite conveniences like dry cleaning pick up and drop off, oil change service, concierge to handle errands, mobile car wash, meal kit delivery, etc.
Handling life errands cuts down on time employees spend running personal tasks on their own time after work hours. Convenience services save time, energy and demonstrate you value employees’ lives outside work.
Provide Spot Bonuses
Reward outstanding individual accomplishments with small cash bonuses, gift cards or extra time off given on the spot. Spot bonuses incentivize productivity and performance. Recognition in the moment often means more.
They let you reinforce behaviors and achievements you want to encourage as they occur rather than waiting for performance reviews. Spot bonuses help make excellence top of mind.
Implement Team Building Activities
Conduct engaging activities to bring employees together and strengthen cooperation, communication, strategic thinking, problem solving, creativity, trust in one another and leadership.
Team building improves collaboration and unity between departments with activities like ropes courses, scavenger hunts, “escape room” workshops, office mini-golf, cooking classes or volunteering together.
Offer Counseling Support
Contract with providers like LifeWorks to give employees and dependents access to confidential counseling for professional issues, relationship troubles, addictions, emotional problems, legal concerns, financial guidance and more.
Confidential counseling and referral services provide needed outlets for employees dealing with life’s difficulties. Getting help improves focus plus physical and mental wellbeing.
Allow Office Pets
Permit employees to occasionally bring pets like dogs, cats, small mammals and fish to the office. Set policies to ensure proper handling, cleaning, supervision and no allergy issues.
Office pets reduce stress and foster camaraderie and collaboration. Responsible pet ownership policies ensure minimal disruption to operations and a safe, clean environment.
Provide Standing Desks
Make height-adjustable desks available so employees can work in either a sitting or standing position. Standing promotes health through calorie burn, reduced fatigue and back strain prevention.
Workers feel energized after standing portions of the day. Sit/stand options maintain productivity and focus while alleviating the downsides of sitting still for prolonged periods. Standing boosts wellness.
Utilize the Cloud
Migrate data storage, software systems, communications and document workflows to secure, shareable cloud platforms. This centralizes access and enables remote, mobile-friendly work.
Cloud solutions better connect teams. They provide instant collaboration, widespread access to data, and backups securing against device failures or disasters. They also enable location flexibility.
Foster Innovation and Creativity
Allocate work time for “passion projects” and creative ideas. Provide spaces conducive to creative thinking and design. Encourage stretching from routines and voicing ideas freely.
Tapping employees’ natural creativity and passions unlocks innovations that can fuel growth. Dedicated creative time and space cultivates an innovation culture that gives your business an edge.
Provide Career Planning
Offer employees help mapping long-term career paths internally through mentorships, training assistance, transitional assignments and succession planning. Discuss advancement opportunities.
Career planning with leadership guidance empowers employees to develop the skills needed to achieve professional aspirations. It boosts retention through supporting growth opportunities within your organization.
Safeguard Whistleblower Rights
Protect employees who report issues like workplace discrimination, harassment, safety violations, fraud, policy breaches or other misconduct from retaliation. Keep reporting procedures and follow-up confidential.
Safe whistleblowing systems surface and swiftly address wrongdoing. Protecting those with the courage to speak up against misconduct inspires an ethical culture and engaged workforce.
Maintain Transparent Pay Practices
Take proactive steps to ensure compensation practices – base pay, raises, bonuses, etc. – are fair, competitive and consistent company-wide. Audit periodically. Explain pay rate setting.
Employees want to understand how their pay is determined and trust in equitable treatment. Transparent, equitable pay practices foster engagement and retention while building trust in leadership.
Provide Survivor/Bereavement Leave
In addition to funeral leave, provide paid time off for employees coping with the loss of a close loved one to handle affairs, grieve and adjust emotionally. Offer additional unpaid leave if requested.
Compassionate bereavement benefits allow employees time to mourn without worrying about work or using sick/vacation time. This care bolsters loyalty and reassurance they work for an understanding organization.
Host Virtual Social Hours
Leverage video chat to facilitate online social hours for employees to casually connect through activities like games, trivia, “coffee breaks”, happy hours, cooking together or paint nights.
Virtual social hours enable staff bonding despite location barriers. They cultivate camaraderie and lift spirits through fun interaction outside day-to-day tasks. They reinforce community and culture.
Provide Life Insurance
Offer employer paid basic life insurance plus supplemental insurance employees can purchase. Life insurance protects families from financial hardship in the tragic event of losing a loved one and breadwinner.
Providing life insurance shows you care about employees’ families and gives peace of mind. Supplemental policies enable customization to each person’s family’s needs. This benefit is highly valued.
Be Vulnerable and Authentic
Don’t pretend to have all the answers as a leader. Be real. Share your own mishaps, lessons learned, uncertainties. Celebrate the team wins before your own. Credit others.
Vulnerable, authentic leaders build trust and connection. Admitting your humanity invites reciprocity. Model the fallibility, sincerity and service you want your culture to exhibit. People relate to imperfections.
Share Company Financials
Promote trust and reduce speculation by openly sharing highlights of company finances. Discuss realities like operating costs, growth projections, areas of investment, etc. Provide regular business updates.
Reasonable financial transparency shows respect for staff’s intelligence. It helps employees understand decisions and need for changes. Informed teams also contribute more cost savings ideas.
Provide Disability Insurance
Offer group long and short-term disability plans. Disability insurance replaces lost income when a serious illness or injury prevents an employee from working for an extended time.
Protecting employees’ livelihoods in the event of disabling illness or injury fosters loyalty and mitigates worry. Employees deal with enough without severe income loss fears.
Invest in Learning Management Systems
Implement online learning management platforms that centralize training delivery, course administration, skills documentation and career development planning.
Sophisticated learning systems streamline onboarding and skills building. The self-service access and tracking abilities benefit both employee growth and monitoring company wide development needs.
Foster a Diverse Workforce
Promote diversity through inclusive hiring, advancement, cultural awareness, zero tolerance for discrimination plus acknowledging lived experiences. Welcome all backgrounds.
Beyond being morally sound, diversity unlocks innovation, stronger teamwork and market growth through integrating broader perspectives and talents.
Provide Job Sharing Options
Allow two employees to share the responsibilities of a traditionally full-time role. Split hours to accommodate flexibility needs or transitioning to retirement while leveraging experienced workers.
Job sharing meets employees’ evolving work/life needs. It retains organizational knowledge, continuity and output through flexibility. It also broadens development through exposure to job sharing partner skills.
Make Health Insurance Affordable
Utilize quality low premium group plans and cost sharing models that maximize plan affordability for both employer and employees. Avoid high deductible plans. Consider partly subsidizing family premiums.
The number one valued benefit is affordable healthcare. Group plans and employee premium assistance ensure staff aren’t deterred from accepting coverage by cost. Protecting their wellbeing protects productivity.
Offer Student Loan Repayment
Provide student debt repayment benefits allocating set amounts to outstanding student loans after an initial employment period, such as one year. Tie amounts to years served.
Loan repayment assistance attracts burdened graduates and displays investment in employees’ whole lives. Relief from staggering debt enables engagement, retention and career growth rather than just debt survival.
Provide Training Reimbursement
Cover pre-approved costs for continuing education and skill development courses, certifications, seminars or programs that relate to employees’ current or future potential roles. Require completion and passing grades.
Reimbursing career advancing education demonstrates commitment to staff growth. The arrangement motivates learning new capabilities while benefiting the organization. Offering training incentives builds loyalty.
Set Clear Expectations
Ensure employees understand what’s expected upfront. Provide clear, written job descriptions, policies, performance objectives, email and conduct guidelines, workflows and standard operating procedures.
Well defined expectations enable high performance. They prevent confusion, inefficiencies and misunderstandings. Clear direction helps staff succeed and excel. Set the roadmap for productivity.
Maintain Two-Way Communication
Beyond top-down messaging, facilitate processes for bottom-up communication. Maintain openness through regular employee feedback channels, surveys, town halls, Q&A meetings and informal check-ins. Respond to input.
Two-way communication loops engage staff by making all voices heard. Employees want their perspective considered also. Listening in fosters innovation plus alignment around vision and goals.
Provide Meaningful Work
Connect employees’ roles to concrete positive impacts like helping customers save money, gain skills, prevent disasters, reunite families, enjoy peace of mind, achieve aspirations, etc. Highlight real-world differences made.
People want their work to matter. Sharing how employees’ efforts change lives and better the world provides profound motivation and fulfillment that maximizes discretionary effort.
Offer Partial Remote Work Options
Provide combination on-site and remote schedules, such as three office days and two home office days weekly. Ensure staff have needed mobile equipment, software access and communication abilities.
Hybrid arrangements balance productivity, flexibility, work/life harmony and continuity. Allowing partial remote work broadens candidate pools and retains staff seeking better harmony. Productivity monitoring safeguards effectiveness.
Provide Stock Options
Offer employees at certain levels enrollment in stock purchase plans allowing them to buy company shares at a discounted price. The stock’s future equity provides a sense of ownership.
Stock plans incentivize performance that grows share value. They also foster loyalty and retention through tying employees’ interests to the company’s success. Employees appreciate the upside potential and vested interest.
Allow Purchase of Extra Vacation Days
Enable employees to buy extra vacation days beyond their allotted paid time off. Deduct the daily wage rate when purchased and utilized. Cap total annual days that can be bought.
Optional purchased vacation satisfies staff occasional needs for extra time off without reducing company policy days. It provides flexibility valued by employees as a perk worth paying for.
Provide Adoption Assistance
Offer financial support and flexible absences to assist with adoption expenses and transition needs like home visits, travel, legal matters, parental leave, etc.
Adoption support demonstrates compassion and inclusiveness. The complex adoption process presents financial and time demands making employer assistance invaluable. Supporting families cultivates loyalty beyond just biological parents.
Have Fun with Themes
Introduce weekly or monthly themes like Crazy Hat Day, Superhero Day, Decade Day and Fandom Friday. Themes encourage social bonding and friendly creative competition between departments.
Silly themes mix up routines. They facilitate staff interacting socially in a fun, informal way. Themed occasions boost morale and help employees connect on a more personal level.
Allow Donation Matching
Make donations to causes employees care about – up to set amounts – and match employee’ charitable gifts to registered nonprofits. Enabling generosity generates goodwill.
Matching programs empower bigger community impact. They demonstrate shared concern for broader issues employees care about. Facilitating giving encourages volunteerism and social responsibility also.
Provide In-House Massage
Hire massage therapists for office visits to provide stress-relieving massages. Relaxation encourages focus and productivity while reducing stress related illnesses.
Massage perks ease bodies tightened by long work days sitting. These wellness offerings represent your investment in their whole person care, not just output. The mind-body refreshment benefits their work.
Let New Hires Job Shadow
Have new employees spend initial days shadowing various roles to understand interconnectedness between departments and functions. It builds context and relationships.
Job shadowing onboards new hires faster through experiential insight into workflows and personnel. Hands-on orientation gets people contributing more quickly than just being told processes.
Offer Catered Lunches
Provide free catered lunches once a month or on special occasions. Sharing a meal together sparks informal chats that strengthen social bonds
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Provide Healthy Office Snacks
Keep your office kitchen stocked with healthy snacks like fruit, nuts, granola bars, juices and sparkling water. Fueling employees’ energy, health and mood lifts performance.
Free nourishing snacks demonstrate care for staff wellbeing in a small but frequent way. The gesture boosts morale while keeping hunger pangs and vending machine junk cravings at bay between meals.
Arm Chairs for Breastfeeding
Provide comfortable armchairs for breastfeeding mothers returning to work to privately pump breast milk during the day. Support nursing needs.
Lactation accommodations affirm your support for working parents. Armchairs allow pumping moms private, dignified spaces to maintain their milk supply when away from baby. Support aids retention and eases transition back.
Give Teddy Bears for Baby Leave
When employees go on parental leave, give them stuffed animals dressed in shirts saying “Welcome home! Love, [Company Name]” for their children. The sweet keepsake celebrates newborns.
New parent keepsakes humanize your brand and generate goodwill. The meaningful memento represents caring about employees’ life milestones beyond work. Gestures fostering loyalty and camaraderie mean the most.
Provide Backup Child Care
Offer 10-20 days subsidized use of nearby child care centers when school is closed or regular child care falls through. Reduce unplanned absence stress.
Backup care assistance empowers working parents to handle disruptions without using precious time off. Your support for managing care needs bolsters engagement and peace of mind. Parents feel valued.
Give Discounts on Company Services
Offer employees discounts on the company’s consumer services or products like hotel stays, phone plans, dining, theme park tickets or goods. Appreciate staff loyalty.
Enabling people to experience company offerings shows pride and care for employees. Discounts let staff extend savings to their families and friends, expanding your brand ambassadors.
Provide Mindfulness Programs
Contract with mindfulness experts to offer on-site or virtual training in meditation, yoga, breathing exercises, and stress reduction techniques. Boost focus and renewal.
Mindfulness programs equip people with tools and techniques to train attention, decompress stress and tap inner strengths. The skills amplify resilience, creativity and emotional intelligence – valuable throughout work and life.
Give Living Benefits
Include accelerated life insurance payout options to access funds needed for medical or long-term care expenses employees encounter prior to death. Support daily health challenges.
Living benefits demonstrate benevolent commitment to sustaining staff quality of life when facing critical illness, disabilities or end-of-life needs. Support through life’s toughest moments earns profound loyalty.
Implement a Social Intranet
Create an internal online network for employees to socialize, give kudos, share news, collaborate on forums and contribute casual content. Humanize digital communications.
An intranet hub fosters community when teams are decentralized or remote. The informal connectivity provides a “virtual watercooler” to unite people across locations through shared interests and recognition.
Provide Tuition Discounts
Partner with colleges and universities to offer exclusive tuition discounts and scholarship opportunities to advance employees’ education. Investing in growth positively impacts retention.
Educational discounts empower professional mobility and skill gains that propel careers. Your support for employees’ development through reduced-cost access to higher learning inspires loyalty beyond salary alone.
Offer Quit Smoking Programs
Provide resources and incentives to help employees quit smoking such as smoking cessation workshops, nicotine patches/gum discounts, counseling stipends, mileage rewards, etc.
Smoking cessation assistance conveys genuine concern for staff’s wellbeing. Combining support, education, incentives and access facilitates successful behavior change leading to lifelong health gains.
Provide Spot Bonuses
Reward employees for notable specific achievements with small spot bonuses like gift cards, cash or extra time off given on-the-spot. Recognize exceptional efforts promptly when it matters most.
Spot rewards incentivize productivity and performance in real time versus waiting for periodic reviews. The surprise element makes the recognition more memorable and personal.
Give Years of Service Awards
Bestow gifts or plaques to employees reaching key annual milestones such as 5, 10, 15 years etcetera to highlight their loyalty. Popular gifts include vacations, watches, rings, bags, and cash.
Service anniversary recognitions make employees feel respected for committing their careers to your organization. Distinct appreciation for tenure milestones fosters retention through making loyal staff feel valued.
Install Sound Masking
Use ambient sound diffusion technology to fill open workspaces with subtle background noise to mask conversations and reduce distractions. This restores privacy and focus.
Sound masking improves workplace comfort and function. The peaceful audible privacy it restores evokes higher job satisfaction, productivity, creativity and collaboration versus loud, chaotic offices.
Provide Job Mentoring
Pair newer employees with veteran staff through formal mentorships. Veterans share knowledge, provide support and give guidance on career growth within the company.
Job mentorships accelerate competency. Guidance from seasoned professionals smooths transitions and develops talent. The insights imparted foster loyalty and position newer staff for leadership roles down the road.
Hold Focus Groups
Convene employee forums to gain input on proposed initiatives, understand evolving needs or solve problems. Discuss engagement, development, satisfaction plus hear fresh ideas.
Focus groups cultivate two-way communication between leadership and staff. The insights gleaned help progress policies and programs reflecting employee values. Listening demonstrates you act on their input and value their perspectives.
Monitor Engagement
Survey employees at least annually using tools measuring factors indicative of engagement: satisfaction, commitment, pride, alignment with goals, intent to stay, discretionary effort, etc.
Checking engagement metrics consistently allows early intervention at the first sign of declines. Proactive improvements maintain inspired employees, in contrast to trying to resurrect satisfaction after it has cratered. Ongoing listening matters.
Provide Home Buying Assistance
Subsidize employee home purchases through zero interest loans or grants to cover portions of down payments and closing costs. Home support cements retention.
Home buying help makes the dream of ownership attainable for employees strained by housing costs. Facilitating putting down roots generates loyalty and community impact beyond just enabling an easy commute.
Foster Cross Department Volunteering
Encourage employees to volunteer a few hours assisting other departments than their own. The exposure widens perspectives on interdepartmental workflows and how each team’s role fits into the larger mission.
Cross-department volunteering builds empathy, cooperation and enterprise thinking. The hands-on organizational insights gained spark process innovations and change commitment when staff return to their regular roles.
Conduct Stay Interviews
Regularly ask employees targeted questions to gauge their level of satisfaction, retention likelihood and collect suggestions. Solve issues proactively that may otherwise spur exits.
Stay interviews drive retention through listening to issues vulnerable employees may be hesitant to otherwise volunteer. Proactive care demonstrates commitment to staff happiness and corrective action vs. passive indifference.
Provide Milestone Awards
Recognize length of service milestones such as 5, 10, 15, 20 year anniversaries with meaningful gifts like awards, experiences, merchandise or lavish group experiences like banquet dinners.
Milestone gifts convey deep appreciation for the substantial life commitment reaching tenure anniversaries signifies. Distinct award moments punctuate career span, offering timely recognition when retention desires peak.
Develop Employee Resource Groups
Support networks bringing together employees who share common interests, backgrounds or demographic factors. Examples include groups for women, millennials, culture, pride, veterans, disabilities etc.
Resource groups provide safe spaces for affinity-based mentoring, development and support. They empower underrepresented groups and allies. Their input also advances diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives.
Provide Time Off For Civic Duties
Allow employees paid time off to vote in elections, volunteer at polling places, serve jury duty and participate in local governance boards or leadership. Foster democratic process and community building engagement.
Compensating staff to fulfill civic obligations demonstrates organizational commitment to community participation. Facilitating public service enriches society and develops leadership abilities transferable back into employees’ roles.
Allow Employees Flexible Holidays
Beyond set company holidays, provide an additional “floating holiday” employees can use to observe a cultural, religious or personal day most meaningful to them. Build inclusiveness.
Flexible holidays acknowledge diverse cultures and identities with time off options consistent with their traditions. It adds meaning when organizations enable celebrating employees’ most cherished days in their own chosen way.
Provide Unlimited Sick Leave
Eliminate set sick day allowances. Permit employees to take needed sick time without seeking approval or using vacation days. Focus is placed on healing, not tracking days absent.
Unlimited sick time empowers staff to prioritize their health and prevents contagious workforce presence. It eliminates leave anxiety and demonstrates trust in responsible use. Employees appreciate the humane flexibility.
Give Holiday Early Closures
Close office early before major holidays like July 4th, Memorial Day, Labor Day etcetera to give employees extra time off. Appreciate their efforts.
Early closures before holidays boost morale and lower absenteeism by allowing more time for travel and festivities. The modest gesture conveys care for work-life balance and makes employees feel recognized.
Provide Mileage Reimbursement
Reimburse employees for using personal vehicles for business-related trips and errands based on miles driven. Compensate their costs.
Mileage reimbursements alleviate the financial burden employees bear using personal cars for company needs. It provides equitable cost coverage since gas, wear and tear are employer obligations – not the individual’s.
Give Annual Home Leave
In addition to vacation time, provide seven paid days off for employees working internationally to visit family in their country of origin. Support expat acclimation.
Home leaves uphold employee wellness and retention abroad. Periodic opportunities to reconnect with familiar language, culture and loved ones are vital for sustaining the strains of foreign deployments.
Provide Travel Insurance
Pay for employee travel insurance for company related trips. Protect their safety and cover emergency medical care, lost baggage or trip changes beyond their control.
Providing business travel insurance demonstrates duty of care and mitigates staff assuming risks on your behalf. This protection conveys priceless peace of mind when work takes them away from home turf.
Give Pet Insurance
Subsidize premiums for pet insurance plans to help defray veterinary costs. Pet wellbeing affects employee wellbeing. Support their family members.
Pet insurance aids employees in proactively safeguarding animal’s health. Your contribution exhibits empathy for “staff” beyond just the humans. Support for pets enhances overall wellbeing and eases tough choices.
Provide Doula Support
Cover doula services during childbirth that offer physical comfort, emotional support, advocacy, and guidance during labor and postpartum transitions. Prioritize birthing parent wellbeing.
Doula benefits exemplify putting new mothers at the center of care choices. The support and encouragement doulas surround new parents with fostering strong bonds and a profoundly positive delivery experience.
Give Anniversary Extra PTO
Reward employees on the annual recurrence of their start date by adding an extra day of paid time off in recognition of their service. Celebrate their dedication.
Service anniversary perks boost engagement and signal professional milestones. The meaningful touchpoint provides anticipated annual appreciation between infrequent longevity milestones. Marking retention years with gifts rewards loyalty.
Hold Healthcare Enrollment Fairs
Host onsite benefit fairs allowing employees to personally meet with medical plan, dental, vision, life insurance and FSA account vendors to make selections. Provide guidance.
Onsite signup events provide clear explanations from representatives at enrollment time versus deciphering packets alone. They encourage participation through convenient expert access guiding optimal selections.
Provide Milk Shipping For Traveling Moms
Cover cost of overnight breast milk shipping for business traveling nursing mothers to send pumped milk home. Support work-life harmony.
Milk shipping enables nursing moms to travel without sacrificing breast feedingUpon return. Demonstrating this level of support empowers balancing family and work during pivotal times. The accommodation builds loyalty.
Give Employee Hardship Funds
Provide grants employees can apply for if facing a financial crisis due to catastrophic illness, accident, natural disaster, death, etc. Alleviate acute stress.
Hardship funds provide vital stopgap financial relief during emergencies that threaten employees’ basic security. Providing this temporary support in times of dire need fosters stability, hope and enduring gratitude.
Have Mandatory PTO Minimums
Require employees to take at least one week of vacation per year. Discourage overwork. Set policies mandating minimum PTO usage amounts, with exceptions for special circumstances.
Compulsory minimum PTO utilization supports healthy work-life balance and prevents burnout from overworking. Mandating time away increases creativity and productivity upon return while conveying vacation is a priority.
Securing Sustainable Success
Running a small business is like being the captain of a ship. You have to make sure it goes in the right direction and that everyone on board is happy and working together. It’s important to have a map (your goals and plans) to know where you’re sailing to.
Even when the waters get a little rough (like when money is tight or things don’t go as planned), using smart ideas to manage your business can help keep the ship steady and moving forward.
By being a good leader, making wise choices, and keeping the crew (your team) motivated, your business ship can sail smoothly towards success and find treasure islands (growth and opportunities) on its journey. Remember, a good captain always learns and is ready for new adventures!