ChicExecs Senior VP of Elevate, Lydia Vargo, shares the five ways to improve employee moral with one-on-one connection on Forbes blog. Enjoy this highlight from the piece.
As a leader, you need to invest in your people, which includes treating them like the unique humans they are. With regular one-on-one interaction, you can improve employee morale, productivity and retention all in one. Follow these five tips to improve employee loyalty performance through the power of one-on-one connections.
1. Be Personable
If you want to connect with employees, you need to be approachable. Kick things off by sharing a little about yourself. Be conscious of not oversharing and causing discomfort, but giving some insight into your life and personality can bridge a gap and begin a healthy rapport. Perhaps it’s as simple as placing photos of your kids on the wall behind your desk or sharing what you did last weekend. It doesn’t take much, but a little goes a long way.
2. Connect With Multimedia
Who says remote work has to disconnect your team? It’s tough staying in touch when you can’t swing by an employee’s desk for a chat, but you can still connect with your team through rich online channels.
Email is okay, but your team is probably sick of answering emails — and their inboxes are full, anyway. Instead, connect with your team through richer media like:
• A Discord server for audio-only chats.
• Voice memos, so people can listen to your voice.
• Vidyard recordings that show your screen and your face.
3. Hone Your EQ
If you want to foster healthy one-on-one connections, you need to boost your EQ as a leader. It might sound like common sense, but how you approach one-on-one conversations can have a big effect on employee morale.
4. Listen
If you’re checking email or answering Slack messages while chatting with an employee, they’re going to think you aren’t paying attention — and perhaps you aren’t!
Give employees your undivided attention when you speak to them. Let them do most of the talking and practice active listening. After all, communication goes well beyond the words that you speak — body language and tone are key to being understood and bridging gaps.
5. Schedule Fun Social Connections
It’s hard to connect with people in a remote environment. That’s why leaders need to intentionally schedule opportunities to connect with their team. This could take the form of:
• Friday trivia games over Zoom.
• Monday morning coffee chats.
• Team lunches where you deliver UberEats to their door.
Read Lydia’s entire blog here.
