9 Benefits That Lead to Happier Employees

As a small business owner, there’s no one-size-fits-all approach to achieving

work-life balance. There is, however, an opportunity for you to create an environment

where your employees will thrive both inside and outside of work.

Integrate some of these nontraditional policies and benefits into your small business for happier employees, higher productivity

and a lower turnover rate.

Contributing to your employees’ health through a wellness program can change their lives. Start a program such as Fitbit Wellness, which provides a high-tech and interactive way for your staff to collaborate and compete through company challenges. This program also offers employees a subsidy for Fitbit devices, which — according to Fitbit — leads to higher engagement than if employees were to receive a free device.

01. Offer a Wellness Program

02. Implement a Free Time-Off Policy

Instead of offering vacation days and sick days separately, offer a free time-off (FTO) policy. This allows employees to take as much time off as they need for whatever reason they see fit. Bloomfire, a social knowledge base app, implemented this policy and found their employees take the time off they need while always ensuring their work gets done.

03. Contribute to Growth

Investing in the education of your employees will not only add to their personal growth but it will also bring new skill sets to your company. While you may not be able to afford subsidizing full bachelor’s or master’s degrees, don’t underestimate the power of offering financial assistance for one-off classes or attending conferences in specific areas of interest.

Corporate discounts and deals for local businesses are often viewed as quite valuable by employees — and may cost your small business little to nothing. Try using a service like Any Perk, which gives your employees access to more than 850 pre-negotiated perks, such as special pricing on gym memberships, hotels and much more.

04. Add Partnership Perks

05. Prioritize Volunteering

Set aside either collective company time or a certain number of flexible working hours for your employees to dedicate to volunteering. Many employees, particularly millennials, value employers who contribute to the greater social good. Plus, this kind of engagement can ultimately boost the overall morale of your staff.

06. Pay Attention to Parents

Standard maternity leave is a thing of the past. Consider offering your employees who are new parents — both new moms and new dads — up to four months of paid parental leave. For employees who have children that are a bit older, offer them reimbursement for day care, or allow them to take as much time off as needed to attend their children’s events and activities. Parents will greatly appreciate these understanding policies.

07. Shorten the Workweek

More and more companies now offer a four-day workweek because it positively impacts employee satisfaction and their bottom line, as it typically cuts costs but boosts production. Tax services firm Ryan put this policy into place in 2008, and the results were fantastic: turnover dropped by more than half, revenue and profit almost doubled, and client satisfaction scores reached an all-time high.

08. Focus on Results Instead of Rules

If you’re open to a very nontraditional way of working, consider implementing ROWE (results only work environment). In this setting, employees don’t have traditional work schedules or locations; they work when and where they want as long as they get their work done. This takes telecommuting and flextime to the next level.

Bonuses and vacations are nice perks but implementing 20 percent time could motivate your employees even more. With this policy, employees can use 20 percent of their time to work on any project they believe will most benefit the company. That means giving them control over the task, their team, their technique and their time. According to career expert Adam Smiley Poswolsky, policies like this help employees feel valued in ways that a typical work schedule might not.

09. Prove You Value Your Staff’s Knowledge

Advice Action InspirationIf you want to encourage

work-life balance in your

employees, model it.

Managers who send email on

the weekend or during

vacations send a powerful

message to employees that

time away isn’t valued.

Take a look at your company

policies and rethink things like

hours and location. Implement

a structure where you can

best serve your customers

and your employees.

“Achieving work-life balance is

like walking a tightrope. Lean

too far one way and you’ll lose

your stability and topple.” — Sir Richard Branson, founder of

Virgin Group