The employee connection to an organization is impacted by its managers. A strong connection creates a sense of belonging, psychological safety, and engagement. This encourages employees to remain long-term.
Employees need to connect with the company’s mission, vision, and values. They also want to form authentic relationships with their coworkers and managers. Additionally, employees have to connect with the work they perform and understand its impact on company goals. Plus, they need to connect their work with their personal values and goals.
Managers play a significant role in how strongly employees feel connected to the company. Managers are responsible for the best practices, supports, and structures that strengthen employees’ connections to the organization. This is why the manager-employee relationship is important. The more employees trust and respect managers, the greater productivity and retention levels should be.
Discover some methods to improve the manager-employee relationships within your organization.
1. Acknowledge That Managers Handle Multiple Priorities
Managers need to lead, mentor, communicate, mediate, be empathetic, and solve problems as they complete their day-to-day work. The high level of responsibility they have impacts how they connect with their employees.
Managers who lack the proper support from HR and leadership can become disempowered and burnt out. This affects how managers treat their employees.
To combat this issue, regularly check in with managers to see where they’re at and how they’re feeling. Remain compassionate and understanding about their experiences. Managers are under a lot of pressure to fulfill their duties. They need help to accomplish their objectives.
2. Provide Managers with Role Clarity and Support
Let managers know what their responsibilities and power are. This includes how they should recognize and support their employees and whether they can give raises and promotions. Understanding how to proceed in these areas helps prevent manager frustration and burnout. This benefits the manager-employee relationship.
Be sure to provide the necessary support, resources, and training to help managers grow as leaders. For instance, use structured conversations and surveys to determine the challenges managers are experiencing. Focus on the common themes to provide more personalized support. This may include training, coaching, or additional resources.
3. Implement a Manager-Driven Recognition Program
Employees want to know that their managers value their contributions and results. One of the most effective ways to show this is by providing experiential rewards. This helps deepen the connection between an employee’s and the company’s values and goals. Having managers recognize and reward employees for their contributions that benefit the organization increases feelings of employee fulfillment and job satisfaction. This enhances the manager-employee relationship.
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