For most of our customers, the first 16 weeks of the year are when things kick into high gear. The products are grown, shipped, grown further, shipped again, and sold to the consumer (with countless small and large steps in between that make everything run smoothly)! This can be an intense time, when everyone is working around the clock to ensure that the products make it to their final destination in good time and good condition. Employees work tirelessly to serve customers, and at times, the pressure is on and the tension in the office feels palpable. If we are like-minded in our thinking, then you too want to keep your employees happy – both during the busy and the “slow” seasons. This means more than bringing in donuts every now and then, or sending out an occasional praise to the team. Research is showing that employees, when they feel they are being fairly compensated financially, are more concerned about the intrinsic motivators in their jobs. These intrinsic motivators can range from hiring strategies to feedback and recognition. Another interesting motivator is providing opportunities for growth and learning. As humans, we have an innate desire to learn and grow; we want to be experts and we want to be challenged. As employers, it’s important to provide resources that allow your employees to put those desires into practice. Interestingly enough, this will not only keep your employees happy, but it will also motivate them to work through those long and challenging busy seasons! 

Here at ISS, we have been using the spring/summer seasons to take advantage of the local software development opportunities available! SoftwareGR is hosting their annual Great Lakes Software Excellence Conference on May 22, which will “explore how organizations across a variety of industries are utilizing big data to drive organizational behaviors”. This is something our consulting team will be attending, and we are excited about the information they will glean from it! Our managers recently attended Leadercast 2017 , where they discovered the steps they can take to uncover their purpose and connect that with our purpose here at ISS. And lastly, some of our team will be attending the annual Beer City Code conference which boasts 2 full days of workshops and speakers! We want to encourage our employees to be lifelong learners, and are thankful for these high-quality local opportunities that provide our team with the ability to act on their desires to learn and grow. 

Greenhouse Management posted more on this topic of “Keeping Staff Happy – Without the Gimmicks” , and you can find the full article by clicking on the link! 

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