What’s the secret to employee satisfaction?
The ability for employees of all levels in an organization to grow, both personally and professionally, is a key component to employee satisfaction engagement and retention. This is particularly true for Millennial workers, a generation that is often characterized as obsessed with self-improvement. Caroline Beaton examined this drive to self-improvement, noting:
“In 2015, 94% of millennials reported making personal improvement commitments (compared with 84% of Boomers and 81% of Gen Xers). And we’re willing to pay the price: While Boomers said they’d spend an average of $152 a month on self-improvement, millennials anticipated spending nearly twice that—though our average income is half as much. Our strategies range from new workout regimes and diet plans to life coaching, therapy and apps designed to improve wellbeing.”
Employees who find an outlet for self-development within their organization report higher satisfaction. A recent case study on employee satisfaction with UBS, a Swiss bank employing 65,000 employees that measured their performance in this area, finding that employee satisfaction was significantly below that of high-performing organizations. They charted a course to improve their score in a series of four changes:
- They measured manager performance in this area and targeted learning resources to managers, with a goal of making them better people managers
- They prioritized internal mobility through various internal recruitment initiatives
- They focused on improving the feedback culture
- They upped their learning game, making learning opportunities diverse and accessible through their own internal USB University
The result? Within one year, USB saw a 10 point gain in satisfaction related to learning and career opportunities within the firm
ESI EAP’s Peak Performance Benefits: Coaching, training and personal development program for your organization
The path outlined by USB is a compelling one, but not all organizations have the resources to maintain an internal university for employee training. ESI’s Employee Assistance Program goes well beyond traditional EAP benefits to encompass a personal and professional development program that includes one-on-one personal & professional coaching programs, thousands of online training programs, a comprehensive online Self-Help Resource Center, and much more. Learn more about ESI EAP’s training and development programs.