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Control over employees is a basic function and an inalienable right of a manager... but does this mean that subordinates should not have the opportunity to decide anything at all? Practice shows: the less a person controls, the more serious is the stress he or she is under. And stress, in its turn, affects badly both the well-being and the ability to work.
In order to minimize the "stress of submission", we suggest you give your employees more freedom. For example, give them the right to organize their own workspace.
3 reasons to give employees more control over their workplace
All of the conclusions below are based on research conducted by major companies in the United States and the practical experience of these corporations.
Productivity gain
Employees who have the ability to "customize their environment" work better. First, they feel more confident in their abilities and, as a result, are more willing to take responsibility. Secondly, the working environment itself becomes more comfortable: by creating an environment that meets all your expectations, a person is less distracted and more productive.
The increase in productivity can be very impressive. For example, one insurance company in Los Angeles noted a 57% increase in sales after employees were allowed to experiment with the location of furniture and office equipment in the landscape.
Greater involvement
By changing the situation in their offices, employees directly influence the situation in the company - albeit only at the level of the overall organization of work. This automatically creates a sense of unity, increases the overall involvement of people in the work process. In addition, by designating your workplace to your liking, the employee starts to treat it more positively - and this attitude is projected throughout the work.
It should be noted that some people actively personalize their environment - they put up souvenirs, photos, etc. Others, on the contrary, prefer a discreet, minimalistic environment. Both are the expression of the employee - the main thing is to make sure that people have the opportunity to group so that in one office there are people who do not conflict with each other in terms of environment.
Reducing stress
Practice shows that direct and strict control by the manager is always quite strong pressure on the psyche. The tighter you work with your employees, the harder it is for them to relax - people subconsciously begin to avoid working: sneaking, being late or even sabotaging the process.
An independently furnished workplace automatically creates a psychologically comfortable environment and provides protection from stress and pressure. The subordinate continues to take into account your wishes and requirements, but they no longer create a negative impression.
The more discreet the control, the better
The freedom to design your workplace is a great tool for reducing stress from supervisor control, but he is not the only one. We recommend that you reduce the severity of control itself at the same time: make it invisible, and people will no longer feel nervous tension.
Monitask is perfect in this respect: the module installed on the employee's computer does not show itself in any way. A person literally does not notice his existence, and you get all the necessary information about how and what he does.
The main thing is to use the data obtained with the help of Monitask competently. Do not put pressure on your employees, do not impose penalties for every detail: try to pay more attention to a comprehensive analysis of the situation. Do you see that the productivity of two employees decreases when they are in the same room? Split them into different rooms - this is more effective than reprimanding and punishing them for communicating.
Let your employees feel a certain freedom, and you can always keep your hand on the pulse discreetly with the Monitask employee tracking system.