What makes an organization happy???

[Vijay Kumar Shrotryia]

hi friends
I just would like to initiate a discussion on the constituents of making an organisation a happy org. In my view EE is one such effort which could enhance employee satisfaction, so Employee Satisfaction should be considered first constituent. Then comes the satisfaction of the customers/clients which could be achieved by providing better value for money and excellent service quality. Then comes the management which of course would be interested in better profitability as well as better impression about the organization.
Another constituent could be responsibility towards society or as it is termed in management literature CSR. Socially responsible organizations and their effort to sustain such sense of social responsiveness can go a long way in making an organization happy.....
There could be many more such dimensions which we could talk about and explore...

[Terrence Seamon]

Vijay,
You asked, "What makes an organization happy???"
One thing that comes to mind is success. An organization that is growing, achieving, winning business, and delighting customers, is going to have a lot of energized employees. Look at Southwest Airlines.

Terry

[Vijay Kumar Shrotryia]

hi terry
thanx for your response. you mean organisational success in terms of objective performance, profitability, positive indicators etc. Doesnt it work either way, I mean Success leads to happiness and happiness leads to success.....
vijay

[Terrence Seamon]

Yes and Yes

[Robert Morris]

For your consideration, VJ:

Step 1. Send the following broadcast e-mail to everyone in the organization:

What do you think?

"What can be done to make ours a much happier workplace?"

Please provide 1-3 specific suggestions. They will be treated in strictest confidence.
Record them in the space that follows, print a copy, insert copy in an envelope, and forward to [name of recipient] by [deadline].

If you are willing to be a member of a group to discuss how to make our workplace happier, please identify yourself.

Thank you for your feedback!

Step 2. Have the recipient to whom responses are sent

• Review all responses and delete anything that could reveal the identity of a respondent

• In descending numerical order, list the suggestions that are most frequently offered

• Prepare a list (in alphabetical order) of those who are willing to serve on a committee to discuss the responses

• Present report to CEO or to another senior-level executive to take "next steps."

Step 3. Select the members of a group of volunteers and someone to chair the discussion. Schedule meeting, extend invtations, and provide a copy of the summary report.

Caveat:

NEVER initiate a questionnaire, survey, feedback mechanism, etc. unless all responses will receive careful consideration and appropriate action steps will then be taken. If strictest confidence is promised, it must be fully honored without hesitation or qualification.

If you wish to discuss any of this, VJ, please let me know.

Best regards, Bob

[Vijay Kumar Shrotryia]

hi bob
good to get your response here. Sounds nice for all practical purposes. HOwever if one things of comparing organizations on indicators on happiness,there has to be uniformity in the standards. Further for academic appetite, once we are able to accept generalised list of indicators for Happy org we could proceed further with asking people (both internal as well as external) what do they think of such organization....
your view is appreciated.

vijay

[Alex Christou]

I don't know if this is what you're looking for exactly but it might be of interest (apologies if this has been posted elsewhere recently):

http://www.workforce.com/section/09/article/23/53/40.html

It is an article about Gallup's 12 questions on employee engagament. They initially might stand as some kind of "uniform" standard you could use as a starting point.

If you do some searching around it you might find some information on what kind of results can be expected. This may help you to create some kind of foundation for your consideration of this subject to identify some points of comparison with other orgs.
(I believe another researching body has a very similar set of questions which led to some legal action against Gallup. The benefit of this to you is that there is the possibility that a wider array of organisations have undertaken related surveys).

Alex.

[Robert Morris]

Fine suggestion, Alex, and welcome to the EE Network!

I have just read Joseph Michelli's recently published The New Gold Standard in which he explains how Ritz-Carlton's fully-engaged worforce consistently provides supervior guest service. One of the basics in their leadership development program (ranked #1 for the past two years by Training magazine) is the "Gallup 12" exercise. My own opinion is that a few of the questions need to be modified but, together, they offer an excellent starting point.

Vijay may also wish to consider including (at some point, if not initially) questions such as these, perhaps introduced by "In your opinion....":

1. What does our organization do best? OR Does our organization have a decisive competitive advantage?If so, what is it?

2. In which area does our organization have the great need for improvement? OR In which area is our organization most vulnerable to its competition?

3. What do you enjoy most about the work you do? Why?

4. What do you enjoy least? Why?

5. What is the single greatest opportunity our organization now has and what must be done to take full advantage of it?

The "Gallup 12" questions can indeed generate some valuable responses re an individual's degree of happiness, satisfaction, etc. but seldom indicate (except by implication) what the respondent thinks about her or his organization's vulnerabilities and opportunities in its competitive marketplace.

Again, welcome to the EE Network!

Best regards, Bob

[Vijay Kumar Shrotryia]

Thanx....It would certainly be helpful...

vijay

[Vijay Kumar Shrotryia]

Well taken.....Gallup's 12 Qs are most popular on Engagement...They do provide some input for Org Happiness, however we further could explore variables and dig into...
vijay

[Marie Alexander]

Hi Bob,

I couldn't agree more. The saying "Be careful what you ask for" is crucial when asking for input from employees. Our staff conference earlier this year was an open space program that asked the question What's important to you? in determining how to make our workplace a great place to work. We provided the responses in a summary document to all participants before they left the conference and are now working with focus groups to initiate change. Providing regular updates on the activities of these focus groups is crucial to the success of any initiatives being promoted.

[Vijay Kumar Shrotryia]

hi marie
would it be possible to share the summaries you are talking about...It would really help to see the views of a broader cross-section....
vijay

[David Zinger]

Vijay:

I was happy you asked this question. An organization is made of individuals so I wonder if you can actually have a happy organization or rather an organization that promotes and fosters happiness.

I really appreciate the work of Martin Seligman on Authentic Happiness - especially his work on strengths and happiness. I think when we know, apply, and use our strengths in the service of others that happiness is enhanced.

David