Measuring work happiness is one thing, capturing work happiness is two. There are several tools that measure this and make people aware of the development they are going through. Because that gives satisfaction. Our own CEO, Iris Zonneveldt, talks about this in an interview.
"Happiness is actually very flatly put that you are loved and that you love people. And all because of who you are," Iris explains. And, in her opinion, that also applies in the workplace. "It is enormously nice to have a place where you can be completely yourself and where you, with all your qualities, are appreciated." Happiness is very personal, but many things can always be traced back to attention, being seen and being appreciated. Various studies have shown for good reason that attention is one of the first necessities of life. And that is also very human.
Iris says that's nothing new that people just like to get attention. "It's always been that way, but only in the last few years has it become an important value at work. Anyway, you see values like friendship and happiness making an appearance at work now." But why then is that changing so much in recent years? "I think that's a larger movement. Knowledge is power, and because we have more and more technology, knowledge is much more widespread and also available to everyone. So power has changed a lot," Iris explains. "In the past, organizations used a top-down approach. You had a boss who determined everything and told you what to do. Now the relationships are changing and as an employee you have much more power. For example, because you have a lot of knowledge, but also because employees can run differently." According to Iris, it is not only work life that is changing, but the whole world. You also see very different organizations emerging as a result. Work is becoming much more human and often this benefits work happiness .
"I think, anyway, people in general have been very much looking for happiness and meaning lately," Iris adds. "Because the world is moving faster and faster and becoming more complex, people can quickly lose track. Also because of the crisis, a lot has collapsed. Many things have fallen away and as a result people are turning inward more and more and thinking about what they themselves really want. Another thing is all the burnout, high expectations and choice stress. Millennials were brought up with "do what you love," but when you have a hundred things to choose from it gives you super a lot of pressure. Having choices can really be a blessing, but so on the other hand it can also be a huge curse."
"At Treams, we are all leaders. Leaders of each their own part. Sander from sales, Tarah and Roberto from Techside, Pien from marketing, Marlie from projects, and I am the leader when it comes to the future of the company." Being a leader can be filled in many different ways, you do it based on your personality. The most important thing in this, according to Iris, is to make sure that you bring people along and that they can become the best version of themselves. How can we get to the top together? When asked how Iris interprets that as the "leader" of her company, she has a clear answer: "I keep it close to myself. I know what I'm good at, but especially what I'm not good at. I have to make sure I gather people around me who are better than me in those areas. I also do my best to give my employees everything so they can perform to the best of their ability. If I turn my 8 into a 10, we are going to grow very fast as a company. The same goes for if my employees turn their 8 into a 10, then you have top performers sitting around in every area."
Iris certainly has insight into her employees' job happiness . That is measured every week. If you ask her, work happiness is definitely measurable, only it's a snapshot in time. "So it's hugely important to do this every week at different times. If you measure it once a year you have a picture, but you want a video. If you measure it weekly you also see when the busy periods were, then the wellness rate is lower than normal, for example. But in general the basic values are very high and we're at an average of an 8.5 to 9." Iris also sees this reflected in the practice. People are having fun and being themselves. If someone makes a mistake they solve it, whenever possible, with the whole team. Employees also influence the work happiness of colleagues. Giving them trust, freedom and space allows them to take the responsibility they want. Trust, freedom and security are therefore important conditions for happiness at work, according to Iris. What exactly does Iris do to increase employee happiness at work? "I make sure that information is available so that everyone can perform optimally. We also have a numbers meeting every month in which I tell everything about the numbers. That way everyone knows where they stand and can therefore make their own decisions. I have an individual meeting with each employee every two weeks. Finally, I make sure everyone knows where we are going, the dot on the horizon. We do that through annual goals and quarterly goals. I give everyone the stage to share what they have learned and what they are proud of." She says these moments of reflection are very important to become aware of your happiness and development, as well as the things that are going less well. Employees themselves also organize many things at Treams. For example, they are going to start a vitality challenge at the end of May in which they exercise more for 100 days. "In the end, everyone has to do it themselves and make it nice for themselves, and that's only possible if you tell them yourself what can make something nicer for you. I invite them to tell me, but I can't fill it in if I don't know what you want. Unfortunately, I can't make everyone 100% happy."
The fact that work happiness has been such a hot-topic lately is something Iris also sees with clients. "Clients want to put more and more energy into their people. Many companies are looking for a way to make it more fun and/or attractive for people. Often also out of necessity to attract or retain people." Software can contribute immensely to the employee experience. "It is very important that people become aware of the development they are going through. That gives enormous satisfaction. For that, software is really a tool. It is ideally suited for looking back at previous moments and asking another person for feedback , but also for looking ahead and setting your goals. "
Iris' advice: "It starts with insight. Where are you right now? Are people happy or not happy at all? You get that insight by asking. Software can help tremendously with that, too. Then engage with people. Why aren't they happy? Is there not enough feedback, for example? If you know this, you can outline a roadmap and work on it. Make sure your goals are clear and that people know what they are working toward."
Work happiness, a hot-topic lately. But what factors actually contribute more to work happiness? And does work happiness have to do with the opportunity to grow and develop? And how do you, as management, make your employees aware of these development opportunities? Is work happiness perhaps even a new business model? And if it were a business model, should it also be measurable? This and much more about happiness at work can be found in our happiness at work magazine. You can download it here.