Employee Happiness and Organizational Resilience

As a manager, how do you improve employee happiness?

I think this is an important question today, for managers and business leaders.

Consider this: the King of Bhutan, who studied in the United States at Wheaton College, decided that the best way to foster economic development in his country is to shift the focus from GDP (Gross Domestic Product) to GDH: Gross Domestic Happiness.

The results? Most people in this small country refuse to make money from commercial ventures that could compromise their nation’s health, environment, and egalitarian principles, and yet they enjoy food, shelter and universal health care.

So, how does an entire country—or even one manager—raise happiness levels?

Employee Happiness

Consider this research recently published by McKinsey & Company: “When it comes to employee happiness, bosses and supervisors play a bigger role than one might guess.” According to their report, the relationship between employee and management is the top factor in the employee’s job satisfaction. Furthermore, their research finds that second only to an employee’s own mental health, the relationship with their boss is the “the most determinant of employee’s overall life satisfaction.”

Unfortunately, research also reveals that many people find their boss to be far from ideal. And to be sure, they’ve got a lot on their plate during this time. But for those who describe a very bad/quite bad relationship with their boss, they also reported substantially lower job satisfaction. Based on my experience as a coach, this tracks.

When this topic comes up in my coaching conversations, I ask, “What would improve your relationship with your boss?” Most people agree that they want their boss to:

Listen better
Communicate clearly and with transparency
Offer encouragement (rather than doubt)
Engage with humor
Show courage/vulnerability
Demonstrate empathy and compassion
Be decisive
Take responsibility
Act humbly
Share authority

To be sure, we can’t change anyone else; we can only control our own behavior. But, I think we can all agree these are admirable skills, for bosses and employees alike. When we strengthen these skills, we create a positive model, and our relationships and satisfaction improves.

As a leader or manager, what do you think? How do you improve employee happiness? I’d love to hear from you. I can be reached here, on LinkedIn, or give me a call: 561-582-6060.