Research from McKinsey suggests that some sectors will have up to 5 times more employees working from home after the pandemic than pre-lockdown. However, while this makes your company’s ‘work environment’ less tangible than it was in 2019, there’s still a lot you can do to improve and harness it, providing your people with a positive and motivating work environment they’ll want to wake up to.

Why is a positive environment important?

How to create a positive working environment

How to identify a positive working environment

What is a positive working environment

A positive working environment is an environment that provides a positive atmosphere that a workplace promotes employee growth, attitude, and mindset. Companies can achieve a positive working environment by promoting healthy company culture, communication, and collaboration.

Why is a positive environment important?

A positive working environment has benefits for people at all levels in an organization. Research from Deloitte shows that 94% of executives and 88% of employees believe a positive workplace culture is essential to business success.

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Boosts productivity

When working for an organisation that maintains and promotes a happy and healthy work environment, people are more likely to feel encouraged and motivated to work harder. This can lead to increased productivity and levels of trust between managers and employees.

Increased growth mindset

Positive working environments encourage growth mindsets as people are happier and more likely to want to grow with the company they work for. People are, therefore, more focused on developing their skills to grow themselves and their company together.

Higher levels of retention

It should come as no surprise that happy employees are less likely to start searching for opportunities elsewhere. People are looking for more than a good salary and package. High turnover is one of the highest expenses a business can face, which is why providing a good working environment is so important.

Improved morale

Employee morale refers to the satisfaction, attitude and outlook people feel at work. When people work in a positive working environment, they’re much more likely to have increased morale which directly affects engagement, collaboration and communication.

How to create a positive working environment

Create a great onboarding experience

A good employee experience starts from day 1. Understanding the needs of a new hire can be the difference between them staying with you for years to come, or leaving you after 6 months. Onboarding allows a new team member to get to know you and the company thoroughly and builds the foundations for their future with you. Read our blog about tips for onboarding and offboarding employees.

Focus on your values

Your values should be the basis of everything you do and be the core of our purpose. There is a direct correlation between companies with clearly articulated cultures and overall business performance. Your core values should drive your culture and people.

Encourage strong connections

Creating a positive working environment will be impossible if the people within the environment have no connection. It’s more important than ever in today’s remote working culture that people are able to make strong connections with each other. To encourage strong connections, focus on developing a team-building initiative to bring people together. Strong social connections with colleagues encourage mutual respect, support and trust.

Design and layout

Perhaps something which is often overlooked when trying to create a positive working environment is design and layout. If you want a collaborative team, an office with separate working cubicles is not going to work. Focus on creating an environment where people can easily move around and discuss ideas.

Consider the number of items in a workspace too. Clutter can often be distracting and create stress. A positive workspace needs to be visually appealing with the correct lighting and facilities.

Focus on wellbeing

Well-being may seem like a relatively new initiative in the workplace, but it has become one of the most important factors when it comes to positivity. People want to work for companies that see their health and well-being as important. Workplace stress costs American companies more than $300 billion a year in employee absenteeism, so not only is it beneficial for employees but also beneficially for companies. When employees are cared for, they are more likely to have a positive outlook on the company they work for.

Surround your team with positivity

A work environment will never be positive if you and your team don’t practise positivity. Celebrate your and your team's wins, reward achievements and constantly strive for improvement.