Northwest Staffing Blog

Tight turnarounds. Tighter budgets. Doing more with less. As an experienced Seattle employment agency, we know this is the new normal in today’s economy. But it can also lead to overworked, highly stressed employees for your Seattle company. So, what can you do to ensure you don’t get burned by employee burnout? Here are some tips:

Celebrate successes.

Whether you completed a tough project ahead of schedule or simply survived the busy season, a mini-celebration will show your employees how much you appreciate their hard work. It will also give them a greater incentive for completing future tasks on time and on budget.

Train your employees to take on more.

If you’re asking your employees to take on more tasks, or do more with less, then provide them with the training they need to do so. For instance, bring in expert speakers on issues such as efficient time management, creating a work life balance, or using technology more effectively. Training in such topics can help your employees deal with the extra work load.

Communicate with employees.

Make sure your employees are completely aware of your expectations and be sure to address any concerns they may have. Open lines of communication will build trust and loyalty, while also creating a more positive workplace culture.

Be reasonable about your expectations.

While you may be expecting more from each employee, it’s important to be reasonable about your expectations. Unfair expectations, such as an impossibly short deadline, will set your employees up for failure.

Encourage time off.

Allow your employees to take vacation time in smaller increments (such as two or three days) rather than a full week. A day or two off can sometimes work wonders.

Hire top performers.

Making good hiring decisions is now more important than ever. New employees will need to get up to speed and begin making positive contributions almost immediately. At this point, a bad hire could cause critical damage to workplace morale.

If you need help hiring top performers, or training your existing ones, please contact Northwest Staffing. As a leading Seattle employment agency, we have the knowledge and skills to help you hire and retain the people you need in tight economic times.