Manufacturing employees feel like outsiders at work

O.C Tanner’s 2023 Global Culture Report also found that almost a quarter (23%) did not consider their workplace to be a ‘community’. However, a majority of employees (78%) wanting to feel a strong sense of belonging at work.

The report identified eight key factors that provide a workplace with a strong sense of community: Shared goals; commitment, communication; feedback, camaraderie; trust; adaptation; and unity.

Of these, employees ranked camaraderie/relationship with team members as the most important aspect for nurturing belonging (74%t of respondents).

Feelings of belonging

Georgia Portwain, culture and engagement strategist at O.C. Tanner, said: “Thriving cultures have a strong sense of community that brings and holds employees together. Employees who feel that they belong will stay at the company for longer, will be more resilient to change and are more likely to deliver great work.”​

The report found that organisation that score high on the ‘community index’ were 100% more likely to have employees that produce aspirational levels of great work, with a 58% lower probability of their employees actively looking for another job.

Yet in spite of these reasons, not all respondents felt that fostering a strong community among employees was a significant concern – just 67% said they believed this was of top priority for their organisational leaders.

‘Foundation for organisational success’

Portwain added: “Leaders need to recognise that having a strong and sustaining workplace community is the foundation of organisational success, and so they must find ways to bring their people together and create an environment of trust, unity and appreciation.”​

Feeling undervalued and unappreciated was one of the top six reasons driving staff turnover,​​ according to employee wellbeing expert Loopin.

To retain the top talent in your business, you need to understand their concerns, values, needs, and hopes for the future. Efforts should be made to communicate and understand individuals' needs and inspirations, so their hard work can be recognised in a way that has the maximum impact. 

Meanwhile, Tom Apperley at Harper Search looks back at the impact the COVID-19 pandemic has had on recruitment​​ in the food and drink sector and what the labour market will look like in 2023 and beyond.