Happiness and the effect it can have on your organization when prioritized as a goal.

1. The views in this article are of the author and do not represent the views of any organizations that the
author may be associated with.
Jon Beller
Mortgage Process Excellence Leader
Lean Six Sigma Master Black Belt
4 Simple Reasons You Should Care About
Employee Happiness
May 24, 2015
Hopefully you have heard of the Happiness Movement and what it entails, but if you haven’t
this quick read is meant to give you the basics and spark an interest in what it can do for you.
What is Employee Happiness?
First, let’s define Happiness. As Shawn Achor lays out the definition he centers on the idea that
true Happiness is “the joy one feels striving for one’s potential.” It is key to differentiate this
perspective from the idea that you’ll be happier at work if you simply make more money. Often
times we focus on what we need to be happy (money, title, etc.) as opposed to what we could
do to be happy (build, develop, implement, etc.)
We spend 32% of our lives at work… (or is it much more when we consider time “connected” to
work?). Statistics mentioned in this article about the number of hours related to work 90,000
hours!
Why should you care about Employee Happiness?

2. The views in this article are of the author and do not represent the views of any organizations that the
author may be associated with.
1. There is a direct correlation to Happy Employees and Job Performance.
According to Achor, research shows that positive employees outperform negative employees in
terms of sales, energy levels, turnover rates and health-care costs by as much as 30%. A
positive mindset results in:
a. 23% greater energy in the midst of stress,
b. 31% higher productivity,
c. 37% higher levels of sales,
d. 40% higher likelihood to be promoted, and
e. Improved employee longevity
2. Attrition is mitigated for each employee and those connected to them
A 2007 Gallup poll showed that companies with large numbers of dissatisfied workers
experience greater absenteeism and lower productivity-as well as a 51% higher employee
turnover rate.
a. Happiness creates a “Mesh Effect” – tying employees together in a big picture view. Everyone
is focused on building something together, with each person playing a role and striving for their
potential.
b. Happiness creates the opposite of the Poison Pill effect (or the toxic employee). Instead of
pushing people away your Happy Employees actual create a draw to others.
3. Goals aligned to employee potential become more meaningful
Goals aligned to employee potential become more meaningful to them and thus ownership is
increased. Instead of attempting to seed ownership through a financial incentive you do so by
tapping into the core of your staff. This SuccessFactors article helps to outline the results some
of which include:
a. Improved Margins
b. Speed of Strategy Execution is Improved
4. Strategic Vision is no longer a top-down prescription but a closely held belief!
By transforming goals of the individual, mitigating negative effects of attrition (and toxic
employees) and through creation of high-performing “Happy” teams the Strategic Vision is also
transformed into a meaningful and tangible roadmap that applies to each employee.
“People rarely succeed unless they have fun in what they are doing”
- Dale Carnegie
A question for you the reader: How does Employee Happiness appear in your
teams and in your organization?