You have probably heard that job happiness increases productivity. Yet until recently, this was not at all unambiguous. Numerous studies showed that happiness and productivity often went hand in hand, but not which of the two was the cause and which the effect. Does feeling happy make people work harder? Or do employees who work harder become happier as a result?
Earlier this year, new research by Erasmus University provided the answer to this question1. As a result, employees who are happy are more productive than their less happy colleagues. An interesting fact, as it means that increasing job happiness fulfils both a social and an economic interest. In this article, we discuss what these findings mean in practice and how you can make use of them within your organisation.
Definition of job happiness
Before going into the research and practical implications, it is important to reflect on what the term work happiness actually means. Work happiness largely corresponds to employee satisfaction. The big difference, however, is in the emotion. The scientific literature defines work happiness as: 'The prevalence of positive emotions at work and the perception that work contributes to the expression and development of potential.'2
British Telecom investigation
The study in question was conducted at British Telecom, a large telecoms organisation in the UK. Within British Telecom, the choice was made for an industry in which productivity had already been measured in a very structured way prior to the study: call centres. For each employee, a record was kept of how many calls he or she made in a day, how long they took and whether pre-set sales targets were achieved.
British Telecom has 11 call centres employing a total of 1,800 sales staff. For six months, both happiness levels and productivity were measured weekly in each of these employees. In this way, happiness data could be linked to the number of sales they made. How many more sales does a happy salesperson make each week than his less happy colleagues?
Measuring work happiness with pulse survey
Typically, job happiness is measured through a comprehensive employee satisfaction survey. But because work happiness in this survey had to be measured weekly, a long questionnaire was not feasible. The chances that employees would participate in the survey every week would be very small this way. A very short pulse survey. Employees received just one question in their mailbox each week: How happy are you this week on a scale of 1 to 5? Because participation in the survey took little time, a response rate of 80% achieved.
Cause - effect
The aim of the study was to find a causal relationship between work happiness and productivity. In other words, is work happiness a cause of productivity? This would mean that when work happiness is increased, productivity increases as a result. To answer this question, it was important that work happiness was varied. You could do this, for example, by having everyone watch a feel-good film before work, but that obviously takes up a lot of valuable time. The researchers therefore chose a natural influencer of happiness: the weather. There is a lot of evidence that weather has a definite impact on people's feelings of happiness. When the sun shines, people are generally happier than when it rains. In certain weeks, it rained at some of the 11 call centre locations, while it was sunny at others. So it was expected that the employee at the sunny locations would sell more than the employees at rainy locations.
More job happiness leads to 24% more sales
The researchers found that when an employee moved up one step on the 5-point happiness scale, sales increased by 24%. Because weather had been used as a predictor of happiness, it could be established that work happiness was the cause, and productivity the consequence. This is the first time the effect has been found in a work setting.
Although this effect had never before been found in a work setting, there are several examples of studies in a controlled environment3. In these experiments, happiness is increased by, for example, watching a funny movie or eating something tasty, after which the subject is asked to perform a simple task. The results of the study at British Telecom are consistent with this.
Why is it that work happiness increases productivity?
It is interesting to speculate on why happiness increases productivity. Are happy people more motivated, so they put in more hours and therefore sell more? Or do happy people spend the same number of hours at work, but work faster, harder or smarter? The study found that the latter is the case. People do not work more, but simply get more done in the same amount of time.
Where exactly is this due to? No final word on that yet. The researchers think it can be explained by being able to regulate emotions better. As a call centre employee, you are in contact with other people a lot, and it is important to communicate with them in the right way. When you are happy, you can sense the other person's emotions better and regulate your own better. As a result, people are more likely to trust you, which is good for sales. This would mean that the found effect of work happiness only applies in jobs where there is a lot of human contact. To establish that work happiness increases productivity in other job groups too, more research needs to be done.
What does this mean in practice?
The link between happiness and productivity unites the interests of employees and employers. Employees would like to go through life as happy as possible, while employers also have an economic interest. So creating the happiest possible working situation for the employee will not only make them happier and more appreciative of the employer. Under the bottom line, it will also ensure an increase in turnover. But how do you do that?
Increasing job happiness is important but complex. Of course, a balance must be maintained between what it costs employers to increase work happiness and what it yields through extra productivity. To ensure that changes in work situation have the desired effect or happiness level, it is important to involve employees in developing new policies. In small organisations, this can be done by simply talking to each other. In larger companies, online employee survey a better option. Regardless of the method, it is important to uncover what makes employees unhappy or happy in their current work situation. Acting on areas for improvement can increase employee satisfaction.
Key happiness boosters
Of course, which measures increase job happiness depends largely on the sector, the type of company and the employee's position. So it is important to tailor measures to the needs in the workplace. Nevertheless, there are some overarching elements that apply in almost every work situation.
1. Autonomy
People want to feel the freedom to carry out their work as they see fit. Looking at the example of call centres, you can see that there is a lot of room for improvement in this industry. In fact, there are strict guidelines on how long a call can take, what should be said and how many sales should be made in a day. It could have a substantial effect on call centre employees' job happiness if, for example, they were allowed to choose their own words or potentially decide how much time they need to make a sale.
2. Work atmosphere
Humans are social creatures, and spend much of the week at work. In our employee surveys we see that one of the most important factors for satisfaction is the dealing with colleagues and superiors is. So a nice working atmosphere and room for sociability is important for job happiness. By engaging and giving employees a chance to speak out about what is and is not going well, you involve them in decisions. This benefits the working atmosphere.
3. Work-life balance
Everyone wants to be able to combine their work well with their private life. Flexibility is therefore very important. Working from home, rosters and flexible working hours are examples of ways in which work-life balance can be improved. In this way, work happiness, and therefore productivity, can be increased.
Conclusion
Both the employee and the employer have an interest in increasing work happiness within the organisation. After all, an increase in job happiness leads to an increase in productivity, and therefore turnover. Because increasing job happiness is a complex matter, it is important to engage in dialogue with employees. For instance, in the form of an anonymous employee satisfaction survey. In this way, the areas within the organisation where there is room for improvement of the employee satisfaction. Adjusting policies based on the results of the survey will increase work happiness. This ensures an increase in productivity, which leads to an increase in turnover.
Sources
- Bellet, C., De Neve, J. E., & Ward, G. (2019). Does Employee Happiness Have an Impact on Productivity?. Saïd Business School WP, 13.
- Sousa, J. M. D., & Porto, J. B. (2015). Happiness at work: Organizational values and person-organization fit impact. Paidéia (Ribeirão Preto), 25(61), 211-220.
- Oswald, A. J., Proto, E., & Sgroi, D. (2015). Happiness and productivity. Journal of Labor Economics, 33(4), 789-822.
