It is always positive when employees get along well, but some businesses wonder if it can be better if they actually become friends. In fact, studies have shown that there are benefits for both employees and businesses when people have close friends at work.
How Work Friendships Benefit Companies and Employees
When people have friends at work, they are usually more engaged. They are more satisfied at work, and this is particularly the case for women.
They also found that employees who have friends at work are more likely to take steps to benefit the business. This can have a positive impact on profitability, safety, inventory control, and customer loyalty.
How to Encourage Friendships at Work
There are ways that you can encourage friendships at work. The best way to do this is to provide opportunities for people to get to know each other, and then the friendships will develop naturally.
You can use a buddy system to welcome new employees. Giving new employees someone who can show them how things are done is a great way to encourage new friendships.
Another way to encourage friendships is by providing opportunities for people to eat together. You can have a potluck once a month, or bring in pizza once a week. This is a great way to give employees an opportunity to build friendships.
If you hold meetings offsite a few times a year, it gives people a chance to get out of the office and get to know each other.
You can also create challenges where you encourage teams to compete with one another. Host an active challenge to get people to meet wellness goals, or have a dance party where everyone dances around the desk for 15 minutes. This encourages people to let down their guard and be more social.
You can create teams such as volleyball or softball so that people have a chance to spend time together outside of work. You can also plan monthly outings, such as bowling, playing pool, and more. These are all ways to encourage people to get to know each other outside of work.