Having a fun working environment builds trusts, opens up, encourages and increases communication and enhances creativity and innovative ideas. Laughter, humor and play even out the playing field, regardless of positions in the company. When two people laugh together, it speaks volumes in a way that says, “You and I are alike in some way.” When people see each other’s vulnerability and find ways to connect with each other, it builds trust. When a supervisor laughs with his subordinates, he comes off as approachable, personable and a “human being”.
Job satisfaction affects an employee’s performance and commitment to the job, even extending to his overall well-being.
The Great Place to Work Institute asks tens of thousands of employees each year to rate their experience of workplace factors. Eighty-one percent of employees that describe their company “great” said they are working in a “fun” environment, according to the Fortune’s “100 Best Companies to Work For” list. It’s an obvious reason: Employees are having fun working that they are very satisfied with their jobs and the companies they work for.
The best example for this benefit is Google. In fact, Google is seen as the gold standard of fun workplaces. Rumor has it that it attracts more than 3,000 applicants daily! Google Co-Founder Larry Page maintains that “[w]e don’t just want you to have a great job. We want you to have a great life. We provide you with everything you need to be productive and happy on and off the clock.” Among the top ten self-ascribed reasons to work at Google, number four on the list states that “work and play are not mutually exclusive: it is possible to code and pass the puck at the same time”. For the fourth consecutive year, Google ranked among the top five of Fortune’s “100 Best Companies to Work For”. According to Page, “Google is organized around the ability to attract and leverage the talent of exceptional technologists and business people” , an attraction that is due in large part to Google’s ability to successfully balance work and play.
If you have this kind of environment, you will have little trouble recruiting and retaining employees.
In short, happy employees serve happily leading to happier customers who in turn will return more frequently, positively impacting the whole business.