Morale Boosters at Work: What Actually Improves Employee Engagement

When running a business, you must keep your customers and clients happy, but it’s equally important to keep your employees happy, too. After all, happy employees are more motivated, productive, focused, and eager to do their jobs than unhappy employees. 

The key to maintaining employee satisfaction is fostering a positive, supportive work environment with high office morale, but that’s often easier said than done. 

If you’re struggling to keep your staff in good spirits, consider implementing some of these foolproof employee morale boosters:

• Organize events that recognize your employees’ hard work.
• Coordinate activities that support teambonding, focus on health and wellness, and promote giving back to the community. 
• Give your employees the opportunity to play or take a break from work.
• Treat your staff to team lunches or snacks.

Follow along to learn more about our favorite ways to boost morale at work. These low- to medium-effort, affordable office morale ideas are sure to help your employees feel more connected to your company and their colleagues. 

1. Celebrate Employee Wins 

Your employees produce amazing work, come up with brilliant ideas, and support their teammates all the time, but sometimes those good deeds go unnoticed. If you’re not careful, your employees could feel underappreciated. 

The good news is that the simple act of recognizing your employees can have an incredible impact on their morale. In fact, one study found that “recognition addresses employees’ intrinsic need for esteem and belonging,” thereby enhancing their job satisfaction.

That’s why we recommend hosting company-wide Recognition Days to publicly celebrate your employees’ hard work. Publicly explain why each nominee is receiving recognition and present them with a Certificate of Achievement, a placard, or even a gift card to show your appreciation. 

How to Host a Recognition Day:

• Coordinate a quarterly all-hands meeting, requiring all employees to attend 
• Encourage employees to nominate each other for tasks, acts of service, or achievements
• Publicly recognize each nominee, showcasing their efforts and presenting them with an award
• Cater lunch or an afternoon snack, such as an ice cream bar or charcuterie spread, to add to the celebratory atmosphere 

Budget: $ 

Effort: Low 

Key Takeaway: Publicly showing gratitude to your employees helps them feel valued and reminds them that their hard work matters. 

2. Donate Your Time 

Have you ever noticed how helping others makes you feel good? Well, that’s because helping others releases feel-good chemicals in your brain, creating what scientists refer to as the “Helper’s High.” 

As if that wasn’t a good enough reason to encourage your employees to support others in their community, a recent survey found that 91% participants who engaged in job-related volunteer opportunities reported positive overall work experiences and connections with their employers. 

For this office morale idea, we suggest organizing a Company Volunteer Day in which all employees engage in community service. You could begin the day with a catered breakfast, then partner with a local animal shelter, host a trash cleanup in the park, volunteer at a soup kitchen, build a community garden, or even visit a nursing home. 

How to Organize a Volunteer Day:

• Start the day with a catered breakfast at the office with coffee and breakfast sandwiches
• Organize a group volunteer effort with a local organization 
• Spend the workday helping others in the community 

Budget: $ 

Effort: Medium

Key Takeaway: Encouraging volunteer opportunities signals to your employees that your company values social responsibility and cares about giving back. 

3. Support Employee Well-Being

Let’s face it, work can be stressful. That’s why it’s so important for your employees to prioritize their health and wellness. Research shows that employees with “good physical, mental, and emotional health are more likely to deliver optimal performance in the workplace than employees who are not.” 

Instead of just hoping that your employees will hit the gym before work or squeeze in a walk after hours, why not bring the health and wellness opportunities to them? 

For this employee morale booster, dedicate an afternoon to supporting their physical and mental wellness. You could kick off the day with a nutritious communal meal or snack, and then invite a meditation coach into the office to guide a group meditation, host a company-wide yoga class, organize an outing to the rock-climbing gym, or even arrange a canoe trip with a local outfitter. 

How to Arrange a Health and Wellness Event:

• Order a healthy lunch or afternoon snack, such as a salad bar, fruit platter, or yogurt parfait spread 
• Hire a professional to lead a wellness event at your office or engage in an off-site physical activity 
• Round out the workday with some physical activity as a group 
• Ensure that the activity is inclusive for all of your employees 

Budget: $$

Effort: Medium 

Key Takeaway: Investing in your employees’ health shows that you care about their happiness and well-being. 

4. Encourage Playtime 

The old saying goes, “All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy,” and there is certainly some truth to it! Overworking your employees can make them feel underappreciated, unmotivated, and uninspired. Not to mention, research shows that employee burnout and job dissatisfaction go hand in hand. 

If you’re looking for office morale ideas, organize a game day where your employees can redirect their energy for a few hours. You could host a field day, trivia night, gameboard party, or even Office Olympics. Whether you organize physical activities or brain-bending tasks, these events will encourage your employees to bond and engage in some friendly competition. 

How to Organize a Game Day:

• Cater lunch, such as a taco bar or assorted pizzas, to fuel everyone for the afternoon fun
• Decide on which games you’ll play and stock up on some prizes
• Pair employees together who don’t work together on a daily basis to support teambonding 

Budget: $$

Effort: Medium 

Key Takeaway: Giving your employees space to socialize and connect with their colleagues helps them feel appreciated and respected as people, not just workers. 

5. Offer Lunch-and-Learns 

A big part of workplace morale involves fostering professional growth. In fact, a recent survey found that 68% of respondents believe training opportunities are essential to job satisfaction. 

Hosting Lunch-and-Learns is one easy way to boost morale at work. Also called Brown Bag Sessions, these informal training sessions take place during the lunch hour, with someone presenting on a topic, giving your employees the chance to learn new skills while eating a catered meal. 

These sessions can cover a wide range of personal and professional development topics, from public speaking tips and financial planning advice to software training and stress-reduction suggestions. 

How to Host a Lunch-and-Learn:

• Schedule a meal delivery, such as a barbecue buffet or individually wrapped sandwiches, for the training session
• Invite your employees to take turns covering a topic, or invite a professional in to lead the workshop
• Encourage your employees to discuss and share what they learned after the presentation 

Budget: $

Effort: Low

Key Takeaway: Providing career development opportunities demonstrates that you’re invested in your employees’ futures. 

6. Offer Half-Day Fridays

Sometimes, the best way to help your employees enjoy their jobs is to let them not do their jobs—at least for a few hours, anyway! Your employees work hard, so for this office morale idea, we suggest offering half-day Fridays during the summer so they can leave a few hours early. 

Your staff will love getting an early start on the weekend and will come back feeling refreshed and ready to tackle their work on Monday morning. However, to make this idea a success, your team must prepare for the early dismissal and complete its tasks before heading out the door. 

How to Offer Half-Day Fridays:

• Set a cadence, such as every other Friday or the first Friday of every month
• Consider staggering the days between employees, so your business is not left understaffed
• Offer an early Friday dismissal with the caveat that everyone must complete their work in advance
• Order a grab-and-go style lunch for your employees so they can focus on finalizing their work before leaving early 

Budget: $

Effort: Medium

Key Takeaway: Offering an early dismissal is a thoughtful gesture that expresses your gratitude for your employees’ hard work. 

Food is the Way to the Heart 

As you’ve probably noticed, all of these employee morale boosters have one common denominator: catered food. After all, feeding your employees is one surefire way to show your appreciation for all they do for your company. Not to mention, everyone loves getting treated to a tasty meal! 

Whether you want to cater a meal for one of these office morale ideas or order a snack simply because, turn to Waiter for all your catering needs. Our corporate meal delivery service offers everything from recurring meals to customized catering to help keep your employees happy, motivated, and most importantly, well-fed. Contact us today to learn more! 

FAQs

What are good morale boosters at work? The best morale boosters are those that demonstrate your appreciation for your employees, such as recognizing their achievements, supporting their health and wellness, providing training opportunities, giving them breaks, and catering meals and snacks. 

How can you improve staff morale quickly? Ordering in a catered lunch or snack is one quick way to improve staff morale. Treating them to a delicious meal shows them that you support and appreciate their hard work. 
What are low-cost morale boosters? Some low-cost morale boosters include celebrating your employees’ wins, organizing a volunteer day, hosting lunch-and-learns, offering half-day Fridays, and ordering in meals and snacks.