How to Keep Employees Happy

Last updated: February 8, 2026Reviewed date: February 8, 2026Reading time: 7 min read
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You should be jealous of them. Research (and common sense) shows that happy employees work harder, work better, and work for you longer. Keeping your employees happy gives you more than just warm fuzzies; it bolsters your bottom line. Jealousy aside, you can benefit by noticing what...

For severe symptoms, danger signs, pregnancy, child illness, or sudden worsening, seek urgent medical care.

বাংলা রোগী নোট এখনো যোগ করা হয়নি। পোস্ট এডিটরে “RX Bangla Patient Mode” বক্স থেকে সহজ বাংলা সারাংশ যোগ করুন।

এই তথ্য শিক্ষা ও সচেতনতার জন্য। এটি ডাক্তারি পরীক্ষা, রোগ নির্ণয় বা প্রেসক্রিপশনের বিকল্প নয়।

Article Summary

You should be jealous of them. Research (and common sense) shows that happy employees work harder, work better, and work for you longer. Keeping your employees happy gives you more than just warm fuzzies; it bolsters your bottom line. Jealousy aside, you can benefit by noticing what other companies are doing in terms of employee happiness. Unlike proprietary recipes or classified algorithms, you can steal these effective ways to...

Key Takeaways

  • This article explains 1. Robert W. Baird & Co. Incorporated in simple medical language.
  • This article explains 2. Bucketfeet in simple medical language.
  • This article explains 3. Cole’s Salon and Spa in simple medical language.
  • This article explains 4. 2U in simple medical language.
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Emergency safety firstUrgent warning signs are highlighted below.

Seek urgent medical care if you notice

These warning signs are general safety guidance. Local emergency numbers and clinical judgment should always come first.

  • Severe symptoms, breathing difficulty, fainting, confusion, or rapidly worsening illness.
  • New weakness, severe pain, high fever, or symptoms after a serious injury.
  • Any symptom that feels urgent, unusual, or unsafe for the patient.
1

Emergency now

Use emergency care for severe, sudden, rapidly worsening, or life-threatening symptoms.

2

See a doctor

Book a professional medical evaluation if symptoms persist, worsen, recur often, affect daily activities, or occur in a high-risk patient.

3

Learn safely

Use this article to understand possible causes, tests, treatment options, prevention, and questions to ask your clinician.

You should be jealous of them. Research (and common sense) shows that happy employees work harder, work better, and work for you longer. Keeping your employees happy gives you more than just warm fuzzies; it bolsters your bottom line.

Jealousy aside, you can benefit by noticing what other companies are doing in terms of employee happiness. Unlike proprietary recipes or classified algorithms, you can steal these effective ways to keep your team happier.

Ready to be inspired? Here are takeaways from 15 down-to-earth companies that know the best ways to keep employees happy.

1. Robert W. Baird & Co. Incorporated

How they keep employees happy: setting culture “rules”

Robert W. Baird & Co. boasts repeat placement on Fortune’s 100 Best Companies to Work For list. How does the financial services company do it? By weaving associate happiness into every aspect of their business. You’ll even find it prioritized in their mission statement:

To provide the best financial advice and service to our clients and be the best place to work for our associates.

But Chairman, President, and CEO Paul Purcell have an even more concrete rule to guide employee behavior which he likes to call the “no asshole rule.” The rule boils down to employees treating their co-workers with honesty and respect at all times…even if they’re grumpy. It turns out this simple rule breeds an office full of happy employees.

2. Bucketfeet

How they keep employees happy: feeding curiosity

Nothing invigorates a typical workday like learning something new…and relevant. Bucketfeet feeds its employees’ appetites for knowledge with a monthly learning series on topics relevant to its mission. The perspective of guest speakers keeps creativity thriving and employees inspired. It’s like attending the most inspirational session at a conference every month…and with no travel necessary.

3. Cole’s Salon and Spa

How they keep employees happy: giving them ownership

Cole’s uses an employee stock ownership plan (ESOP) to help employees get, and stay, invested in the business. Through the plan, Cole’s employees own a whopping 44% of the company. The salon’s employee happiness rate and low turnaround prove employee ownership vital to every kind of business. When employees feel invested, they don’t just walk away.

4. 2U

How they keep employees happy: by working hard and playing hard

High employee ratings on Glassdoor.com landed this education technology company on the Washington Post’s Top Workplaces 2015 list. 2U offers the usual menu of employee happiness offerings from holiday parties to casual clothes.

They shine above other companies by encouraging employees to make fun instead of waiting for company-sponsored events. This led to a popular office basketball league. 2U also has an amazing annual company meeting where they send their entire company to Disney World.

5. Epic

How they keep employees happy: taking team building seriously

For most companies, team building involves a trip to a baseball game or maybe an all-day winery outing if you’re lucky. Epic takes team building much further (literally) with the “Epic Odyssey.” They send teams to other countries to soak up the culture in ways that inform their business and build team skills in unexpected ways. Additionally, they offer a four-week paid sabbatical program that has taken employees to New Zealand, Tanzania, and Germany.

6. Qualcomm

How they keep employees happy: being flexible… and meaning it  

Many companies tout flexible work options but prove stiff when push comes to shove. Qualcomm doesn’t just offer its employees flexibility, it makes sure employees have plenty of flexible options to fit any schedule like telecommuting, compressed weeks, and job sharing. Compressed weeks let employees load up on hours to get one day a week off and job sharing frees up time by letting two employees split the workload of one full-time job.

It pays off! According to CareerBliss.com analysis, Qualcomm enjoyed one of the biggest jumps in employee happiness year over year when compared to other companies.

7. AnswerLab

How they keep employees happy: offering unique allowances

Since AnswerLab focuses on digital experiences, they want to attract employees who know tech, use tech, and presumably love tech. Knowing that love for tech motivates their employees, they offer a $400 tech allowance for employees to spend on whatever they want from devices to apps. They find it a small price to pay for learning, which they consider one of the four buckets (career, learning, wellness, and giving back) of employee happiness.

8. Institute for Integrative Nutrition

How they keep employees happy: keeping them fueled with the good stuff

The Institute for Integrative Nutrition (IIN) goes beyond teaching employees what they should eat for wellness – they deliver it on a silver platter! All employees get a free, chef-prepared lunch every day, not to mention healthy breakfasts and snacks. And since they value an integrative approach to health, they also offer free vitamin supplements and on-site massages, acupuncture, and chiropractic care.

9. Miller Auto Plaza, St. Cloud

How they keep employees happy: encouraging community involvement

Community philanthropy landed Miller Auto Plaza on the Minnesota Star Tribune’s Top Workplaces list. From highway clean-ups to food drives, Miller Auto Plaza and its employees have been involved with it all. The philanthropic focus provides a sense of well-being and fulfillment that keeps Miller’s employees happy.

10. Weebly

How they keep employees happy: considering the convenience

Don’t take it personally when your employees beeline toward the door at the end of the day. They probably love their jobs, they just have the stuff to do at home. Weebly hopped onto Greatist’s Healthiest Companies to Work For list by thinking about everything employees have to do at home…after work. They offer home cleaning and concierge services so employees’ thoughts aren’t plagued by chores they need to complete.

11. FullContact

How they keep employees happy: making vacation impossible to refuse

Business leaders everywhere extol the regenerative powers of taking a vacation. The problem? It’s never really a convenient time for a break, so people put off vacation until it’s lost. FullContact makes sure employees recharge their brains by offering a vacation incentive of $7,500. Employees can only use it for vacation and they’re not allowed to check work emails while they’re on it.

12. MediaMath

How they keep employees happy: fostering autonomy

MediaMath’s employees spoke up to land them on Glassdoor’s Best Small and Medium Companies to Work For list. The company realized long ago that employee happiness runs deeper than the beer fridge. They’ve found that keeping employees happy means giving them some power. They build loose team structures so roles aren’t rigid and have even let employees rewrite their job descriptions.

#EmployeeHappiness Tip: Foster autonomy click TO TWEET

13. Bain & Company

How they keep employees happy: promoting equality

The photo belongs to Sharon Mattheson-McCutcheon via Flickr

Bain & Company has landed on so many top workplaces lists, you can bet they know how to keep employees happy. Bain & Co shines especially in rankings of equality. The Human Rights Campaign gave it 100% on its corporate equality index. It also topped Working Mother’s 100 Best Companies list for its flexible work schedules, assistance for new parents, and programs designed to advance women. Equality breeds respect and respect breeds happiness.

14. Grasshopper

How they keep employees happy: using limited resources well

Happiest employee lists often highlight companies with expensive initiatives. Onsite gyms, pools, and tracks? Sure, all of those fitness options would make anyone happy.

What if you don’t have the resources for things like that? A Salary.com list of companies with incredible employee perks featured Grasshopper, a company with no onsite gym. Instead, they have a Wii Room where employees can exercise virtually. The games still get employees’ heart rates up and release endorphins without breaking the bank.

15. Killer Infographics

How they keep employees happy: making it easy for them to speak up

Killer Infographics knows what happens when employees can’t or don’t speak up about what’s bothering them: festering and inevitable explosions of anger. Even having “open doors” doesn’t mean that all employees will speak up. Some are too shy or they’re just too uncomfortable to voice their frustrations.

So, instead of the usual “open door” policies, Killer Infographics actively encourages employees to speak up using a workplace survey tool. Thiallows everyonece to be heard, even if they’re not outgoing.

Conclusion

With so much food for thought on the topic of how to keep employees happy, you might feel a bit overwhelmed when you imagine implementing anything. Many employee happiness strategies spring from years of observation, discussion, and analysis of company culture.

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1 Symptom 2 Severity 3 Safe guidance
First safety question

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Choose quickly

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Start here: Write or select a symptom. The guide will show warning signs, doctor guidance, diagnostic tests to discuss, OTC safety education, and related RX articles.

Important: This tool is educational only. It cannot diagnose, treat, or replace a doctor. OTC information is not a prescription. In an emergency, contact local emergency services or go to the nearest hospital.

Doctor visit helper

Prepare before seeing a doctor

A simple rural-patient checklist to help you explain symptoms clearly, ask better questions, and avoid unsafe self-treatment.

Safety note: This is not a prescription or diagnosis. For severe symptoms, pregnancy danger signs, children with serious illness, chest pain, breathing difficulty, stroke-like weakness, or major injury, seek urgent care.

Which doctor may help?

Start with a registered doctor or the nearest qualified health center.

What to tell the doctor

  • Write when the problem started and how it changed.
  • Bring old prescriptions, investigation reports, and current medicines.
  • Write allergies, pregnancy status, diabetes, kidney/liver disease, and major past illnesses.
  • Bring one family member if the patient is weak, elderly, confused, or a child.

Questions to ask

  • What is the most likely cause of my symptoms?
  • Which danger signs mean I should go to hospital quickly?
  • Which tests are necessary now, and which can wait?
  • How should I take medicines safely and what side effects should I watch for?
  • When should I come for follow-up?

Tests to discuss

  • Vital signs: temperature, pulse, blood pressure, oxygen saturation
  • Basic physical examination by a clinician
  • CBC, urine test, blood sugar, or imaging only when clinically needed

Avoid these mistakes

  • Do not use antibiotics, steroid tablets/injections, or strong painkillers without proper medical advice.
  • Do not hide pregnancy, kidney disease, ulcer, allergy, or blood thinner use.
  • Do not delay emergency care when danger signs are present.

Medicine safety and first-aid guide

This section is for patient education only. It does not replace a doctor, pharmacist, or emergency care.

Safe first steps

  • Avoid heavy lifting, sudden bending, and prolonged bed rest.
  • Use comfortable posture and gentle movement as tolerated.
  • Discuss physiotherapy, X-ray, or MRI only when clinically needed.

OTC medicine safety

  • For mild back pain, pain-relief medicine may be discussed with a doctor or pharmacist.
  • Avoid repeated painkiller use if you have kidney disease, stomach ulcer, uncontrolled blood pressure, or are taking blood thinners.

Avoid these mistakes

  • Do not start antibiotics without a proper medical decision.
  • Do not use steroid tablets or injections casually for quick relief.
  • Do not delay emergency care because of home remedies.

Get urgent help if

  • Back pain with leg weakness, numbness around private area, loss of urine/stool control, fever, cancer history, or major injury needs urgent care.
Medicine names, dose, and timing must be decided by a qualified clinician or pharmacist after checking age, pregnancy, allergy, other diseases, and current medicines.

For rural patients and family caregivers

Patient health record and symptom diary

Write your symptoms, medicines already taken, test results, and questions before visiting a doctor. This note stays on your device unless you print or copy it.

Doctor to discuss: Doctor / qualified healthcare provider
Tests to discuss with doctor
  • Basic vital signs: temperature, pulse, blood pressure, oxygen level if needed
  • Relevant blood, urine, imaging, or specialist tests only after clinical assessment
Questions to ask
  • What is the most likely cause of my symptoms?
  • Which warning signs mean I should go to emergency care?
  • Which tests are really needed now?
  • Which medicines are safe for my age, pregnancy status, allergy, kidney/liver/stomach condition, and current medicines?

Emergency warning signs such as chest pain, severe breathing difficulty, sudden weakness, confusion, severe dehydration, major injury, or loss of bladder/bowel control need urgent medical care. Do not wait for online information.

Safe pathway to proper treatment

Back pain care roadmap

Use this simple roadmap to understand the next safe steps. It is educational and does not replace examination by a doctor.

Go to emergency care if you notice:
  • New leg weakness, numbness around private area, or loss of bladder/bowel control
  • Back pain after major injury, fever, unexplained weight loss, cancer history, or severe night pain
Doctor / service to discuss: Orthopedic/spine specialist, physical medicine doctor, physiotherapist under guidance, or qualified clinician.
  1. Step 1

    Check danger signs first

    If danger signs are present, seek emergency care and do not wait for online information.

  2. Step 2

    Record the symptom story

    Write when symptoms started, severity, medicines already taken, allergies, pregnancy status, and test results.

  3. Step 3

    Visit a qualified clinician

    A doctor, nurse, or qualified healthcare provider can examine you and decide which tests or treatment are needed.

  4. Step 4

    Do only useful tests

    Discuss neurological examination first. X-ray or MRI may be needed only when red flags, injury, nerve weakness, or persistent severe symptoms are present.

  5. Step 5

    Follow up and return early if worse

    If symptoms worsen, new warning signs appear, or treatment is not helping, return for review quickly.

Rural patient practical tips
  • Take a written symptom diary and all previous prescriptions/test reports.
  • Do not hide medicines already taken, even herbal or over-the-counter medicines.
  • Ask which warning signs mean urgent referral to hospital.
  • Avoid forceful massage or bone-setting when there is weakness, injury, fever, or nerve symptoms.

This roadmap is for education. A real diagnosis and treatment plan requires history, examination, and clinical judgment.

RX Patient Help

Ask a health question safely

Write your symptom story. A health professional or site editor can review it before any answer is prepared. This box is not for emergency care.

Emergency first: Severe chest pain, breathing trouble, unconsciousness, stroke signs, severe injury, heavy bleeding, or rapidly worsening symptoms need urgent local medical care now.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is this article a replacement for a doctor?

No. It is educational content only. Patients should consult a qualified clinician for diagnosis and treatment.

When should I seek urgent care?

Seek urgent care for severe symptoms, rapidly worsening condition, breathing difficulty, severe pain, neurological changes, or any emergency warning sign.

References

Add references, clinical guidelines, textbooks, journal articles, or trusted medical sources here. You can edit this area from the RX Article Professional Blocks panel.

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