Why Employee Satisfaction Matters and 3 Ways UNEX Solutions Can Help Improve this Key Metric
When we think about supply chain growth and success, we tend to focus on the equipment needed to manufacture, store, pick, pack, and ship products to consumers. The reality is, there is so much more to it. In a final letter to shareholders, Jeff Bezos promised that Amazon would become more obsessed with employee satisfaction1, placing a huge emphasis on preventing workplace injuries and improving overall working conditions. His admission of the need for increased workplace safety and employee satisfaction raised an important point on the changing notion of successful supply chains and how employees' needs fit in.
Attaining max efficiency across the supply chain is not just about choosing the right equipment for your facilities. It’s also about seeing that equipment as an investment in creating a more efficient and comfortable working environment for your employees.
In this article, we will explore the importance of employee satisfaction and the space-saving storage solutions that can have a direct and positive influence on this key metric.
Why Does Employee Satisfaction Matter?
Before you can determine how to boost employee satisfaction in your operation, it's important to look at why it matters in the first place! Employee satisfaction is a key performance metric that is often overlooked and underappreciated in operations across the supply chain.
Employee satisfaction can encompass many things, including worker comfort and happiness, among other measures. But both psychologists and employment experts agree that worker satisfaction is a critical factor in success.2 In the age of Amazon, businesses large and small often aspire to grow in a similar trajectory as the eCommerce giant. If you’re looking to stay competitive in today’s market, caring about employee satisfaction should be a significant part of your growth efforts.
In the context of warehousing and order fulfillment, one of the primary ways employee satisfaction is measured is through the types of solutions deployed to facilitate ergonomics, which will create efficiencies and help increase worker comfort.
For example, you can create a more efficient pick path to reduce travel times for workers by implementing organized solutions and systems to ensure search time for SKUs is reduced. Or you can use more ergonomic solutions to minimize muscle strains and other common injuries workers may experience.
It’s a simple way to boost worker satisfaction and see increased productivity simultaneously. Finding solutions that facilitate a more comfortable working environment ensures that workers are happy and can lead to higher rates of job satisfaction. That translates into increased productivity and revenue for your business and happier workers - a win-win!
Once warehouse managers shift toward seeing worker satisfaction as a path to increase happiness and productivity, it’s easy to see the impact it can have over the short and long-term.
How Do UNEX Solutions Improve Employee Satisfaction?
UNEX offers a variety of space-saving solutions that solve challenges across the supply chain, but saving space is just one part of the equation; employees play a significant role too. While caring about employee satisfaction seems like a no-brainer, it’s important to recognize the many benefits that come with it and how implementing the right storage solutions can meet the needs of your operation and your employees.
So, what happens when you implement space-efficient storage solutions and how do they make employees happy?
Explore the Top 3 Ways UNEX Solutions Increase Employee Satisfaction
1: Reduce the overall pick path for warehouse workers.
Significant cost savings can be achieved when pick paths are shortened. Solutions like SpanTrack carton flow rollers and wheel beds, and SpeedCell dynamic industrial shelving can help increase space utilization within your facility, reducing travel time for workers.
For example, SpeedCell can compress 200’ of rack or shelving into just 40’ of highly organized space!
Less travel time makes things easier for employees, boosting their morale. And when employees have fewer steps to take to fulfill an order, this compounds into more orders fulfilled per shift, per day, per week, etc. It’s easy to see why this is a win-win for you and your workers.
2: Create an ergonomic pick, reducing workplace injuries.
This is a big one for employee satisfaction! Utilizing solutions like SpanTrack and SpeedCell that keep SKUs within reach minimizes strain on workers. For example, SpanTrack flows product to the point of pick, eliminating the need for workers to reach into (or sometimes climb into) racks to reach products positioned at the very back of a static shelf.
Increasing accessibility to SKUs means a safer, more comfortable pick for employees. Safer, healthier, and happier employees means increased productivity and reduced worker’s compensation claims (read: more profit for your business).
3: Keep inventory organized.
When there’s a place for everything and everything in its place, it’s much easier to find it. Keeping your inventory organized means less headaches for employees as they search for the SKUs needed to fulfill orders. Reduced search time translates to, you guessed it, time and cost savings for you! The less time employees spend looking for SKUs in messy, disorganized racks, the better off everyone will be.
A solution like SpeedCell helps to greatly improve organization by fully utilizing the entire space within your pallet racks. Adding very dense, organized rows of SKU storage within a single bay of pallet rack allows for greater organization. SpeedCell’s unique location label holders make locating products and restocking a breeze for employees.
Better space utilization, increased pick facings, and clearly labeled SKU locations create a highly organized order picking environment. This is hugely beneficial for workers and guaranteed to improve their working conditions. Plus, you’ll reap the benefits of added space, time, and cost savings.
Be More Like Bezos?
While many people have mixed feelings over Jeff Bezos and his billionaire status, it goes without saying Amazon is one of the most successful businesses of all time. And it’s small, incremental changes to your overall operation that can make a huge difference.
The bottom line: Warehouse managers and decision-makers across the supply chain should care tremendously about employee satisfaction.
Not only will it create a more comfortable and positive work environment for your staff, it will also lead to increased productivity and efficiency that can make or break your business.
If you’d like to learn more about some of the space-saving storage solutions like SpanTrack and SpeedCell that can help you boost employee satisfaction in your operation, click here to contact a Space Optimization Specialist today!
References:
1. https://www.cnbc.com/2021/04/25/jeff-bezos-is-obsessed-with-a-common-amazon-warehouse-injury-.html
2. https://positivepsychology.com/job-satisfaction/
