Leadership

Social Media Roundup: Morale Boosters That Won’t Cost You A Dime

Boost staff morale without breaking the bank (or more specifically, spending a penny). Plus: Debunking the cloud computing myths.

Boost staff morale without breaking the bank (or more specifically, spending a penny). Plus: debunking myths about cloud computing.

There’s no need to ditch employee morale boosters in the name of budget constraints. Instead, get creative—say, by plugging a dress-down Friday into your company calendar or, better yet, offering paid days off as rewards for hard work well done. It’s the little touches that go a long way.

Cheap ways to motivate your staff in today’s Social Media Roundup:

A Dollar a Day (Gets a Bit Expensive)

An office PJ party could be a bit weird, but there are tons of low- or no-cost options for ramping up staff morale. Consider rewarding employees with additional paid days off, recognizing staff accomplishments via social media (tweet away!), and offering flexible hours or telecommuting options, suggests MonsterThinking contributor Fred Morris. You could even take it a step further with a picnic in the park (let’s talk potluck) or a staff get-together over an evening of board games. The ideas are endless, even if your budget isn’t. (ht @ceVoke)

Busting Myths

The cloud is one of those things that’s easier to use than explain. Cloud computing stores data remotely for access via the internet, “turning computing into a utility like electricity and water,” Michael Skok, a partner with the venture capital firm North Bridge, writes for The Washington Post. It’s what powers online banking and shopping, email social networks, and online photo and music storage. Some 75 percent of companies used cloud services in 2013, up from 67 percent in 2012, he writes, citing data from his company’s Future of Cloud Computing Survey. In his Post piece, Skok breaks down the common misconceptions about cloud computing—including faddishness, unreliability, and lack of security. On that last item, Skok writes that the cloud’s scale encourages a heavier focus on security: “Cloud data centers and networks are attractive targets because of the huge numbers of records they hold. But the major cloud service providers can invest far more heavily in security than the average business can, and the average business remains vulnerable.” (ht @MicroStaffBlog)

What pitfalls have you experienced with cloud computing in your organization? Tell us in the comments.

(iStock/Thinkstock)

Emma Beck

By Emma Beck

Emma Beck is a contributor to Associations Now. MORE

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