Last week was National Breakfast Week – a time to celebrate the first meal of the day and really emphasise that it’s the most important one. With only two thirds of Britons saying they eat their the breakfast, there’s never been a better time to strike a chord with the huge proportion of those who don’t. That’s why Breakfast Week was all about encouraging breakfast skippers to mend their ways.
This fits with businesses becoming more in tune with what employees really appreciate. And it’s not a funky beanbag chair, a ping-pong table or a vending machine full of sugary snacks. We’ve all heard of Google’s impressive campus where, rumour has it, no member of staff is ever more than 150ft away from a food outlet. Meanwhile, staff provisions at Facebook and Twitter include catered breakfasts and lunches. But you don’t have to go to their levels to keep your staff happy.
Offering small perks can make a big difference in business. From free or discounted gym membership to travelcard loans, the little added extras that businesses provide can help with employee satisfaction.
When it comes to starting the day right, there are some businesses reaping the rewards of providing a satisfying breakfast.
Looking after the wellbeing of your employees pays dividends, and doesn’t have to cost the earth. Providing breakfast or breakfast events will make your company stand out and have a positive impact on your staff. They come in many guises, all of which have their own perks, and all of which can be adapted to fit your business in one way or another.
Networking breakfasts
The first rule about networking breakfasts is not calling them networking breakfasts. The word networking conjures up images of awkward meetings, but the concept of meeting and talking to like-minded people from your industry is actually brilliant.
Think about setting one up with a creative name such as Paris’ Aperitweet or London’s Silicon Roundabout. You can discuss the latest developments, pick up tips from experienced experts and understand client needs from a broader perspective. There’s also the added incentive of making connections that could improve the way you work, and the tools you use.
Take the introduction of AdBlue to the fleet industry, for example. Talking about it to others will give you an idea of who’s using it and how it’s performing, and whether there are any common issues to be aware of. Talking to someone face to face can add a whole new layer of understanding and give you the inside track.
Free breakfast for all staff
Have your ever bore witness to your entire staff running to grab the leftovers from an early morning client meeting? Retaining great staff is just as important as gaining new business. And providing complimentary breakfasts, either as a treat once in a while to reflect great performance or as a daily occurrence, can do wonders. They’re clearly hungry for it.
Alongside the health benefits that come from eating a decent meal at the beginning of the day, there are plenty of social benefits to sharing a meal with colleagues. Simply having some time to chat in a calm environment, rather than eating it as you pour over emails and write your to-do list, gives the entire day a more relaxed feel and leads to less stress.
If you provide breakfast in a communal area, it encourages staff in different departments, and from different disciplines, to talk to each other. You could even take things a step further, and get your staff more involved by having breakfast competitions and themes for your morning meals. Stronger connections between staff, makes for a better atmosphere overall in your company. It can also lead to a more informal relationship between employees and more senior management, which is no bad thing.
Team breakfast meetings
Shifting your regular meetings to breakfast time is another great way to boost staff morale. You could start a rotating system with your staff so that on the same day of every week someone else picks a different place to have breakfast, and you pick up the bill. This will be far more productive than a lunch meeting (where everyone always has half a mind on something else they need to do) and will catch your team at their most alert point of the day.
So, when it comes to alleviating the stress of your team and increasing productivity, start thinking more creatively about breakfast. Even with Breakfast Week over, there’s huge scope for what you can do when it comes to making an impact. Your employees will get to know each other better, and it could help them to be healthier and happier. Just make sure it isn’t an added chore to their workload and is more of an extra treat.
Content on this page is paid for and provided by Kia Fleet sponsor of the Guardian Small Business Network Accessing Expertise hub.
