When it comes to the perks of having positive workplace relationships, we don’t even know where to start; there are just so many! Not only do work-friends make your 9-5 so much more fun, but they’re also proven to deliver a bunch of other cool benefits.
In fact, according to Forbes and BetterUp,
- 69% of people are unsatisfied with their social connections at work
- 43% of people don’t feel a sense of connection with their workers
- 22% of people don’t even have one friend at work
- 50% of people would give up salary or career advancement for better social connections at work
From looking at these stats, it’s pretty clear why you’d want to cultivate some workplace friendships with your coworkers! However, when you don’t know where to start, doing so can feel like a pretty tall order (but don’t worry too much). To help you kickstart some new friendships, we’ve put together a guide to the different types of workplace relationships, how to improve your relationships with coworkers, and why nourishing your relationships with coworkers is so important; all you need to do is read on!
Why We Should Nurture Our Workplace Relationships
While we’ve already touched on the importance of positive workplace relationships, we’ve only just scratched the surface! There are tonnes of additional reasons to nurture your relationships with coworkers that serve you and your employer, too!
Employees who feel connected to other people at work are much more likely to see themselves staying in their role for the next five years (at least!), get more done in less time, share innovative ideas and have fun at work too!
BetterUp Poses that highly connected employees’ experience
- 34% greater goal attainment
- 50% more positive relationships
- 36% boost in wellbeing
- 92% more professional growth
Types of Workplace Relationships
Reporting Relationships
Out of the four types of workplace relationships, reporting relationships are the most formal and hierarchical in nature. As you might have guessed, one coworker in these types of relationships typically reports to the other person like a boss and their employee. Reporting relationships feature a clear chain of command, and one person always has more authority than the other. Within these types of relationships, personal lives aren’t talked about very often (or at all)!
Keys for Successful Reporting Relationships
- Respect
- Positive Attitude
- Willingness to Learn From One Another
- Communication
Organisational Relationships
Organisational relationships are another pretty formal type of workplace relationship. They serve to support the operations and functions of the organisation and cover the social connections you have with people in other teams, departments, or divisions. In short, organisational relationships between coworkers are based on the structure of the company you work for.
Keys for Successful Organisational Relationships
- Collaboration
- Coordination
- Delegation
- Communication
Personal Relationships
While personal workplace relationships are still somewhat formal, they involve a much higher level of personal and social connection than reporting or organisational relationships. When you interact with those you have a personal relationship with at work, you aren’t just doing so because you have to; you want to as well! These are the people you can rely on for work-related advice, guidance and support, too.
Keys for Successful Personal Relationships
- Reliability
- Support
- Kindness
- Communication
Friendship Relationships
Friendship relationships are the least formal, and arguably, the most fun, type of workplace relationship. They are much deeper social connections that Niagara Institute characterises by mutual trust, shared interests and a genuine liking for each other. These are the types of social connections that extend outside of the workplace (A.K.A. the kind of people you’d want to grab dinner with). Essentially, they’re proper friends that just happen to be coworkers!
Keys for Successful Friendship Relationships
- Trust
- Loyalty
- Humour
- Helpfulness
- Communication
How To Improve Workplace Relationships
So, now that you’ve identified which workplace relationships you’re dealing with, it’s time for a lesson on how to level up your relationships! There are so many different aspects to being a good friend, but our main tips are to:
Avoid Office Gossip
We get it; it’s tempting to use gossip to bond with others and build social connection but trust us when we say it’s not worth it! You really don’t want to be known as the office gossip. In fact, that’s the single worst way to build workplace relationships!
Be Inclusive
We all know how cliquey high school can be; use that as an example of how not to act in the workplace. The coolest coworkers are the ones that include everyone, show kindness and demonstrate a tonne of empathy. If you want to improve your rep, being the nice coworker is the way to go!
Offer Help and Support
This top tip is a bit of a continuation on the sentiment of ‘being the nice coworker’ but with a little bit of a twist. If you want to improve your workplace relationship with someone, check in on them, support them when their workload is heavy and offer to help with their tasks when you have capacity!
Show Appreciation
Never hesitate to show appreciation for another person – not only will it help improve your relationships with your coworkers, but it’ll make their day as well! Expressing gratitude, appreciation, or even letting a coworker know that you recognise all their hard work is a great way to build workplace relationships.
Be Positive and Professional
While we’re all for reaching out for help when you need it, having a constant negative attitude in the office is pretty draining for your whole team. Try to keep things positive and focus on the good in every day. It’ll make you feel happier and keep your coworkers in a better mood too!
And if you want some more quick tips for building workplace relationships, try these on for size:
- Show Genuine Interest
- Stay In Touch
- Share Credit
- Practice Active Listening
- Celebrate Milestones
- Say Thank You
- Offer to Help
Cultivate Those Friendships!
Now that you’re equipped with all the tools you need to build positive workplace relationships, it’s time to land a job where you can do so! Check out the employer pages of some of New Zealand’s top companies and land your dream job today. Who knows, you might just land a new BFF, too!
