Around Thanksgiving, The Atlantic Monthly rehashed a once revolutionary idea. “A New Business Strategy: Treating Employees Well” touched on the subject of productivity in business, a topic this blog explored right before the holiday. But the article wasn’t about simply giving extra pay or benefits to workers. Nor was it about how to make employees comfortable and enthusiastic enough to pump out more widgets per hour than before.

Instead, author Alana Samuels wrote about a new mindset for business. “People are beginning to ask questions about the financialization of the corporation — has it gone too far”, Samuels writes, “and (if there is) a more equitable way to reward people for the hard work that they do.”

Besides good pay and flexible work situations for employees and their different family needs, what is also important is the atmosphere of the office environment. Specifically, companies need to establish the trust and job expectations for each worker to do their best work — most importantly, in serving the company’s customers.

Samuels mentions a flour company in Vermont. Its call center workers “have quotas — 10 calls per hour, per agent — but they know they won’t get fired if they spend 45 minutes talking to a woman with cancer about baking, as one agent recently did.”

Inc. magazine, which focuses much of its content on small businesses, advises a few things entrepreneurs can do to improve the atmosphere at work. For one, giving your office a personality such as “creativity in the layout, design, and accents of your office space” can make your shop or offices more effective by adding a hint of comfort and warmth. Other ideas might be to encourage employees to listen to music while working (if suitable to the environment), as well as removing walls and other obstacles to create a more open, communicative space.

Getting straight to the bullet points for busy entrepreneurs, LifeHack shares a great infographic explanation of what is important to workers of all types and some quick solutions to making offices upbeat and more efficient.

Looking from a different angle, Forbes writes that it’s not all just about the office environment. There’s is also a psychology to productivity. Happy employees achieve more. Plus, when it comes to results, using bad interpersonal practices, such as intimidation and inconsistent communication, are as disruptive as bad, outdated software systems.

Most importantly, one strategy to getting the most from engaged employees is to start with yourself. The Muse points out that as a leader in your organization, you should make sure to keep a positive, encouraging attitude, but also that this kind of thinking must be backed up by action.

Regardless of what sector your business is in or the size of your company, your employees, suppliers, partners and customers are best served when you run your business with a welcoming, productive and enjoyable atmosphere in which people can thrive.