To make your office or workplace feel more like a community of people, not just employees who clock in and clock out, you have to foster respect.

As a manager, you're a team leader and the company culture comes down to how you treat everyone working below you.

Underline Privacy

On the off chance an employee comes to you with a serious problem like a death in the family or addiction and requests time off for suboxone detox or a funeral, you need to be discreet. No one will feel safe speaking up again if privacy issues are leaked around the office.

Coming up with excuses and speaking on behalf of others is an essential skill for a manager. Maintaining people's privacy while still keeping the company running smoothly as if nothing happened will create a healthy atmosphere.

Employees should have the right to choose how much of themselves they present at work, and your job is to protect that right.

Highlight Employees

But this is not to say you cannot celebrate the great team you work with! Once you get express written permission from your employees, you should happily include bios and photos on your website.

Not only will your team feel valued as real people more than money-making machines, but clients can also get to know who they will be working with. If you operate more than one office, this will help teams in different cities get to know each other better than through bland work emails.

Use social media to cast a spotlight on employee milestones like a certain number of years at the office, big promotions, and even moving on ceremonies.

Create Opportunities Outside the Office

Let's face it, another birthday party in the office with the same cake gets old. Get everyone together during those off-the-clock hours to mingle get to know each other. This can be as casual or planned out as you want.

Is your company full of active people who love exercise? Start a running club! Do you always overhear talk about the latest movies? Organize a trip to the cinema with drinks after!

If you really want people to come to an event, find some room in the budget to pay for it, then you are almost guaranteed to get more people to show up.

Make Support Your Go-To

An altruistic environment that puts the concerns and needs of others first will make everyone look forward to coming to work. When you see someone struggling, offer help even if they don't ask for it.

Some people have worked for managers that will never help and shame their employees for not getting everything right on the first try. That will undoubtedly make someone nervous about reaching out. Once you prove your job is really to make everything easier, you'll not only have a happy team, but you will increase productivity all around.

To that end, be sure to show gratitude. Say thank you and don't take the hard work everyone does for granted. Compliments should not be reserved only for those who go above and beyond, or you risk creating a toxic competitive and “crunch culture” type atmosphere. Work should be thanked no matter what.

The more you show support, the more you'll lead the way for everyone else to help out. Everyone needs a shoulder to lean on, and you only have two. Get everyone involved in asking for help and making time to be kind, and you'll find the work gets done faster by happier people.