The 7 Secrets to Employee Motivation

Regardless of the business climate, maintaining motivated employees can be difficult for a manager or business owner. When it’s busy, they may feel overwhelmed, while the slow periods may leave them somewhat passive and unresponsive to customer demands. Still, it is the responsibility of management to deal with this issue. Here are a few strategies for accomplishing this goal:

Create a Motivated Environment 

The first step towards motivated employees is to create an encouraging environment for the behaviors you are trying to foster. At the very outset, you must determine who is enthusiastic and who is not. Then, counseling or terminating any influences that are derogatory or non-supportive is essential. In this manner, you will create a self-reinforcing environment that does not have to be constantly maintained.

This is the perfect environment for managers who love to lead by example. Embrace the motivated environment, nurture it and not only will you have great front-line employees but you will create a whole new generation of future company leaders.

Communicate Your Goals 

It sure seems obvious but many managers don’t realize that any decent employee wants to feel like a member of the team. It is essential that management communicate the overall goals of the project or the requirements of the job so that everybody is on the same page when it comes to results. Accomplishing this relatively simple task makes it possible for team members to make good decisions when confronted with a choice and also allows them to measure themselves against a less than subjective yardstick.

Accomplishing this goal requires time, energy and patience. Employees must be informed of decisions arrived at management meetings, updated about new policies and, most importantly, apprised of any new company developments that will change how the employees are evaluated and compensated. In this vein, particularly, it is necessary for managers to meet face-to face with any affected employees to explain what the changes mean.

Bring In the Boss

As they say, “nothing succeeds like success.” An appearance by the “Big Boss” can mean the difference between a lukewarm response to a new initiative and a fully engaged staff. It is a highly motivating factor if your staff sees that the highest levels of the organization are firmly invested in the success of a new initiative. Seriously, the mere fact that the CEO or even the regional manager is taking a personal, hands-on interest in a project will reap many benefits.

It is important, however, that this interest is not merely a memo or a videotaped, “Message from the President.” An engaged – and knowledgeable! – presence is necessary for this motivating factor to have the maximum effect on success.

Provide Opportunity

Opportunity in an organization cannot be only limited to management and the company as a whole. Instead, front-line workers and lower management must also see that their engagement in and support for these projects can reward them with bonuses, recognition and career advancement. It is the last factor that is most important as the most capable employees will look here for their motivation.

Some ways to facilitate this motivating factor is to include lower level employees in senior level meetings, as members of cross-functional committees and as true arbiters of the success of a project. These functions may not manifest themselves as a member of a committee but they are still powerful motivators for keeping the best people involved.

Address Employee Concerns 

Despite what the old song says, one bad apple can spoil the whole bunch, especially if they latch onto a legitimate grievance. It never ceases to amaze me that a manager will dismiss an issue that is essentially inconsequential to the company – that is, it involves a relatively small amount of money- but ignore its consequences among the bulk of his subordinates. In fact, managers are in their positions to handle just such eventualities and it is a nothing short of incompetence to mismanage the situation.

Simply having an anonymous “suggestion box” or providing some other way that employees can file a grievance without being identified is the barest means of addressing employee concerns. Much better are regular meetings where staff members are encouraged to participate. In addition, these meetings cannot just pay lip service to the complaints but must actively seek to redress the concerns.

Reward Success

This factor is where “the rubber meets the road.” I understand that there are all sorts of studies that purport to show how various types of employees respond to various types of rewards. This fact is all well and good when the employee is highly compensated and really doesn’t need any more money but it is of dubious merit when the employee is working for minimum wage and would rather have a better salary than a trophy. More simply put, reward success in the most appropriate manner possible.

With that said, it is not enough to merely acknowledge accomplishment. A company must come across with real value for a successful employee – whatever that means. Whether it is a raise, a bonus or even just recognition, it is imperative to “feed the need” of the employee.

Always Listen

In many ways, this is the most important aspect of employee motivation as it is the only way that you, as the manager or employer, will know if you are messing up – and, don’t kid yourself, this is the essence of motivating employees. They must know that the attention is being paid and that you give a damn. Think about it. For your company to be successful, YOU don’t really need to be happy, your employees DO.