When employees are happy and motivated, they will perform to the best of their ability and make a real effort to help make your business successful. When they are not, however, they can cause more harm than good. The following steps will help you satisfy your workers needs and lift productivity, without giving out pay increases.
1) Find out what workers really want
The first step to motivating staff is to listen carefully to what they want, and often. You may assume that all employees just want a pay rise, but this may not be the case at all. You could find that just a few simple changes could make your staff happier, or something more complex may be required. Either way, the lesson here is to LISTEN.
2) Value employee suggestions and contributions
Accepting and encouraging employee contributions shows them that they are a valuable part of the business, which is a huge motivational driver. Encourage them to come up with small and continuous improvements to the way tasks are done, and make sure they don’t feel like they could “suggest” themselves out of a job by coming up with an idea that eliminates their own labour. Instead, promote the workers with the initiative to make such positive suggestions.
3) Give immediate feedback
It is important to give your workers regular feedback, which should contain more praise than criticisms. Most employees will get genuine satisfaction from feeling like they are doing a job well, so it is important that you recognise their achievements and give them the proper credit and praise they deserve. If you must give negative feedback, try to set goals for future improvements rather than simply berating them.
4) Set mutually acceptable goals
Setting goals is an important part of staff motivation, however they should not simply be your own ideas imposed on others. Instead, you should sit down with your employees and together work out goals which will allow them to grow and develop at their tasks. You should then give them the responsibility of getting on with these tasks without interference.
5) Encourage team spirit
It is important that your employees feel as though you are all working together to reach the same goals. Write a mission statement which outlines the main goals of the business and its ethics, then hang it somewhere so all your staff and customers can see it.
Another way to encourage team spirit is to share with your employees the decisions you’ve made, give reasons for those decisions, and encourage feedback. If you operate with an air of secrecy, employees will feel left out and less inclined to help you.
6) Lead by example
The most effective way to change the behaviour of your employees is to model the behaviour you want from them. For example, don’t be late yourself if you want your employees to arrive on time, or take two hour lunch-breaks if they can’t do the same. In other words, be their role model. The example you set will have a major impact on your staff’s performance.
7) Create a fun work environment
Two of the biggest causes of de-motivated staff are boredom and stress. Having a fun workplace is a great way to counter these problems, and it will generally work to promote productivity. Come up with ways to bring enjoyment to your workplace and you’ll find that you have happier and more motivated employees, who get on with each other as well as the job.
Praise quality not quantity
Rewarding staff for the quantity rather than the quality of their work can lead to carelessness in their performance. Careless errors can also arise from employees who don’t care about their work, possibly because it is not being closely monitored. Keep a close eye on the quality of your employees work, and praise them for their good results so that they feel worthwhile.
9) Avoid using scare tactics
Using threats and fear to motivate your employees is never a good idea. It may get the job done in the short term, but will inevitably cause anger and resentment in the long run. If you instead show that you care about your employees, they are much more likely to be co-operative, enthusiastic and commited to your business.
10) Stay motivated
As businesses continue to grow and change, employees will need continued motivational boosts. An employee may be motivated at some point by a goal they are working towards, but once they have reached this, they will need something else to aspire to. Keep employee motivation at the forefront of your mind at all times, and you’ll be rewarded with positive and productive staff.
