So you’ve hired some competent people. But now you need to make sure they stick around for a long period and don’t run for the hills. And for that, you would have to dangle the proverbial carrot in front of them in order to drive them to work hard, do well and follow a specific path with the ultimate goal of getting some reward.
While it may seem like a daunting task for employers to keep their employees motivated in 2020, it shouldn’t be. In fact, when armed with the right information and effective techniques, managers can be experts at boosting their staff’s motivation in no time.
Surprisingly, you don’t need to be rich in resources to motivate your employees. While money and fringe benefits cannot be disregarded, a study reveals that they aren’t the most crucial motivating factors. Instead, other intangible factors, such as peer motivation (20%) and employee recognition and appreciation (13%) top the list when it comes to employee motivators. In fact, even taking out a few minutes to say “hi” to your staff may do wonders and lift their morale.
Whether you are a franchise, SME, startup, or a Fortune 500 company, below are some tactics to keep your employees motivated in 2020.
1. See and Share the Big Picture
Your company goals and vision may be bold, but they might matter quite little to your team. This is why, you need to show your employees how they fit into the larger picture, making them understand the purpose behind their work. Make sure your team understands how each of their efforts impacts the organization, customers, and the community.
Though completing a task usually gives you a small sense of accomplishment, knowing that your work helped others proves to be an effective remedy for disengagement.
2. Celebrate Milestones Big and Small
We all have had projects that were dragged to the extent that they seemed to never end. And feeling like you’re stuck in a rut can be extremely demoralizing. This is why it is not only the big wins that should be celebrated; setting and celebrating mini-milestones are equally essential to keep employees motivated in their day-to-day roles in 2020. On top of yearly or quarterly goals, keep track of your short-term goals as well to see what your people are achieving on a weekly or monthly basis.
Acknowledging the milestones is also about fully understanding the challenges your people are facing. Whenever a mini-milestone isn’t met, seize the opportunity to recognize the impediment hindering your team’s progress, how it can be overcome and whether the final goals need to re-established.
3. Communicate Better
Though this may seem like a no-brainer, poor management and lack of communication are one of the primary reasons why employees don’t stay with you for the long haul. Things like support, honesty, clear communication and respect are the bedrocks of a good employee-employer relationship and therefore cannot be overlooked. As an employer, you should communicate with your staff more frequently – and in person whenever possible.
At times, you feel like you already communicate adequately with your employees, but your definition of effective communication may differ from that of your employees. This is why, it is a good idea to let your employees determine the boundaries of communication as much as you do; give them a sense of belonging, power and camaraderie that is vital to fostering a sense of motivation. For instance, company managers can hold regular departmental meetings and sponsor employee career development programs to maintain a productive relationship with staff members.
4. Offer Flexible Scheduling
Leading companies clearly understand that in order to keep the right talent in their company, they need to create and customize a comfortable work environment. When you tailor work environment and culture to your employees’ needs, they feel more valued and appreciated, which in turn encourages them to perform to their maximum.
While a generous time-off policy or flexible schedule might apparently seem expensive, they can actually save your company a great deal of money in lost productivity, low attendance, and sub-optimal engagement. According to a Forbes study, 46 percent of respondents looked for workplace flexibility when it comes to job searching. After all, if they are expected to check their work emails on their phones or finish work projects on laptop at home, it is quite reasonable for them to ask for similar flexibility from their employers.
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Paul Keijzer is the CEO and Founder of Engage Consulting and the co-Founder of The Talent Games, which aims to transform HR by digitising talent processes and creating more engaging and productive workplaces through gamification and mobile technology. As a global HR and Leadership Management expert, Paul knows how to combine business insights with people insights to transform organisations and put them on the path to growth.