Your employees are one of your most valuable resources, and therefore employee motivation should be an integral part of day-to-day management. Satisfaction surveys show that motivated and happy employees are both more efficient and more committed employees, and thus a positive gain for your business.
See ways you can increase employee motivation
It sounds very simple when Richard Branson comments on a direct link between employee satisfaction and company performance. However, in a busy day, it can be easy to overlook or forget all the good intentions around recognition and employee motivation. As with so much else, it is about establishing some good habits and processes that focus on strengthening employee motivation in daily work.
We have put together a list of some of the relatively simple ways you can increase the motivation and job satisfaction of your employees.
Recognize good effort
If you want to increase employee motivation, then an appreciative approach to your employees is an effective way to do it. We as humans like to be praised and feel seen. Praise and positive feedback must of course always be deserved and thus honestly and sincerely meant – otherwise it has the opposite effect. Remember it regularly in everyday life.
Celebrate your successes
Stop and take the time to celebrate both the big ones, but also the slightly smaller successes in everyday life. At the same time, acknowledge your employees for their contributions, so that they feel that their efforts are important to the company and create value.
Be a good example
Take the lead and be a good example to your employees. As a manager or owner, your attitude and approach to work has a contagious effect, and greatly sets the standard for both culture and morality.
Involve your employees
Employees are more motivated and more engaged if they feel their contribution is valued.
Share the responsibility and involve the employees in relevant decision-making processes. Listen to their ideas as they often have concrete and valuable input from their daily workflows.
Communicate openly and honestly
It creates trust. Employees find security in knowing in which direction the company is moving. Employees are motivated to work towards common goals and be driven by common ambitions. So have a continuous communication about direction and plans for the future that you share widely with your employees.
Be clear in your expectations and feedback
Clarity creates direction. With clear expectations, it’s easier to do a good job, and it eliminates confusion and uncertainty. Feedback is also needed to create direction and clarity and opportunity for new learning. We have previously written about the younger generations’ clear expectation of regular feedback as part of their employment.
Develop your employees
We grow as human beings by mastering new skills. Have plans for how you work with both formal development programs and employee development. But also how you work with mastery and training in daily life.
Support the sense of community
Something happens when we lift in droves. Nurture the employees as a group and make sure to create good conditions for teamwork. Both on a daily basis and in the form of more formalized events. Teamwork is an important source of motivation, and good colleagues are considered especially among the younger group of employees as one of the most important factors when choosing a workplace.
Have fun!
In a busy day, it is important that we also remember to have fun. Make room for and support initiatives that put a smile on everyone’s lips. These are the little fun things in everyday life that help create a good culture and are ‘shareable stories’ among your employees.
‘Just do it’ – makes (structured) employee motivation a part of everyday life
Many of the items on the list above are relatively easy to go to. It is about getting a boost in the process and making it a defined part of everyday life.
1. Start by selecting a few areas where you want to work specifically with employee motivation
2. Commit to working with this in everyday life as a regular part of your communication and / or culture
3. Make it tangible and measurable who and how should work with this
4. Set a date for the evaluation of your efforts and measurable and experienced effect
5. Do it again!
