Table of contents
Introduction
Employee motivation is the level of energy, commitment, and creativity that a company’s workers bring to their jobs. Whether the economy is growing or shrinking, finding ways to motivate employees is always a management concern. Competing theories stress either incentives or employee involvement (empowerment). Employee motivation can sometimes be particularly problematic for small businesses. The owner has often spent years building a company hands-on and therefore finds it difficult to delegate meaningful responsibilities to others. But entrepreneurs should be mindful of such pitfalls: the effects of low employee motivation on small businesses can be harmful. Such problems include complacency, disinterest, and even widespread discouragement. Such attitudes can cumulate into crises.
But the small business can also provide an ideal atmosphere for employee motivation: employees see the results of their contributions directly; feedback is swift and visible. A smoothly working and motivated workforce also frees the owner from day-to-day chores for thinking of long-term development.
Furthermore, tangible and emotional rewards can mean the retention of desirable employees. People thrive in creative work environments and want to make a difference. Ideally, the work result itself will give them a feeling of accomplishment—but well-structured reward and recognition programs can underline this consequence.
What Motivates?
One approach to employee motivation has been to view “add-ins” to an individual’s job as the primary factor in improving performance. Endless mixes of employee benefits—such as health care, life insurance, profit sharing, employee stock ownership plans, exercise facilities, subsidized meal plans, child care availability, company cars, and more—have been used by companies in their efforts to maintain happy employees in the belief that happy employees are motivated employees.
Today’s buzzwords include “empowerment”, “quality circles”, and “teamwork”. Empowerment gives autonomy and allows an employee to have ownership of ideas and accomplishments, whether acting alone or in teams. Quality circles and the increasing occurrence of teams in today’s work environments give employees opportunities to reinforce the importance of the work accomplished by members as well as receive feedback on the efficacy of that work.
In small businesses, which may lack the resources to enact formal employee motivation programs, managers can nonetheless accomplish the same basic principles. In order to help employees feel that their jobs are meaningful and that their contributions are valuable to the company, the small business owner needs to communicate the company’s purpose to employees. This communication should take the form of words as well as actions. In addition, small business owners should set high standards for employees but also remain supportive of their efforts when goals cannot be reached. It may also be helpful to allow employees as much autonomy and flexibility as possible in how their jobs are performed. Creativity will be encouraged if honest mistakes are corrected but not punished. Finally, the small business owner should take steps to incorporate the vision of employees for the company with his or her own vision. This will motivate employees to contribute to the small business’s goals, as well as help prevent stagnation in its direction and purpose.
Motivation Methods
There are as many different methods of motivating employees today as there are companies operating in the global business environment. Still, some strategies are prevalent across all organizations striving to improve employee motivation. The best employee motivation efforts will focus on what the employees deem to be important. It may be that employees within the same department of the same organization will have different motivators. Many organizations today find that flexibility in job design and reward systems has resulted in employees’ increased longevity with the company, improved productivity, and better morale.
Creativity and Innovation
At many companies, employees with creative ideas do not express them to management for fear that their input will be ignored or ridiculed. Company approval and toeing the company line have become so ingrained in some working environments that both the employee and the organization suffer. When the power to create in the organization is pushed down from the top to line personnel, employees who know a job, product, or service best are given the opportunity to use their ideas to improve it. The power to create motivates employees and benefits the organization by having a more flexible workforce, using the experience of its employees more, and increasing the exchange of ideas and information among employees and departments. These improvements also create an openness to change that can give a company the ability to respond quickly to market changes and sustain the first-mover advantage in the marketplace.
Create programs for employee recognition
Most people value having their efforts recognized. Employee recognition programs enable you as the employer to forge an emotional bond with your staff members and satisfy their basic requirements for self-worth and a sense of community. Employee motivation increases when they feel valued and appreciated by their manager or employer, which encourages them to keep up their good work and commitment to the team. You can establish peer-recognition schemes or include rewards for particular accomplishments or professional anniversaries. It’s great if these initiatives can be improved with concrete benefits, like additional PTO; A wage increase or bonus, a gift card, or, if you work for a government agency subject to severe regulations prohibiting the giving or expenditure of gifts that can be seen as betraying the public’s trust, come up with another tiny gesture of appreciation. Never undervalue the value of a simple verbal or written compliment. You’ll benefit by keeping your best staff by taking an effort to show them appreciation on a regular basis.
Give your staff freedom
The opportunity to work independently on projects and have independence and flexibility are becoming increasingly popular in today’s workforce. This not only enables individuals to assume greater responsibility for their work but also improves their capacity to strike a balance between their work and personal commitments. Establishing and rewarding trust, giving workers ownership over projects and leveraging their special skills, accepting their opinion on scheduling, and giving them the training, technology, and other tools, they need to accomplish their jobs well are a few strategies to promote autonomy in the workplace.
Impart passion and purpose
In general, people put more effort into a task if they feel it is important or serving a greater good. In the job, the same idea is applicable. Employees want to believe that their efforts are helping the business succeed as well as that the company is offering customers worthwhile services or goods. Clarifying and communicating your company’s “big picture” aims and values is crucial if you want to inspire employees with a sense of passion and purpose. After that, link your own aspirations and achievements to these larger corporate goals. Additionally, you can get into the habit of providing direct, helpful criticism that helps to create a workplace culture where employees feel comfortable being open and honest.
Create an inspiring workplace environment
Making a beautiful, useful, and comfortable environment is another strategy for inspiring staff. People spend a lot of time at work, and if their surroundings are nice, they will be more content to do so. Keep the job site clean, well-maintained, and organized. Don’t subject your workers to suffering by requiring them to use obsolete or malfunctioning technology and equipment. Other lovely elements to improve the appearance of your job site include natural light, potted plants and flowers, cosy seats, and artwork.
Stay upbeat
Being negative drains and stresses you out. While there will undoubtedly be occasional low times for your business and staff, try to keep your attention on the good things. Praise publicly and correct quietly is a general rule of thumb. In order for your employees to know that their work is valued, be sure to share any positive client comments with them. Encourage your staff to take breaks, and have coffee and wholesome foods on hand, and encourage them to do so are other strategies to create a good workplace. Never undervalue the worth of benefits related to food. Be open, direct, and enlightening when you do have unfavourable facts to impart. Include supportive and motivating language in the chat so your staff members know they are being taken care of.
Conclusion
Everyone wants to spend their time in a job that is inspiring. Everything seems more enjoyable when the brain is calm. A highly motivated employee can work wonders for your company, giving 200 per cent of their efforts and producing successful results. It’s a terrific method to get things going right to take care of your employee so they can take care of the business. Make the workplace a cheerful place for the employees, and the company is sure to achieve great success.