Employee motivation is a key factor determining the success of a company. What do employees actually expect from their employers? What do they actually need to stay motivated and contribute more to the company’s growth?
Studies state most of the employees value these three core things
● Work independence
● Cooperation from the management to help them maintain a work-life balance
● Growth opportunities
It is easy to motivate employees by concentrating on these three points. Here are some productive ways to do that in the workplace.
Increasing Employee Happiness
Employees’ work productivity increases when they are in a good mood. A company can do a lot of small things to keep them in a positive spirit like congratulating them on their birthday, giving bonuses, acknowledging their hard work. It is common in many companies to celebrate birthdays together as a team.
But a surprise element can be added to the party by making the near and dear ones of the employees appear suddenly. If you don’t have that information already, use Nuwber to get details about the employee’s date of birth and other lesser-known facts like the contact information of their family. If you find their family’s or friends’ contacts, call them and invite them to come to the party as a surprise.
Consider holding office events, or Zoom events if you work remotely. That may be some holiday or any other special occasion. Play games, have a rest and just let people connect with each other outside work tasks.
These small gestures go a long way in making the employee feel wanted and connected to the office group. It will make them work with more involvement as they genuinely know the company cares for them in every possible way and they get along with people around them.
Work Independence
Creating an independent work environment where employees do not get micromanaged is a great way to increase their motivation. Every employee likes to work in their own way and style and allowing them to do so is a great way to show that you trust them and they are responsible for their own tasks.
Workers should explore their own limits to the core and learn how to operate them. They compete against themselves to beat their previous records and ensure they keep pushing themselves further. A bit of control is always necessary but don’t supervise every little step.
Work-Life Balance
Nowadays nearly 87% of employees expect their employers to help them manage the work-life balance by providing them with hybrid working conditions. Employees might struggle to manage work and home when their family expands or they are in an obligation to take care of someone.
They expect cooperation from the company and will try to do their best when the company accommodates their life schedule. The timely help is valued more than regular bonuses or appraisals by the employees in most of the offices. A happy employee working from home will be more productive than a grumpy one in the office.
Awards and Recognition
Everybody likes to be appreciated for their hard work and their smart work. A clap by the team for the top performer, a movie ticket or a small discount coupon to a restaurant for the worker of the month or their photo on the notice board boosts the employee’s confidence.
Some companies even send an appreciation letter to the employee’s house in their hometown where their parents live if they achieve the target or receive an award. Most parents feel gleeful to receive a letter from their children’s company stating their child has outperformed others.
Throwing a party in honor of a particular employee who received a promotion or closed a deal is also a good idea. Taking the teammates to a treat on company expenses will make anyone feel grateful.
Giving them paid vacations or allowing them to demonstrate how they work through a seminar or a special meeting is helpful as well. The employee who achieved success feels rewarded and others feel inspired to work like them.
Each company follows their own way of creating this special bond with the employee by showing appreciation. Choose what works better for you and make sure to do some activities regularly.
Growth Opportunities
Employees get bored by doing monotonous work every day. Conducting a fun job swap where a manager does the employee duty for a day and vice versa is fun. Job swaps may be conducted among various departments also to make it more interesting. Employees between those various departments might cooperate, explain their roles to each other and try to fit in each other’s shoes.
Training the employees constantly to upgrade their skills and grow further in the company is also an important motivational factor.
Few employees want to be in the same position for a very long time. They should be given new challenges, roles, and promoted gradually with a steady salary increase. A company should train its employees to obtain new skills and utilize them for their own benefit.
There are plenty of ways to train employees online these days. Do a talent assessment, have a face-to-face discussion with the employee and provide them with growth opportunities in the form of training. Some companies pay half of the training cost while others pay for the entire training if the employee wishes to acquire a certain skill.
The HR department must ensure the available workforce is tuned up regularly and stay updated with all the relevant latest technologies and work trends. Abundant growth opportunities are a great way to motivate every employee as they work towards their own bright future.
Conclusion
Employee motivation depends on several factors. Employees should have a positive work atmosphere, and be able to work independently. Management should cooperate with the employees to provide them good work-life balance and recognize them by giving awards and small rewards.
Last but not the least, they should be given enough growth opportunities. Employee training, promotion and seminars all fall under the growth opportunities. Following these five points will help every company to keep their employees motivated and increase their productivity with good measurable results.