Meeting the Challenges of Long-term Employee Motivation

To get the best from their staff, some favour the carrot, others the stick. In practice, ensuring long-term employee motivation is a far more subtle process. Employers often believe that the reason a staff member may not be performing as well as expected lies with the individual, that the person in question is inherently lazy, incompetent or ill-disciplined. Although their assumptions may sometimes be correct, the underlying reasons for an employee’s poor performance are often elsewhere.

Managers and supervisors would undoubtedly be far more effective at motivating those in their charge if they were to ask themselves the following questions before jumping to conclusions:

• Does the person in question have the necessary training and experience to perform the required tasks?

• Is there any way in which those tasks could be made more efficient?

• Are all team members fully aware of the company’s goals and the role of their tasks in achieving them?

• Was the employee given relevant personal goals, were they understood, and were they realistic?

• Is there good two-way communication between team members and the team’s leader?

• Is there any form of incentive to encourage employee performance and reward success?

These questions are necessary, but they are just the first step in the quest to optimise employee motivation. The next will be to address those questions for which the answer was “no”, which is a responsibility best assigned to a professional performance management company.

Optimising Employee Performance Starts With Some Fact-finding

Human behaviour is complex, and assessing how people may react under various circumstances can provide employers with vital insight into staff members’ potential, their performance and how to deploy them for maximum benefit to the company. Fortunately, this is no longer a crystal ball exercise and doesn’t rely on subjective impressions to judge character.

Psychometric testing offers a means to predict behavioural trends, measure cognitive, emotional, physical and communication skills, indicate how a person may react under pressure, and reveal essential skills that need attention. The insight and understanding gained from testing can indicate those areas that must be addressed to ensure employees are sufficiently informed, skilled and motivated to realise their full potential.

The following are just a few factors that can have a profound influence on employee motivation:

• Leadership: To be an effective leader, one must create trust, ascertain and fulfil team members’ needs, facilitate their personal growth and celebrate their successes.

• Company Culture: Management tends to set the standards for an organisation’s culture. They must foster transparency in the workplace, demonstrate a willingness to listen, ensure every staff member is fully informed regarding all matters essential to their performance, and do everything necessary to create the culture of positivity on which employee motivation depends.

• Personal Development: A career pathing exercise can inspire loyalty and encourage performance. Employees work better when they believe they have a future within their company.

• Recognition: An open display of gratitude for a job well done is one of the most powerful ways to motivate staff. Publicly acknowledging personal achievements can be a game-changer when tackling employee motivation. It’s an inspiration to achieve even more, whether a simple pat on the back, an “Employee of the Month” award or a “Well Done” T-shirt.

• A Sense of Purpose: If employees are to meet expectations, their tasks must be meaningful, so managers and team leaders need to ensure everyone understands their part in the bigger picture. Making it clear that those roles are crucial to the company’s success creates a sense of purpose that inspires action.

• A Sense of Belonging: People may occupy a post for years yet still feel they are no more than just another part of an indifferent and faceless machine. Such individuals seldom demonstrate outstanding performance but merely carry out their assigned tasks sufficiently well to avoid undue attention. By contrast, an inclusive work environment where every staff member is regularly reminded of their value, and their input is respected can boost morale and generate enthusiasm and a willingness to go the extra mile to achieve performance excellence.

How Businesses Can Address These Factors and Boost Employee Motivation

Few HR departments have the knowledge and experience to tackle this task unaided. Instead, they should adopt a collaborative approach. Orgro is a human behavioural specialist and has been partnering with companies to optimise their performance since 1982. We invite you to contact us for more information about our business and human capital development services.