Motivated employees laughing and smiling while sitting around a conference table

How to Keep Employees Motivated to Deliver First-Rate Results

Featured image by Brooke Cagle on Unsplash

Every great manager and business owner knows that motivated employees are the foundation for any strong and resilient business. The mindset and quality of output your staff delivers will more or less determine the trajectory of your business.

So if you want to have a business that grows rapidly, with increased sales and improved profitability, you’ll require hardworking and competent employees who are motivated to deliver their best work.

RELATED ARTICLE: 5 BUSINESS NEEDS DEPENDING ON YOUR COMPANY

The problem, however, is that even recruiting the most competent employees may not guarantee that you’ll receive the best work. Employees are also humans, meaning they thrive in the right physical and psychological environment. Conversely, they can be unproductive if they are in an environment that is less than ideal for them. It is, therefore, your responsibility to motivate your employees and put them in a position where they can deliver great work.

Of course, this is easier said and done. In practice, employee motivation can be quite tricky to pull off. Not to worry though, in this article, we’ll take you through some of the top ways you can motivate your employees.

Learn What Makes Each Employee Tick

While you can try various motivation strategies to improve employee performance, you might find that quite ineffective without first understanding each person who works for you. The reason is quite simple. There is no one-size-fits-all solution to motivating employees. What works for one business may not work for yours. This is why it is crucial for you to understand your employees better.

Motivation works best when you understand your employees’ “why.” Why are they working in this particular industry? Why did they choose to work for your business?

Having the answers to these questions would help tailor a motivation strategy that would be effective for your employees.

For instance, if most of your employees are incentivized by money, a performance-linked bonus system might work better to motivate them than team bonding sessions. Similarly, such a system might not work well for workers with priorities other than money.

Create a Pleasant Working Environment

Nobody wants to work in a dull and restrictive place for hours. Your employees spend most of their hours at work. You certainly don’t want them to spend this time at a place they don’t enjoy.

This is why it is important to develop a working space that is functional, fun, and aesthetically pleasing. The goal is to create an office space that makes your employees look forward to coming to work.

When creating an office space for your employees, it is also essential to listen to them. For instance, 87% of workers want their current employers to offer various workplace options such as sit-stand desks, ergonomic seating, wellness rooms, and lunch options.

Of course, the preferences of your employees may differ slightly from this. What’s important is finding out what would make your employees comfortable and productive at work.

Reward and Recognize Your Employees to Keep Them Motivated

Everyone loves to be recognized for the work they put in. This is so important for employees. You want to make sure they feel seen and appreciated. In fact, this should be one of your top priorities in employee engagement. This is because, according to one study, the most important motivating factors for employees were peer motivation and feelings of encouragement and recognition. With a great reward/recognition system, you can achieve both.

For instance, you can have a system whereby employees can recognize and appreciate the efforts of colleagues on specific projects. Similarly, managers can recognize the performance of employees.

The reward can be in the form of points, badges, and other incentives. A great way to implement such a system is to leverage employee recognition software. This software enables peer-to-peer and manager recognition in line with performance expectations and business values.

With a great reward system, you have a better chance of motivating and retaining your employees for the long haul.

Prioritize Growth Opportunities

In addition to financial incentives and a conducive working environment, you can also motivate your employees by providing growth opportunities. This could be in the form of capacity building. Many firms attract the best talent because they have excellent training programs that accelerate professional growth.

Also, it’s crucial that employees observe a clear career progression within your business. For instance, you cannot expect your workers to feel motivated when they spend several years in the same position without any opportunity for promotions. Conversely, if your employees feel they can scale the career ladder in your business, they are more likely to work harder.

Ensure Work-Life Balance for More Highly Motivated Employees

Having your employees work long hours with little time off throughout the year might sound like a good idea, but it is really not. Your employees have lives outside of work, and it’s crucial that you take this into consideration. Being consistently stuck with work can take a hit on their productivity. It will leave them disillusioned with your business and make them burn out faster.

So you should help your employees maintain a work-life balance by encouraging them to take vacation time. This way, they can explore other activities they enjoy while getting adequate rest. This can help increase their overall happiness and improve productivity.

RELATED ARTICLE: WHAT’S THE GREAT UPGRADE AND HOW COULD IT AFFECT YOUR BUSINESS?

Final Thoughts

Motivated employees are the backbone of your business. Therefore, you must explore various ways to motivate employees to do their best work and help take your business to the next level.

RELATED ARTICLE: EMPLOYEE RETENTION: WHY YOU SHOULD CARE AND HOW TO IMPROVE IT