“Coming together is a beginning, staying together is progress, and working together is success.” – Henry Ford
The heart and soul of your business spring from within your employees. It’s their talent, hard work, and dedication that make the wheels turn day in and day out. But motivation stimulates and drives hard work and talent to do and be more. Your employees will look to company leadership for inspiration in both the ordinary and extraordinary moments. Your ongoing task? To “rally the troops.”
Consider how these 6 strategies will inspire and motivate your team.
1. Make the workspace pleasant
While a workplace that is appealing to the eye and even fun will earn points with employees, go a step further than the color and state of the wall paint. Is the area well-lit? Check for dark corners. Is the furniture adequate for the work that needs to be accomplished? Check for suitable desks, workspaces, filing systems, etc. Does the equipment work well? Quirky, sometimes-it-works-sometimes-it-doesn’t work equipment can poke holes not only in productivity but morale as well. Another way to up the ante on pleasant: stock the breakroom with a stash of snacks and beverages to keep your talented, hardworking team well fueled.
2. Make communication a priority
Effective communication is a key factor in life, relationships, and most definitely in the workplace. Without it, nothing will function well, and that team you fought to build will not remain intact. No one likes being left to flounder, to wonder what’s happening next. So why should they bother going the extra mile or even meeting daily goals and deadlines if management does not prioritize communication? And remember that communication is as much about listening as speaking, so establish an open-door policy that encourages and welcomes employee feedback.
3. Incorporate employee recognition
Everyone loves recognition for a job well done. It’s human nature to thrive under sincere praise. So, be intentional with recognizing both individuals and the team separately. And by all means, celebrate wins of every size—the major milestones and the small victories as well.
4. Allow for Growth
Generally speaking, most people don’t take a new job to stay in that role forever. People like to grow. To have their ambition fueled. So, facilitate opportunities where both career and personal growth can happen. Employees who know that you support and encourage growth within the company will be far more motivated to keep striving towards productivity and achievement than those who get no encouragement to grow.
5. Give them a purpose
Help work to be more than “the daily grind” by helping employees envision why they come to work every day. Demonstrate that it’s not just about crunching numbers, production, or the manual labor necessary to complete a task. Instead, let them see the end result –the people and organizations their “job-well-done” will impact. Show them the bigger picture by sharing the goals and vision that inspired the company from day one.
6. Build Relationships
The most important thing you can do is build relationships with your team members; it’s the cornerstone of everything else you do to motivate them. Strive to instill these two principles: they can trust you, and you trust them. There’s not a better workplace motivator than this type of mutual relationship.
Connect with the Staffing Experts at A.R. Mazzotta
At A.R. Mazzotta, we’re motivated to be your best solution to recruiting and hiring, whatever your staffing needs may be. We look forward to being your staffing partner and will strive to provide expert staffing solutions.