FIVE TIPS FOR EMPLOYEE MOTIVATION

Five Tips for Employee Motivation

I once worked as a Manager in the cable television industry.  At the time I had an unlimited supply of electronics, clothing, cash bonuses, etc. to use as sales and goodwill incentives.  Giving away goodies via contests, parties, and drawings were a weekly, if not daily, occurrence.  After one rather expensive incentive campaign, I received “complaints” about the taxes on a cash bonus and the color of a free $200 Showtime leather varsity jacket.  These incentives had become entitlements.  The trinkets we used to motivate and energize did have a short-term effect on sales and attitude.  As a result, the work fell on management to constantly devise bigger and better incentives to “motivate” the staff.  In the words of Janet Jackson – “what have you done for me lately”?

Those years taught me a lesson about motivating employees.  Most of us would rather have inspired, self-directed teams that take pride in their work – without heavy-handed motivation tricks.  Here are five tips for truly motivating employees:

1. Focus on non-contingent interaction.  Interacting with people on a personal level. As a leader, your relationship with your team does not focus solely on work.  Madeleine Hunter said, “people don’t care how much you know, until they know how much you care”.    You don’t have to dole out hugs and kisses every morning, but you can’t be like a Vice-President I once worked under.  He literally never left his office or spoke with the staff during the course of the day.  When he did attempt to lead, it had minimal effect since we did not have a relationship.
2. Break the recognition rules.  I once asked one of my sales reps. what I could do to show my appreciation for his hard work.  He requested a day at the racetrack with lunch.  He promised to teach me how to bet if I paid for lunch and did the driving.  What I saw as an intrusion into my busy schedule, turn into one of the best “work” days I ever had.  We had a great time, talked some business, and took our relationship to the next level.
3. Think cheap and think custom.  The old adage, “it’s the thought that counts” is real and it works.  Customizing or tailoring recognition rewards, appreciation gifts, etc. to match the recipient means a lot more than the value of the gift.   The sales rep. in Tip #2 was an older gentleman who did not need cash bonuses, watches, or any other material recognition.  He merely wanted my time.  Left to my own thoughts, it would have been the last thing I would have guessed.
4. Be sincere and be immediate.  Studies have shown that among the top employee motivators is being recognized for a job well done.  Recognition with movie passes, thank you cards, gift certificates are fairly useless when used in isolation.  Mix these with immediate and sincere gratitude and you have the formula for effective performance coaching.  I made it a habit to carry a supply of movie passes to hand out to my Generation Y staff.  They understood why they were getting them and appreciated the fact that someone was noticing their effort.

 5.Share information and power.  True motivation is intrinsic.  You cannot truly make someone do something against their wishes.  People are terminated everyday simply because they refuse to perform – despite weeks, months, and years of attempts to “motivate” them.  People become self-motivated when they feel valued and have input in their work environment, duties, and plans.