Picture an office where disgruntled employees are overworked, underpaid, and demotivated. They do not receive recognition, their work environment is tense, and their employer is unsupportive. Would you want to work here?
If you answered no, you need to ask yourself: are you motivating and supporting your employees? Employee engagement and dissatisfaction can occur in any workplace, with a startling 85% of all workers not engaged in their workplace.
Yet, why does employee motivation matter? Employee performance rises by 20% if workplaces motivate and engage them. Employers can increase firm productivity and profitability just by engaging employees. As an employer, your earnings depend on how happy your employees are.
So how do you make your employees happy? What are the methods to engage and motivate employees to make them more productive?
Here are a few ideas.
- Mentorships
Your employees are only as good as the support you give them. Employees need to be trained and re-trained from the initial stages of the job till they leave your supervision. Often, workers face a lack of support in the workplace, leading to a decline in motivation levels.
Managers and employers are responsible for guiding, training, advising, and supporting employees through different problems.
Young workers will look towards their supervisors to train them in terms of work and professional conduct. Mid-tier workers will want advice for their work issues and motivation if their work stagnates. Advanced workers would seek increased stimulation, training, and advice for further opportunities and growth. A viable option would be to encourage employees to develop soft skills along with improving technical expertise. Many mid-tier and fresh hires can pursue a master of business administration online degree to achieve such skills and advance in their career. With such an education in their profile, mentoring and guiding would become more convenient and manageable. They will possess technical knowledge, and mere direction will suffice to meet organizational goals.
- Rewards and Goals
According to the results of a Korn Ferry survey, one in three workers finds their job boring. You, as an employer, need to make sure that none of your employees fall into this statistic.
If workers operate according to intermittent goals, redundant or boring tasks will become more exciting. Gamifying tasks like submitting daily reports will be more engaging and motivating than a simple list.
You can also keep qualified workers motivated by engaging them with monetary incentives, reward points, or perks like lunches. If they meet their weekly or monthly goals and get named employee of the month, they would have a position to strive for every workday.
- Validating Employees
Employees need to be heard, validated, and supported if they are to be satisfied. As Gallup reports, managers and supervisors are critical contributors to worker satisfaction. Overall, 70% of workers say management is responsible for their job satisfaction. Often employees work diligently on a project or task but are not recognized for it. Such instances can lower their motivation and productivity while decreasing their willingness to perform with the same vigor for future assignments.
The management must ensure open-door policies to resolve conflicts, give advice and support, and encourage training and job growth.
Employees are motivated when there is open communication in the organization, willing to hear their suggestions and providing quick solutions. Employees will be more productive when they feel like they are valuable members of the company and that their contributions matter.
- Team-Building Exercises
Many times supervisors or managers feel a lack of collaboration and coordination among their team members. It can derail individuals’ focus and efforts from completing tasks due to a lack of camaraderie within the team.
The best option is to create a cooperative working environment and conduct team-building exercises. A workspace needs to be a community where professional relationships are cordial and collaborative. Projects are achievable if people work together and not against each other.
Managers can encourage office socialization or use company dinners, lunches, and activities to help the team bond. They can also make their team participate in challenges and training programs where they have to work together.
Most of all, employers and managers need to lead their teams. If a manager wants the team to complete a project, he/she must be the one leading and guiding them towards their destination. He/she must encourage discussions and cooperation opportunities for work.
Most of all, he must set the goals, reinforce work guidelines, and reward teamwork with incentives and feedback.
- Encourage Wellness
According to Gallup, 44% of employees feel burned out. They are tired, exhausted, and overworked. One management technique to avoid and cure burnout is to introduce wellness in the workplace.
Managers can encourage playing music, placing plants, and exercise for their employees. They can also promote conditions for a work-life balance to avoid employee burnout.
Employers can reduce work hours and encourage taking breaks and relaxing with a coffee and some music.
Final Takeaway
An office full of disgruntled employees can quickly turn into a productive, happy, and engaging atmosphere if managers and supervisors make an effort to introduce simple changes.
A rewards system or a more extended lunch break can go a long way in ensuring your employees are not among the 81% of employees who want to leave their workplace. While achieving company profits and revenue targets, the well-being of employees is often compromised. It could cause the management to lose talent in the long run, so we recommend establishing a collaborative culture.
