mind your business: 7 Ways To Keep Your Team Motivated

Many managers think that money is the prime motivator for their employees. However, according to surveys by several companies, money is consistently ranked fifth or lower. The more important issues? Respect, a sense of accomplishment and recognition, employees said. Taking that into consideration, let's explore seven ways to motivate your team:

1. Involve them. Many employees want to be involved in the ongoing development and progress of their company. Plus, they often have insightful ideas that can make a significant difference in the company. When they are involved, they buy in faster and resist less. This means you can implement change(s) more quickly and easily.

2. Communicate. Very few businesses can be accused of over-communicating. A frequent axiom in business is, "No news is good news." However, employees want regular updates on the progress of the business and their personal performance. Use memos, e-mail, telephone and one-on-one and group meetings to keep your team informed. Talk to your team members regularly, have lunch or coffee with them and let them know if the business is on track. Tell them what challenges the business is facing (they may have suggestions). Give them feedback on their performance—if you have a concern with a specific component, tell them and give them the opportunity to correct their behavior.

3. Celebrate individual and team performance. Recognize individual excellence by providing positive reinforcement—issue awards or use a corporate newsletter to highlight specific achievements. Send thank-you, birthday and anniversary cards as well as congratulatory notes. Make personal phone calls and send e-mails. Better yet, if you work in a large organization, have a senior executive send the e-mail or make the call.

Recognize team efforts by posting performance charts on the wall or throwing an impromptu get-together. Treat your team to lunch or a pizza party, post team pictures on your Intranet and around the office or give them plaques, certificates, coffee mugs, etc.

Ultimately, the more of these approaches you incorporate into your motivation strategy, the more energized your team will become. Make it a point to recognize someone every day.

4. Set challenging goals. My experience has taught me that people strive to achieve what is expected of them. If you set challenging goals your team will work hard to accomplish them, provided these goals are realistically attainable. It is amazing what people can accomplish when they are given the opportunity to perform. Communicate these goals and keep your team informed on the company's progress.

5. Give them the tools to succeed. Many years ago, I worked in a restaurant where the owner refused to give the servers trays to carry drinks because he thought it was an unnecessary expense. Frustration ran high when servers had to make more trips to and from the bar. No team will stay motivated if they do not have the tools required to do their job. This includes equipment, internal support, inventory, marketing materials, training, etc.

6. Manage poor performance. Your team expects you to manage individuals who do not perform to standard or contribute fully to the efforts of the team. However, many managers ignore poor performance because they are afraid of the potential conflict. Instead, they hope that the situation will resolve itself. This "blind" approach affects profitability, causes higher turnover and contributes to low morale in the workplace. While poor performance and conflict are seldom enjoyable to deal with, you have a responsibility to your team and the company to manage it. Here is the B.E.S.T. method of dealing with these situations:

• Begin with the situation. "Pat, when we receive a shipment and you expect the others to put it away…"

• Express the result. "… it causes friction because everyone is expected to pitch in."

• State the desired change. "In the future I need you to cooperate with the rest of the group to ensure that the shipment is stored quickly. This means I want you to stop whatever you are working on and help put away the stock."

• Tell them the consequence. "If you don't help with this task I may be forced to take additional action."

7. Lead by example. If you want your team to treat each other with dignity, you need to set the tone. If you expect them to be motivated and enthusiastic, it is critical that you behave in this manner. As an owner, manager or business leader, your team looks to you for direction and guidance.

© MMVII Kelley Robertson, All rights reserved.

By Kelley Robertson

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