Association of Female Executives of Trinidad and Tobago

You have probably asked yourself this question at least once in your career. The good news is that according to Bob Nelson, author of 1001 Ways to Energize Employees “getting highly motivated employees is more a function of what you do as their manager than what the organization does as their employer.”

Before you embark on the journey of energizing and motivating your staff you need to answer a few questions for yourself, such as what is the organisation’s vision? How does your department fit into this vision? What is your vision for the department or branch? What is your strategy for getting there? Why is this the best strategy?

You need to share this vision with your staff. Remember, you are rallying your staff around a goal that is worthwhile enough to demand their effort, and meaningful enough for them to care. You cannot communicate this unless you believe it yourself first.

Once the initial work is done, you can use these six strategies to create an environment that motivates and energises your staff.

1. Always act fairly and honestly in all your dealings with your employees. If employees perceive your actions towards them as unfair, unjust or dishonest, they will not be motivated to perform. Apply a fair process to all decision making, so that even if employees do not agree with the decision, they can see that the process itself was fair and unbiased.

2. Set clear performance expectations. People perform better when they know exactly what is expected of them, and when they have a clear description of what constitutes good performance. Don’t take it for granted that “they know”. The best approach is to have written performance standards, discuss these with your staff, listen and alleviate any concerns they may have.

3. Praise employees as soon as you recognize them doing something well. The “One Minute Manager” in Ken Blanchard’s fictitious company would observe his employees so that he could praise them as soon as they did something right. One of the greatest demotivators of staff performance is the absence of any acknowledgement or recognition of employees hard work and effort. After a while most employees just don’t bother to make the effort.

4. Hold meetings with your staff. Use these meetings to share the vision, and build team spirit within your department. Use it to set goals, or to share the good news about goals that have been achieved. Invite your employees’ feedback and ideas. Employees are the ones on the frontline. Often they may have suggestions that could for example, improve the quality of service delivered, or make the production process more efficient. Implementing the best suggestions will foster a greater trust and respect among your employees. Your staff will begin to realize that not only do you really listen to their suggestions, but you are prepared to implement them.

5. Talk with your staff individually. Scott Mitchell, president of Mackay Envelope in Minneapolis holds a one-on-one, 20-minute discussion with every employee every year to discuss ideas, improvements or whatever is on the employee’s mind. He spends more than 170 hours a year on this task and describes it as time well spent. As you talk with your staff, you may find that you gain a new perspective, and a new respect for them. At the same time, their respect for you increases.

6. Help employees feel that their work is more than just a job. It is easy for all of us to get lost in the myriad tasks that make up our job, tasks that by themselves seem to have little or no deeper meaning. If you are to motivate your staff, you need to help your employees see the bigger picture, to see the broader meaning behind their work.

The following story told to me by an experienced telephone operator illustrates this point. Some time after Joanne started working as a telephone operator, she got a new manager. One day the new manager called her in and asked her what she thought her job was about. Joanne answered that her job was to answer the phone. Her manager smiled, leaned forward and said “It’s much more than that. You are the first voice a customer hears. You are the manager of that customer’s experience of our company. We are working towards a 100% customer satisfaction rating, and you have a vital part to play. We are trusting you to welcome our customers and ensure that every call is a pleasant and satisfying experience for our customers. It starts with you.” Joanne resumed her job with a new energy and commitment. She has never looked at her job the same way again.

Motivating your staff is a possible, achievable, and valuable undertaking. Commit yourself today to creating a motivating work environment. You’ll discover that, in the long run, your staff will wind up motivating you.

by Ann Assing-Ahye
Performance Consultant
HPI Systems & Training