The top ten points below are
a checklist
for leaders to evaluate how to inspire and motivate their
employees.
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Do
my employees feel appreciated
and listened to? Take the time to get to
know your employees and to understand their priorities and desires.
If you know more about them as individuals and their lives outside
work you will begin to understand each person, and what motivates
them.
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Does
our organizational vision inspire? People become motivated if
are excited about the purpose of the organization and how they can
contribute towards achieving it. If you communicate a clear vision with passion and enthusiasm
and you will rally the troops. Each employee needs to
understand how their work
contributes towards the
company achieving its goals. To learn how to develop a
clear vision read more.
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How effective are our teams?
Working as part of an effective team can be very powerful and
motivating. Unfortunately the converse is also true.
Even the most self motivated individual cannot maintain enthusiasm
if they are part of a dysfunctional team that is not meeting
its deliverables. To learn more
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Am I
a good role model for the rest of the organization? The attitude and behavior of the leader sets
the tone for the whole organization. Make sure that you are
a role model for your organization -- your employees are
constantly watching you and will take your lead to inspire
enthusiasm. At times this may mean that you need to pump
yourself up, or use the services of a colleague, coach or mentor to keep you motivated
and focused.
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Do I
communicate with everyone with respect? Respect is at the heart of building business relationships.
Make sure that you communicate with everyone respectfully.
Respecting the right to differ is a concept like apple pie and motherhood. We all agree with it
but do we truly foster it? To learn more
Are
your employees given the opportunity to be creative? People will feel more motivated if they work in an
environment where they are given the opportunity to be
creative. Give people freedom to make some of the
decisions. Encourage collaborative problem solving. Ask questions of the team to get feedback on issues and
ideas and listen to their responses closely.
Do
you need to invest more in developing employees? Demonstrate that you care
about your employees success by providing opportunities for them
to grow professionally. Take the time to provide effective
feedback on a continual basis, recommend books and articles that
are useful resources, provide an adequate training budget and
encourage its use, recommend the support of a business coach or
mentor.
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Do I
regularly recognize and reward effort?
Employees need recognition and praise. Give ample feedback
and recognition when ever possible. As the
leader make sure that you voice your appreciation of good work and
provide positive feedback in a specific way. Recognize both
exceptional individual contribution as well as teamwork. The type of
reward should match the driving force if each individual.
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Are
our compensation policies fair? There are a number of factors that can
have a short term impact on motivation. Salary increases,
company stock options, bonuses, vacation days or upgrades to the work environment will be
appreciated by your employees, but most likely these positive effects
will only be short lived. However
all of these basic motivational tools can become "de-motivators" if
they are not used fairly. Employees will compare their
compensation packages against each other, and
externally in the industry, and will become discouraged if they
perceive inequities. Make sure you implement clear consistent
compensation guidelines.
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Are
you acknowledging the need for balance in the life of your
employees?
Many employees today are struggling to balance the heavy demands
of life and work. By providing benefits that make it easier for
employees to take care of themselves you will
ensure that they are better able to perform in all aspects of
their lives. When people are performing well they are more likely
to be motivated. Examples of this type of benefit include
membership to a health club, on-site childcare, employee
assistance programs, or family appreciation days.
