I am often asked “what is the best way to motivate my employees”. The people asking this question are often thinking of the reward in monetary terms. This is an intuitive answer. However studies have shown that money is not a good motivator. In fact money as a reward often leads to poorer performance. This was a fact I was aware of, but what is the alternative? Daniel Pink, the author of “Drive” explained to us at the Gazelles Fortune Summit in Phoenix today simple but effective alternatives that work.
Daniel explained from research that has been conducted three powerful motivators:
• Autonomy
• Mastery (of their work)
• Sense of purpose
Employees that are micromanaged do not feel motivated. Staff feel motivated when they have autonomy over their:
• Tasks (have some responsibility over what they do in a day)
• Time (when they arrive, leave and what they spend their time on)
• Team members they collaborate with
• Technique or how they actually perform their tasks
The more autonomy the staff have, the more they will be motivated. One way to increase the autonomy is to do what one Australian company, Atlassian, is doing. Once a quarter on a Thursday afternoon, they ask their staff to drop their official work and instead spend time working on something that interests or irks them. The only obligation is that they must show what they’ve come up with to the rest of the company on Friday afternoon in a fun, free-wheeling meeting. This has resulted in an array of ideas for new products, improvements to existing products, and refinements of company processes that had otherwise never emerged.
People feel good about their work when they make good progress in the day. Often staff are not sure whether they have made that progress. They need feedback to gain that confirmation. Often the only feedback people receive is the annual performance review. In today’s world where we get instant response by texts, waiting a year just does not cut it. Today’s work places feel like a feedback desert to today’s younger generation. Finding ways to give daily feedback is important providing motivation. Daily Huddles for example provide a good forum where staff can gain the confirmation from their peers and managers.
Staff need to know they are making contribution in their work to something that is bigger than just making profits. It helps if we talk more about why jobs are important as much as how to do the jobs. Spend time in your monthly or weekly meetings to review the businesses purpose and core values with team members.
There are real staff challenges today, from the pressure from mining companies through to getting the maximum effectiveness from your staff to keep a lid on costs. How you motivate your staff will make a big bearing on how you meet these challenges. Doing nothing is not an option.
Peter Ambrosiussen is the principal of Ambrosiussen Accountants & Advisors www.ambrosiussen.com.au
Published by Toowoomba Chronicle www.thechronicle.com.au on Saturday 29 October 2011.
