employee motivation « Fired Up!

Posts Tagged ‘employee motivation’

Get Employees Off the Bench and Back Into the Game

Sunday, April 11th, 2010

If you played sports, remember when you got hurt in a game? Your coach told you to shake it off and get back in the game. Well this is the situation in the workplace. Employees have been hurt by the recession – their paychecks, their opportunities, their stability and their egos. And instead of shaking it off and getting back into the game, they have gone to the bench to wait things out. Today’s employees have been scared away from exceptional performance in favor of just playing it safe.

The Global Workforce Study (conducted by the global professional services company Towers Watson) – a biennial survey of employee attitudes and workplace trends – confirms that the recession has changed the way U.S. employees view their work. In the past, job opportunity, relationship with management and development drove employee performance and loyalty. Today, employees just want job security.

As summarized in The Last Word column by John Hollon in the April 2010 issue of Workforce Management Magazine, “(The survey) paints a picture of an American workforce that is hunkered down, risk-averse and hanging on as long as they can – until, they hope they can afford to retire.”

So I have to ask. What happens to our businesses if we allow employees to hunker down? Isn’t our success built into the clever, wise, risk-taking employee responses that invent, grow and create the next generation of products and services?

Your new challenge is to find ways to help your employees get their mojo back and get out of hibernation mode. Here are some ideas:
1. Reconnect with employees. Increase your presence, communication and responsiveness with employees. Be more available.
2. Clearly define or redefine the focus of the business. Be sure all emloyees are aware of their expectations.
3. Build in more fun. Tough times require a different response. Commit to more fun and a more personal workplace.
4. Deal up front with issues. Host a monthly meeting to bring challenging and troubling national, local and personal issues up; ignoring reality stalls employee performance.
5. Ask employees what they need to help re-energize and reactivate their performance.

Today’s managers are required to deal with more human and emotional employee issues – because they impact performance. Use the resources presented in www.LiveFiredUp.com to help you learn how to manage in an intellectual age, help employees overcome their fears of an unstable economy, and get them back to working in a way that builds a stronger company and economy.

Please pass this on to someone who will benefit from it.

Tags: employee fears, employee motivation, employee performance, marshall goldsmith, mojo, recession, recession impact on employees
Posted in For Managers | No Comments »

When The Boss is Away, Do the Employees Play?

Monday, April 5th, 2010

There has been a lot of buzz about the new reality show, Undercover Boss. Disregard the show’s “contrived dramatics” and think about the value in this.

What do your employees do when you are not around? How do they treat your customers when you are not watching?

I’ll give you an example. On a recent day out with the family, we decided to have dinner at one of the ubiquitous chain restaurants. While seated, we watched as the staff put napkins on their heads as hats and threw rolls at each other. My server approached, laughing, saying they have such a good time when the boss is away. We took our things and left.

Think of the babysitter you leave with your kids. When in front of you, she (or he) is attentive and effective. When you leave, she raids the fridge, calls her friends and spends very little time doing what you pay them to do – to watch your kids.

What does it take to have a great staff, particularly when the boss is away? It takes employees who act and think like owners.

Here is how to inspire owner-thinking:
1. Hire employees who are good at what the job needs and passionate about doing it. This engages them, and helps them to feel capable and valuable.
2. Build a culture that respects, values and holds each employee personally accountable and responsible for his/her contribution.
3. Include employees in discussions, challenges and opportunities; let them own their input, solutions and results.
4. Be available and approachable; earn employees’ respect.
5. Build fun into the workplace. We all work better when we get to have some fun.

Build a culture that helps employees think and act like owners and you will find they will impress you with their ability to make a difference, whether you are at work or away.

Tags: employee accountability, employee motivation, employee performance, no more excuses, ownership, think like an owner
Posted in For Managers | No Comments »

Which of These Do Your Employees Say?

Sunday, March 21st, 2010

Do your employees say, “I have to go to work”? Or do they say, “I can’t wait to go to work”?

I know you think many employees will always be down about or disinterested in work. But consider this. What if your employees actually loved what they did for work? Wouldn’t their energy, creativity and performance be better?

Most companies are stuck in an outdated perspective that work is a necessary evil; it is only something you do to make money. But the great performers, those that Seth Godin speaks about in his book Linchpin, are those who know themselves well enough to identify roles that allow them to do what they are good at and passionate about. The result? They love work, find great personal value in it and consistently outperform others.

So managers, it is your responsibility to hire people who are a good “fit” – employees who meet today’s new definition of performance:
o They are good at doing what the job requires (it matches their brain hardwiring – their talents and intrinsic strengths), and
o They like doing it (it appeals to them).

Any job can be better completed by someone who likes what he does. A customer service employee who loves to work with people connects so much better with customers than someone who is not interested in connection or relationships. An accounting employee who loves details, reporting and analysis (and yes, there are these people out there) is so much more effective, productive and efficient than someone who would prefer to be around people all day. Fit matters.

Maybe there are some people who will always hate work. Well, let those people work for other companies. For your team, find people who are good at what the job requires and like doing it. Think “fit.” Then you’ll have employees who actually say, “I can’t wait to get to work.”

Tags: employee engagement, employee motivation, great manager, hire the right employee, performance
Posted in For Managers | No Comments »

Light Their Fire

Saturday, March 13th, 2010

Tough times impact the attitudes and emotions of your employees. There are greater demands for those who still have jobs in the workplace; there are significant changes in the home lives of many of your employees. The recession has touched us all.

We can complain about how difficult things are, or we can realize that complaining just reinforces negative feelings. Nothing good is accomplished that way – at work or at home. So imagine if work were a place where employees were fired up! – excited, passionate and interested in what they do. Imagine the change in performance and how energy created in the workplace could then work its way back home.

So if you never felt it was your responsibility to fire up! your employees, it is now. Your employees are still in front of your customers, creating your brand, making an impression and impacting your performance. Energized employees consistently out-perform all others. Energized employees bring their energy home.

Consider the following ways to fire up! your employees:
1. Catch your employees doing something great, and thank them. Don’t focus on the negative; focus on the positive.
2. Add one thing (your employees love to do) to their jobs; employees who are emotionally connected to their work perform better and are happier in the job.
3. Have one “Fired Up!” event each week. It may be coffee and donuts, a copy of a DVD the team can borrow each night, a daily power saying, a daily joke, a personal story from a team member, etc. Give this responsibility to one of the team who would find the role engaging and fun.
4. Share more information and solicit more feedback. Employees are more engaged when they feel included, trusted and respected.

How we feel at work affects home; how we feel at home affects work. For many, home lives are challenging. Make their work life engaging, high energy – fired up! Not only can this improve their work performance but it will likely flow over into their home life. Maybe this is the change they need – and it could all start with you.

Tags: employee motivation, energize employees, home and work, Live fired up, work life balance, workplace culture
Posted in For Managers | No Comments »