Encouraging Employee Motivation in a Business - Essay Example

Encouraging Employee Motivation in a Business Employee motivation is an important factor in any business if an organization is to attain the most out of its production. A motivated employee is more likely to perform better than a less motivated one and thus this is a topic that cannot be ignored or glanced over when dealing with issues that concern a company. There are a number of ways for a company to motivate its employees, but the main similarity in all these methods is that they strive to make the employee feel that the effort he/she puts into their work will not only benefit the company alone but themselves as well (Allen & Heidi, 2011). Making an employee feel that they are working towards a better result for themselves and the company, is the best way for an organization to initiate motivation among their work force and offer the best results in relation to the productivity that the company is able to achieve. Though the issue of employee motivation involves the entire organization as a whole, the main people who are involved in ensuring that this motivation exists are the individuals in management positions. This is because they are the ones who deal directly with the different sections of the work force and thus are in an advantageous position to better understand the employees and what it will take to sufficiently motivate them to work harder (Allen & Heidi, 2011). The managers in the company are also in a sense directly responsible for the attitude that employees will have towards the organization as they are deemed to be the representatives of the company. Thus, their treatment of their subordinates technically reflects how the company views their employees (Jon & Paul, 2009). This means that if the employees are mistreated on a frequent basis or are simply treated with callousness by their superiors, they will automatically assume that the company does not care about them. This is not concerned about their wellbeing despite the fact that the employees of higher positions may not even be informed of what is going on within the lower ranks as they may have put their trust on those appointed to take care of the work force and see no need for vigorous supervision of their activities. However, ignorance has still no excuse for the poor treatment of a company’s work force. It is the organization’s duty to ensure that their employees’ morale remains high and should track their attitude and level of motivation on a frequent basis to ensure that this goal is not only achieved, but maintained (Jon & Paul, 2009). This can be done by concentrating on the managers to ensure that they are well equipped to build the morale among their subordinates. This can be done through various methods which concentrate on building of the manager’s social and interaction skills giving them an upper hand when dealing with the employees. These methods include: Holding seminars on good management – These seminars can be held on a semi frequent basis for the various managers of the company’s departments in a bid to keep them afloat with new theories and techniques that may assist them in their management duties (Allen & Heidi, 2011). Holding such seminars also presents to the managers the importance of good management and thus will help in ensuring that they do not become complacent in their position in cases where little supervision is involved as long as the company gets required results. It is important to express the point that the method of management is also a concern for the company as well, apart from the results. Trickle down ideas – An organization can also pass on good ideas to motivate their subordinates to their management team every once in a while. This will take the pressure off the managers as they receive a little help in this area and will also encourage them to develop new ideas as they see their superiors taking an initiative and making them want to get involved as well (Allen & Heidi, 2011). Providing incentives – A company can also provide incentives for managers to strive to motivate their subordinates such as prizes for the manager that employees appreciate the most through a voting process. The criteria of the competition must be carefully defined to describe the winner as an individual whom the employees are motivated by to ensure the desired response (Allen & Heidi, 2011). This is important because if, for example, the competition is based on the level of productivity managers might just push their subordinates to work harder through threats and punishments which though may bring about the desired outcome in the short run, will have a long term negative outcome as morale within such an environment continues to progressively dwindle. Though motivation is essential among employees, one must not forget that managers themselves will require motivation as well in order to pass it on to their subordinates. This responsibility mainly falls to the organization’s superiors as they are in the best position to provide this motivation. It is important to remember that one cannot motivate others if they are not motivated themselves (Allen & Heidi, 2011). Once the managers have been given the required assistance in this task however, it is up to them to implement the tools they have received to motivate the employees of the company. There are a number of methods that a company and its managers can use to motivate their employees, some of these techniques include: Rewards and Incentives – This can be described as the simplest method of motivating the employees and involves various rewards and financial incentives to the most hardworking employees after a certain period of time. The winners of these rewards can be determined through the measuring of productivity for a certain period of time, and those with the highest results win. This method can be used to motivate employees on a personal level as well as various sections of the company as a whole, where the entire department is rewarded for their hard work. The rewards can consist of simple gifts such as gift cards, vouchers among others while financial incentives can include salary bonuses, raises or straight forward monetary gifts (Allen & Heidi, 2011). Social events and activities – Another simple way of motivating employees consists of holding social events every now and then for the company’s work force as a gesture of appreciation for all their hard work. This includes office parties for popular holidays, such as Christmas and Easter, or even simply taking the time to celebrate an individual who has been with the company for a long time to show that the organization is grateful for the loyalty shown by their employees. Activities such as the formation of office teams for various sports such as soft ball allows for interdepartmental competitions that can be held during the weekends and create a sense of unity among the workers can be fun as well (Jon & Paul, 2009). Provision of employment perks – The addition of various perks to the employment package offered to a company’s workers is also a good way of enhancing motivation among the organization’s employees. These perks can include items such as medical and dental insurance that may for instance also extend towards an employee’s family as well as themselves, the use of a company car during their time of employment, and the inclusion of allowances, such as housing, to ensure that an employee does not have to struggle to look for affordable places to live when relocated to more upscale areas. Such perks will express the organization’s appreciation of the work done by their employees and motivate them to work even harder so as not to disappoint their superiors (David & Steve, 2010). Expression of compassion – A simple way of motivating employees is through taking the time to treat them as people and not just a means to an end. Managers who show concern for their subordinates and take their time to truly know things about them, such as whether they have a family or not, their religious beliefs etc., are able to develop a relationship with them instead of a cold professional acquaintance. An employee in such case will be motivated to work harder and produce better results as they do not want to end up disappointing the manager. (Jon & Paul, 2009). Enhancing employee participation and involvement – Including employees in the company’s major decisions also serves to motivate them as they feel that they are part of the organization and become more concerned with the performance of the organization. This will motivate them to work harder to improve the company’s health, as seeing the company doing well fills them with a sense of pride to be a part to play in the success of the organization (David & Steve, 2010). Feeling one to be a part of something can be a strong source of motivation as no one wants to be involved in a project that fails. Thus, involving the employees in the company’s decisions will ensure that they take it upon themselves to do all they can to ascertain the success of the project they are involved in. Though motivating employees may seem like a small concern for a large organization with perhaps thousands of workers or more, it is essential in the performance of the company and holds a number of advantages such as: Higher productivity – Motivated employees tend to work harder, and as a result, the organization is able to increase its production levels, which in turn leads to higher profit margins. Improved company image – Motivated employees also tend to speak well of their employers, and this boosts the company’s image to the public giving its product a good name as its consumers are aware of the good working conditions and are subconsciously encouraged to buy their products. Motivation of employees should never be overlooked, and organizations should take it upon themselves to ensure that their workers are operating under the best possible conditions to maintain high morale as it is the company that ends up benefiting the most (Jon & Paul, 2009). References Allen, C. B & Heidi, K. B., 2011, 7 Steps on How to Treat Employees to Get the Best Performance during These Global Economic Times, Journal of Management Policy and Practice vol. 12(1). David. B & Steve P., 2010, Management: An Introduction. (5th edition), Financial Times/Prentice Hall, New Jersey. Emerald Publications, 2010, Making the most of the economic storm: Motivating staff during troubled times, Strategic Direction, Vol. 26 Iss: 9. Jon K. & Paul B., 2009, How To Cut Costs In A Recession - With Help From Employees, Strategy & Leadership, Vol. 37 Iss: 3. Bibliography Allen C. Barclay, Heidi K. Barclay. (2011) “7 Steps on How to Treat Employees to Get the Best Performance during These Global Economic Times” Journal of Management Policy and Practice vol. 12(1) Bolman, L., Deal, T, (2008). Reframing Organizations, Artistry, Choice, and Leadership, San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass. David Boddy, Steve Paton. (2010) Management: An Introduction. (5th edition) Financial Times/Prentice Hall Emerald Publications (2010),"Making the most of the economic storm: Motivating staff during troubled times", Strategic Direction, Vol. 26 Iss: 9 Jon Katzenbach, Paul Bromfield, (2009),"How to cut costs in a recession - with help from employees", Strategy & Leadership, Vol. 37 Iss: 3 Kinicki, A. & Williams, B. (2008). Management, A Practical Introduction, Third Edition, New York, NY: Mcgraw-Hill. Mosley, D., Pietri, P., & Mosley Jr., D. (2005). Supervisory Management, the Art of Inspiring, Empowering, and Developing People, Mason, OH: Thompson, South-Western. Read More