No matter how good the resume or first impressions are when hiring someone new to join the company, after a couple of months of excellent results, you may be in a situation where you’re disappointed with the way they’re performing.
Many companies face this challenge. Keeping staff spirits high after the initial honeymoon phase takes more than doling corporate promotional gifts to high achievers. It should be an ongoing process that’s part of the workplace culture. Here are five sure-fire ways to make sure your employees are happy, enthusiastic, and doing their jobs effectively.
- Give Employees Autonomy
Nobody likes a manager who undermines their freedom and autonomy. Respecting your employees and their work is important in any workplace. And nothing says “I respect and trust you” more than allowing employees to have autonomy.
It may seem out there, but giving your staff more freedom to choose their own working hours, for example, can foster a stronger work ethic. It also encourages a more positive attitude at work, creating a workplace culture of empowerment, where the manager is available as a resource rather than a dictator.
Though this strategy may seem to open doors to staff taking advantage for their own gain, it’s important that you have faith in the people you hired to do the right thing. It’s also important to maintain a balance between allowing employee autonomy and ensuring that the expected work gets done on time. To do this, you can set task deadlines rather than managing the working schedule.
- Create a Beautiful Work-space
Studies have shown that the physical working environment can have a huge effect on mood. This makes sense when you consider the fact that the space you provide is where your workers spend most of their waking lives. It’s therefore important that you make sure the workplace is light, airy, and inspiring, rather than dingy and outdated.
You could even create a team-building activity to custom-design the décor. This could help create a more homely atmosphere and motivate people to come in to work with some pep in their step!
- Recognize Each Person as Unique
Too often management adopts a hard-and-fast rule or strategy that is expected to be effective for all employees. However, people are all different and don’t respond in the same way. For example, some people work better independently, while others shine only when they’re working in a team.
Adapt your approach to each person so you can get to know them a bit better. You can do this by frequently checking in with them and even taking the time to ask them questions about what motivates or inspires them.
- Explain Your Reasoning
Have you ever tried telling your staff why they are being asked to do something? If not, you should consider it. Like many other managers, you may find that people respond better to your instruction when they know the effect their work is having on the company’s mission as a whole.
If you explain the wider context of the job at hand, or even give them tasks they can see to completion themselves, you’re likely to see better productivity.
- Treat People Like Human Beings
Just because you’re the manager, doesn’t mean it’s okay to treat people like underlings. More to the point, it may not be the most productive approach to motivating your employees.
In the same way as having a well-designed working environment makes staff members happy, so does being treated with kindness and thoughtfulness.
Value your employees, and implement the strategies above, and you’re guaranteed to have them consistently smashing their targets.
