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by Kelly Nelsen
In this economy, employee morale is likely to be in the pits. Employees are being laid off, companies are closing, and pay and benefits are getting reduced. In an up economy, employers tend to throw money, perks, and benefits at any morale problem, but in this day and age, that is usually not possible. So what other means can an employer use to increase employee morale? Well, it all starts with knowing what really motivates employees.
In a survey asking both managers and employees what motivates employees, the two groups came up with very different answers. Managers assumed that the number one motivator for employees was pay. Surprisingly, they were wrong – employees ranked it 5th out of ten. Managers thought job security was the second highest motivator for employees, but employees ranked it 4th.
So what did employees think was more motivating than either pay or job security? Here’s the list, in order:
1. Interesting work.
Employees are motivated the most by interesting work. Managers ranked this 5th. In other words, managers believe that employees don’t care so much about interesting work. Instead, they think employees would much rather have good pay and job security. Put yourself in an employee’s shoes, though. Would you rather put a thing-a-muh-banger on a widget for 8 hours per day, 5 days per week but get paid relatively well for it, or would you rather do something that you like to do because it interests you? Frankly, I’d be more motivated to wake up in the morning for the latter choice.
2. Full appreciation of work done.
Second on employees’ list of motivators is full appreciation of work done. Incredibly, managers ranked this 8th. Eighth. There’s a major disconnect going on here. Employees say they’re motivated by positive feedback (which is what this one is all about), yet managers seem to be oblivious to it. Perhaps it’s due to the “no news is good news” mode that many managers slip into because of the hectic, fire-fighting nature of their positions. If you put yourself in an employee’s shoes once again, wouldn’t you like to know that you’re doing a good job and that your efforts are appreciated?
3. Feeling of being in on things.
Have you ever been left out of a secret? Back in junior high school, maybe, and everyone knew the secret but you? What did you do? You probably did what most other kids do and demanded, “Tell me! What are you guys talking about? Come on, pleeeeeze tell me?! I won’t tell anyone!” And when they finally let you in on the secret, you felt privileged that you were one of the ones who knew. You were now in the inner circle. Well, it’s the same thing at work – even as adults, we all want to be a part of the inner circle. Employees want to know what’s going on. They want to be trusted and respected enough to be let in on things. But managers ranked this 10th – dead last. Interestingly, managers want to be “in on things”, so why would they think their subordinates would be any different?
Job security ranked fourth as a motivator according to employees, good pay fifth, and rounding out the top ten were promotion and growth, good working conditions, personal loyalty to employees (by the manager), help with personal problems, and tactful discipline.
Great. Now that we know what motivates employees, how can companies use this information to improve morale? Here are a few tips:
1. Get to know your employees.
Find out what they like and dislike about their jobs and what they’re interested in doing more of. Keep in mind that there are very few jobs in which everything about it is interesting. Every job involves a few boring, tedious, or otherwise unlikeable duties, but that doesn’t mean those less-liked things should be dumped off onto someone else. But you can allow employees a bit of latitude in deciding how they do their jobs (when possible) or encourage them to get involved in projects that they have an interest in or a special talent for. When employees actually want to get up in the morning to go to work, it improves their outlook, which in turn improves morale.
2. Get rid of the “no news is good news” attitude towards employee feedback.
It’s a cop-out. Too many managers consider the supervising of employees to be just another annoyance that takes time away from other, “more important” things. However, all managers who have employees reporting to them have a duty to let employees know how they’re doing on an ongoing basis – both good and bad, preferably on a weekly basis. Did you know that it takes five instances of positive feedback to outweigh one instance of negative feedback? Letting employees know how much you appreciate the job they’re doing is one way of giving positive feedback and one way of improving morale.
3. Make employees feel like they’re a part of something special.
I’m not talking about spilling sensitive company information or confidential human resources issues. I’m talking about creating a sense of belongingness and eliteness that everyone associated with the organization can feel.
It starts with creating a vision that speaks to everyone in the organization, not just the shareholders. For example, “By 2014, we will double our current revenue” only speaks to the shareholders, but “By 2014, we will be recognized as the most respected provider of ambulatory care services in the southwestern United States” is something that everyone can picture and feel proud to be a part of.
It doesn’t stop there, though. When each employee knows how s/he specifically contributes to that meaningful vision, it gives more meaning and purpose to daily activities. Employees learn that they are important and that they do matter. Note, here, that I am not talking about how much their jobs matter. Employees need to know that they matter – not some job that anyone can do. See the difference?
4. Empower employees.
Frankly, while I hate the term “empowerment” because it’s been so over-used, empowering employees allows them to be more autonomous and shows them that you trust and respect them. When you empower employees, you treat them like intelligent adults who are capable of doing many incredible things on their own. And they are. If you let them, they will come up with many great ideas for improving efficiency, customer service, quality, products – you name it. Not only will it help improve morale, but it may also improve your organization’s bottom line.
5. Improve their working conditions.
There are a lot of ways to do this, from giving flex time to allowing them to work virtually for a day a week to sticking some plants in the office. One fun thing a client of mine did was to hold a vine-growing contest in the office. Employees started with seeds and planted them in little pots in their cubicles, and over the following months, the vines snaked all around the office, draping over push-pins and printers and at times intertwining with others’ vines. The person with the longest vine won a prize everyone had chipped in for, and the contest served to break up the tedium of the day-to-day work.
While the aforementioned survey was conducted before the current recession (and as a result, “job security” may rank higher than 4th right now), the results are still very relevant. The fact that managers are so out of touch with what employees find motivational is both concerning and encouraging. It’s concerning to know that managers are focusing on the wrong things in order to motivate their employees. It’s encouraging, though, to know that if managers can address the right things, morale during these tough times can be improved significantly without needing to throw money at the problem.
