“Motivation is the art of getting people to do what you want them to do because they want to do it”

Dwight D Eisenhower (34th President of the United States)

Is your business not performing quite as it should? Or not growing as fast as you had planned it to?

Do one thing, right now. Take a look around your office and consider these two findings…

• According to a Gallup poll in 2014, just under 3 out of 4 employees are not fully engaged in their workplace
• UK employees have some of the lowest engagement rates with their jobs compared to the rest of the world (we’re ranked only head of Japan and Hong Kong).

There is no getting away from the fact that there is a direct correlation between employee engagement, productivity and customer satisfaction. It’s also true that business owners have the responsibility of creating a culture and environment that is both engaging and satisfying for their employees, and that it’s simply not enough to rely on an employee’s ability to be self-motivated if you expect growth and results over a longer term.

There are many ways in which you could choose to motivate your workforce, but we have some core tips for maintaining motivation that should arguably be part of your organisation’s culture for its success in the long term:

1. Focus on the strengths.  Empowering employees through their strengths will make them feel like they’re contributing to the workplace and greatly improve engagement.
2. Create realistic goals. If you have a large project or deadline, break it down into smaller goals for your employees to help them stay focused and engaged.
3. Make sure you have the right managers. Poor management is one of the leading causes of low employee engagement according to Gallup with collaboration and communication being the two key areas that boost employee engagement. Managers who value these areas should be coached and provided with ongoing training so that they continue to motivate their teams.
4. Listen! Approximately a third of employees don’t feel like their manager listens to their concerns. Whether they bring a new idea or a concern, listen to what they’re saying and take action if needed.
5. Encourage new ideas and creativity.  Engaged employees will have some great ideas to contribute from time to time. Acknowledge, listen to and recognise their input – actively implementing others ideas contributes greatly to continued engagement and encourages future development.
6. Reward employees. Everyone wants to be recognised for their hard work. Overlooking successes will lead to demotivated workers. There are a number of ways you can do this and it doesn’t have to involve money but whichever method you choose be genuine!
7. Let your employees speak openly. Encourage communication and feedback (good or bad). When your employees know they can speak openly, and that their opinions actually matter, they’ll become more engaged.

In general, the more engaged, interested and satisfied in their jobs your employees are the less absenteeism and turnover the company will experience. In addition, increased customer service, productivity and sales will also follow.

To give customers the best experience of your company, your employees must be passionate about what they’re doing.