Employee Motivation

One of the greatest assets any company has is its people. One of the biggest challenges facing managers today is the ability to align the motivation of their people with the goals and vision of the company. As you know, everyone is motivated to do something. Some people are motivated to get to work on time, while others are motivated to sleep in. Why?

Why are the behaviors of some people harder to modify than other ones? What’s the best way to develop behavior modification?

Reality

First, let’s take an objective look at today’s workforce in America. The American workforce is the most nurtured highest paid workforce in the world. Our government protects the American worker’s Civil Rights almost to a fault. Constant interaction and direction from “management” has gone from being “encouraged” to maintain productivity to being “necessary” to ensure productivity.

Large amounts of money is spent to “motivate the behavior of people” to get the job done while the productivity of the American worker at best remains static. The result? The worker demands more money for the same level of productivity because they feel “entitled” to the increase at the current level of performance. Then, before we know it, the same amount of productivity (at best) is accomplished for more money.

Increased labor drives up the cost of goods sold, resulting in an increased product price.

Due to increased product prices, the worker is not able to afford the material things they desire. Frustrated, the employee demands a “costs of living” raise and the vicious cycle repeats its self. More money paid for the same level of productivity. Labor goes up, productivity goes down.

It should be obvious that simply throwing money at problems in the form of incentives, benefits or increased wages does nothing to increase productivity or performance. It does not create an environment that encourages increased profitability. It does motivate behavior, but not the type of behavior that ensures the long term growth and stability of a company.

While the demand for higher wages or better benefits is an expression of the employee’s needs, it is also (more often than not) a cry for recognition and appreciation or the need for the employee’s contributions and attributes to be valued by the company.

Another “higher wage demand” possibility is an act of revenge. When an employee feels like they have “wronged” or has unresolved “issues” with their company, they might demand a raise as a form of rebellious“vindication”.

WHICH CAME FIRST, MOTIVATION OR MORALE?

Morale is a feeling. A group or team with a high level of morale typically has the feeling of a winner. Each individual player “feels” like they are a part of a winning team. Each player may have a different “reason” for feeling that way, but the overall feeling is positive.

So, should a high level of morale be the goal? Or is a high level of morale a result of effective motivational direction and support? I suggest that a high level of morale is a direct result of a good motivational direction. Having said that, it is not possible to “boost morale” and accomplish any long-term positive effects.

Four possible environments

High motivation / High Morale – The Goal
High motivation / Low Morale – Highly motivated people that don’t feel like a part of a special group.
Low Motivation / High Morale – The Country Club Syndrome. People enjoy the work environment but are not motivated to accomplish goals.
Low Motivation / Low Morale – Disaster

Since a high level of morale is a direct result of the effective motivational direction, we need to focus on motivational modifiers. There are two types of motivational modifiers that need to be understood before we can effectively develop a plan of attack. ãTD Wittman

Fundamental Motivator – The sole purpose of this motivator is to prevent Demotivation. The implementation of this type of motivator will not motivate, but the absences of this fundamental will demotivate.

Motivator Modifier – The implementation of the modifier will Motivate. If the modifier is withdrawn or Not applied, the team will be demotivated.

Expensive but easy to implement

Pay – As long as basic needs are met, pay increases will not improve motivation. When a person reaches a standard of living they desire, they are typically satisfied until they raise the standard in their own minds and create a desire to push themselves to the next level.

Benefits – What more does an employee need for security other than health insurance. Adding to benefits will not typically result in increased performance; however, taking them away will demotivate.

Work Environment – Clean, Bright, Neat, Orderly with a professional dress mandate. “Look Good, Feel Good”.

Management Style – Firm but Fair

Supportive Control – Calm, Stable, Consistent and Predictable.

Patience – With a spirit of doing what’s in the best interest of the employee. (within reason) ãTD Wittman

Inexpensive but hard to implement

Recognition – People have a need to feel that they are more than just robots hired to do a job. Their personal strengths that make them a valuable asset to the success of your team needs to be publicly recognized and appreciated on a consistent basis.

Achievements – It is imperative for people to feel like they are achieving something. They have a need for a series of small achievable goals to give them a sense of direction, personal accomplishment and a feeling of net worth.

Advancement – The prestige and recognition associated with “climbing the ladder” to another level can be a motivating experience so long as the advancement is not a “smoke and mirrors” game.

Accountability – Empowering people to make decisions and take actions supportive of their goals is a demonstration of the company’s trust in the capabilities of the individual.

Personal Growth – Ensuring that every employee is exposed to continuing education designed to clarify how and why each function of their position supports the overall objectives of the company thus increasing their perception of net worth.

Motivator Modifier – The implementation of the modifier will Motivate. If the modifier is withdrawn or Not applied, the team will be demotivated.

The combined implementation of both motivators’ will result in one of the four-work environment scenarios:

High motivation / High Morale – The Goal
High motivation / Low Morale – Highly motivated people that Don’t feel like a part of a special group.
Low Motivation / High Morale – The Country Club Syndrome. People enjoy the work environment but are not motivated to accomplish goals.
Low Motivation / Low Morale – Disaster

Let’s take a closer look at the four possible moral scenarios.

A: High motivation / High Morale

This is the place every business should strive for. Employees have clear-cut short and long-term goals relative to their job functions. When major projects are successfully completed, “management” recognizes the “personal attributes” of the employee that helped them accomplish the task (example: “Bob’s ability to take control of the situation, make good decisions and get results is why Bob was able to accomplish XYZ” instead of “ Good job Bob”).

Employees are completely empowered to do whatever it takes to accomplish the goal. The “empowerment” or entrusted “accountability” awarded to the employee increases proportionally with their comprehensive understanding of how the successful execution of each task inherent in their position effects the business. Base pay and benefits are supportive of the lifestyle they desire and the work environment is professional, clean and orderly. The management style is perceived as fun, fair, firm, supportive, consistent and predictable.

B: High Motivation / Low Morale

This is typical of a group that may be “goal-oriented” with a poor understanding of how the results of their accomplishments affect the rest of the business or the lives of fellow teammates. An example may be a sales force driven to “hit the numbers” without a good understanding of how the results affect their customers, fellow employees, the company’s profitability and/or the stability of their own livelihood.

Another example of this syndrome may be a large company where the employee may feel good about working for a winning team but at the same time feels like a “number” or “worker bee”. In this scenario, little effort is put into recognizing the individual attributes of the “worker bee” that makes it possible for them to be successful at what they do.

In a desperate attempt for personal recognition, the employee may “demand a raise”. When this happens, the manager has to make a decision: throw money at the situation in the form of a pay increase that has nothing to do with individual performance

or enter into a debate with the employee explaining why he or she is not deserving of a pay increase resulting in a de-motivating experience for both the manager and employee.

When the manager musters up the courage to enter into a debate, the employee either quits or begins pointing out perceived “problems” from within the company. The “problems” in this scenario typically have nothing to do with the individual position. It is simply a desperate attempt for recognition that unfortunately progresses into a cynical demeanor “I can’t be successful because”. And then the manager will justify the situation in his or her own mind by saying things like “You just can’t find good people anymore”.

If the manager submits to the employee’s demand for recognition and “gives” the pay increase in a desperate attempt to “work on morale” or “keep the employee” the situation will spiral into the third scenario.

C: Low Motivation / High Morale

This is a direct result of slothful leadership. People enjoy the work environment but have no motivation to accomplish goals. Management “style” is typically focused on popularity rather than goals, objectives and career development.

Employee challenges are typically resolved by throwing money at the situation “Let’s give Bob a raise because he’s a good guy and we don’t want to lose him” instead of “Bob’s ability to make decisions and get things done is why Bob accomplished XYZ. Bob’s accomplishment brought this value to the company, which resulted in this benefit. As a result of Bob’s accomplishments, Bob has earned an X bonus. Well done Bob, keep up the good work.”

The employees working in this environment have no sense of direction or goals and in some cases, no understanding of cause and effect relative to their efforts.

With a lack of motivation modifiers, the manager attempts to “work on morale” by throwing around expensive fundamental motivators to the point where the company simply can’t afford to spend any more money. Eventually, the situation will develop into the fourth disastrous scenario.

D: Low Motivation / Low Morale

In a word, DISASTER. A direct result of leadership’s inability to execute and maintain an effective motivation modification strategy. Why? They either don’t know how or they don’t care. The difference between ignorance and indifference is “ I don’t know and I don’t care”. (Think about it)

When a company reached the D level, serious decisions need to be made. In this scenario, fundamental motivators were used in the past in a fruitless attempt to motivate the behavior of the employees to produce more. More money is spent on expensive endeavors i.e. pay increases or costly additional benefits until the company simply can’t afford to spend any more money.

The employee tends to adopt a mentality that he or she “deserves” those benefits for producing the same amount of work. When reality hits, and the company is forced to control expenses or continue to lose money, and simply increasing the retail price of the product is not feasible because it has risen way beyond what the market will bear, Leadership style is forced to change. If not, the company will fail and the security of every employee will be in jeopardy.

Motivation modifiers are difficult to implement in D status companies because the culture of the people is one of “the company owes me a living” rather than “My standard of living is in direct proportion to what I produce for the company”. When modifiers are implemented in a workplace where the underlying perspective of the employees is that the “world owes them a living”, modifiers can be perceived as a threat instead of a motivator.

The only resolve at this point is to modify and change the perception of the people in the workplace or change the people in the workplace. Which do you do?

That depends upon how much time you are afforded to implement change. The important thing to do is to establish the “by when” and hold yourself accountable to the plan no matter how difficult it may seem. Give your people the opportunity to change “by when” if you are afforded the time to do so.

When the “by when” date arrives, and individuals have changed, practice the modifiers by recognizing their achievements and praise their commitment for personal growth and tie those personal characteristic traits into ways in which it benefited them, the company, your customers and co-workers. CONGRATULATIONS! You’ve made a positive difference in someone’s life.

If the “by when” date comes and goes and an individual hasn’t changed, do your company, employees, customers, yourself and most importantly the individual favor and free them up for opportunities elsewhere. CONGRATULATIONS! You’ve given someone the opportunity to make a positive difference in their life and held them accountable. In the long run, that individual will probably make a better employee somewhere else as a result of this life experience.

Where do we begin?

First of all, let’s establish “what is” or where we are now, then develop a detailed description of where we would like our company to be and then develop a comprehensive plan designed to get us there.