When it
comes to job satisfaction, financial rewards may be lower on the list than most
people think. Being happy with your job seems to depend more on the
intangibles: feeling part of a team and being valued and appreciated
consistently outrank money when employees are polled about job satisfaction.
Bill’s Story
Take Bill,
for example: a very competent project manager at a software development
company. He was recruited a few months ago to his current company, and he is
already thinking of looking elsewhere. “I get no feedback whatsoever from my
manager,” he said. With no sense of how he fits into the company’s overall
goals or how he’s performing, his motivation is down. “The hours are much
better at this company,” he concedes, “But I’m not as engaged in the work – I
just don’t care as much.”
Bill’s story
is not unique, as many managers know. So here are some tips and strategies for
retaining valuable employees.
TEN STEPS TO SUCCESS
Many of the
following recommendations may sound like common sense, but you’d be surprised
how many managers neglect to follow them. They can allow you to achieve the
Holy Grail of the work place: the ability to motivate your employees to move
mountains! (And they’ll be happy with their jobs while they do it.)
Step 1: Clearly
define your vision. Make sure that your vision is provided as a
roadmap for your employees, and that they know each twist and turn.
Step 2: Give
employees what they want and need. Don’t
just assume that each and every one of your employees has all the tools,
training, and support from supervisors they need –check in with them personally
and find out.
Step 3: Communicate
well and often. Training sessions, memos, newsletters, FAQs,
and regular meetings can all be used to present your vision to your employees.
Make sure to ask questions, and if they are confused, redesign the way the
information reaches them.
Perhaps the
most important part of a good manager’s job is communicating effectively.
Creating a culture of communication in which managers and employees share
common goals and work together to meet them can boost a company up and even
save it from the gutter.
Goodman and
Truss, in the Journal of Change Management (2004), stressed the importance of
communication, especially in difficult times or during times of change. Timing
is critical in letting employees know about upcoming changes, in order to
reduce uncertainty. You also need to be very clear about your purpose when you
meet with them.
Goodman and
Truss recommend the following objectives:
·
Obtain individual buy-in
·
Obtain commitment to the change
·
Minimize resistance
·
Reduce personal anxiety
·
Ensure clarity of objectives
·
Share information/vision
·
Challenge the status quo
·
Obtain clarity
·
Minimize uncertainty
(Goodman, J., &
Truss, C., (2004). The medium and the message: communicating effectively during
a major change initiative. Journal of Change Management, 4, 217-228.)
Step 4: Get
everyone engaged. Figure out a way to get all of your employees
engaged in planning and decision-making. That way the project becomes their
baby: something they’re willing to fight for.
To do this,
whenever possible, ask for input and use their ideas. This way, they have a
vested interest in seeing the project succeed. This can not only empower and
motivate employees, it can also lead to new and more productive ways of working
that normally would be overlooked during more stable times.
Step 5: Coach for
success, and practice random acts of kindness. Feedback is another great motivator. Don’t wait for the periodic
reviews; instead, offer feedback as often as possible. Positive feedback should
be given right away, to encourage more of the same performance. Negative
feedback should also be given a.s.a.p., so that workers have the opportunity to
self-correct. If you can, schedule weekly meetings with individual employees,
to provide an opportunity to discuss ongoing projects and issues. These
meetings don’t have to take a lot of time, and they can build strong working
relationships.
And don’t
forget to say “Thank you!” for a job well done. It’s a powerful motivator, and
should be done often–in person if possible. Publicly acknowledging your
employees’ contributions is even better. In a survey by McKinsey Quarterly in
2009, praise from immediate supervisors and attention from company leaders were
found to be just as important or more important than financial rewards.
Step 6: Act fairly,
respect, and create trust (don’t be a jerk). Use
your judgment, wisdom, and experience to create a supportive environment. When
problems arise, examine the circumstances, understand the context, and only
then pass judgment. Respect and trust your team and you will get the same in
return. If you make a mistake, apologize and admit you were wrong. This will
allow your employees to relate to you better, and they will appreciate your
honesty.
Step 7: Trust and
verify, but also try to make work fun. Good
bosses pay attention to the big picture and the details, and care about both
the product and the employees. A good way to show that is be involved in the
creation process, and to pay attention to what is going on. And remember to do
this with a smile on your face. Lighten up! Making work fun really pays off,
since people often get a lot more done when they enjoy themselves.
Step 8: Give
special attention to high-potential employees. “Even in a tough economy, high-potential employees have other
opportunities,” according to Douglas Klein, president of Sirota Survey
Intelligence. A study they conducted showed that during an economic crisis,
employees who are anxious about their future can negatively affect a company.
The reason is simple and obvious: they are less engaged in their jobs, and they
may be making plans to leave.
To keep them
engaged, consider putting more resources into career development and training. Or
perhaps you can give them new projects that will help the company adapt to the
changing market, grow, and develop.
Step 9: Be creative
to avoid downsizing. “An employer that treats its employees as
true partners makes every effort to avoid layoffs,” according to Klein. The key
is for employees to trust that management is doing everything possible to
retain them. Voluntary steps to reduce costs, which Klein calls “rings of
defense” can be employed to avert disaster.
This step
may look like a shot in the dark, but you’d be surprised how reasonable people
can be about pay cuts and/or working overtime, as part of a crisis strategy,
built with their own accord as a safety net during challenging times. The magic
of this approach relies on those few words: built with their own accord.
(Sirota Survey
Intelligence survey summarized in “The Enthusiastic Employee: How Companies
Profit by Giving Workers What They Want”, 2005)
Step 10: Implement
incentive programs.
No matter of
what kind of business you are in, you should look into incentive programs. They
have been shown to be highly beneficial in motivating employees, and a major
benefit is that the cost can be based on actual performance and paid out only
after an employee has reached the desired goal. “Do good and you’ll get
rewarded” makes a positive impact on the company as a whole, with employees
working harder to meet the target.
The
following results were found in a study by the International Society of
Performance Improvement, on the benefits of incentive programs:
They can
improve performance significantly. The study found that performance could be
increased by 22 percent in individuals, and 44% in teams.
They can
improve employee engagement. Performances improved by 15% when rewards were
offered, and if employees were rewarded again to continue performing well, the improvement
reached 27%.
They can
attract high potential employees. And these high quality employees are also
more likely to stay when incentive programs are in place.
(Incentives,
Motivation and Workplace Performance: Research & Best Practices, the International
Society of Performance Improvement 2002
JOB RETENTION STRATEGIES
Job
retention is a big problem for many companies, big and small. The Incentive
Research Foundation (formerly known as the SITE Foundation), conducted a study
on worker turnover in 2004, and another in the following year.
This study
found some important results:
When work is
held in high value by the employees, turnover is not a big issue. Recognition,
praise, and special incentives are tools that can raise the value of work to
employees.
Whenever a company supports its employees, turnover rates drop significantly.
Whenever a company supports its employees, turnover rates drop significantly.
If employees
feel better about their jobs, they are less likely to leave. Even more
importantly: they will try to be better at what they do.
By raising motivation levels, worker turnover can be reduced up to 53 percent.
By raising motivation levels, worker turnover can be reduced up to 53 percent.
(Steven J. Condly,
Ph.D. and Robin DiPietro, Ph.D. “Motivation in the Hospitality Industry” 2005)
