How to Motivate Employees in Your Workplace

January 15th, 2020 | Best Office Furniture

Employee motivation is an essential part of what makes a workplace. If your employees are not motivated, your overall productivity will eventually decrease. Not only that, but unmotivated employees will also be more likely to quit, which can affect business in the long term. Since your employees spend most of their time at the workplace, it is important to make them feel appreciated for everything they do. They need to be engaged.

Importance of Employee Engagement

Studies reveal that 63.3% of US businesses with 50-500 employees say retaining employees is actually harder than hiring them. The “war for talent” is becoming more competitive. More than a third of employees are casually or actively looking for a job causing US employers to spend $2.9M per day looking for replacement workers. That amounts to $1.1B per year.

For employees to feel motivated, they need to feel engaged. While a fat compensation package sounds like a good reason for employees to feel motivated, it’s not. There are many things that contribute to your employees’ happiness than a big check. Factors may include your office environment (its look and feel), work culture, communication, diversity, and of course, balance between work and play.

Teams with engaged employees and low active disengagement are better performing and can grow earnings to at least four times more versus competitors. Better customer engagement was also observed along with higher productivity, fewer accidents, better retention, and higher profitability. Engaged workers also report better health outcomes.

If you want to stay on top of your game, develop an effective employee engagement strategy and keep them motivated.

Here are a few ways you can motivate your employees and increase workplace productivity.

Introduce Interactive Activities

An easy but effective way to motivate your employees is by increasing communication. If your office has cubicles, your employees are bound to get bored. This is why it is essential to introduce activities that include interactive group discussions.

Offer a clear path for advancement by introducing a learning and development program. Some companies invest in training sessions and certifications. If you’re a little tight on the budget, encourage different departments to conduct a cross training session. Not only does this help the teams gain an extra set of hands to help them with their projects and get the work done faster, it also benefits the employee as they earn a new set of skill to add in their portfolio as well as adding a bit of diversity in their everyday work life.

A Pleasing Work Environment

An aesthetically appealing office can directly affect work satisfaction. Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment and the British Council for Offices research confirms that 24% of people in the workplace attest that their office environment has a direct effect on their job satisfaction. About 91% of managers believe that office layout contribute to staff performance.

An effective workplace design means proper lighting and ventilation, comfortable office chairs, organized spaces for discussions and breaks. Even interior plant life can contribute to a sound office environment as it has been proven to have physiological and psychological benefits.

Invest in ergonomic furniture. An uncomfortable or broken chair simply means your employees will get distracted more often, which will affect their productivity. It can also increase neck and back pain, which can result in serious health issues.

Not only do these make a workplace conducive to work, it also gives employees the impression that their health and wellbeing is valued.

Aside from office design, your company culture also affects your workplace environment. Grumpy bosses and uncooperative co-workers can also add to frustration and make work unbearable. Putting up with negativity can stress out your employees, which eventually takes a toll on their health and wellbeing and affecting their performance. No one wants to work in a toxic environment.

Reinforce a positive work environment. Work on developing people skills. Invest in regular team-building activities and forge bonds between employees and managers.

Take some time throughout the day to interact with your employees. Talk to them about their ideas and how they are feeling about the tasks assigned. Not only will your employees feel that their presence and efforts are appreciated, but you’ll also be surprised to find some noteworthy ideas from them.

Give Your Office a Makeover

Another way to boost morale at the workplace is by giving your entire office a makeover. You can do this by introducing big windows. Big windows make the rooms look bigger and will also encourage more natural light in your office.

You can also paint the walls with bold colors and hang wall art to make your workplace look trendy. To add more personality to the room, you can always add potted plants. This will motivate your employees to do better because they might have been bored of the old setting.

Appreciate and Celebrate

One of the biggest reasons why employees might feel demotivated is that they might feel like they are not being appreciated. As a manager, it is your duty to always appreciate great work and celebrate small victories. You don’t have to go big – simply let your employees know you care by giving them a shout out, which will go a long way.

Gamify your most important tasks. Inject some competition in the office by introducing gameplay elements to most important tasks. For example, much like in a video game, give badges for every milestone achieved by your team member. Don’t settle for digital badges like email announcements, get creative. It can be medals or ribbons awarded during town hall meetings.

It’s a small recognition but it still gives your employee that feeling of being appreciated in front of a crowd. Thus, encourages others to give their best shot too. Appreciation and recognition of hard work being done, regardless how small, can do so much for anybody.

It will also affect how your employees view you and the business. Visit our website to find the right furniture to motivate your employees.