Business owners sometimes struggle when it comes to keeping staff members productive. It is usually a high priority as keeping your employees busy and focused on work will lead to increases in everything, whether that is production rate, sales or customer service. A way to get staff more productive at work is by making them happy with both their job and the place they work as this will motivate them to do better and do more. If they are not happy with their role and their working environment you will find that their work rate will decrease and many employees will be actively trying to waste their time doing nothing and waiting for the lunch break or the end of their shift. There are quite a few ways to keep your employees happy, all of which work in very different ways. This is why in this post we are going to cover a few different ways you can ensure your workforce keeps working with their motivation levels high.
Ask for their opinion
Employees will feel happy at work when it feels like their opinion is valued and it feels like they are an important part of the business. This is why asking for their opinion will help because they will feel like you genuinely want to know how they feel about this thing and that their opinion does matter leading them to feel like they are valued and respected by their superiors. It does need to be about something meaningful so ask them about how they think things should be run or what changes they think should be made to the business.
Productive atmosphere
Creating a positive working environment is quite important as well as people are less productive when they are in an area that makes them feel tired and down they will feel less motivated to do their work. Doing various little things are important to create an office that people will want to work in. Things like keeping the area clean, having plants and greenery present and ensuring the walls are not plain and have artwork hung upon them.
Giving employees the choice over their workspace helps increase their happiness at work as if they are not one hundred percent comfortable with where they work they will get distracted more. For example, giving them a choice of chairs, having stand up desks available for those that want that and giving them some control over where they are situated are all things that will help them being comfortable and let them focus on their work more.
Give them gifts
Receiving a gift from your employer makes staff members feel appreciated and in their minds and will make them thankful towards the business and superiors. It also causes them to subconsciously believe that they now owe the business and that they are in debt to you and will work harder and produce better work to make it up to you. Although giving bonuses is one way to do this it has been shown in studies that giving something other than money can have a massive effect on people’s productivity too. Gift vouchers are also another option but giving them a useful promotional product like an americano mug are also popular options as well. Receiving something to them that is genuinely useful and will improve certain aspects of their day-to-day life will make them even happier with your brand.
Socialising opportunities
Running a recreational event with your staff members helps to reinvigorate work performance and motivation for work by acting as a controlled distraction form their roles and responsibilities, helps them relax and gets them ready for work. Not only that but it gives them people the chance to socialised with colleagues and get to know what they are like more that will make them more friendly which will also make them work better together. This is especially good for teams that do a lot of work together as it will make the whole group more effective together. Go for a meal once a month or run games at work. Anything that will take their mind off the stresses of business for a while can help.
Set goals and rewards for beating them
Staff members that aren’t set goals are usually more relaxed when it comes to doing their work. They’re less motivated to get their tasks done as there is no deadline and will likely complete it in their own time. This completely changes when they are given a target and a deadline because now there is urgency and determination to reach the goal or even surpass it. However just setting a goal isn’t enough as some people won’t be bothered if the goal isn’t met by the deadline time because there in no incentive. If nothing changes if they meet the goal or not it may be hard for them to get motivated to beat the goal. That is why you need to reward those who do beat the target and clearly show what they will get by completing the goal. This is a great way to increase productivity with individuals and teams as they now know what they have to do because of the goal, have urgency because of the deadline and have motivation because of the reward.