There is no secret in the fact that motivated employees will be more productive and effective in their jobs than normal employees. The elementary job of a manager is to motivate the employees to perform better and help the company to enhance its bottom line. There are certain effective motivational skills that today’s managers need to possess to extract the best out of its employees. There are two types of motivation possible for an employee. The first type is internal motivation which is basically self-satisfaction by getting a job done faster and perfectly. The second one is external motivation which is getting rewards and appreciations. A manager’s effective motivational skills must take of both these types to take the performance of its employees to the next level.
Proper Understanding –
To cater to the internal motivation for different employees, a manager needs to have a proper understanding of the personalities of the employees. He needs to understand the strengths, weaknesses, needs, and goals of the individuals because these aspects are different for different employees. Accordingly, he can allocate jobs to different employees that suit their strengths and needs. Then and only then the employees will find self-satisfaction and motivation to perform at their best for their allocated job. It is generally the random assignment of jobs that demotivates the employees and they struggle internally to finish the works in due time.
Appreciations and Rewards –
To cater to the external motivation, there must be rewards for the best performers and appreciation for anyone who does his or her job perfectly and faster than expected. Rewards can be bonuses and prizes and these things psychologically affect the employees to push their limits and perform exceedingly well. Similarly, everyone loves to get appreciated in front of the fellow colleagues and especially from their managers. If possible, bonuses must be given to most of the employees who performed better than last time.
Creating Competitive Environment –
The environment in the workplace can be a big factor that determines the quality of the work done by the employees. A friendly yet competitive environment is where employees will give their best shots in every job allocated to them so that they can outshine the others. A manager is responsible to create and maintain such a non-compulsive competitive and highly motivated work environment. This will boost the morale of those employees who have a natural lethargic attitude in the workplace.
Sharpening The Weaknesses –
It is the duty of the manager to do all that is necessary to convert the weaknesses of the employees into their strengths. We can arrange various seminars, send employees for workshops, and let them collaborate with other employees who are strong in those weak areas of the other employees. This is what can be truly called as empowering the employees not only for the greater good of the organization but also for a better future of the employees. He should take time out to discuss with the low performing employees their issues and be open to support them and back them up rather than pressurizing them to perform well by any means.
Lead By Example –
One of the best ways to motivate the employees effectively is through leading by example. Simple things like seeing a manager working beyond the working hours, coming office earlier, helping employees to overcome obstacles by solving the issues and likewise are very powerful to motivate the employees to be like him. They will truly consider such a manager as their leader and will follow every step for a better performance.
Goal Setting and Performance Evaluation –
One of the most effective techniques that can boost the performance of the employees and keep them motivated is the goal setting and performance evaluation technique. A manager must have enough knowledge about the abilities and speed of employees to set realistic goals that are achievable by him or her without putting too much pressure. Similarly, he should do a performance evaluation from time to time to point out the weak areas that employees should work on. As a matter of fact, he should help and supervise every employee to overcome the weakness.
Furthermore, the manager must have a clear plan of action that every employee should be able to visualize and perform accordingly. He needs to have the skills to promote collaboration teamwork and keep the teams motivated to get the best performance as a whole. With the implementation of the above points, the manager would have the right resources that today’s subordinates look out for!