Shake hands with a worker and praise him for a good job is worthless, but when you do, your subordinates feel like they've got a million.
Representatives of small and medium-sized businesses rarely manage to find a budget for such an item of expenditure as staff motivation, although the issue of encouraging employees faces every businessman. However, there are many inexpensive or completely free ways to encourage subordinates who are successfully used abroad and can be useful to a domestic businessman who cares about the effectiveness of his business.
The secretary is more important than the product.
At one time, General Motors carried out a customer survey to find out why people buy its cars and remain loyal to this brand. The results shocked the company and were immediately hidden. The reason was that in the first place in the list of factors that determined the adherence of customers, the company secretary was named, at the second - the head of the customer service department, and on the third - the accounting department, where customers carried a check, when they took the car and paid for various technical services.
The product itself was not said a word. Therefore, your employees are more important to the client than the product that you sell, says Klaus Kobjell, owner of a hotel and a number of restaurants in Germany, in his book "Motivation in the style of action". And this means that each of the employees who are involved in the process of communicating with customers, can spoil the impression of the latter about the company and the product even before they saw it. Therefore, the guru of the so-called "personnel marketing" gives simple but effective advice how to use simple and inexpensive methods of motivating employees in companies of any level - in large corporations and in small businesses.
Grateful work.
The question of what is most important for employees in their work was first asked entrepreneurs during a large-scale survey of large companies more than half a century ago. The same questions were asked of the employees. It turned out that the answers of owners and employees are very different.
Entrepreneurs in the first place put a good profit, on the second - working conditions. The workers themselves put a high salary only in fifth place. What's on the first?
This is a recognition of the work done successfully. And such recognition does not cost the employer a penny: just enough time and sincerely to thank people for good results, without delaying it at the end of the year. Modern studies have shown that about 50% of people change jobs not because of wages, but because of the decline or absence of such non-material motivation. Begin to thank people. This sounds very obvious, but most managers neglect this rule: they rarely thank the worker for the completed work with a simple e-mail or face to face. And you can go further: public gratitude in the presence of other employees or electronic mailings about the achievement of a certain employee is extremely motivating.
To know what to thank, you need to introduce a regular and honest evaluation of the results. Large companies buy special software for this, but if the budget for this is not enough, you can do it simply on paper.
In addition, it is important for employees to know that their boss listens to their opinion. Such people often generate new ideas and bring money to the business.
Without secrets and constant control.
After recognition, employees want to know the company's goals and everything about its product. Where does the company go? What are her plans? People want to know why they work for this team. Regular open information about how things are going on, and trust is what motivates a better salary. Many successful managers give up individual offices and work in the same room as their subordinates, so you can get closer to the team, discuss all the issues as soon as they arise. By the way, another important factor is the attitude of the management and the company as a whole to the personal problems of subordinates. People want, that in case of any personal problem the head with understanding has concerned to it.
Granting freedom in actions and decisions is another method of motivation, which, in the case of a reasonable approach, will not cost a penny. This creates a sense of self-importance, trust and independence, which employees value so much.
For many of them, such independence is a flexible work schedule. The ability to work remotely, rather than sit in the office from morning to evening, is such a prospect that attracts every third employee. In addition, remote work still saves the company resources: the Internet, electricity and even water. Therefore, if during the probationary period the employee has proved effective, you can let him work home.
According to recent research, about 70% of large US companies, in particular Cisco, IBM, Sun, give part of their employees the right to independently create their own schedule. The same approach is applied in half of European companies.
The fourth important factor for the employee is the stability of the work. And only on the fifth place - the salary.
Experts on "personnel marketing" assure: if you take into account this list of factors, you can increase the motivation of employees at least twice.