One of the hardest aspects of a business is hiring the right employee. An even harder job is to retain employees in their role, making sure they’re happy and motivated in the process. Without the right salary, incentives or even the correct working environment, businesses risk losing their talent to competitors.

That’s why we came up with 7 ways to keep your employees motivated, a guide for managers or team leaders to keep their staff happy at work.

 

Training

Offering training courses to your employees is a great incentive to keep them motivated. A course such as the Certificate in Executive Business Administration (CEBA) would be a fantastic example. Not only will this give staff the opportunity to build and develop vital skills, it’s also a great way to motivate progression within the company, retaining your top talent and increasing job satisfaction.

 

Working Environment

You might not regard your office environment as a factor in motivating your staff, but it’s important to get it right. A poor working environment can not only affect productivity, but it can seriously diminish employee health and wellbeing too. According to Nature at Work, a healthy office should have floods of natural light and ventilation as well as comfortable, ergonomic furniture to prevent any potential back problems from constant hunching over a keyboard. Another interesting point is the use of colour on the walls. Science of People suggests painting your office walls green or blue tones in order to promote calm and relaxation. Adding plants into the room also has this effect as well as neutralising office air.

 

Socialising

Although many staff members probably want to keep their work and personal lives separate, a social office is a great way of keeping your team happy and motivated. Some simple ideas of having the radio on keeps the work flowing and gets staff chatting in between. After all, no one wants to work in a silent office! Organizing a monthly office social is a great way for staff to get to know each other too, that way they can escape the professional environment and have some fun.

 

Recognize Success

Recognizing success is an easy way to help motivate your employees at work. If someone has done an amazing piece of work or excelled at a specific task, take the time to personally congratulate them on a job well done!  It’s a great incentive to keep the standard of work they’re producing going and makes employees feel great that they’re being noticed. The little things make a big difference!

 

Communicate and Connect

Being able to communicate and connect with your colleagues is an important aspect of the office dynamics and how people work.  It’s vital that employees are able to voice their thoughts, concerns and ideas freely, that way they will feel a sense of worth and security within their role. It’s a really good idea to get to know employees too. Maybe find out about their interests and strike up a conversation!

A great listener is always appreciated within the office. If employees need to voice a concern, take time out to listen, it shows you care about their wellbeing in the workplace, you value them as a person and most importantly, they’re not isolated.

 

Creativity

Richard Branson believes businesses should give employees the freedom to get creative with new ideas and should act as a springboard for new employees. This is a fantastic business motivation idea. It shows you have trust in your team and you value their input in proposing new and exciting ideas for the business. You never know, you might hear an innovative idea that takes the business to new heights.

 

Incentives

In addition to a healthy working environment, incentives and job perks are a great way to keep your employees motivated! In addition to regular holidays and salary reviews, incentives such as free food and drink, work socials and a pension scheme always go down well with employees. A popular perk is subsidised gym membership. According to the Harvard Business Review, “healthy employees cost you less”, which means less time off sick and more productivity and happiness within the office. Win win!

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