Manage My Employees

Posts Tagged ‘Employee motivation’

Everyone knows times are tough, but what will your organization do exactly to keep employee morale and performance high?

I’ve provided a link (Engaging Employees Tops Leadership Priorities in Tough Economic Times) to a nice article on what leaders can do to rev up workplace attitudes. In addition, I’ve added a few tips you might want to comment on…

Definitely, be a straight shooter on what these tough times mean to your company, and the department. Don’t spin the truth one iota.

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One industry, healthcare, has all but escaped the draconian impact of the economic recession. However, healthcare is, as other industries are—battling low employee morale.

According to a survey by CareerBuilder (referenced in this article: Healthcare employers battle low employee morale | Healthcare Finance News) nearly 4 of 10 healthcare employees report low motivation and 1 in 4 say they have no loyalty to their employers.

Losing good employees costs the leaders of any organization dearly. This is especially true in healthcare where job knowledge and experience is valued so highly (or it should be).

What can healthcare employers, or any employer for that matter do to ramp up morale:

Get innovative about employee incentives. Think in terms of low-cost but meaningful rewards. Don’t stop your recognition program just because the budget doesn’t permit you to reward like you once did, instead revamp.

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Saying ‘Thanks’ and/or giving praise doesn’t come as naturally to some managers as it does for others. I started out thirty years ago in my career being one of those managers who found giving ‘praise’ harder than giving correction.

I’m better at it today, and yet, I’m certainly not perfect. The results of improvement have been remarkable—especially in how it helped me create a more positive tone and relationship with others at work, or in my personal life.

It helps to have a few reminders of how easy praise (saying ‘Good Job’ or ‘Thanks’) can be when we pause to look for it, then share it with our associates.

Here are ten more examples of how you could say Good Job!…

• Thank you for backing my leadership on this project, I really appreciate it.
• You project enthusiasm to our customers for their business… and I really appreciate that.
• You have a lot of qualities we admire around here, like…
• You did a great job on that project, you got it complete under an intense deadline!
• Let me compliment you on how well you calmed that customers down, you did it with professionalism and a whole lot of tact.
• You do a great job on follow-up, I never hear a complaint from anyone in the company about the communications coming from your area.

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In part 3 we’ll look at a few tips for revving up our praise or thanks to employees. Next, we’ll look at ten more ways to say Good Job.

3 Tips on Revving Up Praise:

• Be sincere. When you see something praiseworthy – praise it. On the other hand, if you don’t, then avoid feeling like you need to come up with something that won’t be in earnest.
• Don’t wait until something’s perfect before you acknowledge it with appreciation or praise.
• Be timely. If you wait to say it later…you may forget. When you see it, say it.

10 Ways to Say “Good Job”…

• You’re catching on fast, I like the effort you’re putting in.
• Super job on that report, it was exactly what I was looking for.
• Thank you! Your input was really helpful for me to hear… I like other viewpoints to consider.
• Actually, it doesn’t bother me when you challenge the status quo around here, because you do it without being confrontational. I know your purpose is to help us grow, get better.

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Take time to look for good behavior as well as good attitude, then recognize your employee for it.

Good behavior or good attitude doesn’t have to be recognized with $$money. A verbal or written praise/thanks is especially meaningful, and it lasts.

Mark Twain said, “I can live for three months on a good compliment.” Here are 10 ways to say “good job”…

• Thanks for getting back so quickly, you saved me some time.
• I really appreciate the questions you ask, it shows you take genuine interest.
• Your work on that project was nothing short of Fantastic!

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Author George Barna’s book, Master Leaders, presents a refreshing, thought-provoking view on what can be a stilted book topic–leadership.

No doubt, this is one of the most unique leadership books I’ve ever come across. Barna presents advice on some of the toughest topics for leaders, taken from his conversations with 30 world-class leaders while sitting in the ‘green room’ at a conference where he served as master of ceremonies.

I felt like I was there personally, sitting quietly in the corner of the ‘green room’ eaves dropping on “the greats” as they spoke passionately about the essentials of leading people. (Included are “greats” like Ken Blanchard, Tony Dungy, Newt Gingrich, Seth Godin, Lou Holtz, John Kotter, Patrick Lencioni, and many others).

Here are some of my favorite take-aways from Master Leaders:

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Inspiration defined:  Stimulation of the mind or emotions to a high level of feeling or activity. Source: www.dictionary.com

Inspiration is beneficial as well as vital. It may even run a close second to oxygen! Quotes regularly stimulate my thinking, and too, my feelings.

The effects of inspirational quotes can stir thoughts or spur new actions. Here are a few quotes that may help a team think differently about its challenges, consider more fully its opportunities, set aside its conflict, and work together to achieve the organization’s goals.

1. None of us is as smart as all of us.

–Ken Blanchard

2. TEAM: Together Everyone Achieves More.

–Unknown

3. The strength of the team is each individual member… the strength of each member is the team.

–Coach Phil Jackson

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Have you ever played the arcade game that gives you a mallet and the goal is to punch down the mole when he raises up from one of a dozen places, then quickly retreats? I have, but I’ve never been any good at it! The mole is fast and unpredictable, I’m slow and linear.

Dealing with a difficult employee can be like that game. Why? Because they’re the ones who stir up conflict with teammates, consistently arrive late or leave early, constantly text on their phone, make endless excuses for missing deadlines or poor work. Just when you think you’ve got them straightened out, another problem (mole) surfaces which you must address (punch down).

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I was sitting around a conference table today with surgeons/partners of a successful clinic when one of the surgeons, in trying to express the value of certain employees said, “They’re just those kinds of employees you can’t live without.”

It struck me that high performing employees are indeed people you wouldn’t want to live without. If you look around, undoubtedly you can pick out several employees you’d consider virtually irreplaceable. Note: If you can’t do this, either you’re hiring the wrong people, or you inherited a mess! Such performers have great worth in organizations that depend greatly on consistently high levels of output from its associates.

People who produce exceptional results are dependable, loyal and consistently deliver first-rate work. You can count on high performers because they achieve their work objectives with little help from others, and they do it day-in-day-out.

High performers are rarely if ever fired, instead they leave an employer voluntarily. But when they do leave, I’ve discovered that it’s often for three reasons:

1. Absence of standards/values. A critical element to job satisfaction for your high performer is that the organizations genuinely values excellence. I’ve heard top employees say quite affectionately about their employer “they’re fanatics about that around here,” as a moniker of pride. They want to know that they’re a part of a special organization whose leaders insist on, reward for, but also hold everyone accountable to exceptional ideals. I believe that standards must be crystal clear and not open to interpretation—the better the exactness of standards the more high performers like it!

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