I bet you’ve come across people in the job market so unmotivated that they even went so far as to quit even in times of crisis. Or maybe you no longer find reasons to do your job yourself.
The Isma Brazil (International Stress Management Association) conducted a survey to measure the satisfaction of professionals at the end of 2014. The survey showed that 72% of respondents said they were unhappy with their work.
Have you ever stopped to think about the reasons that discourage employees in organizations? And what can be done to motivate people in the workplace?
Many can be the factors and many are also the theories that explain this state of disadvantage for both the company and the employee.
Even having great products, processes and technologies, in order to remain competitive in the market it is necessary to invest in the greatest resource that a company can have: people.
The Importance of Motivation for Companies
After the first industrial revolution, making employees produce more and more became a priority for companies.
It is the results that guide the business strategies of modern corporations, and it cannot be different. But even with this inevitable need to increase productivity and profit, it was realized that to achieve results today, it is essential to invest in people management .
The Great Place to Work Company – GPTW annually awards the Best Companies to Work for in more than 50 countries. The award assesses the employees’ perception of the quality of the work environment and the organizational culture .
An important data presented by GPTW is that although the Brazilian economy had a drop of approximately 3.8% of GDP (Gross Domestic Product) in 2015, the Best Companies to Work for had a 14% increase in profit and billing during the same period .
So, if the good results of companies and the happiness of employees are interconnected factors , it is clear why companies should be concerned with factors such as satisfaction, engagement and motivation of their employees.
Types of Motivation
As we said in the post “What is motivation” , professional motivation is a shared responsibility .
It is useless for the company to offer the best place to work if the employee does not like what he does. The “wanting to do” is the basic premise for achieving motivation in the workplace.
It is at this point that it is worth mentioning the two types of motivation: the intrinsic and the extrinsic.
The intrinsic motivation is related to inner strength and is particular individual. It is independent of external factors and is stimulated by objectives, goals, dreams and personal interests.
The extrinsic motivation , in turn, is related to external factors and they are that organizations have the power to identify and encourage the motivation of its employees.
Factors to Motivate People in the Workplace
Leaving the intrinsic factors for another post, we will show some of the main factors that the company must provide to attract motivated employees. Good reading!
1 – Motivating Leaders
The main impact factor on employee motivation is the type of positioning of the immediate superior. If there is an adequate leadership posture, the chances of motivating people in the workplace are much greater.
“ The leader’s role starts to include new challenges, such as passing on the corporate vision to employees, directing information, stimulating creativity and initiative, that is, being a facilitator of actions. The desired profile for a leader consistent with the values of cooperation emphasized by internal marketing is one that works with the group and for the group, that makes democratic decisions, that shares responsibilities, delegates powers, dialogues and listens. Teamwork and leadership always complement each other. (BEKIN, 1995; BRUM, 2000).
Not having empathy, showing insecurity in decision making, looking for culprits, acting with disrespect, making excessive demands, favoring one or the other employee, not accepting new ideas, taking ideas from others, acting arrogantly and even aggressively they are actions of bad bosses and not of motivating leaders .
According to researchers at Havard and Stanford , a bad boss can be as bad for your health as being a passive smoker . More than 75% of American professionals who were interviewed in this survey, said their bosses were the worst part of their jobs.
This type of relationship creates a barrier between the company and the employee, so it is essential to work with leaders within organizations.
Creating dialogues through internal communication channels and conducting periodic evaluations are important strategies for identifying abusive leaders.
Today, just having great knowledge in the area is not enough to occupy a position that involves team management. You need to be able to lead or be willing to develop it.
2 – Safety and Stability at Work
Lately, market instability has caused a lot of insecurity and has generated fear among employees across Brazil. In addition, the drastic cuts in the number of employees in companies of all sizes have affected those who remain in the company.
According to Quartz , job insecurity increases the chances of an employee becoming ill by 50%. The survey also points out that the fear of losing a job is at the top of the list of most stressful factors for employees.
In a cascade effect, the destabilization of moods can generate an internal crisis and major drops in productivity and quality of service.
Therefore, working on the perception of individuals about their insecurities is the best way to guarantee an environment that provides the best working conditions, motivating employees to do their best.
In fact, communicating employees face to face, answering their doubts and passing on information with clarity and transparency are always a good call.
3 – Communication – The Key to Motivation in Organizations
The exchange of information allows aligning objectives, values and actions to be taken strategically by a company. In reality, in the work environment, everything revolves around good communication.
Communicating with transparency makes it possible to show employees the real meaning of their role and the impact that their efforts bring to the company, two key factors for achieving engagement .
In addition, one of the main practices for motivating people in the workplace is to provide feedback .
Creating a culture of feedback is a way of recognizing and valuing the importance of everyone in the company. The practice should aim to build continuous improvements through direct and transparent communication .
4 – Growth Expectations
If we still consider Maslow’s pyramid of human needs, personal growth is at the top, in terms of psychological and self-realization needs.
This factor is characterized by an individual’s desire to reach his potential, to grow and develop both personally and professionally.
Not having space to grow professionally means that many professionals fail to see reasons to stay in a company. It is necessary to encourage employees to develop their skills and competences more and more in order to achieve job satisfaction.
A well-defined career plan that encourages learning is essential to show the possibilities for employees’ growth and development.
5 – Goals
In an increasingly competitive world and with increasingly demanding organizational policies, achieving any results depends on a defined and clear strategic plan to be followed.
Goals can leverage employee motivation as long as they are worked on and oriented towards a destination that makes sense.
On the other hand, unattainable goals discourage and take away the credibility of those who define it by pointing out an objective that is not attainable with the available resources.
Therefore, setting goals, giving space for suggestions and paying attention to needs, contributes to the success of the project and the achievement of results.
6 – Recognition – It’s good and everyone likes it
In our infographic on recognition , we demonstrate through statistics that this practice is directly linked to employee selection, retention, engagement and performance and that, consequently, impact the company’s results and even customer satisfaction.
“ What is absolutely critical is that the organization celebrates success. Those who do need to be recognized. Your behaviors and results need to be reinforced … Always give positive feedback to those responsible for success and who make the strategy work. ” – Lawrence Hrebiniak
Recognition can come from both leadership feedback, internal actions or promotions. For this purpose, internal marketing actions and Corporate TV can be great allies. See examples of recognition in the following posts:
- Recognition through Corporate TV
- 12 Examples of Internal Marketing
7 – Good Interpersonal Relationships
“If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go with you. ”
This African proverb says a lot about the need for us to report and to “fit” in society.
Having a good relationship with people at work enables the creation of bonds of friendship and ensures the improvement of living together in the work environment. After all, we usually spend 8 hours a day with the same people.
In the survey conducted on employee satisfaction conducted by Isma Brasil (International Stress Management Association , approximately 63% of participants indicated that relationship problems are one of the main causes of their dissatisfaction at work.
An environment without harmony and with constant interpersonal conflicts creates several barriers and becomes one of the factors of greatest stress in everyday life, ending the motivation of any professional.
Is there a Magic Formula for Motivation?
Unfortunately, this magic formula does not exist. If it existed, surely the main ingredient would be a focus on people management.
Lately, much has been said about how to make business increasingly profitable and aimed at conquering the market.
Without investing in people management strategies, companies lose competitiveness and end up losing the best talent. The human factor is essential for the survival and growth of a company and has to be achieved with good working conditions, good leadership and with a purpose.
According to professor and philosopher Mário Sérgio Cortella, in an interview with Época Negócios , “Today there is great distress in the new generation in a way that translates into a common expression:“ I want to do something that makes me important and that I like ”. Doing what you like means having a sense, seeing a purpose when you are part of an organization.
Therefore, it is necessary to identify the factors that have impaired the motivation of employees and apply strategies to reverse this situation and generate benefits for both parties.
We saw that the best companies to work for are also the most profitable, profitable and attract the most investments.
As long as there are no magic to engage and motivate people in the workplace, the way is to get your hands dirty investing in internal communication and internal marketing actions.
After all, theory is good but putting it into practice is even better!
