Motivating Today's Employees. Lin Grensing-Pophal

      In an economy with more people than jobs, employers tend not to worry a great deal about motivating their workers. But in an economy like that of the early 21st century, where skilled labor is scarce and jobs are plentiful, the ability to attract and retain qualified employees becomes extremely critical.

      Employee turnover and the retention of valued employees were major problems in the late 20th century, according to a retention and staffing survey conducted by Manchester Partners International. The average turnover rate in the United States hovered at 15 percent. The costs associated with turnover can be high — generally 25 percent of the individual’s annual salary. Aside from the obvious costs of advertising for, interviewing, and training replacement staff, there are more subtle costs, such as the impact of turnover on customer service and productivity.

      Finding ways to attract and retain high-quality, front-line staff can be a boon to any business. The job market is competitive, the labor pool is shrinking, and employers are frequently vying for the same candidates. For small businesses, in particular, competing with larger employers can be difficult. Many small businesses can’t afford to offer the level of salary or benefits that their larger competitors can easily provide. How then, can these small businesses hope to compete for talented employees?

      By developing successful methods of motivating employees, even the smallest business can remain competitive. What does it take? As many companies are finding, it takes a commitment to making the workplace a rewarding one for staff members. It takes a solid understanding of employee needs and the willingness to do what it takes to meet those needs. It takes creativity and the willingness to move outside the restrictions of traditional benefits and rewards to embrace new methods of keeping employees active and energetic on the job.

      It doesn’t always take a lot of money, which can be good news to small businesses that struggle to meet their capital and expense needs while competing for qualified employees in a tight labor market.

      As we’ll find in a number of examples throughout this book, money is not the only way to motivate employees.

      Consider, for example, the employees of Microsoft. Many of them have become millionaires because of their equity ownership in the company, yet they stay on the job. Why? Because Microsoft has a widely renowned casual and participative corporate culture that emphasizes both individual and team achievement. Money, quite obviously, is not everything.

      The needs of employees have changed dramatically over the past 30 years. Fueled by a rapid increase in the number of women entering the workforce, more and more employees are expecting — and demanding — a balance between the expectations of work and the demands of personal life. No longer can managers tell employees to leave their personal lives at home. Today’s managers must recognize that what happens at home has a dramatic impact on performance at work — and vice versa.

      Today’s workers value the opportunity to better balance work life and home life. Workers are most likely to be satisfied with their jobs, committed to their employers, and productive at work when they have jobs that offer autonomy, meaning, learning opportunities, support from supervisors, and flexible work arrangements that are responsive to individual needs, according to a comprehensive new study of the U.S. workforce released in 1998 by the Families and Work Institute and sponsored by kpmg.

      Too often, managers feel that they know what their employees want. After all, most managers were once employees in similar positions themselves. But times change, perspectives change, and employee needs change. Sometimes it’s the simple things that are overlooked.

      Money, many businesses are finding, may not mean anything when it comes to retaining good employees. Motivation, however, is everything.

      Part I

      THE BASICS OF MOTIVATION

      According to a 1998 survey by Watson Wyatt Worldwide, more than 9 out of 10 employers (92 percent) say that employees’ level of job satisfaction is an “important” or “very important” factor in determining the number of lost work days. Survey results confirm what managers and employers have long known: the less satisfied employees are with their jobs, the more likely they are to miss work.

      Why do employees come to work? For some, because they feel a sense of contribution — they enjoy their work. They believe they are making a difference, whether their job entails manufacturing parts, serving customers, or creating new products. For many, though, work is an obligation. Many employees come to work because they know they must. If they don’t, they will be reprimanded and eventually terminated.

      Which category of workers do you think is most likely to miss work from time to time — the workers who are there because they want to be, or the ones who are there because they feel they have to be?

      The difference? Motivation.

      1

      Motivational Theory

      What motivates you? What does it take to make you want to spring from bed each morning to greet the new day? What does it take to make you feel excited and enthusiastic about tackling a new project? To make you want to commit to a goal, a project, or an organization?

      Is it challenge? Recognition? Reward?

      It may surprise you to know that it doesn’t always take a grand gesture to make an employee feel motivated.

      A woman who recently (barely!) survived a merger between two large energy companies says that what motivates her is “receiving a simple e-mail from a supervisor (or better yet, from someone higher than your supervisor) thanking you for a job well done. It’s a very satisfying and positive item for a personnel file. It’s also something that you can refer back to when you need a little reassurance that you are doing a good job.”

      A graphic designer says, “It’s always fun when my boss brings around ice cream bars for those who are sticking it out late on one of those sunny Friday afternoons when spring fever has overtaken everyone else.”

      It may also surprise you that what motivates you doesn’t necessarily motivate members of your staff.

      One manager tells of an informal conversation between

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