Based upon the fact that I have worked in a company that has a highly virtual environment plus my many years of study in how to motivate employees, I have found that employees are more motivated by five key behaviours.
Equality Of Communication Practices
I am not going to waste your time talking about the value of communication. How important communication in the workplace is remains well understood. However, communicating information equally to all employees on an intentional basis is majorly important. Managers must make sure that the same information is dispersed to all employees, no matter where they are located. Bias and inconsistent communication happens often when employees are dispersed and this is why you need a quality mobile working solution. These employees often feel under-valued and dismissed when they find out that they did not receive certain information. Does this type of communicate motivate employees? Not really, but employee performance and motivation is founded in communication.
Make Use Of Technologies For Collaborative Videos
Your ability to effectively collaborate and communicate is hindered when virtual meetings only include voice communication. There is inexpensive and highly reliable video technology now available. At the very least, make use of AT&T Connect's video conferencing service. In order to see someone's body language and facial expressions in high definition during meetings, consider investing in Telepresence technology. The integration of these video technologies delivers a high return on investment when you take into account the increased quality of collaboration, higher levels of trust, and the better working relationships that result.
Employee-To-Employee Connections Matter
Help your employees get to know each other better by building trust, camaraderie, and connections. This may begin with an exploration of hobbies, dislikes, and likes, but you can help grow the level of trust when co-workers begin to understand each other’s passions, personalities, and work preferences. This can be done using celebrations, off-site meetings, ice-breakers during meetings, and team building activities. An excellent resource for ice breakers and team activities is www.teampedia.net. Some of the ideas work best for face-to-face meetings while others are ideal for virtual ones.
Meetings Should Be Interesting
Unnecessary, negative, and boring meetings rapidly take the winds out of someone's sails. By being intentional about how meetings are run, employee motivation can be better supported by managers. A first step is to only include a maximum of two or three key outcomes in the meetings and to schedule shorter meetings. Highlight positive news at the start of the meeting. Interesting discussions about the company should be started. Make sure that everyone has time to give their ideas and feedback. Contributions should be recognized and rewarded. Finally, end the meeting with a statement communicating the organization or team's common purpose or illustrates the company's vision.
Focus On Individual Employees To Motivate Them
Each of us has unique, internal desires that fundamentally motivate us. These include power, status, curiosity, and acceptance and are our basic values. Knowing people well enough to understand how to position an employee so they can be passionate about their work because they can live by their own values is a priority among managers who understand how to motivate people. When their desires and values connect people to their work, employees become highly motivated.
It is both challenging and exciting to work in the new mobile workplace. Managers must deal with a higher level of complexity, but it is a great opportunity for them to grow their skill set in managing employee performance and motivation.
