Hi Seniors, Please suggest me how to mentor / motivate team members to make it more interesting place to work? Please suggest, thanks in advance warm regards, Ranjitha
From India, Bangalore
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From India, Bangalore
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What sector does your firm belong to? How big is your organization? There is no 'one size fits all' answer to this. The relevance of interest for each individual would vary. However, as an organization, you need to build synergy by connecting the uniqueness of each entity. This would collectively add to the culture within your firm. I request you to consider my suggestions:
Physical Environment:
Identify the sectoral preferences of an ideal workplace. An IT firm may offer flexible options along with a tennis room, whereas a manufacturing firm would be guided by safety parameters and standards.
Emotional Content:
- Find the average age group in your firm.
- Group employees in terms of demography.
- Identify common choices and individual preferences to remain flexible. For instance, if one employee connects with a feng shui article, others might value family pictures or a small statue of a deity they pray to.
- Allow customization within company standards. Set parameters from 5S to ensure complete ownership.
- Maintain a notice board with motivational quotes and a collage of team members to celebrate achievements and strengths realized throughout the week. I know one firm that manages a board for teams where they write, 'The best thing that happened today,' before they leave for the day.
- I attended an NHRD workshop recently and heard a suggestion to drive the referral program, where the employer put a mirror on every employee's desk with a message, "I need someone just like you!"
- Implement measures such as 'Pat on the back,' a spontaneous activity by team members to acknowledge contributions on the spot. A gesture of appreciation by peers builds self-efficacy and strengthens the team.
- Focus on the 'joy of delivering the work' and let incentives be the natural result. Encouraging them to deliver and acknowledging effort and excellence on the spot will fuel further growth.
Intellectual Aspiration:
- Identify different areas for intellectual growth among your employees. Not everyone wants to be a technical expert; some might be more inclined to grow functionally.
- Identify leaders who can guide these groups. If you have a mentoring program established in your firm, you might connect this with it.
- Let it be vibrant and spontaneous. Learning is a change in behavior. It attenuates when conditioned positively with constant orientation. A fixed program allows the mentoring process to run by parameters but misses the nuances from instant interactions.
- Focus on building professional relationships that can work as sponsors to each other.
- Focus on linking employees to their interests for development by allowing each one to contribute to others' learning. For instance, some may wish to certify in a technical course, while others might be happier with a book club. Some might enjoy trekking and outdoor activities. Help them connect these interests with their current work deliveries to drive performance. Prune speakers from book club members, leadership from trekking enthusiasts, and next-level product developers from techies.
- Repetitive jobs are often the biggest demotivator. Encourage employees to identify areas for improvement. Job enrichment impacts best when initiated by the employee with organizational support.
Professional Grooming:
- This is where you combine individual interest with organizational culture. The firm might require a formal presentation to the client.
- Offer quality grooming through every activity they do.
- Value the improvement they exhibit.
- Although employability is driven by most firms, I request you to focus on personal excellence rather than market parameters. This would allow your employees a greater degree of choice within cross-functional roles rather than being pigeonholed by standard definitions.
Request you to share more about your firm's requirements so that we can offer definite solutions.
From India, Mumbai
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1872Physical Environment:
Identify the sectoral preferences of an ideal workplace. An IT firm may offer flexible options along with a tennis room, whereas a manufacturing firm would be guided by safety parameters and standards.
Emotional Content:
- Find the average age group in your firm.
- Group employees in terms of demography.
- Identify common choices and individual preferences to remain flexible. For instance, if one employee connects with a feng shui article, others might value family pictures or a small statue of a deity they pray to.
- Allow customization within company standards. Set parameters from 5S to ensure complete ownership.
- Maintain a notice board with motivational quotes and a collage of team members to celebrate achievements and strengths realized throughout the week. I know one firm that manages a board for teams where they write, 'The best thing that happened today,' before they leave for the day.
- I attended an NHRD workshop recently and heard a suggestion to drive the referral program, where the employer put a mirror on every employee's desk with a message, "I need someone just like you!"
- Implement measures such as 'Pat on the back,' a spontaneous activity by team members to acknowledge contributions on the spot. A gesture of appreciation by peers builds self-efficacy and strengthens the team.
- Focus on the 'joy of delivering the work' and let incentives be the natural result. Encouraging them to deliver and acknowledging effort and excellence on the spot will fuel further growth.
Intellectual Aspiration:
- Identify different areas for intellectual growth among your employees. Not everyone wants to be a technical expert; some might be more inclined to grow functionally.
- Identify leaders who can guide these groups. If you have a mentoring program established in your firm, you might connect this with it.
- Let it be vibrant and spontaneous. Learning is a change in behavior. It attenuates when conditioned positively with constant orientation. A fixed program allows the mentoring process to run by parameters but misses the nuances from instant interactions.
- Focus on building professional relationships that can work as sponsors to each other.
- Focus on linking employees to their interests for development by allowing each one to contribute to others' learning. For instance, some may wish to certify in a technical course, while others might be happier with a book club. Some might enjoy trekking and outdoor activities. Help them connect these interests with their current work deliveries to drive performance. Prune speakers from book club members, leadership from trekking enthusiasts, and next-level product developers from techies.
- Repetitive jobs are often the biggest demotivator. Encourage employees to identify areas for improvement. Job enrichment impacts best when initiated by the employee with organizational support.
Professional Grooming:
- This is where you combine individual interest with organizational culture. The firm might require a formal presentation to the client.
- Offer quality grooming through every activity they do.
- Value the improvement they exhibit.
- Although employability is driven by most firms, I request you to focus on personal excellence rather than market parameters. This would allow your employees a greater degree of choice within cross-functional roles rather than being pigeonholed by standard definitions.
Request you to share more about your firm's requirements so that we can offer definite solutions.
From India, Mumbai
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Open communication is key to sharing the basics of the company, financial information, challenges, and other good or bad news that affects employees. Regularly discuss the importance of their work and how it aligns with company goals, career growth, and skill development.
Value inputs by listening to their ideas, opinions, and concerns, and taking appropriate action.
As a manager, I always clearly communicate performance standards, vision, goals, expectations, priorities, etc. Appreciate their work and create a challenging environment in which they have to perform.
From India, Brahmapur
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Value inputs by listening to their ideas, opinions, and concerns, and taking appropriate action.
As a manager, I always clearly communicate performance standards, vision, goals, expectations, priorities, etc. Appreciate their work and create a challenging environment in which they have to perform.
From India, Brahmapur
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Motivating People: A Challenge Beyond the Workplace
Motivating people is very easy to say, but quite difficult to do. Forget the workplace—are we motivated enough to actually stand and face the realities of life, like our government's callousness, the corruption, etc.? I would just say, try keeping people happy. As an HR professional, I would only look at how many people I could keep HAPPY during my stint with the organization, with its bureaucracies and politics. Happiness comes from within. Yes, finding people motivators will help. Solve the hygiene issues, and half the work is done.
Regards,
Ajay
From United States, Iowa City
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Motivating people is very easy to say, but quite difficult to do. Forget the workplace—are we motivated enough to actually stand and face the realities of life, like our government's callousness, the corruption, etc.? I would just say, try keeping people happy. As an HR professional, I would only look at how many people I could keep HAPPY during my stint with the organization, with its bureaucracies and politics. Happiness comes from within. Yes, finding people motivators will help. Solve the hygiene issues, and half the work is done.
Regards,
Ajay
From United States, Iowa City
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