How to motivate your team in a new working environment

How to motivate your team in a new working environment

Most companies have had their hands full just trying to keep afloat these past few months. Now that staff are returning to workplaces, the pressure hasn’t really let up. The science and statistics warn that the pandemic isn’t over yet and that people still need to exercise caution. Add to that the economic uncertainty and it adds up to a lot of anxiety in the work place. How can you keep your team motivated in this new working environment? Here are our top tips:

Communicate:

When there is so much uncertainty around, the one thing that can relieve anxiety is having information. When staff know what’s happening in the business and where they fit into the process it can provide them with a sense of security. They know they have a part to play and they know what’s expected of them. It enables them to get on with work and focus on what they need to do rather than whether or not they’re still going to have a job.

If there are going to be changes, communicate what these will be and how they will influence operations and various role players. Explain the rationale behind the decisions and invite input and comment from staff.Their experience may lead to suggestions that could improve on the changes, make them more effective or easier to implement and benefit the whole organization.

Listen:

As much as you need to communicate with staff, you also need to take the time to listen to them. Schedule time for management to sit down one-one one with their teams and have a discussion on their experience of the past few months. While it has been challenging for everyone, each person’s experience has been different.

Many people have had time for soul searching, trying to rediscover what’s important to them. As a result their perspective on life and the work they’re doing may have changed. It could be they’re returning to a job they no longer enjoy, but don’t want to say anything for fear of being without a pay cheque. If this is the case they’re unlikely to say this straight out. But by gently probing, asking what they enjoy in their job, what they find challenging and how they would change or improve what they’re doing, managers can gain more insights about what their staff really want to be doing.

This is an incredibly valuable exercise to do. With so many changes in the mix, there may be an opportunity for a staff member to use their expertise in a new way, to oversee a special project, implement new technology or adapt processes to make them more efficient. By really listening, companies that better optimise the resources they have to help stimulate economic recovery.

Celebrate:

If you consider the mess the world is in, many may feel there isn’t much to celebrate right now. That couldn’t be further from the truth. Now is exactly the time to celebrate the victories and gains, no matter how small they are. New ideas are to be celebrated, recoveries are to be celebrated, kindness is to be celebrated. As much as our minds and bodies have taken a toll, celebrations feed our soul, give us hope once again and bring a smile to people’s faces. We are all human and sharing a positive moment encourages people to do more and work towards the next thing to be celebrated. It motivates people to look beyond their situation and work with a purpose.