Motivating Team Members

During Tough Times.........spend time n keep the flock together!

“Employees can get caught up in worrying about ‘what if?’ situations, often

When they can’t see how they can control or influence those situations. For

example, they may start worrying about their company’s stock price. When this

happens, great managers refocus their teams by saying things like, ‘You know,

We can’t control the stock price. But here are specific things we can influence

every day as a team and as individual employees that will make us more

productive.’”

One of the main challenges in a down economy can be a depressing

workplace where employees feel down, which can reduce overall productivity

and get in the way of opportunities, teamwork and creative problem solving.

Try these simple suggestions to keep employees engaged during this

economic downturn.

1. Host informal "coffee talks". Pull an entire work team together to

openly talk about what's going on in the world and how it affects business.

Encourage employees to ask questions. This decreases negative rumors

and also gets employees focused on work rather than on griping.

2. Offer "destressor" activities. Hire a local massage school to offer free

10-minute chair massages once every couple of weeks. Look for other

distinctive and fun way to convey that your organization recognizes the

rough times and cares about your staff's well-being.

3. Form "new business attack teams". The goal of these employee teams

is to investigate new business development options. By encouraging your

team to focus on the future, motivation can rise quickly.

4. Support community involvement. Provide company time for teams of

employees to serve dinner at a local shelter, help build houses, adopt a

family for a holiday, or collect money for a common charity. It not only

serves as a motivator in that people feel they are doing something with a

purpose, but also creates a positive public image.

5. Develop "individualized" motivation plans. Talk with key team

members about the types of projects, training, experiences or mentors

they would like to have. Times may be tough for people to get jobs, but

your best people are also the most marketable. One of the main reasons

people leave or are unmotivated is because they don't feel valued by their

manager or company.

5 TIPS FOR MOTIVATING YOUR TEAM

More than ever before, companies are restructuring work environments

and downsizing because of the depressed economy. Some of our own

clients have recently experienced symptoms of low morale at their

companies, such as employee health problems, leaves of absence,

absenteeism and dips in productivity. Here are some suggestions from our

own experience to help you motivate and enhance the performance of

your workforce in these challenging economic times:

1. Communicate goals. Communication cannot be overemphasized,

particularly in down times. Positive communication should indicate

where the company is going, and begin to align employee-

performance goals with the changing objectives of your organization.

2. Make employees part of the solution. Employees need to be

involved in decision making, because their buy-in is critical for

motivation and performance. They should be involved in even the

most difficult decisions.

3. Offer alternatives. In uncertain times, employees need more, not

less, structure and focus. Reviewing goals frequently is a critical

element in keeping people on track. While there may be no increases

in pay available, there may be training programs, career development,

cross training, flexible work schedules and other steps that can be

taken within budgetary constraints. Ask your team to develop goals

for professional or skills development that will help them achieve the

team’s contribution to the whole.

4. Measure. Make sure employees can measure their own performance

against the key performance factors of the business. This is a key

element of employee motivation because if they cannot measure their

progress, it is unlikely their progress will improve.

5. Reward. It is especially important that employees feel a sense of

accomplishment in their work. By setting up the proper recognition

and rewards, they can feel a sense of team work and be acknowledged

for their efforts during these difficult times. If rewards are structured

properly, your team will appreciate their involvement and stay

motivated, even in the absence of monetary rewards or stock options.

Remember: It is easy to forget the importance of employee motivation

and recognition, especially in down times, but it is far more difficult to

replace a key team member who contributes in hundreds of ways that are

unseen each week and year.

3 LEADERSHIP QUALITIES FOR TOUGH TIMES

FAST FACT: Forget the old stereotype of the employee who wastes time

at the water cooler, shooting the breeze with fellow employees. A new MIT

study shows that employees who discuss work and share ideas are more

productive than those who don’t.

In today’s turbulent economic market, even the strongest and most powerful

corporate icons are challenged to find ways to improve their efficiencies. As

they require more work from fewer numbers of people, their top priority is

having effective leaders and managers who can propel their group to

greatness. Unfortunately, many young managers and leaders have never

seen a tight economy, or at a minimum, have only a faint memory of what it

can be like. It’s during these times that leadership skills are put to the test.

The following three leadership qualities are extremely valuable during

robust times, and absolutely essential during challenging times.

1. Lend an empathetic ear. While denial is the natural response when

things get tough, ignoring the emotions of your team members only

causes greater challenges. Create a forum for people to share their

feelings so that they can release them and move on. When people sense

that another doesn’t truly understand their emotions, they tend to stay

charged and keep whining. If you don’t want to be listening to the same

complaints over and over, then listen with emotion. If someone’s voice

is loud and angry, say back in a loud voice, “I feel terrible because I see

you are so upset.” Then continue the conversation by dropping your

voice slowly to a normal range. Watch the magic as they defuse by

simply knowing you “really got it.”

2. Don’t buy into the “ain’t it awful” story. Everything you hear could

be true. Quarterly profits could be down, market share may be

shrinking, and turnover could be high. These and other measurements

are feedback that an organization isn’t doing what it should be doing.

Lead your team to the understanding that even during the darkest times,

many do well, and you intend to be one of them. Your team needs to

shift out of its doomsday view and into one with possibilities. When

people say, “We can’t because,” the response should always be, “How

can we?” With enough repetition, people will soon come to understand

that results can be achieved no matter what the circumstances.

3. Acknowledge the steps along the way. Frustration runs high when

things aren’t working well. Employees’ confidence is shaken. When

confidence is low, performance weakens, thereby feeding into the cycle

of lower motivation and performance. It doesn’t have to be this way.

Appreciate the little steps along the way during challenging times. Let

your team know that you appreciate not only the things they do, but also

who they are and the efforts they make. Build fun into your

appreciation. Good organizations, departments and managers thrive

during rough times because they learn to hone their skills like never

before. They’ve discovered that it’s the bad times that make them so

much better during the good times.

6 LESSONS IN LEADERSHIP FROM THE MILITARY

“The day soldiers stop bringing you their problems is the day you have stopped leading them.” --Colin Powell, U.S. Secretary of State.

The discipline and motivation of the men and women serving in the U.S. armed forces is something most managers admire. Who wouldn’t want to lead a team of enthusiastic, energetic professionals with the courage and determination of a U.S. Marine? Military leaders have much to offer leaders in the civilian world during both war and peacetime.

Here are six principles and practices that successful military leaders use to keep their teams focused and motivated:

1. Correct the small details. Good military leaders at all levels know that attention to detail can make the difference between life and death. You’re more concerned with profit and loss, but the principle remains the same. If you get into the habit of overlooking minor errors to avoid making trouble, you could end up ignoring mistakes that spell disaster.

2. Involve your people in important decisions. The Marine Corps urges its leaders to involve their immediate subordinates at every opportunity. You get the benefits of their knowledge and experience; they get a chance to see how you think and to develop their own decision-making skills. This will help them get ready to move into leadership positions later on.

3. Encourage people to ask “why.” Blind obedience may sound ideal, but it often runs people off the edge of cliffs. The Marines expect officers and soldiers to ask about the reasons behind decisions. An employee who understands the reasoning behind your instructions will do a better job; someone who asks a question when confused will make fewer mistakes, whether on the battlefield or in the workplace.

4. Don’t chase problems away. Read the quote from Four-star Gen. Colin Powell above. Why does he say this? If your team isn’t coming to you for help, they’ve probably lost confidence in your ability to solve problems, or they’ve decided you don’t care. In either case, you’ve failed as a leader. You need to know what your people’s challenges are. Don’t force them to hide and cover up difficult situations.

5. Consider everyone a leader. “Every soldier is a leader regardless of his rank or position,” reads Department of the Army Pamphlet 600-65. Platoon sergeants are expected to be ready and able to take command of a platoon in the platoon leader’s absence. Non-commissioned officers (NCOs) are expected to show initiative – to get things done without waiting to be told by a superior. Manage your team with an eye toward their own advancement into management.

6. Be flexible. You think you’re overwhelmed by change? In a military operation, the environment can change moment by moment. The Army’s tool for rapidly changing course is called a Fragmentation Order, or “Frago” for short. Any change of plans is signaled by use of the word “Frago” in the revised orders, letting soldiers know that

previous orders have been superseded. Be willing to change direction when circumstances demand it – and be sure to communicate your new plans so your team members know what you expect.

LESSON FROM THE FIELD:

Wendy’s Old Fashioned Hamburgers founder Dave Thomas was more than a behind-the-scenes business owner. He was also Wendy’s pitchman, setting a record for appearing in more than 800 advertisements. Thomas had presence. More than 90 percent of the public

said they could identify with his picture. What was it about his communication style that attracted millions to his business?

1. His low-key manner. He may have been a millionaire, but people felt free to approach him on the street.

2. His self-deprecating sense of humor. His ads said, “I’m serious about the quality of my business. But I don’t take myself too seriously.”

3. His “everyman” appearance. Always dressed in plain white, short-sleeve shirt and red tie, he actually looked like many working Americans. Thomas never intimidated. He never condescended. His style instantly made people feel at ease with him. Do you?

KEEP YOUR TOP PERFORMERS.

GIVE FEEDBACK THAT COUNTS

Feedback is an important tool for leaders, but like all tools it can be misused. Giving the wrong kind of feedback can damage relationships and destroy trust in your workplace. Here are four factors to consider before offering feedback::

1. Relevance and importance. Does the feedback you want to offer contribute to your employees’ abilities to do their jobs better? Will it improve productivity, efficiency, or the bottom line? Don’t waste time on feedback that won’t make a positive difference.

2. Accuracy. Check your facts, and check your interpretation of the facts. Are your opinions or personal feelings clouding your perception? Is there more than one way to look at the situation? Don’t take the truth of your information for granted.

3. Action. Does your feedback allow the employee to take action – to do something, change something, stop something? Telling employees that they made a mistake isn’t helpful feedback; explaining what to do in the future to avoid similar errors is.

4. Necessity. Does the employee really need to hear this? Test yourself by thinking about what would happen if you didn’t say anything. If the answer is nothing, you may want to think twice before inflicting your feedback on the person.

1. Build morale one person at a time. One of the best ways to keep morale up starts by simply walking around your workplace. Make a daily point of finding one person doing his or her job exceptionally well, and tell the individual how much you appreciate this. Be sincere; don’t gush or embarrass the person. Show a genuine interest in what he or she is doing, and then quickly move on so it doesn’t look like you are micromanaging.

2. Makeover your meetings. Recognize team accomplishments each week by having team members write down three good things that they helped make happen. Then at the next team meeting, have each member read what he or she wrote.

3. Think in new ways. To help your team develop a fresh approach to a problem, try this: Take a common object, such as a door knob or frying pan. Ask: “Does this have to be this way? How could it be improved?” Tossing around ideas can reignite the creative spark.