Employee Motivation and Recognition

Transcription

1 Employee Motivation and Recognition Supervisory Development Core Minnesota Management & Budget Question 1: Question 2: April 2008

2 Motivation is a hidden force within us that causes us to behave in a certain way. Sometimes it is instinctive; sometimes it arises from a rational decision. More usually, it is a mixture of both. Ivor K. Davies Session Objectives: Understand the connection between workplace satisfaction and productivity; Explore the impact that personality has on how and why people are motivated; Discuss the correlation between motivation and recognition Employee Motivation and Recognition 1

3 Opening Conversation Think about a time when you really loved your job. What made it a positive time and a positive experience for you? Now, think about a time when you were very unhappy at work. What made it a negative experience? Hygiene Motivator Theory Frederick Herzberg contended in the 1950 s that there are two dimensions leading to workplace satisfaction and motivation: Hygiene Factors and Motivators. Hygiene Factors Supervision Workplace climate Feelings of security Status Satisfaction Motivators Accomplishment/Achievement Recognition Responsibility Personal Growth The Work Itself Employee Motivation and Recognition 3

4 Extrinsic versus Intrinsic Motivation Extrinsic motivation is evident when people feel driven by an outside factor, such as a reward that is promised to them if they complete a task. Examples: Intrinsic motivation comes from a strong emotional interest in something, and a sense of autonomy and freedom related to accomplishing it. Examples: Employee Motivation and Recognition 4

5 What is Most Important to You? Each of us is motivated by a complex combination of values. This simple tool can be used to identify which work values are most important to you, and can serve as the basis of a conversation that will help you understand what kind of work is most meaningful for you. Rank in order of importance (1 = most, 5 = least) Your Response A) You enjoy organizing, instigating, and strategizing. You are always coming up with new ideas and are able to inspire others with those ideas. B) You are extremely loyal to standards and rules. You like goals to be clear, but you also like to be left alone. However, you appreciate public recognition. C) You need good work relationships and a strong, dependable team environment. You are always willing to lend a hand to anyone who is struggling in some way. D) You enjoy advocating for others and/or for a cause. You like to see the results of your efforts. Truth and justice are critical. E) You have a natural curiosity about a variety of things. You like to learn, and you tend to focus on your own self-development. You strive to continually upgrade skills. Employee Motivation and Recognition 5

6 Social Character Types A. Innovator: Values: Service: B. Expert: Values: Service: C. Helper: Values: Service: D. Defender: Values: Service: 5. Self Developer: Values: Service: Employee Motivation and Recognition 6

7 Ideas for Employee Recognition Send an all-staff from your CEO/Commissioner expressing gratitude for hard work. **Offer a continental breakfast of coffee and donuts as a thank you. Provide employees with a hand-written thank you for a job well done. Organize pot luck luncheons. Provide a free parking space for a week for an employee. Thank each employee at the end of the day for doing a good job. Recognition is about acknowledging good results and reinforcing positive performance; it s about shaping an environment in which contributions are noticed and appreciated Eric Harvey, 180 Ways to Walk the Recognition Talk Employee Motivation and Recognition 7

8 What leads to genuine feelings of sincere recognition? Having pride in one s work and one s employer Doing work that has meaning Understanding the goal and one s role in it Being a player, not just a hired hand Having the chance to experience efficacy Being heard Make sure the recognition you provide is: Timely Specific Sincere Individual Employee Motivation and Recognition 8

9 Action Ideas Much has been studied and written about how to bring out the best in people. Here are some ideas that you might think about incorporating: 1. Spend some thinking about whether your values and personality fit with the kind of work that you do. If not, what decisions do you need to make? 2. Begin your next staff meeting with this question: What kind of place do we want to work in? Think about whether or not the workplace everyone is describing is the one you find yourselves in. If not, what can you do differently to close the gap? 3. Have the group come up with a simple and uncomplicated onesentence statement that reflects what everyone believes in. 4. Share the information on values and types with your team and ask them what most closely resembles what they value personally, and what type best describes them. Hearing them speak about this in their own words could give you some new insights about how to work more effectively together. Employee Motivation and Recognition 9

10 For more information: Adolph Haasen and Gordon F. Shea, (1997). A Better Place to Work. New York, NY: AMA Membership Publications Division. Harvey, Eric, (2000). 180 Ways to Walk the Recognition Talk. Dallas, Texas: Performance Systems Corporation. Harris, Jim, Ph.D, (1996). Getting Employees to Fall in Love with Your Company. New York, NY: American Management Association. Maccoby, Michael (1988). Why Work: Motivating and Leading the New Generation. New York, NY: Simon & Schuster Publishing Employee Motivation and Recognition 10