How can autonomy, mastery and purpose increase employee motivation and performance?

The key factor influencing the performance of any enterprise is its staff.
Work motivation issues become more relevant and important from practical perspective. Work motivation is directly related to the needs of any person, as the prerequisite of his/her involvement into operating activities and the way to the best settlement of social problems.

Today we actively search for new forms of managing purposeful activities of a human. This process, from one side, is based on analysis and reassessment of established conceptions regarding the motives that push us to work. From other side, it rests on the results of scientific research in work motivation sphere performed by economists, sociologists, psychologists and educational specialists.

 

Below you will find some recommendations how to develop and strengthen the system of motivation, autonomy, mastery and purpose of company employees in the following directions:

  • Corporate culture
  • Employer branding
  • Improvement of corporate communications system
  • Rewards system
  • Performance management
  • Autonomy
  • Mastery Service standards improve the status of profession
  • Purpose

 

CORPORATE CULTURE:

  • Positive corporate culture means:
    • freedom deserved through responsibility and trust
    • nobody is forced to do anything because eventually the person works well only when s/he wants to
    • “yes” – culture – hear ideas and problems of employees
  • Arrange for employees to wish feeling themselves part of business, the image of which they like personally. This inner satisfaction from high achievements and external image in opinion of family, friends, etc. Pride for the company where you work is the path to loyalty of employees. How to achieve this? For example, posters like “Company history (year of establishment) – (current date) in significant events, with dates and names of employees who made their contribution.
  • Involvement – right of ownership – the company lets employees to act as though they are its owners – right to make own decisions, absence of fear to be punished for made mistakes, high level of trust.
  • Development of corporate symbology/attributes – contest on the best corporate symbol/attributes. The winner is the tribe leader. Victory is determined through fair vote, projects are submitted anonymously. Contest participants are stimulated – official coronation ceremony, exceptional position of the “tribe leader” for the specified period – g. “veto” right. 2nd word during the vote.

 

EMPLOYER BRANDING

Develop Employer Brand Unique and Memorable

  • How do you stand out from the rest – what is your specialness / memorability at the labour market?
  • What can you do better than others for your employees?
  • What supports the stability of your company?
  • What elements help your Employer brand to be recognizable at the labour market (e.g. slogan telling your employees what your company is by nature)?

Employer of the choice – work in your company means affiliation with elite, privileged. It is stylish, popular, upmarket and cool to be the employee of your company.

Identify what makes employees to choose you as the Employer 

  • Define the targeted market of jobseekers
  • Define the pressing needs of your targeted market of jobseekers that make jobseekers to seek/choose you (problems that must be solved immediately/wishes, to which to advance to)
  • What is the essential benefit/principal outcome for the jobseeker from cooperation with you (financial/emotional/spiritual/physical)

Social responsibility

  • Social responsibility – charitable contributions:
    • Charity event for children. Let employees to independently identify the subject of assistance.
    • Theme charity parties. Employees independently identify the subject of assistance.

 

IMPROVEMENT OF CORPORATE COMMUNICATIONS SYSTEM

  • Corporate blog:
    • Employee information
    • Clients vote for specific employees
    • Advices / recipes /video master classes
    • Competition for vacancy
    • Competition for vouchers – g. knowledge of company’s products
  • Social media – personal employee cards on company FB page, voting for employee of the month – clients, colleagues, management, subordinates

 

REWARDS SYSTEM

  • Remuneration within the limits for the industry (ideally – higher than average for the industry).

 

PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENT

  • Performance review – often, easy, clear.
  • Prior to manager’s evaluation provide the employee with opportunity for self-assessment.
  • Feedback – not only comments related to achieved outcomes but also the information on the process of performance, particular success/failures.
  • Ask for the feedback about employees from the client. Bring clients’ comments to the attention of employees. More compliments – more efforts!
  • Input of every employee is very important. Noting that staff is divided onto front and back offices, nobody should be overlooked during evaluation.

 

AUTONOMY

  • Increase the share of employees participation in decision-making. Make special groups to discuss projects. Let employees to choose participants themselves, or to join if they feel that they have something to offer. If you invite particular employees to take part in the event, make personalized invitations. Ask employees who of their colleagues can be involved in project discussions. Who, as they think, is an expert in this or that area? Gratitude for the ideas of employees – implemented/fulfilled projects.

 

MASTERY SERVICE STANDARDS IMPROVE THE STATUS OF PROFESSION

  • Identify the qualities of the best representatives of your team as of today. According to such criteria hire employees in future
  • Professional standards as warranty of overall quality of service for the company
  • Profession code
  • Professional standards school
    • Mastery training – master classes
    • School/courses/onsite training
    • Contests
    • Coaching
  • Professional association/society/club (cooks, bartenders, accountants etc.)
  • Employee fun club (“likes” from colleagues/clients/management)

 

PURPOSE

  • Charitable contributions – establish a fund, where to employees may transfer % from their revenue. This money the employee can send where s/he wants (charity). Make public the “champion” benefactors and the outcomes of such charity activities during general meetings. Among other things it can increase the revenue but with the noble idea.

 

HR metrics

Corporate events