Measuring and Maintaining Employee Motivation

 

Measuring and maintaining employee motivation

1.     Conducting surveys

Assigning metrics to measure employee motivation can be difficult. However, surveys are an efficient method of gathering employee feedback (Garrad and Hyland, 2020). Conducting annual surveys can be inefficient primarily because of the large time gap between each one. Analyzing the results of one survey may consume too much time, and by the time the management implements the relevant changes, the problems would have already caused severe losses to the company.

Conducting short and frequent surveys would be effective and make it easier for the HR department to act on the employee feedback quickly (de Waal, 2014). Sometimes, the employees may find it difficult to express themselves in face-to-face interviews/surveys. Therefore, providing confidential surveys would be a good option. Surveys conducted through online methods would be more effective.

Figure 1: Steps to conduct a good survey (Jay, 2021)

 

2.     Monitoring employee absence

Increased rate of absenteeism is a sign of a bad working environment which demotivates the employees (Bennedsen, Tsoutsoura and Wolfenzon, 2019). Employees might be absent due to family emergencies, climate issues, or health issues. However, regular days of absence can also point to a deeper meaning possibly originating from the lack of motivation.

Therefore, monitoring and keeping track of employee absenteeism can be a method of measuring employee motivation in the workplace. It is important to take time and discuss with these employees regarding matters that might be affecting their attendance.

3.     Monitoring the number of working hours

If the employees are working a shorter number of hours than they are supposed to work as stated in their employee contract, there may be an issue of the lack of motivation behind it (Shkoler and Kimura, 2020). In contrast, if employees are working the regular work hours and manage their time well, it is an indication of motivation.

However, if the shorter working hours do not result in a productivity decrease, then there might be another issue in the workplace. Such a situation would imply that even though the employees are working regular hours, their productivity is lacking, indication potential lack of motivation.

4.     Evaluation of outputs and mistakes

Motivated employees are dedicated to achieving their goals and provide good outputs within the assigned time. Such employees make little to no mistakes as they are driven to do their best. Even if they make mistakes, they learn from them and perform even better the next time (Harteis, Bauer and Gruber, 2008).

In contrast, an unmotivated employee would make a lot of mistakes, be tardy, and their output would not be effective. If left unattended, these employees can commit more and more mistakes, affecting overall productivity of the organization.

Therefore, employee productivity and the number of mistakes can be a measure of motivation. Early identification of these issues would provide the management with the chance to solve the issue by involving the employee and their direct manager.

5.     Signs of antisocial behavior

Happy and motivated employees show good social behavior. They work well with their colleagues and show a positive mindset. Thus, good employee relationships result in a positive work environment (Arimie and Oronsaye, 2020).

In contrast, an employee who is demotivated would be unhappy in the workplace, reflecting this unhappiness through their social behaviors. They would be antisocial and show a negative mindset (Sinclair, Martin and Croll, 2002). Toxic behavior of one employee can rub off on the others affecting the entire social environment of the workplace. Therefore, monitoring peer relationships and employee social behavior through team leaders can be used to measure motivation in the workplace.

6.     Unwillingness to take responsibility

Motivated employees will be excited about undertaking new challenges and do their best to deliver good results exceeding customer expectation. They are willing to take responsibility and be held accountable for their work (Wang, Waldman and Ashforth, 2018). However, demotivated employees are unwilling to take responsibility and accountability. Therefore, identifying employees who are regularly turning down new responsibilities or show unwillingness is a sign of demotivation. Team leaders and managers should monitor the behavior of their subordinates to identify these signs.

After measuring the motivation in the workplace, it is important to establish solutions to the identified issues. Well-implemented solutions will contribute to displaying results on a real-time dashboard which allows easy measurement of trends and identification of issues. It will also assist in identifying methods to find out methods of motivating employees and causes for demotivation. Regularly checking back with the employees will ensure that the solutions are actually working. Showing the employees that they are well cared for and have opportunity to speak up will keep them motivated.

 

Conclusion

Employee motivation results in the increasing the productivity of the workplace, promote innovation, decrease employee turnover rate, and results in a positive work environment. In contrast, failing to address employee motivation will be highly detrimental to the organization as employees are the base of the organization and are an integral part of the operations. There are numerous theories and practices to enhance the employee motivation in the atmosphere. Employee motivation factors can be primarily divided as extrinsic and intrinsic. Although intrinsic motivation is considered to be more effective in the long-term, each employee may look at the associated rewards differently. Hence, the management should implement effective methods to measure employee motivation in the workplace, identify motivational methods applicable to each employee, and work towards implementing and monitoring those strategies to achieve organizational goals along with high employee satisfaction.

 

References

Arimie, J. C. and Oronsaye, A. O. (2020) ‘Assessing Employee Relations and Organizational Performance: A Literature Review’, International Journal of Applied Research in Business and Management, 1(1), pp. 1–17. doi: 10.51137/ijarbm.2020.1.1.1.

Bennedsen, M., Tsoutsoura, M. and Wolfenzon, D. (2019) ‘Drivers of effort: Evidence from employee absenteeism’, Journal of Financial Economics, 133(3), pp. 658–684. doi: 10.1016/j.jfineco.2018.12.001.

Garrad, L. K. and Hyland, P. K. (2020) ‘Employee Survey Research’, in Employee Surveys and Sensing. Oxford University Press, pp. 374–390. doi: 10.1093/oso/9780190939717.003.0023.

Harteis, C., Bauer, J. and Gruber, H. (2008) ‘The culture of learning from mistakes: How employees handle mistakes in everyday work’, International Journal of Educational Research, 47(4), pp. 223–231. doi: 10.1016/j.ijer.2008.07.003.

Jay, S. (2021) A Complete Guide to Employee Engagement Survey Analysis , Academy to Innovate HR.

Shkoler, O. and Kimura, T. (2020) ‘How Does Work Motivation Impact Employees’ Investment at Work and Their Job Engagement? A Moderated-Moderation Perspective Through an International Lens’, Frontiers in Psychology, 11. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2020.00038.

Sinclair, R. R., Martin, J. E. and Croll, L. W. (2002) ‘A threat-appraisal perspective on employees’ fears about antisocial workplace behavior.’, Journal of Occupational Health Psychology, 7(1), pp. 37–56. doi: 10.1037/1076-8998.7.1.37.

de Waal, A. (2014) ‘The employee survey: benefits, problems in practice, and the relation with the high performance organization’, Strategic HR Review, 13(6), pp. 227–232. doi: 10.1108/SHR-07-2014-0041.

Wang, D., Waldman, D. A. and Ashforth, B. E. (2018) ‘Employee Accountability as a Basis for Customer Relations and Corporate Reputation’, Academy of Management Proceedings, 2018(1), p. 10047. doi: 10.5465/AMBPP.2018.10047abstract.