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You’re a born entrepreneur. Even when you worked under the corporate yoke, you were very particular about doing things right. And, eventually, doing things in your own personal brand of right. It’s that attention to detail and passion for quality that led you to shrug off the corporate yoke, smash through the glass ceiling and propel yourself to new heights by running your own business. Then 2020 happened! And you had to develop bold and sweeping operational changes. And you had to make them quickly. You were still passionate about doing things your way. But you had to learn to become a whole lot more malleable in terms of what “your way” was. You had to get to grips with working from home, as did your whole team.
And while there are many kinds of operation that can still run seamlessly with a remote workforce, there are bound to be inevitable teething problems. Some of which you may still be grappling with over 6 months later. Chief among these is maintaining consistent productivity and keeping your team motivated while working remotely… remotivation, if you will!
Let’s look at some ways in which you can motivate your team when you no longer share an office space…
Stay in touch
There’s never a time when clear and constant communication isn’t essential for your small business. But just because your team are working remotely doesn’t mean that you can afford to let them out of the loop. It’s important to keep communications clear and consistent. Keep holding remote meetings and give your team an opportunity to interact socially as well as professionally. And always ensure that your team have a direct means of communication with you to voice their issues, worries and concerns.
It’s also a good idea to ensure that you keep communications to one platform to make them easier to track later.
Leverage employee recognition platforms
It’s much harder to stay motivated when it feels as though your hard work and effort go unnoticed by your employer. Which is why it’s so essential to have a system that allows you to formally recognize their hard work. The good news is that there are a wide range of employee recognition platforms on the market. These work in the same way as social media platforms. Except that instead of being a distraction, they can improve motivation. They allow you to celebrate the achievements of individuals and teams. They even allow peers to recognize one another’s hard work. They can remind your workforce that the contributions that they make every day matter a great deal.
Plan events for a brighter tomorrow
Never underestimate the power of anticipation. Planning events with your team for when circumstances improve can remind everyone that the status quo needn’t last forever and that there’s plenty to look forward to professionally and socially. Booking a corporate event space and planning a special thank you for your team can be a great way to remind them how much you appreciate and value them.
Maintain training and incentive programs
Finally, when employees feel that you’re under-investing in them, it’s harder for them to remain engaged and motivated. So make sure you set time aside for employee training. Likewise, wherever possible, you should link your employee recognition platform with your incentive and bonus schemes. So that even when working from home, employees can see that their enceavor is rewarded.
