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Motivating your team: Top tips

Today is the UK’s first official Employee Motivation Day, launched by Argos for Business to inspire the nation’s workforce and get people talking about the hot topic: motivation. It’s one of the biggest assets a business owner has at their fingertips, yet it is so often overlooked. Having a day like today where British businesses can share best practices is a step in the right direction if we’re going to boost the nation’s productivity and ability to compete globally.

At UKFast, we use motivation across the business. I think it’s an archaic idea that a business owner’s responsibility ends at paying a wage. If that’s all you do, your team will turn up and switch off. It’s simply not enough of a motivator to get people coming into work every day ready to give their all. In my experience, there are a number of things that really motivate people in a business.

1. Competition

While some people attach negative connotations to the word, I think competition is actually a very positive thing. It’s what drives people forward and gives us clear goals. At UKFast, we instil a sense of healthy competition across the business. You can see it in an unofficial capacity; in the gym or in reception with the giant chess board we have there, and in an official capacity with the ‘tech top 10’. This is a competition that runs throughout the year amongst our technical engineers. Each week at the company-wide Monday Morning Meeting, we announce who is sitting where in the top 10 in terms of the customer service they’ve delivered. We work this out using an algorithm, which allocates points to engineers based on factors like customer feedback; time spent talking to clients and the speed queries are dealt with, to name a few. There are prizes for the top three engineers each quarter and then, at the end of the year, the top 10 are treated to a big reward. Last year, we sent a group on an all-expenses-paid trip to Las Vegas. The funny thing is, most of them enjoy the challenge itself most of all; the banter with colleagues and the weekly reveal of who’s placed where in the top ten.

2. Environment

Creating the perfect space isn’t just down to looks. It’s about how a space is used and the feelings it gives off when you hang out or work in it. We spend a third of our life with friends and family, a third asleep and a third at work, so it makes a big difference if your workplace is somewhere you actually enjoy spending time in. If you give people an extraordinary work environment, your entire workforce gets behind you and understands you care. This in turn helps in your quest to motivate your entire team.

If you work for yourself or someone else, start asking questions. What would motivate the team? What could we do to make everyone feel better right away? In a small business all you might need is a table tennis table and it will lift the energy when you really need it. I asked the question at UKFast and now we have a gym, a sauna, a crèche, an auditorium and even a bar! Having seen the energy levels increase as people recharge in a variety of different ways, I know the investment is worth it.

3. Development

One of the best decisions we made at UKFast was to hire two former teachers to head up our Training and Development department. Not only do they run our apprenticeship scheme, but they also keep the entire team ahead of the curve with continuous training, helping people to work towards exams and gain industry relevant accreditations. In life, as in nature, nothing stands still. We are either growing or we are dying. People often leave a company because they have stopped developing there and are no longer being challenged. Asking people about their professional and personal goals and helping them to achieve them is a huge motivator and benefits the company as much as it does the individual.

Personally I’m of the belief that if you’re not motivating your staff, they’re not the only ones missing out. There’s a lot of fun to be had engaging and inspiring your team. It creates a strong sense of loyalty and some really strong friendships, some of which can last a lifetime.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Lawrence Jones .