Motivating Your Employees – Listen to Them!

Many leaders are considering how to motivate their employees in the current economic conditions. Bonuses, additional benefits and pay raises are out of the question for most small businesses…not because they lack the desire, but they simply can’t sustain the cost for a prolonged period. Increases in the cost structure today may result in lost jobs tomorrow.

It is time to look for opportunities to motivate that don’t add to a business’ fixed costs. Economic downturns are the perfect time to listen closely to our employees, to thoughtfully consider their input and take action. Your employees know where efficiencies can be obtained and money can be saved.

When was the last time your employees brought suggestions to you about cutting costs?  You can’t remember? Hmmm. That tends to happen when we:

1)      Listen from a context of “whiner” or “complainer”. Most cost savings are couched in employee “complaints” about conditions or circumstances that hinder their ability to perform to their best ability. These complaints are really expressing a commitment to you but you hear a “whiner” talking. Change the context from which you listen from “whiner” to that of an employee committed to your success.

2)      Prepare our “We can’t do that because” list while they are talking to us. Be focused on what they are saying, not how you are going to respond. You job is not to say “No”, but “How can I help.”

3)      Fail to act on their suggestions. Why should they be committed to you (help you drive down costs) when you are not committed to them (fail to act)? After a few failures to act on your part, they simply quit bringing the ideas. Be committed!

You can reduce costs and improve morale if you will follow this simple process:

1)      Ask your employees:  “How can we become more cost efficient?” or “How can we reduce the cost of ____________________?”

2)      Provide “constraints” for their solutions (e.g. We have to use existing equipment. The total cost can’t be more than $x”. Whatever is appropriate to your circumstances.)

3)      Commit to implementing their solution if it meets the constraints.

4)      Get out of their way and let them be creative in designing the solution.

5)      Implement the solution.

6)      Celebrate their success.

In this way, you have acknowledged them by expressing Trust (in their judgment), Respect (for their expertise), Appreciation (for their contributions), Interest (in their thoughts) and Listened with an intent to act.

Best wishes for your success!

Leslie

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TRAIL (Trust, Respect, Appreciation, Interest, Listening) is a concept developed by Scott Degraffenreid in Blazing a TRAIL to Success – The New Art & Science of Acknowledgment which is available through www.NecessaryMeasures.com.

Leslie Knight is a trusted advisor to small businesses. She has over 20 years of experience in Corporate America which she applies to smaller entrepreneurial enterprises. She is also the author of Navigating the I.T. Minefield – Straight Talk for the Small Enterprise. To purchase your copy, please visit http://bit.ly/SNL4W.

This entry was posted on Friday, November 20th, 2009 at 12:06 pm and is filed under Business, Team, leadership, small business. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.