Employee motivation: Experienced entrepreneur writes about motivating staff

Date: 03/11/2011

Guy Rigby, who is a chartered accountant and experienced entrepreneur, has written a post about employee motivation for his company's website, Smith & Williamson.

He acknowledges the need for growing companies to improve areas such as performance, productivity and efficiency, yet many lack a proper strategy to achieve these aims.

Consideration should be given to the best forms of incentives and recognition for employees that they will respond to best.

Mr Rigby notes that staff are more motivated by the level of understanding, appreciation and how well they are treated than money, as long as they are paid fairly.

He said: "The better you treat your staff, the better they’ll treat your customers and you as a business."

In a recent list by the Great Place to Work Institute of the top 25 international companies to work for, being able to trust business leaders, having pride and job satisfaction in the work they do and friendly relationships with fellow colleagues were mentioned as the most important factors.

The greater number of staff employed by a company the bigger an impact it will have on a business, as everything is magnified upwards.

With fewer opportunities of promotion in modern business, moving through the ranks is less of a motivator and traditional hierarchies are being abandoned.

He identifies four key factors for motivating staff, from financial security and job satisfaction through development and learning to recognition and reward.

A well thought out motivational strategy will encompass all of these aspects in order to get the most out of staff.

Research by Mercer found that when it surveyed 30,000 employees across 17 countries, many said immediate and cost effective benefits can make up for low wages and a lack of promotions available.

Mr Rigby said: "A company’s ‘total reward’ offering may encompass each of these areas and include salary, bonuses, share awards, benefits, pension, life cover, training, career development, company culture and the working environment."
 

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