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employee motivation

How to Engage Your Employees During the Holidays

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how to engage your employees

The holiday season brings with it so much joy, merriment, and goodwill. From gift-getting to gift-giving to spending extra time with loved ones to taking more time to relax, there are so many good things about the holidays. For so many, it truly is the most wonderful time of the year.

For businesses? Maybe not so much. Keeping employees fully engaged and committed during the holiday season can be challenging, to say the least. With heavier workloads due to coworkers taking time off, distracted employees, unpredictable customer demands, and increased pressure to meet year-end goals, keeping employees engaged towards the end of the year can seem nearly impossible. Truly, it’s no wonder productivity tends to start slumping in mid-November.

However, keeping your employees engaged during the holiday months is crucial for your bottom line and overall staff satisfaction. Here are a few tips to help keep your employees motivated and finish out the year strong.

 

1. Reward and recognize great work

Show your employees how much you value their hard work and dedication this holiday season. Writing them a thank-you note or going out of your way to offer words of appreciation and encouragement will help keep them motivated to continue delivering great work, even when it’s difficult to stay focused.

Though verbal recognition is powerful, putting a structured rewards-based employee engagement program in place year-round can also help extend engagement into the holiday season. Be sure to highlight employee accomplishments regularly and consistently reward stellar work.

 

2. Be festive

Make sure some of that holiday cheer makes it to the office. Add some holiday- or winter-themed decorations. Hold a small secret Santa or white elephant gift exchange. Have an ugly sweater contest. Host a company-wide Christmas bake-off. Don’t ignore the holidays in an attempt to minimize distraction – embrace them to avoid employee resentment and invite a more lighthearted, stress-free atmosphere. It’ll help make your employees happier, more motivated, and more productive.

 

3. Offer a flexible schedule 

During the holiday season, it can be difficult to fill schedules and make sure there are enough employees in the office every day. Offering your employees the extra personal time they need to visit family, plan for the holidays, and just take a break shows them that they are appreciated and gives them the chance to recharge. Your employees will likely be more productive before and after their time off. As for those employees that help fill in gaps while their coworkers are away on vacation, be sure to show gratitude and encourage other employees to do so as well.

 

4. Communicate year-end goals and holiday plans clearly

Whatever your goals and policies, make sure your employees are aware of them. Inform your employees of expectations early on. Reiterate your holiday scheduling guidelines. Be transparent about company-wide goals, progress, and needs. It’ll help your employees feel more valued and see how their role fits into the big picture. They’ll make better decisions and focus their work on contributing to those goals — just like you want them to!

 

5. Look Forward to the Future

Don’t wait until the new year starts to set goals — start setting new goals before the year ends. Encourage employees to get involved by suggesting areas that could be improved company-wide, and encourage them to set personal goals as well. Be specific and optimistic when looking forward to the future, and help employees see their individual roles and responsibilities in making the company’s vision a reality. It’ll help your employees get right back into the swing of things once they come back from taking time off.

 

6. Volunteer at a charity

Embrace what the holiday season is really about. As you give back to the community as a company, your employees will feel a sense of goodness and unity, sure to extend to the workplace. Whether you hold a toy/clothing drive, collect cans for a food drive, or volunteer at your local soup kitchen as a team, giving back is sure to boost morale collectively and individually. Plus, it’ll help put any struggles or stresses into proper perspective.

During these holiday months, think about your employees’ needs and capabilities. Help them feel that their work is meaningful, appreciated, and valued. As leaders, we have a responsibility to inspire our employees to action and productivity — understanding their needs is crucial to be able to do so. Your employees will be grateful for it, and it will show in their overall productivity and engagement!

Custom Watches: A Timeless Recognition Reward

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custom watches

What comes to mind when you think about traditional corporate and sales awards? I’d be willing to bet that custom watches or timepieces were high on the list. So, why are these products so popular in recognition programs?

Here are 4 main reasons you should consider custom watches in your recognition programs:

 

Personal

A wide variety of watch brands and styles can be personalized with names, dates and logos to enhance the lasting memory of an employee’s achievement.

In some recognition programs, you can continue to customize an employee’s watch depending on their level of recognition. For example, you could create an “add-a-diamond” program where multi-year achievements could be recognized in one commemorative timepiece.

 

Functional

In our recent blog, 6 Essential Elements of a Service Award Program, we discussed the importance of choosing a gift that not only has a high perceived value, but is also functional.

A watch is something that is looked at numerous times per day, making it useful and also memorable. Every time an employee checks the time, they will be reminded that they are a valuable asset to their company.

Watches are also an accessory that can be worn regardless of the season!

 

Traditional

Did you know the first mechanical timepiece dates all the way back to 1275 in England? In the beginning, blacksmiths used various irons only and were mainly concerned with improving functionality. After a few centuries passed, watches began to take on a new style.

In the 16th century, watch makers began to use bronze, brass, silver and other precious metals to distinguish their products, thus creating the culture of luxury and style we appreciate today. Interestingly enough, Swiss reformer John Calvin prohibited the wearing of jewelry, but allowed watches for their functionality. Jewelry makers had to learn a new craft in watch making, thus kickstarting the Swiss watch industry!

Watches have been appreciated for their mechanical intricacy, history, and elegance for centuries, and are still highly valued to this today. You can simply can’t go wrong with this timeless gift.

 

Desirable

Let’s face it, a good-looking watch turns heads. When a high-performance employee is seen by another worker sporting a nice new watch, it’s bound to get their attention. Having an attainable goal will motivate them to achieve their performance goals.

Many of the most desirable watch brands can be customized, including Tag Heuer, Timex, Bulova, Fossil, Seiko and more.

If you are a sales manager, or human resources specialist, you understand the need to commemorate milestones, anniversaries and other special occasions to encourage and reward your team. Recognition reinforces to the employee that they are an invaluable asset to the company. Positive attitudes of those in the workplace are vital to increased productivity and success of businesses, both large and small.

An elegant, high-quality watch is a special gift they’ll treasure forever. We would love to talk to you about our available options to recognize your team. Call us at 866-924-2778 to talk to one of our staff members today!

What Does Research Say About Motivating Your Sales Team?

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If you employ people, you manage and lead people.  I believe it’s a given that managers desire to lead well and maintain a motivated, engaged sales team.

Motivated and Engaged 

These are elusive and abstract descriptions used every day for what we should look for in our organizations.  When held up against the fire of getting our jobs done and achieving results, the intangibles tend to fade on our radar.

“Ability is what you’re capable of doing. Motivation determines what you do. Attitude determines how well you do it.”  Lou Holtz

The quote from Lou Holtz does a good job applying motivation and engagement to a given role.  But in addition to work performance, there is the resultant happiness that accompanies motivation and engagement.  Motivated and engaged people tend to be more positive and pleasant to be with; or is it the other way around?  Who cares?

We want and need motivated and engaged people in our business; the more the better.

Traditional Motivation Methods 

The two most common tools we tend to look for in affecting human performance are Compensation/Incentives and Performance Management Systems.  Both comp plans and performance management are critical elements of effective management, but in themselves fall woefully short of hitting the root of what motivates most people.

Gallup research says, “Just one out of five employees strongly agree their performance is managed in a way that motivates them to do outstanding work.”  Gallup Blog Jan 3, 2018

Even the best design of performance management systems can only touch around the edges of what motivates any given employee.  Important, yes; sufficient, no.

There is eye-opening research surrounding behavioral effect of “carrot-based” compensation plans.  The London School of Economics analyzed 51 large company compensation plans and produced the discovery that “financial incentives … can result in a negative impact on overall performance.”  LSE: When Performance-Related Pay Backfires” Financial, June 25, 2009

Compensation and financial incentive plans can frustrate employees when too much weight is placed upon them to drive motivation.  The underlying premise that you can always do more or better if I just pay you more can send a message which undermines personal trust.  This approach implies that employees are holding back unless they get more money.  Who feels good in this view?

So The Best Way To Motivate Your Team Is? 

Behavioral scientists agree that “intrinsic motivation…. Is the strongest and most persuasive driver.”  Intrinsic motivation is often referred to as self-motivation or ambition.  David Hoffeld, The Science of Motivating Sales People, The Carrot & the Stick Must Go.

In other words, the key to motivation is understanding what makes employees want to do a good job.

The same Gallup research saying only 1 in 5 are highly motivated by their performance management also reveals some positive and actionable information.

Gallup found motivation comes from how deeply we feel connected to what we’ve created [what we are doing] and the degree to which people appreciate us.  Further, “Employees who feel adequately recognized are half as likely as those who don’t to say they’ll quit in the next year.”

Building motivation and engagement generates organizational momentum that tends to create a buzz in the culture.  Everyone feels it and most respond to it.

Great Tools for Motivation:

  • Recognition – Public celebration and appreciation of a job well done create an awards system that is available to everyone. Encourage it’s use and let your team know they are appreciated.
  • Awards – Create short cycle contests with a menu of awards for accomplishment. Flexibility in the awards reflects the personal interests of the individuals. Be consistent and realistic in setting up goals for your team.
  • Milestones – Milestones can be public or more private which may be more personal. Examples are employment anniversary awards or gifts and project completion events

Human Resource and Sales Directors often look to pay plans and performance management cycles as their key tools for building motivation for performance in their teams.  Consider the less expensive and far less ominous tools in your toolbox of recognition and awards.

Focus your attention on how you can tangibly communicate that you appreciate your employees’ efforts and nurture their intrinsic motivation to want to perform well.