10 proven strategies for motivating employees

Everyone agrees that it's far better to have a team of motivated, engaged people at your workplace. The business will be more productive and more profitable.

But exactly how to get and, just as importantly, keep your employees motivated can be easier said than done.

Here are 10 time-tested strategies (plus a bonus tip at the end) to help you create an effective employee motivation strategy that will boost company culture and help keep your people happy and focused on doing their best.

Why employee motivation matters

When employees are happy and motivated, the business thrives. Teams work better together, and individuals are more likely to step up and go that extra mile. All of these things contribute to a strong company culture, which only serves to further reinforce the motivation feedback loop.

Clear benefits of having a motivated team

• Increased productivity.
• Stronger employee retention (lower turnover) and easier recruitment.
• Increased collaboration.
• Better customer outcomes.

What’s important to remember, however, is that people are different, and what inspires one person may not motivate another. People’s interests and aspirations also change over time, and while more money or a promotion might motivate an employee for a while, they may want more flexibility at some point, e.g. when they become a parent.

In short, there is no one-size-fits-all method for motivating employees, boosting performance levels, and creating a happy, thriving work environment. You need to combine a bunch of different techniques to build and maintain lasting motivation.

Pitfalls to avoid when attempting to boost employee motivation

Not all motivation strategies are effective at inspiring employees to perform. In fact, people can get demoralized, frustrated, or resentful if there is a climate of undue pressure or fear, goals are unattainable or inflexible, or they feel undermined or unable to apply their talents and initiative.

Here are some motivational strategies you want to avoid:

• Threats or bullying (the stick rather than the carrot).
• Superficial rewards that don’t match employees’ real interests.
• Inconsistent recognition or favouritism.
• Unrealistic targets.
• Focus on deadlines and timesheets instead of working with employees on goals and values.
• Overemphasis on mental toughness (rather than compassion and curiosity).
• Forced participation, e.g. at team social events.

Factors that influence employee motivation and job satisfaction

1. Start with individuals

It's impossible to motivate your people if you don't know who they are and what drives them.

Take the time to discuss their needs and aspirations, and find out what motivation looks like to them. From there you can work on best aligning each person's role and tasks with their professional and personal goals, and tailor motivational strategies that will suit each employee.

This is an ongoing, open conversation that should start when you hire them and continue with regular check-ins.

Motivation fluctuates over time, so the skill is in getting to know each person and continuing to adapt and refine your approach to support them in staying inspired and engaged.

2. Get the basics right

Some businesses or HR departments can get distracted chasing a Silicon Valley-like environment with designer decor, pinball machines, and other outward displays of 'cool'. But if the basics are not right, all the fancy initiatives won't mean much and your employees will see them as a thin veneer over a deficient culture.

Nothing welcomes a new person like having a watertight employment agreement issued before they start the job and a solid onboarding and induction process that quickly establishes them in the role and the team.

Ensure your company culture is based on fairness and respect for all people, and that everyone's behaviour actually aligns with those stated values.

Pay employees correctly and on time. Establish performance objectives at the start of a review period, not on the fly or halfway through.

Getting the basics right may mean you never need to invest in a pinball machine to keep your people motivated, but if you do, it will be the icing on the cake.

Get more tips for building a strong company culture.

3. Trust your people

Trust is one of the most important building blocks in establishing strong company culture.

It goes both ways: employees need to trust that their boss or manager has their best interests at heart and managers need to trust their people to do the job properly without constant monitoring.

It doesn't come naturally to all managers; there can be a tendency to equate a trusting environment with a slack one, and employees will take advantage.

But if you foster positive relationships with each individual and build trust by letting them use their initiative and work independently as much as possible, you'll build a more creative, self-sufficient team.

This will also help create a bond with your employees and stop them from feeling micromanaged, which can be a real motivation-zapper.

4. Show people the big picture

Another key to keeping employees motivated is letting them know how the work they do helps the company achieve its wider objectives.

Take the time to fully explain the purpose and goals of the business, and how each person's role contributes. Again, this should be a continuing conversation that recognizes and adapts to any change in organizational targets and employee ambitions.

By understanding the value of their role, you encourage employees to perform because they know exactly what their hard work will achieve and that any success is shared.

This makes work meaningful and fulfilling because people know they are making a difference, rather than just being cogs in a machine.

5. Be open and transparent

People that work for a company that champions open communication and transparency are more likely to stay motivated and loyal.

Being transparent with information encourages an atmosphere of trust and certainty, where there are few surprises and employees aren't left in the dark (which usually leads them to thinking the worst or making things up).

Provide employees with opportunities to make suggestions. This gives them a voice, creates confidence in their value to the business, and gives their work meaning. It also helps provide new ideas and solutions for improving the business, its goals, or ways of working.

If your employees know what's happening at a high level, and are invited to give input, they will feel more involved and committed to the company's direction.

6. Set small, achievable goals

Research has found people perform better when they have specific, challenging goals to achieve. 

By breaking larger objectives down into smaller ones, you can help keep people motivated and focused. Team members get to clearly see progress and that their efforts have tangible meaning.

Involve them in the goal-setting process and make sure any targets you decide upon are specific and realistic, so employees can achieve them and know when they have. Then you can celebrate each target you reach.

7. Recognize and reward employee achievement

Of course, employees get paid for their labours, but people like to have opportunities to go above and beyond, and to be recognized for it.

Reward and recognition are far better long-term motivators than punishment, as they prove to a person that they are doing the right thing and encourage them to keep doing it.

This helps strengthen the employer-employee relationship, and lifts self-esteem and people's sense of belonging within the workplace.

Rewards don't have to be formalized – though they should be built into your performance management system – you can reward employees or teams for achieving goals or doing amazing work. It might be an impromptu lunch or afternoon off, or as simple as an appreciative comment or email.

Recognition works best when it's personalized, as people like to be acknowledged in different ways. This has the added benefit of making each person feel valued as an individual.

8. Offer flexibility and regular breaks

Happy, healthy employees are proven to be superior performers.

There are plenty of studies that show employees increasingly value a balance between their professional and personal lives, and providing flexibility in their work arrangements (where possible) allows better work-life balance. It also shows you prioritize wellbeing and can trust people to do their job.

Ensuring people take regular breaks at work improves their ability to stay focused, helping problem-solving and boosting overall productivity. It's also important for everyone's health and safety.

Encourage employees to take vacation time and other forms of leave they are entitled to. No one should feel they have to come to work when they are sick, grieving, or just in need of a day to refocus or recharge their energy levels.

9. Give frequent feedback

Don't wait for the annual performance review to give your employees feedback.

Frequent, meaningful feedback helps employees thrive by providing direction, certainty, and confidence.

Positive feedback highlights progress and helps generate a sense of accomplishment. Negative feedback, while it can be uncomfortable, should be constructive and aimed at finding ways for the employee to improve.

Feedback is also much more effective when it is delivered close to the event. That way your employee gets a much clearer sense of the conduct you wish to reinforce or discourage.

10. Provide opportunities for career development

Research into employee motivation and engagement has repeatedly shown that employees want to learn and grow. No one wants to feel like they are stuck in the same place, doing the same thing.

This starts with understanding where someone sees themselves heading and then working with them to find opportunities for them to expand their skills and take on new challenges to achieve those goals.

View training and progression as an investment that will pay off in higher performance and productivity in the long run. Aligning employee development objectives with company goals or identified skill gaps (e.g. new tools or systems), will also mean you'll develop more of the expertise your business needs, in-house.

Of course, there is a risk that the next step in a person's career could be one away from the company, but that is better than having a team of people who are bored and apathetic.

Bonus tip: Lead by example

For all we talk about specific strategies to motivate employees, fostering a strong company culture often requires a top-down approach.

When employees see their managers and leaders working hard, being proactive and open to feedback, they will be more likely to step up when it counts as well.

Leading by example sets a standard of behaviour in the workplace that employees can emulate.

There are many traits that a good leader should embody, but a few of the most important are:

• Strong communication skills: Good managers are able to set clear expectations, listen well, and communicate goals and decisions.
• Accountability: A good leader takes responsibility for team outcomes, calling out employees whose effort contributed to the team’s success, and owning up to mistakes when things fall short.
• Coaching and development: Effective managers are skilled in recognizing opportunities to grow their team’s skillset. They’re invested in team growth, and are proactive in helping individuals realize their potential.