What really motivates our employees and what makes them feel burned out?

Many of us, managers, senior employees, have wondered at least once in their lives about what really motivates our employees, and what makes them more and more burnt out and dissatisfied with the work we offer them every day. Undoubtedly, it is a fact that business is a man - a good employee is worth ten times more than many tools or devices. It is he who is the foundation of the work of these tools and gives them the right course of action. So how to take care of your subordinates so that they come to work with a smile on their lips every day, and leave even more proud, including salty overtime? The answer is not unambiguous, but I will quote the 5 most important aspects in my opinion.

1. Clearly outline the meaning of the work

Everyone, even the most motivated employee, stops trying and starts to feel demotivated in a situation where he does not feel the sense of his work. However, this sense must be given by a good leader, team manager - it is he who, in conversation with his employees, determines the track on which the team is constantly and passionately walking. Each employee must feel that the work they do, day by day, contributes to the growth of the entire organization and the achievement of better and better results.

2. Ensuring development

Development itself is an important piece of the puzzle. Ambitious and good employees require continuous development from their profession. They want to feel appreciated by the employer, for example, that work provides them with a continuous process of growth and learning, that it brings them closer to achieving professional self-fulfillment. A great addition here will be all kinds of hackathons, free or paid by the company conferences and trainings, as well as internal trainings organized by the company.

3. Responsibility for the tasks performed and being needed

The ability of the employer to make the employee feel important and needed, as well as to enable him to make difficult and strategic decisions for the company, is quite a challenge. Only the best leaders can afford such a step. However, this brings amazing and positive effects - an employee who can make a significant decision on his own and has the right to deal with strategic and non-trivial matters, identifies with the company and begins to treat it as a second home. He spends more time in it, is more dedicated and reluctant to change this job for another. Responsible tasks imposed on an employee also contribute to increasing their self-esteem and greater self-confidence, which in turn is very important when making difficult decisions. Being needed and appreciated by the employer is also the result of performing important and responsible tasks for the company.

4. Clear rules for promotion and bonus system

As one of my favorite authors, Ben Horowitz, wrote in the book entitled "The Hard Thing About Hard Things", an important thing in the work of every good manager is a system of promotion and bonuses that is clear and understandable to all employees. Each employee must know what milestone in his career he must achieve in order to be promoted to a higher position and thus receive a higher salary. So if your employee comes to your room one day and demands a raise, make sure he deserves it and if it's the right time. If this is not the case, show him exactly what elements in his work he needs to improve and what else he needs to achieve before asking you for a higher salary again. Such a scheme of action allows you to be a more respected leader, but also has a motivating effect on the employee.

5. Good atmosphere in the team

A good atmosphere is an indispensable element of good cooperation. Give your organization, in addition to a lot of work and responsibilities, also moments to strengthen relations between employees and take care of their better well-being. Thanks to this, you will gain more loyal employees who will work even harder. This can be done in many ways. One of the most popular is pizza and beer every Friday after work - in my previous company I funded such a pizza myself from my own funds and believe me - it paid off. By the way, we created a discussion panel where we discussed side topics, but also interesting things related to the company, such as: improving certain processes, I listened to my employees what they had problems with, what brought them joy and what not, and we discussed what could be done to make it worked better. Such meetings are extremely fruitful, they make the team feel more united and the team's morale increases. It is also nice to go somewhere together with colleagues - you can organize, for example, a paintball or volleyball match. I took my employees to the mountains for a football tournament - it was an extraordinary adventure and it improved the team a lot.

6. Don't punish for stupidity, don't spy stupidly - expect results

It is very common to see managers punishing their subordinates for often going out for a coffee or a cigarette. I personally came across scolding for frequent use of the toilet, which was quite an exaggeration. This is an extremely inefficient way of managing a team. Instead of punishing, expect results. If in your organization you have to draw consequences for the fact that an employee drank 5 coffees, and not 3 - you are a poor analyst and, unfortunately, not very skilled manager. A thriving organization does not need to worry about such things - each employee is accountable to his superior and himself, based on hard, strictly defined parameters such as the amount of sales achieved in a given month, the number of new contracts or the generated income.

Summary:

One could write for hours about improving working conditions and achieving better results generated by our employees. However, there is something that is always worth knowing - listening to your employees allows you to expand your mental horizon. It allows you to look at their needs even better and manage the organization in such a way that everyone works better. However, one must not forget in all this that the organization is to develop and generate income, so the good of the employee must go in some synergy with the good of the organization itself.