Having employees and teams that are excited about their work is really important for a company to do well. But how can you tell how motivated your employees are?
There are some practical things you can do to measure motivation and the good things it brings to your company.
In this post, we’ll discuss how to measure employee motivation at work, why it’s important, and, most importantly, how you can make it better.
Is It Crucial to Measure Employee Motivation?
When HR people can measure how motivated employees are, they can help the company save lots of money.
Companies lose tons of money every year because of employees who aren’t motivated.
Think about it, how can someone do their job well if they don’t have the drive to reach their goals?
It makes you wonder, are they happy? Do they feel like they belong here?
If there’s no motivation, you need to find out what makes your employees tick, so you can make changes to bring that motivation back.
In short, this process shows you the areas in your workplace that need improvement.
Only then will HR truly know how their employees feel, and managers can take real action.
Motivation is connected to big things at work, like productivity and engagement. So, when employees are motivated, they’ll be more dedicated and do better work. This means fewer people will be absent or quit.
This saves the company money on things like hiring and training new people. You get the idea.
How to Measure Employee Motivation?
We’ll be honest; figuring out how motivated someone is can be tough, but it can be done. The tricky part is that motivation isn’t something you can easily see or touch. This means we need to use different methods to measure employee motivation.
Experts who study motivation look at how people act, and that’s what we’ll do too. Let’s look at the three connected steps involved in a good motivation assessment:
Analyze Relevant Quantitative Indicators
Let’s start by looking at the hard numbers. Checking the metrics set by the company can give you a good idea of what’s happening. You can get this data from:
- Key performance indicators (KPIs)
- HR reports
- Answers to past surveys
KPIs are different for each industry, but they’re a great way to measure things.
Start by comparing employee KPIs over the last few months or to the company’s standard.
Let’s say you’re in sales. You might notice that a salesperson has signed fewer contracts recently. That’s something to keep in mind and check with the other two steps below.
HR reports, like those about attendance, also give good information. You might find that someone is absent a lot for no clear reason.
Finally, look at past surveys about motivation or things like satisfaction and engagement.
Look for questions with simple answers like yes/no or on a scale of 1-5.
You might find some employees who said no when asked if they feel listened to by management. This could be a reason why they’re not motivated.
Collect All Qualitative Data
Now, let’s use the numbers we found and see what’s happening in real life. We’ll check if that salesperson is having trouble with their job or was just busy with something else.
That’s why it’s important to look at both numbers and what’s actually happening. Just relying on numbers can lead to bad results, as a Forbes article explains.
Observing how people act at work can give you good clues about their motivation. Look for these five common behaviors:
- Seems like they don’t care about their work
- Is less productive than usual
- Often starts arguments with coworkers
- Doesn’t want to take on new things
- Isn’t interested in discussions or company events
But, spotting these behaviors can be tricky. One HR person might think that someone who refuses to work overtime lacks initiative, while another HR person might think they have the right to say no.
To get a clearer picture, ask employees directly through surveys to understand how they’re feeling.
Conduct Employee Motivation Surveys
This is the last step to check the info you’ve collected so far. It’s the moment of truth. A good survey about employee motivation is really helpful.
Good surveys start by asking honest questions and end by doing something meaningful with the answers.
They help build a stronger relationship between workers and the company. They also stop companies from wasting time and money by focusing on the wrong things.
Make a survey with questions that will get you useful answers from employees. When you compare those answers to the data you already have…
You’ll see where motivation is high and low, and what you need to work on to improve it.
How to Improve Employee Motivation at Workplace?
With quick surveys, checking how motivated your employees are is now super easy.
There are two kinds of motivation: extrinsic and intrinsic. Working on both types is the best way to improve motivation overall.
The first type, extrinsic, comes from outside things like getting paid more. The second type, intrinsic, comes from within, like the feeling you get from running a marathon just to finish it.
Here are three different ways to boost both types of employee motivation:
Provide Good Employee Incentive Programs
Reward programs for employees are a great way to get them excited about work again. These programs might include bonuses, gifts, paid time off, or anything else you think your team would enjoy. These rewards tap into extrinsic motivation, which is driven by external factors.
Set Clear and Achievable Objectives
Setting achievable goals helps employees feel motivated from within. The more specific and realistic the goals, the more they’ll want to finish them to feel good about themselves.
These types of goals also give employees more confidence to work on them.
Give Positive Feedback
For workers, being happy with their job is one of the most important things that keeps them motivated and enjoying their work.
So, if customers say something nice or show they appreciate something you or your team did, share that feedback with your employees. Knowing they made someone’s day not only makes them feel good but also helps them feel more connected to the company.
Appreciating Employee Achievements
Telling a worker they did a good job can have a similar positive effect, especially if they put a lot of work into it. It’s not just about saying good job, but about showing you care. When people feel appreciated, they’ll want to keep working hard.
Studies show that investing in recognition and feedback programs can increase a company’s income, reduce the number of people quitting, and make customers happier. So, it’s definitely a good idea to set up programs for recognizing and giving feedback to your staff if you don’t have them already.
You now know how to measure employee motivation and how to make them more motivated at work.
It takes time to survey, analyze, and figure out the reasons behind your company’s motivation levels. But it’s worth it when you have clear, actionable plans to put in place.
Remember to always stay connected with your employees. The sooner you identify a lack of motivation, the faster you can fix it.
