Motivating Your Employee

The biggest returns are generated by the most dynamic businesses. The most dynamic businesses are built by highly motivated staff. Highly motivated staff are driven by working towards something they want.

The key to this last bit is finding out just what exactly it is that employees want and enabling them to earn it.

According to former IKEA chief Anders Dahlvig, the answer is recognition. In his book, The IKEA Edge: Building Global Growth and Social Good at the World’s Most Iconic Home Store, Dahlvig writes that his decade in the top job at IKEA taught him that recognition is “the greatest motivator of all”.

Dahlvig says that if you want your employees to be energised and work their hardest, you have to recognise their work.

"I would even go so far as to say that recognition is the most important driver of mankind — so important to get, but so difficult to satisfy," writes Dahlvig.

"The need for recognition is endless. The more you get, the more you want."

It might come in the form of a congratulatory beer after work, a slap on the back in front of colleagues or a cash bonus.

For Dahlvig it means to be given responsibility and independence, and to be seen, heard and respected. Simple things to offer an employee that’s on track.

The tough bit is identifying what sort of recognition each employee values. A feeling for this comes through trying different things and getting to know those you work with. However, on the most basic level, a simple ‘well done on the Pelican Project’ goes a long way.

One company that has recognised the value of recognition is Wooboard, an online startup to come out of the dazzling incubator Pollenizer that’s providing an application for appreciation.

Wooboard is a forum for team members to recognise the work of one another by sending each other ‘Woos’, or short messages of appreciation.

The app boosts recognition, allows you to see what your team members are good at and what others appreciate them for, and simply thank those around you for a job well done.

As Mary Kay Ash, founder of Mary Kay cosmetics, says, “Everyone wants to be appreciated, so if you appreciate someone, don’t keep it to yourself.”

That’s exactly what Wooboard’s facilitating.

It’s an easy and interactive way to motivate your employees by harnessing what Dahlvig says is the greatest motivator of all, recognition.

Coming from a guy who ran a department store 522 million people went to last year, it’s worth recognising in your business too.