Having employees who believe in the dream of the company and are dedicated to making that dream come true is every employer's dream. The ideal employee would be one that is invested in the company enough to show up every day better than the last with their A game firmly in place. But does the ideal employee really exist?
The best you can get as an employer is an employee who is dedicated to the job and works hard. But even this 'perfect' employee needs a little motivation to bring their A game to work every day.
That's where HR comes in - at motivating.

There's a lot of ways to motivate employees to show up ready to work everyday and here's ten ways how HR functions in the biggest companies do it.

1. Always Share Feedback

An essential part of the motivation and increased performance cycle is feedback. Some people would say positive feedback only but even negative feedback, can be a motivation to do better. It all depends on the delivery. With positive feedback, it is easy to see how employees can be motivated. When an employee does a good job and his efforts produce appreciable results, giving positive feedback reinforces the employee's effort.
Here's how.

Praise and appreciation, even verbal appreciation such as positive feedback trigger the release of dopamine which makes the employee feel good. Motivation comes from the brain trying to duplicate that feeling by going through the same process of effort, result and praise. Thus creating an addiction to the appreciation and praise which stems from great work output.

Negative feedback doesn't work the same way as positive feedback but it produces the same results. Instead of the warm, fuzzy feelings you get from positive feedback, negative feedback challenges. To get this result, deliver your negative feedback with an appreciation of the work already done, ways in which the work could be improved and an encouragement to do better.

Feedback in any form can be a great tool for motivating employees.

2. Start a tradition of Recognition and Appreciation

Starting a tradition of recognition and appreciation for your employees can go a long way in motivating them. It's an age-old recipe for motivating and challenging people to work hard at a goal.

In the workplace, recognition and appreciation of stellar work doesn't just motivate others to work harder, it creates healthy competition and encourages hard working employees to keep at it. For the recipient, recognition and appreciation serves to keep the fire of consistent hard work burning. They'd love to maintain their work ethic and even go harder when they know that their efforts are noticed and rewarded.

That's for the workplace. For your company, it means more productivity and creativity from employees leading to more wins for the company. It also improves employee retention rate according to 91% of HR professionals.

If you've never done the old recognition and appreciation routine, there are many recognition program ideas out there. A few ideas you could implement include giving a bonus or award to the winning employee. Just be sure to make the reward worthy enough to encourage your employees.

3. Adopt a Personal Approach

The theme for HR should be 'employee first' not 'employees first'. Employees are still individuals with individual problems that require individual solutions. The one-size-fits-all approach isn't going to work to motivate your employees anymore.

If you want to properly reach and motivate every member of staff then you'll need a personal approach. Some workers are motivated by powerful words of affirmation, others by the difficulty of a new challenge. Find out what works for each of the team members and provide the appropriate motivation to them.

Beyond encouraging them to put in their best, adopting a personal approach also entails seeing your staff as humans and not part of the employee wheel. Be more than a manager, be a part of their lives by celebrating personal milestones with them. Almost every human would respond favourably to acts of kindness and love. An employee who feels loved by the company would reciprocate that love by being more productive.

4. Provide a Comfortable, Friendly and Civil Working Space

It's hard to be productive in an uncomfortable, hostile environment. Your employees would perform below optimal levels if they have to spend half their time irritated and unhappy. Providing a comfortable, and friendly workspace would improve employee performance by far. Make the office a place where employees want to come to.

What does a comfortable workplace look like? Take a look at Google. You don't have to build a workplace that rivals theirs but with a few additions to your workplace, you can make a difference.

Having a regular cleaner come in to keep the office clean is part of making it comfortable. Keeping sofas around, and having a snack bar is a part of it. A lunch room complete with a microwave is another great addition that can ratchet up the comfort factor. You can go one further by having a meditation room for employees who need to clear their heads in the middle of the work day. Find out what your employees think of a comfortable office and make it happen.

It's easy to be motivated to work by the environment when it is conducive.

5. Build a Culture of Supporting Professional Growth

Perhaps the most important thing you'll need to learn about your employees is that they make up the building blocks of your business. Investing in them is an investment in your business. It's all good to appreciate their work and encourage them to work harder, but ensuring that they are better, more efficient workers by investing in their professional growth is a phenomenal way of building motivation. Firstly, you're training your employees to be better at their jobs. This translates to a higher efficiency, more productivity in the workplace and increased customer retention for your company. But it also makes for happier employees.

What does a comfortable workplace look like? Take a look at Google. You don't have to build a workplace that rivals theirs but with a few additions to your workplace, you can make a difference.

Boredom settles down fast for employees when they have to do the same tasks in the same ways every day of the week. This is bad because 41% of employees consider professional growth an important part of job satisfaction.

A good way to kick start their mental juices is by offering professional growth opportunities. These could be done by setting aside some money for employees to get certifications or take relevant courses. It could also be through mentorship programs, or subscriptions to learning platforms. However it comes, contributing to your employees' professional growth is a strong motivation for employees to put in their best.

6. Lead by Example

Motivation comes in a lot of ways but one of the most effective ways is through exemplary leadership. The importance of having a capable leader is often under-appreciated. In the workplace, most employees follow the examples of their managers. They work as hard as their managers and only go as far as their bosses. Having a good role model to lead by example is very essential.

Most employees would be motivated to put in extra effort and work harder when they see their boss doing it. If their boss sets goals and smashes them, they are willing to set the same goals and smash them. If you want to motivate your workers, walk your talk and show them how it's done.

Boredom settles down fast for employees when they have to do the same tasks in the same ways every day of the week. This is bad because 41% of employees consider professional growth an important part of job satisfaction.

7. Food and Snacks

Who would have thought that a snack bar would make such a difference in employee performance? Well, 57 percent of employees say a snack bar or other food perks makes them feel valued by the company. It all makes sense when you look at the employee satisfaction rate of companies that have mastered the art of catering to their employees culinary tastes. Companies like Bloomberg and Google are great pace setters in this and their employee performance and retention rate are testaments to it.

More than keeping your employees fueled up all day, having food perks around add to a comfortable working environment. Employees also feel better about working harder when they realize that they are valued by their employers as more than just employees.

8. Listen to Your Employees

Employees spend a good time doing all the listening. They listen to their job descriptions, to suggestions, and feedback. All this listening and no one is letting them talk. When you let employees talk, you get feedback on what you can improve on to ensure that they are happy. In case you haven't yet cottoned on the fact that your employee's happiness is important, know that when employees are happy, business productivity increases by 31%.

Some workplaces don't have shifts that are favorable to their employees. Others do not provide amenities that most of their employees need but can't get access to. In yet some other instances, employees might feel uncomfortable with a business practice that hinders their productivity.

The only way to know and meet the expectations of your employees is to get them to talk and then listen. You'll learn a great deal about making them happy and motivating them to work even harder.

9. Create Bonding Activities Outside the Office

Friday (TGIF) drinks after work and the end of year company party are great but businesses need to create proper bonding activities for employees outside the office. Firstly, not everyone enjoys the bar scene and catering dinner every December is not enough to bond with your employees or make them bond with each other. Team bonding creates an environment outside the office where employees can learn to like and trust each other.

There are many bonding activities that take place outside the office. These activities build a team and improve the team dynamic. This dynamic and bond doesn't end after the bonding activities have, it enters the workplace as well and makes for a very comfortable and friendly environment. Teams that bond outside of work have a higher chance of creating a seamless work fusion in the office.

How does this motivate your workers, you might ask. Well, easy peasy. Team bonding activities makes for higher productivity and better relationships amongst employees which often leads to friendly competition. But most importantly, it leads to inter / intra - team motivation.

If you, like many businesses right now, have a remote/ hybrid team, you can host virtual employee hangouts where staff can be paired up and given fun challenges to play. Many companies have made an art out of virtual bonding experiences and you can too.

With team bonding activities, you don't have to necessarily motivate your employees yourself. Just build an environment that makes them motivate each other. Besides this, team bonding activities make for a very happy team and you know what they say about happy employees and productivity.

10. Improve Team Spirit

Even the most comfortable and exciting offices get dull at times. It is up to you to know when your employees are faltering under the weight of their work. When this happens, it's time to boost the team spirit and get everyone charged up for work again.

Many companies give out swags to get the team spirit revved up or host team spirit activities designed to remind everyone of the reason they wanted to work with the company in the first place. In today's world, people work for companies because they share the same beliefs and buy into the dreams and goals of the business.

This is great because it creates employees who are passionate about the company's success. Spirit week only reminds them of that passion and motivates them to think sharper, work harder and be more productive.

Conclusion

The growth of every company lies in its employees. How hard working are they? Do they buy into the company's dreams? Are they doing their best to ensure that the company grows? The answer to this question depends on how motivated they are. Do you give them a reason to work harder or do you just expect them to 'do their jobs'? Motivation is a great way to ensure that your employees are happy and that the company is growing. Any of the ten ways outlined above are excellent ideas for motivating your staff. Pick one or two and give your employees a reason to go the extra mile for you.