We all know that a company won’t thrive without an outstanding team of people working for a common goal – but just how do you keep your staff motivated?

If you own your business then naturally it’s an all-consuming passion which will doubtless dominate most of your daily thoughts. Even if the business isn’t yours but you’re in charge then the pressure to deliver for your boss will be enough to ensure your motivation levels rarely drop.

For the staff around you, though, it may be a 9-5 job and little more. Switch on in the morning and switch off for the evening. Of course, there’s nothing wrong with that mindset in a world where work / life balance has never been more important, but for the hours your employees are working to drive your company forward, how can you keep them motivated?

Here are our top tips on how to keep your staff motivated:

Create a progression plan:

Every member of your staff not only wants to feel valued, they also want to know where their career is heading – and how they get there.

It can sometimes be difficult in the busy working world to take a step back and look at the bigger picture, but if your workforce has a clear understanding of how they can progress through your company then that will provide extra motivation for them to regularly produce their best possible work.

You can help your employees along their career path by providing extra training and giving them opportunities to develop their skills, maybe even in areas not currently connected with their core responsibilities.

Welcome all ideas:

‘There is no such thing as a bad idea’ is a comment heard in every boardroom in the land. While that may not be strictly true, it’s important to take everyone’s thoughts on board – even if they are not actionable for a specific reason.

Remember not everybody is comfortable talking in front of groups of people and they may feel even more shy if they believe their idea will be dismissed out of hand or even mocked.

It’s important to make all of your team feel comfortable in their surroundings, and to encourage them to add their ideas to the collective mix. If their ideas have missed the mark then take the time to explain to them why that is the case, and encourage them not to feel downhearted and to keep offering their views.

Ask for opinions:

As well as taking on board new ideas during a brainstorming session, also tap into the thoughts of your workforce during day to day activities.

Fresh eyes or a different perspective on a project you are working on could throw up interesting discussion points that you may not have previously considered.

Why not also think about having a monthly ‘show and tell’ session with your team – either in person or over video call depending on your current working conditions – where a member of your staff can talk through something they have achieved over the previous month.

Celebrate milestones:

Whether it’s someone completing a deal or simply the birthday of a junior member of the team, it’s important to make your employees feel special when the occasion demands it.

That doesn’t mean spending lots of money on lavish gifts (although we’re sure that would be appreciated), but a token of appreciation – however small – will always be well received.

Keep your staff involved:

If you keep your team up to date with the latest news from the business head office (as much as you possibly can), then that will further make them feel valued and part of the bigger operation.

Of course, this doesn’t necessarily mean you can divulge sensitive commercial or financial information to your entire workforce, but if there are more general updates you can offer then you should look to do so.

This could be in the form of a company update where a top level overview of business performance can be supplemented with information on future projects, whether that be current working priorities or recruitment plans for growth.

If your staff are engaged with their work then they will be as keen for as much additional information as you are able to share. We’re not talking slides and slides of text in a presentation, but a short bullet-point led session which can lead to follow-up questions and possible further discussion.