Published on by Jason Rosenbaum, Owner/Partner
The winter blues are real and it can be challenging to keep team members motivated. Of course, our current circumstances are made more difficult by things like raised political and social tensions, intense weather, and a worldwide pandemic.
So, when I was recently asked how we keep the Crowd Favorite team engaged, inspired and passionate – which is particularly important for creative work – the ensuing conversation inspired me to share some thoughts.
Team Motivation Starts With Understanding
Perhaps most importantly, Crowd Favorite uses its values and processes to identify this type of struggle among employees. We try to figure out what they want and need to work through difficult times. We emphasize to our leaders that people are motivated by different things and naturally handle stress differently. Because it shows in various ways, there's no set schedule. Keeping the team energized and motivated is a daily function and year-round responsibility.
For us, this work starts with our review process. We ask everyone to describe moments of motivation and pride over the previous period. Then, we make sure our managers and executives understand and know what makes their teams and its members tick in order to provide an optimal work environment. This rolls out across our company throughout the year, so that consistent attention in itself helps mitigate seasonal ebbs and flows.
Remember Your Core Values
We’ve always been a remote work company with team members across the globe. We’re a diverse team. One of the most crucial elements to our success with this approach is bringing everyone together with a strong culture and core values. This allowed our people to build particularly excellent relationships with each other without the benefit of a physical office.
We emphasize, embrace, and embody values aimed at making our virtual workplace welcoming for everyone, no matter who they are or where they are located. We insist our leadership team set an example with the energy and excitement we need to accomplish our goals.
Further, we encourage leaders to have candid conversations with their team members, and to take the time to get to know each person as that, a person. Understanding our team at a more personal level allows our leaders a deeper connection and understanding of our team. We are able to support and motivate each individual, as well as the team as a whole.
Be Transparent, Timely, and True
A critical lesson I’ve learned is proactive transparency and motivation are linked. Not every decision a leader makes will be popular. Sometimes there’s difficult news to impart. However, not being direct or delaying – even in hopes of lessening the impact – prolongs the inevitable. In the meantime, momentum can be eroded over a longer period of time, while important efforts remain stalled.
During challenging times, you often need to be able to pivot and get teams and members moving in the same direction, quickly. With that in mind, it’s important to have structured and consistent communication. It should clearly articulate what is going to happen, and the reasons why, as soon as you are able. Again, a truthful, candid conversation, including fielding questions, is important. In doing so, healing can begin, trust built, and motivation to handle the task at hand is restored as soon as possible.
What's The Value?
You can't make employees wake up happy every morning. What you can do is provide an environment where they want to be, which is important motivation whereas that’s where they’ll spend eight to ten hours a day.
While personal happiness isn’t a given, an employee can be satisfied with the work they're doing every day. That is Crowd Favorite's responsibility to our team and every single member.
There’s value in work. There’s value in people. When both are recognized, when the rewards can be seen, motivation is assured – regardless of the challenges ahead.
Are you wanting a change? Looking to push the status quo, increase enterprise value and work with a team full of talented, passionate, and diverse creatives? Bring a new perspective to our team -- join us!
