This blog is about employee incentive motivation
Nearly everyone makes an impression on someone else every day of his life. At the same time, nearly everyone is forming an impression of someone else. It happens in private life, in business, in offices, on farms, in schools, in government-wherever people are involved with
people. It happens both unconsciously and consciously, and with a purpose. There is no end to the process.
You, as a manager in the service industries such as the hotel, resort, restaurant, or other travel business, are judged not only by the good meal, the restful night's sleep, or the weekend of fun that your guests enjoyed.
You are judged also by the friendliness of your staff, their alertness, their attitude, how they look, and the way they do their job. What did your staff do to send a satisfied guest or customer on his way or bring him back?
Your success in business will depend on how well you-themanager-build these impressions. How well you do this job depends on how well you can manage people-your employees.
The most important asset of any business is its human family of workers -managers and employees. Increasing the capabilities and productivity of your staff is simply smart business management. From the purely humanitarian standpoint, it is also a moral obligation.
Getting people to work for you and with you as a team-and keeping them working is never simple. However, these skills pay handsomely in many fields. They are an especially important key to your success in the service industries.
MOTIVATION
How to Motivate and Inspire
How do you increase the business value of the people who work for you? Above all, remember that they are people, each one an important part of your business family-not just a cog in a human machine that goes through certain muscular motions every day with time out for refueling and maintenance. Remember that your staff has heart and
brains, feelings and ideas-and is made of the same raw materials as you. Their energies are there to be used for their own good and for yours.
Some ways of harnessing these energies:
Seeking and using your employee's own ideas.
Keeping employees informed.
Expressing personal interest in employees.
Instilling pride in work well done.
Providing effective supervision.
These techniques are discussed in detail below. They
concern various methods of directing your employees toward
your main objective-building a profitable business by
satisfying guests and customers.
As you put these techniques to use, you will find the job only half begun. The employee still needs more answers to this very important personal question: "What is there in it for me?" This is not a cynical question. It is another way of asking: "How much am I worth?" As owner or manager, you ask yourself the same question? So do your workers.And you must provide answers for them as well as for
yourself.
What incentives will you give them? Your success depends
on your answer.
Seeking and Using Employee's Ideas
To feel very much a part of the hospitality service business and to be given an incentive, each employee must understand that he is free to contribute ideas. Management must encourage employee ideas and provide the necessary mechanism for obtaining them. Suggestion boxes and idea-discussion employee meetings are a couple of possibilities. Encourage employees to think about problems of the business. Some excellent ideas for their solution may be forthcoming. As manager, carefully consider all ideas, and if adopted, commend or reward the giver. If not adopted, a word of explanation and appreciation should
always be given.
For example: Suppose new guest room lamps or bedspreads are needed. Ask the housekeepers to make suggestions. They may come up with usable ideas, and you have alerted them to this opportunity to contribute. You have built in their minds an appreciation of your thoughtfulness in seeking their ideas about the problem.
Keeping Employees Informed
Successful service industry managers build good attitudes in their employees by keeping them well informed of affairs of the business.
Important methods of informing employees include personal communication, use of a bulletin board, regular employee newsletter or newspaper, individual written notices and meetings.
For example: meetings are one of the best forms ofmanagement-employee communication. They should be kept short and purposeful. There are two types of meetings, the regular stop meeting and the problem or opportunity meeting.
Staff meetings are usually held for supervisors and department heads. However, all employees should be invited to a staff meeting, probably once a month or perhaps once each quarter. Topics could include coming events, business trends, notable achievements, and employee recognition.
The problem or opportunity meeting is called when someone has a problem or an idea worthy of consideration and assistance by others in the organization. After the first meeting, the manager usually sets a period of time for considering the problem or idea. The parties get back together for a follow-up meeting to resolve the matter, having had time to think it over and reach some conclusions. This form of communication and mutual effort contributes importantly to the organization's spirit of teamwork.
These procedures make each person feel important to the
success of the business. The employee recognizes his value
and sees how his efforts help create success.
Holding regular meetings for the employees is one of the best means of motivating your staff and building self-esteem. The manager can write up the minutes of the meeting and distribute these to all concerned on the same day the meeting was held. This practice summarizes the most important points and makes them readily available for future referral and use.
Expressing Personal Interest
Another way to create motivation is the personal conference held in private with each employee.
For example: managers or supervisors should find time at least once each year to sit down in private with each employee. In a friendly manner, discuss both business and personal matters. Such talks smooth out problems and difficulties which may be blocking the motivation of the employee. The talks are also helpful to you, the supervisor or manager, as you may receive information which would come to you in no other way.
Suppose Mary, a waitress, seems to have lost spirit and goes about her duties with no enthusiasm. If everything outwardly seems satisfactory, such as health and basic job conditions, the manager should carefully consider the action he will take and then invite her to his office for a private talk.
The first step is to discuss her work. Find out why her attitude towards the job is poor. She may feel a lack of acceptance by other staff workers or feel insecure or discriminated against, or there may be other sources ofdissatisfaction or trouble. Personal or family problems may be vexing her. If her problems are business-related,
they often stem from feeling "out of things."
In this case, the second step is to get her better acquainted with her working associates, perhaps by
involving her in making plans for some special social activity of the workers, appointing her to some committee or asking her to assist the manager in some particular project. This procedure will give Mary a feeling of being someone special, of receiving special privileges which have considerable motivational value. If the problems are
of a home or personal nature, perhaps some assistance from
a friend of hers or relative could be suggested or arranged to help solve the problem.
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