How setting mutual goals can motivate and engage employees

How setting mutual goals can motivate and engage employees

No matter what industry you work in, making – and achieving – goals is a key part of every individual’s success. But the act of goal-setting shouldn’t be restricted to upper management or business owners. In fact, working with employees to set and strive for goals can boost motivation levels and keep them engaged – reducing attrition rates in the process.

Lack of engagement could be costing your business

Recent statistics show that highly engaged businesses see a 20% increase in sales, so employee engagement should be a top priority on every company’s to-do list, right? Actually, the same study revealed only 13% of employees are engaged worldwide, and a staggering 51% of workers are looking to leave their current jobs.

These figures reveal just how much importance some companies place on satisfying their customers’ needs instead of keeping their employees happy. Low engagement often leads to low morale, and a high turnover rate is inevitable for businesses that fail to engage their staff.

Not surprisingly, when managers recognise their employees’ contributions, their engagement rises by 60%. Even more telling, 80% of workers who see their employer as “empathetic” are willing to work more hours for them. So what’s the big secret to getting your employees engaged?

What are mutual goals, and how can they contribute to company success?

A mutual goal is the process of aligning company goals with employees’ personal goals. You can get started by gathering the team in an informal setting and discussing what they can expect for the upcoming months. A good time to discuss mutual goals is in the period leading up to the holiday season, as that’s often the busiest time of the year.

If mutual goals are a new solution for your team, get started with a quick four-step process:

1. Outline the company’s goals: A well-oiled business needs clear organisational goals to hit its defined targets. Rather than figures-based goals (sell 10,000 units per year), strive for broader achievements (hit multiple target markets through an e-newsletter campaign).
2. Clarify the company’s ongoing strategy and vision for the future: If you want your employees to follow in your footsteps and understand your direction, you need a solid vision and clear strategy.
3. Get employees to set their own goals within that framework: Once everyone understands the business’s vision for the future, employees can start defining their own goals within it. These personal goals should have a definable metric that can be measured against the company’s long-term strategy.
4. Combine short-term incentives with reaching long-term goals: No doubt you want your staff to be in it for the long haul. This can sometimes be hard in seasonal roles or in industries that typically see high turnover rates. But by combining short-term incentives alongside long-term goals, you give your employees a reason to stay engaged and contribute to the success of the business.

Popular mutual goals and incentives

Whether you’re part of a small business or a multinational, there are countless incentive programs that can get the ball rolling for employee goal-setting. Steptember is a great example of an easy and collaborative mutual goal that doesn’t require a lot of additional work to participate. The ultimate goal is to hit 10,000 steps per day for 28 days. Not only is it for a great cause (the Cerebral Palsy Alliance), but it attaches a daily target for the individual to reach. By doing the challenge as a team, everyone – from the CEO to upper management to new hires – is on the same level and can work towards a common goal.

Other common programs that thrive on defining – and achieving – personal goals and can be conducted as a company include the 40 Hour Famine. For longer-term programs, Movember and Mental Health Month are always popular, and you might find that a lot of your employees know someone – or are themselves – directly impacted by the cause.

Reward your employees to keep them happy and healthy

Mutual goal-setting is a great place to start, but it’s not a set-and-forget strategy. To keep yourself and your employees engaged in the process – and therefore engaged in the company’s success – you can implement a rewards system for their efforts.

A peer-to-peer recognition system like Redii can decrease attrition rates while building a high-performance team focused on achieving their personal and business goals. Give your employees a reason to want to be part of your team. Let them set their own goals, build a framework in which they can strategise with you, and keep them happy and healthy with a goal-based and rewarding system for their ongoing success.

Redii provides recognition and rewards programs to motivate your employees and promote a healthy workplace. Request a demo.

How to reduce Employee Turnover?

6 ways an engagement and rewards program can reduce employee turnover

Knowing how to spot employee turnover is the first step on the path to a brighter and more engaged workforce. Luckily, there’s one solution that can be tailored to suit your business type and industry. Here’s how an engagement and rewards program can boost morale and reduce turnover.

What is an employee engagement and rewards program?

An employee recognition program is a system designed to engage and energise your staff to not just work harder, but work better. When achievable goals are set and workplace wins are celebrated across the entire company, it can lead to staff having better autonomy and more self-belief in taking on new challenges.

A program like Redii offers a range of recognition features that can be aligned to fit your workplace culture. Be sure to find a solution that is fully customisable, provides onboarding integrations and – most importantly – puts your people first.

How can this type of program reduce turnover?

Once you’ve decided that an engagement and rewards program is the best solution for your business, you’ll learn that it can reduce turnover in a number of positive ways, such as:

1. It makes staff feel recognised

No one wants to secure a major client or complete an impossible task before deadline without any recognition. While there will always be quiet achievers, that doesn’t mean they don’t want their superiors – or their co-workers – to acknowledge all the hard work they’ve put in. Incorporating a recognition wall into your engagement solution means every employee can see recognition as it happens, whether it’s on your intranet or across social media channels like Yammer and Slack.

2. It helps staff aspire towards a goal (reward)

In much the same way as workers thrive on encouragement from their bosses and co-workers, having a goal in sight helps keep them focused and always moving forward. Rather than a simple ‘deadline’ as the only target, you can set regular milestones for individuals and group projects, and when they hit their goals they can be recognised – and rewarded – for their efforts.

3. It encourages staff during busy periods

Whether it’s EOFY or the holiday season is approaching, every company has busy periods. The worst possible thing that can happen when it’s crunch time is for your team to slack off or – worse – become so stressed by the overwhelming amount of tasks that they simply shut down.

An engagement program boosts employee morale by giving them a specific target to drive towards, with rewards and regular encouragement along the way. Even better, when the entire business is part of the program, each individual is given a sense of camaraderie and a knowledge that they are not alone, despite how time-strapped everyone is.

4. It boosts motivation levels

There’s no better feeling in the office than finishing a major task and getting a word of congratulations or a pat on the back. A rewards and recognition program multiplies that tenfold with recognition walls, leaderboards, multiple award types and more. When staff are appreciated they are more likely to put in the hard yards for their team.

5. It inspires friendly competition between co-workers

While a manager never wants their team to bicker and argue in the workplace, particularly when working on important projects as a team, a friendly sense of competition can actually be a key driver behind better productivity.

By generating competition around awards and leaderboards, employees can challenge themselves to go the extra mile in order to finish the day, week or month in the number-one position. A little competitive push can go a long way to boosting camaraderie and, subsequently, staff retention.

6. It gives managers an opportunity to ‘coach’ their team

Being a busy manager means you can’t be everywhere at once. But with recognition software, all the important data is at your fingertips. See who’s smashing targets and who might need a little incentive, and use the ‘goals board’ as a team-building exercise.

With all the information in one location, it’s easy for managers to see exactly where they need to be and what they need to communicate in order to boost productivity. ‘Coaching’ your team has never been easier.

Causes of high employee turnover

5 causes of high employee turnover – and how to reduce it

With the most recent figures from the AHRI Pulse Survey revealing turnover rates across Australian businesses in all industries is at 16% – up from 12% in 2012 – there’s no question that high turnover is a growing concern for business owners. However, you can take control of the situation with a few tips and tricks to spot – and reduce – turnover problems.

Common trends and causes

It’s always best to speak with your staff if you are concerned about turnover rates rising. They will be able to give you direct insight into what they feel could be improved in the workplace.

But there are also five common causes to look out for – no matter what the industry:

• Employees are overworked: A 2015 study by TINYpulse found that nearly 70% of employees believe they don’t have enough time each week to complete their assigned tasks.
• Some staff are treated better than others: There will always be star performers and those who need a little motivation in the workplace, but it’s a manager’s duty to ensure every employee is treated equally.
• Poor company culture: Work culture goes hand in hand with employee happiness, so it’s no wonder a positive culture will lead to greater employee happiness – and the opposite for a toxic workplace.
• Lack of career development: In small business it’s sometimes hard to offer high-flying roles to ambitious staff, but that doesn’t mean you can’t provide them with opportunities for growth.
• No coaching or feedback: Effective managers understand how to get their team to perform well – most often through tailored coaching and ongoing feedback.

Strategies for dealing with employee turnover

You don’t need to draw up a comprehensive list of strategies to implement in the workplace. In fact, the first step to dealing with employee turnover is looking inward. A few key points to remember are:

• Your employees are the greatest competitive asset you have.
• A high turnover rate is costing you money.
• Better compensation and/or benefits is a short-term investment for long-term savings.
• Making the workplace fun means happier employees and a better chance of retaining your best people.

While it’s important to consider the costs of recruiting when trying to reduce employee turnover, if you start with the small stuff and work one-on-one with your team, you’ll likely notice immediate changes for the better.

Ways to reduce turnover

Understanding the causes of high turnover is one thing, but figuring out ways to reduce it – and then applying those tactics – requires a deeper dive. You can read more about how to reduce employee turnover here, but for now here are some hard-and-fast tips:

• Hire the right people: Good company culture begins at the hiring process. Make sure your job description is comprehensive and honest, do your due diligence when interviewing and focus on training and incorporating new hires into the team.
• Use employee engagement programs: An employee recognition and reward program can deliver near-instant results for businesses struggling with high turnover. When you give your staff something to strive for, they are more likely to put in the effort to attain it.
• Provide a growth program and training opportunities: Employees want to be good at their jobs, but they sometimes need help from their superiors to get on the right track. A minor investment of time for a solid growth and training program could be the difference between a team member leaving or staying.
• Keep the lines of communication open: You might be the boss and you might be juggling a million things at once, but that doesn’t mean you can’t spend a few minutes each day speaking with your team. Also let them know they can talk to you outside work hours (via phone or email) about work-related issues.
• Be flexible and promote a work-life balance: Above all, employees want to know you care about their wellbeing. A strong work-life policy in the office will mean your staff will want to work hard, and you will want them to enjoy their life outside work.