Team Motivation Activities

It’s not about silly games, but rather Team Motivation Activities should be about how you manage your business and lead your people.  Below we talk about 5 Team Motivation Activities that can make a difference with your team.

This topic was inspired by a question from Matt, a Wily Manager member:

“Hey Wily Manager Team,

Thank you very much for the podcasts.   I know how to motivate one person at a time, but my question would be, how do you motivate a whole team that has no career aspirations and hardly any motivation to achieve their goals.”

Well, Matt – thanks for your question on Team Motivation Activities, and here’s some food for thought.

5 Team Motivation Activities

1. Figure out what makes your people tick
2. Set and communicate clear expectations
3. Administer consistent reinforcement and consequences
4. Promote healthy competition
5. As a last resort, change out team members

These five team motivation activities may not be as much fun as a day-long high-ropes course, but they are much less expensive, and these activities have tangible outcomes.

Figure Out What Makes Them Tick

Your very first team motivation activity is to recognize that every person is different.  You need to determine why your team members may not be motivated.

• Remember that everyone’s behavior makes sense to her.  You need to ask, “why would people behave or react in this way?”
• How has the team historically been led?  If people have not been adequately led, they may have no historical incentive to go above and beyond.
• What has been reinforced and rewarded?  If people have no career aspirations and are generally lazy, then this is what has historically been reinforced.
• Has poor performance been dealt with?  If problem performers have not been addressed, then people will withdraw their discretionary effort.

Create Clear Expectations

Before a manager can bemoan his people’s inability to get things done, he needs to ensure those people have been provided with clear expectations.

• Is there initiative overload?  Is effort diffused by dozens of different issues all demanding your people’s attention?  If this is the case, they end up doing all of these things poorly.
• Overwhelmed by HQ?  If you work in a large bureaucracy, it is quite possible for multiple (and sometimes competing) directions are coming from head office.  Much like initiative overload, it diffuses people’s energy and ensures nothing will be done well.
• Are there 4 – 7 key team goals for the year?  If there are 50 or 60 goals, your team will become frustrated and give up.  The most motivated teams are those who can rally around a limited number of achievable goals.
• Is there one overarching objective or a clear vision?   For example:  “Be top 5 sales team in the country in 2012?”

Consistent Reinforcement and Consequences

Managers need to reinforce the behaviors they want to see, and respond appropriately to behaviors and performance that does not meet their expectations.  Unfortunately, many leaders believe that reinforcement and rewards are the responsibility of the HR group.

• Look beyond variable compensation (or any other HR initiative).
• Consistently reward desired performance in a way meaningful to the recipient.
• Deal with poor performance swiftly and decisively

Promote Healthy Competition

• Don’t pit people against each other, but encourage healthy competition:
  • Reward top performers on a regular basis
  • Public accountability where appropriate

Change Out Team Members

In some cases, when everything else has been tried, a manager must make the decision to terminate an employee’s employment.

• You need to give everyone every opportunity to be successful.
• When people choose not to be successful, make changes

BEWARE:  If you go overboard (and fire too many people), it will be obvious to all, that the problem is you, and NOT your people.

Three Things to Remember about Team Motivation Activities

1. Treat people as individuals – all of your efforts must be motivating in the eyes of the recipient – not you as the manager.
2. Be consistent — you need to reward people regularly, and deal with poor performance consistently, without bias, and quickly.
3. Don’t abdicate leadership to HR or anyone else.  As a manager, it is your job to lead your people, not HR’s.  Use HR as a resource where you can to better lead your people.

Watch the ‘3-Minute Crash Course’ about Team Motivation Activities (CLICK THE ARROW TO START THE VIDEO):

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