5 leadership strategies to motivate your team in 2019

Only 13% of employees worldwide are really engaged at work. That leaves plenty of room for improvement. As a business leader, it’s up to you to re-inspire your troops for a successful year in business. Here are five leadership strategies you can use to energise your employees in 2019.

1. Express a clear vision

Do your people really understand your business vision? Gather your team and explain exactly where the business is currently placed and what you’d like to achieve in 2019. Then hold individual meetings with your employees to let them know how their role fits into your overall strategy.

It’s also important to take the time to hear out any concerns, offer support where it’s needed, and set goals that will challenge your high performers. This can help create a better team dynamic and have you working together to achieve your goals this year.

2. Offer specific feedback

Vague, general feedback can easily be misunderstood and, therefore, lead to few improvements. That’s why you should try and be very clear about the specific areas you feel need work and recommend steps your employee should take to improve their performance. Setting well-defined key performance indicators (KPIs) helps to keep you on the same page in the future and allows both parties to assess their performance over time.

3. Provide development pathways

People can often get stuck in rut if they think their careers are progressing too slowly, or not at all. Hold regular meetings with your team to discuss their career goals and lay out the steps they need to take to put themselves in the position for potential promotion.

Providing additional training they may need to achieve their goals can make them feel valued and that you care about their development. However, you should also be honest about how you see their future at your company and avoid making promises you can’t keep.

4. Be generous with praise

Employees want to be recognised for their success. So, it’s wise to make a point of praising good performance at both a team and an individual level. Tell your employees exactly what they did well and how this effort is contributing to the overall success of the business. If you want to take it one step further, you can implement an incentives program that rewards those who achieve specific KPIs.

5. Make work meaningful

Many people want to have a positive impact on their communities. Getting your organisation involved with non-profit organisations can help answer that need. You could even consider giving your employees some time off to volunteer for a charity of their choice.

An energised team is good for business. Engaged employees are more productive, more proactive, and will be happier contributing to organisational goals. It’s a leader’s job to create a positive work environment where your people feel valued and understand their role in a well-functioning team.

Source: Quickbooks