The word motivation is used in so many contexts today.  Motivation is something we do as individuals, motivation is something that we do in teams also.  How do we motivate someone to do something?  Actually we can’t motivate anyone to do anything.  Motivation comes from within and as individuals we decide when we are motivated to take action and as a team member to take action as part of that team.

Having said that, motivation still plays a huge part in our venue and in teams.  How do we create the right environment for people in our teams within our venues to be motivated to achieve, to excel?

Basic motivation to perform as a member of a team comes in the form of reward for effort.  If you put in a fair days work you will be paid for your efforts.  Moving on from this some people are motivated to perform above the basic requirement and are rewarded according to their effort.  Sales people have long thrived on this form of motivation.  Reach a sales target and be rewarded with money or other incentives.

In a team, we can’t always motivate with money or rewards.  We can however create an environment where people are motivated to succeed as part of a team.  Paying close attention to the following factors will create that environment:

•    Shared Vision
•    Good Communication
•    Shared values
•    Responsibility
•    Personal Growth

Shared Vision
In my experience the team that has taken to time to create a shared vision is the team that will be motivated to succeed.  Creating a shared vision allows everyone to get on board and work toward achieving that vision.  A shared vision conveys a sense of concreteness, it becomes something vivid or real, and people can almost touch it, feel it and can definitely see it.

Henry Ford had a great vision for the motor car.  He wanted to create a car for the multitudes.  He wanted to make a car so low in price that anyone on a normal salary could afford to buy one and enjoy it with their family.

Your team does not need to create such a far reaching vision though one that is truly inspiring and shared by all team members will create an environment for motivation and a drive to achieve.

The secret to a shared vision is to ensure that all team members have a stake in the vision.  Even if staff move on or are replaced, the new team members must be recruited to share in and support the vision.  They must understand how the vision was created and how they too can contribute and benefit from making that vision a reality.

Good Communication
Good communication is paramount in a highly motivated team.  Communication both up and down through the team will ensure that everyone knows what is happening and why.  Some leaders of teams create fantastic visions and then fail to communicate why that vision is important to the success of the team and its reason for being.

Good communication means that people talk to each other both formally and informally.  Formal meetings must be held regularly to share the news about what’s happening outside the team and also to share the news about what’s happening inside the team.  Often teams are created in various locations and without regular communication may not know what’s happening to their colleagues.  The other great tragedy is that people within teams can work close by on the same floor and still not know what is happening to their colleagues.

Some teams communicate with short team talks at the beginning of each day, that last for just ten minutes, others meet for a longer weekly briefing, still others distribute information by email briefings.  Figure out what works best for your team and implement the system and stick to it.

Shared Values
There is no “right” set of values which a team must adhere to.  Values exist in organisations and teams without necessarily ever being articulated.  The secret to creating an environment of motivation in a team is to share a similar set of values and to make that set of values public and vigourously supported.

Values evolve over time for some teams and arise Accidentally, others are Core values and are fundamental to the existence of the team.  Still other values are Aspirational and are not yet “lived” by the team.  These values are set for the team to strive to achieve and in themselves create a motivational environment.

Values for teams can be simple as quality, market responsiveness or customer service.  Whatever the value, once the team understands it exists, they can work toward supporting that value and making it a reality for the team.

Responsibility
People are more motivated to excel if they are given appropriate responsibility.  Having ownership of a defined piece of work creates motivation.  Coupled with responsibility must also be authority and accountability.  Having authority to make something happen will ensure that it happens.  Having accountability will ensure that it happens in a way that is positive and with minimum risk for the team.

It is important to ensure that the responsibility and accountability are not so large as to overwhelm the staff member assigned the task.  A little fear is a healthy thing, a lot of fear can result in total overwhelm and failure to act at all.  Create an environment where the responsibility is seen as a positive chance to succeed and excel and motivation will surely follow.

Personal Growth
Coupled closely with responsibility is personal growth.  People are keen to develop themselves and their career paths.  Creating opportunities for personal growth creates motivation.  If people are learning new concepts, widening their skill base and challenging their minds, their motivation will increase alongside their personal growth.

Personal growth bolsters people’s self esteem and their self confidence.  Look for every possible opportunity to grow and develop your staff.  If you aren’t sure where they need to develop, ask them!  Listen carefully as people speak, they will tell you what the next challenge is for them.  Challenges and growth lead to a high state of motivation.

Motivated Teams Achieve Success
A team that shares a vision, has good communication, shares the same values, takes responsibility and encourages personal growth is a team that will be motivated to excel.  Remember motivation comes from within.  For a person to become motivated they must work in an environment that fosters motivation.

Lindsay Adams, consultant and business coach
Remacue   
www.remacue.com

Case study:
Dig It! Landscapes Motivates Their Team

One of Queensland’s largest landscape companies investing in their teams is Dig It! Landscapes.  The Owner of Dig It! Located in Fortitude Valley in Brisbane, Greg Mann, has a keen interest in motivating and developing his team.  Mann’s team consists of over one hundred field staff that work on diverse projects across the State.

Mann knows that if his team works well then customer needs are met and his business meets its goals.  “Motivating our people is important for me at many levels” Mann said.  “Our Company Values clearly state, we value our family of employees, we encourage them to work smarter and have fun.  Our business is fast paced and growing.  Just keeping up with the booming construction industry is a challenge in itself”

Mann is constantly looking for ways to motivate his team and saw an opportunity to mix learning and fun with an offsite team building workshop for his management team.  Using the services of team building expert Lindsay Adams from Remacue, Mann set clear objectives for the event. 
•    He wanted his people to embrace the company vision and values;
•    He wanted his people to accept responsibility and learn and grow;
•    And to have FUN!

With the focus of the program on people’s preferences and team work Adams used a profiling tool called the Team Management Profile.  This tool measures people’s preferences at work and produces a 4000 word comprehensive report based around how people relate to others, how they gather and use information, how they make decisions and how they organise themselves and others at work.

“This information proved invaluable in terms of learning and transferring useful learning back to the workplace.” Mann said.  The activities brought out the different preferences in a controlled pressured environment and staff recognised and learnt how to communicate and deal with those preferences.

Since that event Mann hasn’t been resting on his laurels.  He recognises the need for ongoing motivation and reinforcement of the lessons learned.  He has staff attend refresher modules at regular intervals to maintain their ongoing learning.

Mann is a strong supporter of the success of team building, he measures his return on investment based on the attitude of his staff and the work atmosphere at the job sites.  “We have just been through our busiest quarter ever” says Mann “and our staff came up tops in terms of service and attitude to our customers”.