AI cannot motivate employees – that’s the job of managers. But some motivational strategies are more effective than others.
A good test of your own motivational mindset is to consider to what extent you believe employees perform well in exchange for a good salary and possible bonuses. If you think financial incentive is the golden key to performance improvement, then research demonstrates you are mistaken.
Meta-analyses (ie analyses of multiple previous studies) have found that the correlation between pay and job satisfaction is just 0.15. In contrast, the correlation between employees feeling listened to by their supervisor and job satisfaction is 0.43. To put it differently, only 2.3% of the variance in job satisfaction is explained by pay but a whopping 18.5% by feeling listened to.
Consequently, leaders who genuinely listen to employees have a much greater impact on employees’ sense of contentment than those who simply offer financial incentives. Managers who largely rely on salary and bonuses to motivate employees are likely to be perceived as relatively poor leaders.
Encourage staff to think critically and challenge the status quo
Smarter leadership
Two sets of leadership behaviours have been identified to be of particular benefit in employee motivation: intellectual stimulation and individualised attention.
To stimulate employees intellectually, resist telling them too much what to do. Instead, encourage them to think critically and challenge the status quo with questions such as: ‘How could we tackle this issue in a better way?’ or ‘What could we do to improve the service we offer clients?’ Even when you do need to assign specific tasks, empower staff by asking: ‘What’s the best way to do this?’
To provide individualised attention, invest time in understanding what motivates each person – their drivers and professional as well as personal goals. Regular one-on-one meetings are invaluable for exploring individual needs and aspirations, although only if employees feel safe speaking about what genuinely matters.
Individuals who expect rapid feedback perform better
The benefits of these leadership behaviours are almost immediate. In a study led by Erasmus University Rotterdam’s Arnold Bakker, employees completed daily diaries of what they did and how leaders treated them. Multilevel analyses identified that, on days when leaders intellectually stimulated employees or gave employees individualised attention, employees were more likely to take the initiative and reported feeling more engaged the next day.
In other words, leadership does not need months or even weeks to pay off; a single day of better leadership can affect same-day initiative taking and next-day performance. And that makes it worth asking yourself: what could you do differently today to lift your team’s performance?
Fast feedback
Another effective technique for boosting performance is to set the expectation of fast feedback. Research by Keri Kettle and Gerald Häubl at the University of Alberta found that individuals who expected rapid feedback went on to perform better than those who believed feedback would be delayed. So don’t wait until the end of the year or even a project: reassure employees that you will give feedback promptly throughout.
Fostering a positive mood helps drive innovation
Managing one’s emotions is another crucial leadership skill, according to multiple studies. For example, an investigation led by Nai-Wen Chi at National Sun Yat-Sen University found that leaders’ positive moods directly enhanced the performance of sales teams. Another study by Australian researchers Rebecca Mitchell and Brendan Boyle found that leaders who fostered more positive moods in multidisciplinary healthcare teams helped generate higher levels of innovation.
It may sound obvious to state that leaders’ emotions can affect teams. Yet surveys frequently reveal that many leaders still exhibit anxiety, indifference, guilt and anger. Astute leaders should think of managing their own emotions as not just benefitting their own mental health but also likely having major benefits for their teams.
Bottom-up
However, motivation cannot be generated by leaders alone. In a classic meta-analysis of 65 studies, researchers Timothy Judge and Remus Ilies found that employee personality factors such as extraversion, conscientiousness and emotionality were strong and consistent predictors of motivation.
Effective leadership is about connecting, not commanding
Savvy leaders may therefore wish to review how they interview and select employees – for example, learning competency-based interviewing techniques and even using personality tests that have been validated by extensive data. It is far easier to inspire employees who are innately motivated than to try to lift the performance of those who lack inherent motivation.
To remain competitive in an AI-driven world, leaders must be able to lift rather than pressurise people to perform. Modern, effective leadership is not about commanding, it is about connecting. So take a moment today to ask a better question, offer prompt feedback or simply listen on a more genuine, human level. Science legitimately demonstrates that the actions you take today could transform how your team performs tomorrow.
More information
Watch Dr Rob Yeung’s video on how to give constructive feedback.
Register to attend ACCA’s annual virtual Accounting for the Future conference to earn over 21 units of free CPD. Dr Rob Yeung will be speaking on how to foster team trust and bold thinking.
