How does a 21 year old manage to keep his team’s productivity level so high that the company experiences accelerated growth in its earliest phase? The answer is simple: Team Motivation.
Team motivation is key to boost morale and productivity within a company. Studies show that conventional norms of involving rewards and punishments fail to act as strong motivators.
Clonefluence, initially started off as an agency for social media management and now offers services such as Artist Management, Social Media Management, Promotions, Marketing, Follower Enlargement, and Blog Placements all within a span of 3 years.
I had a chance to speak to Justin Grome who had some valuable insights on motivating teams, here’s what he had to say:
Give Them Space to Work
The digital world has transformed the ways in which businesses and people operate. In a Forbes study, 46 percent of respondents said that flexibility is the most important factor when it comes to job searching. Moreover, 86 percent of companies on Forbes list of “Best Companies to Work For” offered some type of flexible schedule.
Justin was sure to exemplify this factor within his company. He progressively believes in allowing his teammates work from home and according to their schedules. Sean Sickler, the Marketing Manager at Clonefluence, loves his work and is said to be found listening to music whenever he is working. It helps him work and that is the comfortable space Justin gives him.
Treat Them like Your Teammates, Not Your Employees
Happy employees are enthusiastic and positive members of the team, and their attitude is contagious. The psychological factor of feeling trusted and respected for your work does wonders for team motivation and productivity.
Justin spent a lot of time on building a team of reliable people before he officially launched the company. Now, he spends as much effort, if not more, in retaining them by treating them like teammates rather employees. You would find Justin using the word ‘team’ a lot instead of employees and attributing Clonefluence’s growing success to its team rather than solely giving credit to himself.
Allow Free Flow of Diverse Ideas
Justin’s team in particular benefits from the diversity that the teammates bring in. They are spread out throughout the United States and bring distinctive ideas to the table. In the current scenario, a diversified workforce is crucial for every organization as it reflects reality.
As clients bring increasingly complex and varied issues, Justin believes the best way of delivering innovative solutions is through diverse teams who challenge and support each other in equal measure.
Be a Considerate Leader
Leaders do not have to necessarily be authoritarian to be effective. Critical and tyrannical leaders do little to motivate and interest their employees and studies support this notion. In fact, the stress of working under a mean employer can negatively affect employee’s mental health. In essence, people leave bad employers, not bad jobs. Justin himself holds an aversion to working under someone
A considerate boss on the other hand boosts cohesiveness and productivity. Leaders perceived as empathetic motivate their employees to be more helpful to colleagues. Justin makes it a point to invite ideas and opinions and allows criticism for self-improvement.
Ensure the Team’s Goals Are Aligned with That of the Company’s
When a team is given a goal that serves the larger goal, it is essentially given something to reach for.
Goal setting improves motivation and productivity. For a team to be aligned, it has to work towards a common purpose and with a similar motivation and for this to work the common goal has to be known. Goal setting provides the focus a team needs to sort out priorities and tasks that fosters cohesiveness while increasing productivity. It is known that employees are motivate when they have something to strive for, this can be achieved through setting specific, attainable, and realistic goals.
Justin’s team is vigilant of new techniques to use to better their performance and make their clients happier. The team gets its motivation from the company’s goal of performance acceleration.
Teams are the ways companies get important work done. A strong motivated team combines enthusiasm, knowledge, and skills of a group of people to accomplish the bigger objective. As a leader, you should constantly be thinking of motivating and inspiring your team to achieve great results.