For more than two months, Russian business has been living in a new reality. Most companies have to adapt quickly to the changes that occur almost every day. And if at first there was no understanding of how long the difficult period will last, now it becomes clear that in this new reality we have to work and develop the business for a long time.
At the start, many chose a wait-and-see attitude, but now it's time to make difficult decisions, rebuild familiar processes and make serious changes.
And of course, this can negatively affect the motivation of employees and their loyalty to the company. Moreover, now many of them live in the mode of mind scrolling and are surrounded by a huge number of stressful factors.
It is very important to build the management of employees in such a way that they feel protected at least in the professional sphere of their lives. Then it will be easier for businesses to mobilize all their resources and inspire staff to strengthen their work. To do this, it is enough to take just a few steps.
Most companies are thinking about the income of team members now. And it is those who do not reduce staff, but rebuild schemes of monetary motivation, who are in the most advantageous position.
In difficult times, employees must bring real benefits to the business. Only in this case the company will be able to provide them with the preservation of income or its minimal reduction.
Bonuses and bonuses should be clearly linked to global goals.
Conduct an audit of bonus payments and KPIs for all positions and assess how they are tied to the key tasks of the company. Remove all items that are insignificant for priority areas, and bet on what is really important in the current situation.
Be sure to tell your employees about the new system. After all, uncertainty is demotivating. People have thoughts: "What if they fire me tomorrow or cut my salary? Why then work more and look for new opportunities to develop their areas?"
The more transparent the relationship between salary and the real benefits for business, the clearer it will be for the employee which way to move in order to maintain his income. This will motivate people to work harder, harder and more effectively.
In difficult times, it is important to constantly be in touch with your team and openly talk to the staff about everything that happens in the company. The experience of working during the lockdown and restrictions of 2020 has shown that only honest and constant informing of employees helps to eliminate the spread of rumors, overcome the fear of job loss and reduce the degree of tension in the team .
Now there is a similar situation: uncertainty, turbulence and frequent changes in the rules of the game in the market. Therefore, the best thing to do is to show employees the loyalty of the organization.
Be open to suggestions, answer questions, talk about the current situation in the company, show what measures are being taken.
Be sure to involve people in this corporate information field and give them the opportunity to take initiative and do something useful for business.
It is important for the staff to see that the company is in full swing and everyone is focused on achieving a common result. To do this, you can enter the format of public monthly reports on the achievements of departments.
For example, they can be published in the corporate task management system — many of these services have live message feeds that all employees see.
One of the main mistakes of many managers is tightening control over employees in difficult situations. Now, on the contrary, it is worth giving people more freedom — of course, if we are not talking about a regime enterprise.
You can send to partial removal those who find this format of work more convenient, make a floating schedule or give one additional day off per week.
The main thing is that the employee is in touch, implements the set goals and shows the desired results.
And it is better to exclude constant monitoring now, so as not to pull a person and not to increase anxiety and nervousness. The more comfortable and confident he will feel, the easier it will be for him to achieve the tasks that the management sets for him.
Managers often neglect a detailed explanation of instructions and an open assessment of the results of staff work. Many people think that the employee understands everything anyway. And if not, then these are his personal problems — he will figure it out in the process.
This approach negatively affects the effectiveness of people's work. They have to spend a lot of time guessing, reworking and deciphering what the boss wanted to say in the end.
Moreover, it can greatly demotivate the staff. Employees will feel that they are not being heard, not understood. And the constant correction of errors due to lack of clarity of tasks can significantly lower their self‑esteem as professionals.
Therefore, the head should formulate his instructions as clearly as possible and clarify with subordinates whether everything is clear to them. Even better, ask them to tell you how they plan to implement the task.
In addition, you need to be in touch with employees and answer their questions in a timely manner. And according to the results of the work, it is worth giving detailed feedback , which should include not only constructive criticism, but also deserved praise. Employees need to feel that management appreciates their contribution to the common cause.
