Business headlines have been dominated by bad news with huge layoffs in the tech sector as well as continued retail and restaurant closures. The negative attention can have taken its toll on frontline workers who usually bear the brunt of company belt tightening. The down atmosphere in business can greatly impact costs and profitability by way of reduced productivity and decreased efficiency. Even just one team member with low morale can greatly affect the entire staff. Small and medium sized businesses can use their size to understand the pulse of the business and take steps quickly to change direction and improve morale and motivation. Maintaining a highly positive and high energy work environment is the key to keeping morale up and motivation elevated.
Challenges From Within
Customer driven business or small and medium sized organizations usually depend on frontline, entry level staff to generate revenue and achieve operational goals. When working in teams, individual characteristics could set the tone and mood for the entire team and could impact how productive and how well the team performs as a whole. In this scenario, morale is a key element as all it takes is one disgruntled or unhappy employee to bring down the entire team’s motivation and happiness. Managers and owners who are sensitive to the pulse of the business can quickly identify potential individuals who may negatively affect productivity. Engaging with that particular individual one on one could possibly shift attitudes and resolve any challenges. It also can give savvy managers a clear indication if this is a short term issue or if this will become a long term problem for the business.
Strategies for Redirecting the Current
Challenges with morale and motivation can be costly to small and medium sized organizations but creating strategies can turn the tide on workplace moods. By looking at the root cause for lower morale, managers can identify solutions that improve that particular area of the business.. Lower moral and motivation can usually be traced back to 2 causes:
- Lack of information and transparency from owners / managers
- Time available to make judgments and conclusions
Increased job satisfaction and positive work environments are most likely connected to highly productive teams. Engaging work related projects can help reduce the time available to make judgments and conclusions. Laying out the day’s objectives and structuring work can keep frontline staff busy and productive. Upskilling and reskilling through mini – training and assigning work related projects can also energize engagement with staff, while also potentially increasing productivity. Positive communication through morning rallies and mini huddles during shifts can keep staff in the loop and informed. Engagement from owners and managers also gives individual’s a chance to share their own thoughts or answer questions. Understanding the reasons behind lower motivation and morale can help owners and managers create solutions that are appropriate for that particular situation.
Turnovers Belong in a Bakery
Turnover is an expensive and resource consuming problem that can greatly affect profitability for small and medium sized businesses. A survey in November 2022 suggested a whopping 75.9% turnover rate in the retail sector. For smaller entities, the costs associated with hiring and training are hard to mitigate when an individual departs from the team in a short time frame. Sudden losses to staff can also have negative effects on workplace mood and morale. Another report in 2022 by McKinsey indicated 5 reasons as to why people leave jobs in retail:
- Workplace flexibility
- Health and wellbeing
- Compensation
- Career development
- Meaningful work
All very important factors but owners and supervisors have greater control over the last 2 points and both can greatly impact turnover. Decreasing or eliminating turnover will build stronger and higher performing frontline teams through better morale and increased motivation.
The Bottom Line
Small & medium sized businesses have an advantage over their counterparts when it comes to maintaining a highly motivated team. Engaging employees and keeping communication consistent are key ways to counter the negative effects of business media. Keeping frontline teams motivated will also reduce turnover while driving productivity. Highly motivated staff can help reduce costs in certain areas of the operation while increasing sales and driving profitability. Increasing skill sets for key team players will also contribute to an enhanced workplace environment. Having scenario planning in place and communicating those plans to employees will counter the effect of the current barrage of negative business news and help ensure continued motivation and productivity.