How do you motivate Low Performers to do a Better Job?

Author: Antony Xavier

This is a question that keeps many managers up at night. And it's hard to answer. The answer is hard because different things motivate different employees. For example, one employee may be motivated by a monetary bonus, but another employee may be motivated by less stress. So when it comes to low performers, managers have to apply various strategies, not one cookie-cutter approach.

But how do managers determine what motivational strategies to use? They start by viewing "motivation" from a holistic perspective. Low performers are not ONLY motivated by paychecks, bonuses, or promotions. Those things are important, but so are other things like less stress, greater cooperation, and different tasks.

So when you talk to employees about doing a better job, you want to give a "reason" they can relate to. This means that you have to know how performance improvement will benefit each of your low performers.

Here are 24 benefits to consider:

ASK: How might "this employee benefit" from improved performance?

1. Less stress that comes from having to make corrections
2. Less oversight and monitoring of assignments from you, the manager
3. More autonomy in handling individual assignments
4. Fewer complaints from customers and clients
5. More compliments from customers and clients
6. Less time spent having to offer explanations about incomplete work
7. Less time spent having to offer explanations about incorrect work
8. Fewer requests from coworkers or other employees asking for status reports
9. More opportunities to perform different types of "desirable" tasks
10. More opportunities to work with different or "interesting" employees
11. Increased opportunity for improved performance rating
12. Increased opportunity to receive bonus or some type of monetary recognition
13. Increased opportunity to receive recognition or some type of non-monetary acknowledgement
14. Less mandatory overtime required to complete overdue assignments
15. More opportunities to work overtime that is based on good performance
16. Less time spent redoing and reworking assignments
17. Less time spent having to correct mistakes and errors
18. More time off as a direct reward for good performance
19. Reduction in personal backlogs or workloads
20. Increase in personal accuracy and quality
21. Greater cooperation from managers, coworkers, or other employees
22. More opportunities to participate in different types of "employee development programs"
23. More opportunities to participate in different types of high-profile projects
24. More opportunities to work with people who can positively influence career

Remember, Different Things Motivate Different Employees

Motivation is personal and individual. So it's not enough to say, "If you do a better job, you will receive a bonus." And even if this approach works once, it might not work every time. Or you might not always be able to promise a bonus for performance. You need a variety of ways to keep your low performers motivated. And the approach you choose depends on the employee. You might have to cite several "personal benefits" to motivate some employees, but only one or two for others. This list gives you 24 to choose from. Try a few the next time you have to talk to a low performer.

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