By: Wanda Olszewski
There is no doubt that two key qualities employers look for in their employees are initiative and motivation. But many don’t know how to assess these during the recruitment process. The answer is to structure your interview questions to draw out specific behaviours and competencies. You should also formulate a set of “ideal” answers against which the candidate’s answers can be measured.
“What motivates you?” is an open-ended question, and does have merit in some situations. But to probe further to discover specific behaviours and attitudes, you will want to 8nd out what the prospect’s interests are and what motivates them.
Find out what motivates a prospect in the workplace
Ask the following questions to find out what motivates a prospect in the working environment:
- If you could do anything you wanted for a living, what would it be and why? This question should reveal their interests and how similar these are to what they will be doing at work. It will also provide insight into how much they enjoy their current job.
- Describe the best job you have ever had and why it was your best. This will show you where the candidate has been happiest during their career to date and if they will have a similar focus in your firm.
- Describe the best boss you have worked for and why you liked him. This is an opportunity to see what style of management the prospect responds best to.
- What is the best environment you have worked in and why? The answer should reveal what they consider important in the working environment. If the description is similar to your business, you may just have found the right person for the job.
- If you were to start your own business what values would be its foundation? The candidate should explain the values that they consider core to running a business and these values will offer some insight into what they stand for.
Draw out who and what influences them
The following questions can be used to establish how a candidate is influenced at work:
- Who do you feel has had the greatest influence on your career thus far? Why? This question will allow you to evaluate what influences the prospect and how they could be influenced by their fellow workers.
- Who are your role models? Why? This is a broad question, but it is worth asking to find out who they align themselves with and what they admire in others.
- What type of people do you work best with? This question should help you work out if the prospect will be a good “fit” in your organisation.
- How do you like to be managed? Here you can find out how the prospect will respond to your leadership style. You should gain insight into their attitude towards ownership and deadlines and how they deliver.
Discover if your understanding of motivation is shared
The right questions here will confirm if the candidate shares your view on motivation and will have a sense of ownership for their work.
- What does the word “enthusiasm” mean to you? This question will help you find out if you share similar views on what enthusiasm requires.
- What influences whether or not you meet your goals? This will allow you to assess what the candidate considers essential for delivery. Does this coincide with what is required in your business?
- What is the most important end-goal in business? This tests commercial awareness, customer orientation and team focus.
- Who is the most motivated person you have ever work with? Ask this to analyse what behaviours and actions motivate the candidate.
- What does it mean to take ownership of an action or deliverable? Do you share similar views in this regard? A shared understanding leads to shared values and this is crucial.
- Give an example of a time you took ownership of something in the work environment. The answer will indicate what responsibility the prospective employee has been given in past jobs.
- What do you consider your greatest achievement to date? This will allow you to assess where their work focus lies and what responsibilities they have taken on.
- What is the most important thing you have learnt over the past six months? This answer should allow you to evaluate if the person is keen to learn. Generally speaking people who take the initiative and deliver in the workplace are always on the look-out for learning opportunities and should have no problem coming up with examples.
- What are your career goals for the next year and how do you plan to get there? Here you will find out what the candidate’s immediate career aspirations are. Consider whether or not the position you are offering will allow them the opportunity to get there?
- What are your career goals for the next three years and how do you plan to get there? The answer should reveal their longer term plans, which can be used to help align their goals to your business.
These questions should help you determine how enthusiastic a candidate is, what values they consider important and if they choose to claim ownership for their work. Don’t forget to ask appropriate questions about work experience, job level and technical ability to get as broad a picture as possible.
How to ensure new employees stay motivated
If you find the right person and they accept your offer, you will want the motivation they showed during their interview to continue into the working arena, Motivation can easily shift and it will be up to you and your management team to make sure that they stay motivated, have the scope to be enterprising and the responsibility to ensure delivery.
Motivation is directly linked to a person’s interests and purpose. The best way to make sure that your employees understand their purpose and how they fit in is to explain it all on their first day in the office.
Many managers just throw employees in at the deep end or feel that they don’t have the time to mentor new hires. These employees will start working with a limited understanding of the enterprise, what they are doing and why. “Why” is key as it provides context and purpose.
Make new employees feel at home
Don’t overlook the critical first few days of a new employee’s working life, this time can be used to build a positive image of the company and team and lay the foundations for what you expect from them.
During this orientation employees should be exposed to the company’s vision and values. Small business owners often think that orientation is unnecessary. However, if you consider that each employee in a small firm has a far greater impact on the overall productivity of the enterprise than their counterpart in a big firm, you’ll understand the need.
During orientation employees should learn about the company, its values and the qualities and actions that are valued and rewarded. There is no doubt that this type of orientation starts employees off on the right foot, gives them a greater sense of purpose and motivates them.
The drive to ensure that your workforce reaches its maximum potential starts with recruiting the right people and then requires you to manage their performance, appraise their work and compensate them fairly.
Measure performance to motivate
Feedback and performance appraisals are an important way of motivating employees. An in-depth performance review and goal alignment session can achieve measurable results and even drive profitability. There are many web-based, automated performance management applications with built-in features for engaging workers and measuring outcomes.
Regardless of the size of your business, there are benefits to aligning performance with objectives. The appraisal process should be a positive experience. So establish a climate of ongoing communication, encourage continuous improvement, keep your door open, give specific and constructive feedback, set goals for all staff members and explain what must be done in order to achieve these. Be consistent throughout the process. Outstanding performance can be rewarded with incentives, company awards and bonuses etc. Be inventive and have fun with this and your staff will respond accordingly.
Remember to keep your eye on the goal, you want to attract, secure and retain prospects who require minimal management, who are self-starters with initiative and are willing to claim ownership for work done. You need to put some serious effort in on an ongoing basis to make this happen. A team that understands your goals and is motivated to make them happen, will astound you with its results.
Lead by example and rekindle the passion you first felt for your business, be grateful for how far you have come to date and make audacious plans for the future. Your motivation should be visible to be infectious.