Top Tips for Motivating Staff Through a Credit Crunch

The economic downturn means everyone is working harder, with less certainty of success and more worry. At such times it's vital to look after your staff - the people who look after you - so that you're ready to roll when recovery comes.

Finding ways to keep your workforce happy doesn't cost anything but a little time and thought.

Here are out top tips for motivating your staff through the credit crunch:

• Make a point of saying thank you in person; it costs nothing and means a lot, especially to staff who rarely get to talk to the boss.
• Send "Hero-grams" for a job well done. As well as thanking the individual in person, follow-up with an email to the rest of the staff, placing your thanks on record.
• Offer little extras. Big pay rises may be off the agenda, but treats like an early finish on Friday, or a day off on a birthday do wonders for staff morale.
• Keep an open-door policy. When times are tough, staff need to know the boss is approachable and that someone senior will listen to their concerns.
• Have a laugh. Constant hard work and an atmosphere of doom and gloom wear people down. Staff need a dose of light relief that makes them feel glad they've come to work, like dress down days for charity or an office quiz night.

• Start a company award scheme. It shows faith in the staff and gets them to remember the great work they have done so far, instead of the work that is piling up in front of them. They don't have to be big annual awards - monthly prizes of wine or a plaque for top sales to tea-making will bring out a smile.
• Remember your staff's names. There is nothing more demoralising for a hard-working long-serving employee than to discover the MD doesn't know their name.
• Lead by example. When staff numbers have been cut to the bone and the workload increases, managers need to get stuck in, even if it means getting their hands dirty for an hour a day.
• Don't be mean with expenses. Overtime pay may not be possile, but offering staff a free lunch on expenses when they're working through their lunch hour is a good way of saying thank you.
• Wine and dine them. Take the staff out for a pub lunch to mark a significant milestone or give them all a bacon butty and an M & S voucher to make them feel valued.
• Keep the information rolling. Being kept in the dark is the best way of spreading negativity. Introduce a regular newsletter or staff meeting, keeping everyone informed about the company performance - highlight the positives.