John J. Oliver

When the economic times are tough, everyone in your organization feels intense pressure to be profitable and keep ahead of the competition. In times like these, management’s task is to motivate employees to maintain productivity and performance. But how can you ensure employees feel inspired and genuinely appreciated when the budget is being cut and people are uncertain about the future of their jobs?

This session explores simple yet powerful methods to guide organizations through the most challenging of times.

The objectives for this topic are to:

• Appreciate how a cycle of deteriorating morale occurs during times of crisis
• Understand potential threats to employee engagement and how you can effectively tackle each one
• Decide how you can best motivate and inspire your staff during a downturn

Recognition is one of the most powerful, least used management tools. Few would disagree with the argument that employees who feel appreciated and valued are much more likely to perform better than those who don’t but how often do you recognize the people around you? Most organizations fail to ensure that the recognition of good work happens with sufficient frequency and effectiveness. If your organization is one of them, you should see this as a huge opportunity. Statistically, your competition probably hasn’t figured this out yet either, so you still have time! Take recognition seriously and the result will be increased motivation, greater acceptance for ongoing change, and improved organizational performance.

The objectives of this topic are to:

• Appreciate the importance of recognition for the performance of the organization.
• Understand the fundamental characteristics of good recognition.
• Decide how you will implement these practices into your organization.