Keep staff motivated.

Talk to them. “In a downturn, some managers apply mushroom treatment where they keep people in the dark and heap manure on them,” says John Mariotti, president of the business advisory firm the Enterprise Group. “Yet you motivate by being straight with people and sharing the bad news.” Communication is vital to keeping employees engaged. Withholding information only causes anxiety and resentment.

Listen to them. According to Roxanne Emmerich, CSP, CMC, “Guilt, fear, and paranoia, as well as a few other destructive emotions, can freeze people’s performance during tough times.” She suggests that employers create a forum where employees can share their feelings, release them, and then move on. Emmerich warns employers who think that this type of meeting is unproductive that not allowing employees to express their concerns will ensure they continue to talk about them long past the time they would otherwise let them go.  

Demonstrate empathy. We stay emotionally charged when we communicate our feelings to someone who doesn’t appear to “get it.” Emmerich suggests that, “If you don’t want to be listening to the same complaints over and over, then listen with emotion.” For example, if an employee is visibly upset and expresses her concerns in a loud, angry voice, respond in a loud voice by saying something like, “I feel terrible because I see you’re so upset.” Then let your voice drop down to its normal range as you continue the conversation. This will help defuse the emotion by letting the employee know that you “really got it.”

Shift the focus. Don’t say, “Do your job or I’ll get one of the unemployed people staring in the window to replace you.” Do talk about goals that need to be reached now and how to tackle them together. Jim Evans, president of the human resources consulting firm JK Evans & Associates LLC, suggests that employers “Give employees important objectives aligned with helping the company work through the recession. Engaging employees in meeting the company’s challenges helps them to more fully understand the company’s needs and perspectives.” It also helps them to stop focusing on the bad and look toward the future.

Involve them. Ask employees for cost-savings ideas and reward them for their efforts. One local law firm asked employees to help cut costs by turning off lights, recycling paper, and other cost-savings measures. After a six month period, the resulting savings from their effort was passed on to the employees in a one-time-only reward. The firm benefitted because the steps employees took to cut costs are now part of the organizational culture and will continue to help the firm save money in the future.  

Retain the current culture. It’s important to resist the urge to cut out all unnecessary expenses. One company decided that it could no longer afford to provide coffee to its employees. The wrath from the disgruntled employees was much more expensive than the cost of the coffee.

Train them. Training is usually the first thing to go in a recession. According to Elaine Varelas, managing partner of business development at the career management firm Keystone Partners, “It may seem counterintuitive to be spending money during an economic downturn, but supporting employees is the single most important investment organizations can make. And by investing in people when the economy is making them feel vulnerable, organizations can have a concrete impact on recruitment, retention, and employee productivity – three key issues during any kind of economy.” If you don’t have the money to train employees, the State of California has money available to off-set the costs of job skills training necessary to maintain high-performance workplaces. The costs of hiring the trainer are basically offset by the reimbursement businesses receive from the State. Check out http://www.etp.cahwnet.gov/ and click on the Program Information tab for more information.

Celebrate successes. It’s important that the news from management is not all doom and gloom. So, look for things to celebrate and share the good news with your employees. Even if business remains status quo – celebrate that you didn’t experience any losses for that month. Focusing on the positive helps foster a positive work environment, which is necessary to get through tough times. 

Show appreciation. People need to know that their contribution matters, especially during an uncertain business climate. Evans reminds us that, “A sincere thank you, or recognition for a job well done, costs nothing. Employees are motivated by a show of respect and sincere appreciation.”

Take advantage of downtime. If business is slow, use this time to:

Create or update:

• Your company’s employee handbook
• Supervisor’s handbook
• Job descriptions for every position
• Your IIPP (Illness and Injury Prevention Program)

Review:

• Your company’s hiring and termination processes (are interviewers properly trained? are you providing all the required forms and pamphlets?)
• Personnel files (are there things in them that shouldn’t be, or things that are not in them that should be?)

Conduct:

• Classification Analysis (to ensure jobs are properly classified as exempt/non-exempt)
• HR Department Review (to ensure HR policies and practices are in compliance)
• Compensation Audit (recent legislation has significantly increased the risk that employers’ compensation systems will come under attack)
• Organizational Communication Survey (to determine breakdowns in communication and strategies to improve them) 

Taking steps to keep employees motivated and taking advantage of downtime by using it productively can help employers emerge from the recession better than ever. Says Emmerich, “Good organizations, departments, and managers thrive during rough times because they learn to hone their skills like never before. They’ve discovered that it’s the bad times that make them so much better during the good times.”