Employee motivation has always been a central concern for managers and leaders. Unmotivated employees are likely to spend little or no effort in their jobs, avoid the workplace as much as possible, exit the organisation when given the opportunity, and produce low quality work. On the other hand, employees who feel motivated to work are likely to be persistent, creative and productive, and turn out higher quality results. Motivating employees is achieved in a number of ways. Employers must know their employees well enough in order to use varying approaches to motivate each of them based on their personal wants and needs.

Creating a work environment in which employees are productive is essential to increasing profits for your organisation. Maximising employee productivity centers around two major areas of focus: personal motivation and the infrastructure of the work environment.

An example of what motivates employees is the ability to see projects through to their completion. While the actual process of monitoring this may be the task of another employee (e.g., a department manager), it is important that they recognise that every employee involved in the workflow should be able to see the finished product once it is complete, and gain an understanding of his or her importance in the project as a whole.

In addition, a motivating work environment must be one in which employees are treated fairly. No matter what level of input a particular worker has in relation to the business processes as a whole, it is essential for a manager to give each employee a sense of playing a dynamic, integral role in something much larger. Indeed, engendering loyalty is a key element of motivating workers and thereby increasing the overall productivity of operations.