Motivating the many: how tech can assist with team goals

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Technology is inescapably a core component of the modern workplace. However, there could remain questions over whether you are using that technology effectively, or even implementing it particularly widely. Therefore, your workers' motivation could be flagging.

The good news is that, if this is indeed occurring, you can reverse the downward spiral by applying technology more cleverly and strategically. Here are ways that you can make this possible.

Give employees the tech tools they want

The above might seem like an obvious point – but, according to research by PricewaterhouseCoopers, while 90% of C-suite executives think that their company heeds people's requirements when choosing new tech, just 53% of workers agree.

Therefore, you should let employees pick the devices and apps which they deem crucial to helping them work most effectively. While many workers are increasingly operating on the go, just 60% of them report feeling satisfied with the mobile options they can use at work.

Enable workers to continually add to their skills bases

In a Forbes article, Lana Vernovsky of the Illinois-based company Dynamics Resources cites “continuous tech education” as one of the ingredients of the “formula to a successful IT team”.

It's encouraging, then, that research reveals employees' willingness to spend as many as two days monthly on training to step up their digital skills. However, with only 50% of staff believing they have enough resources to improve their use of new tech, you should open valuable learning pathways.

Trust workers to be able to choose the right tools for them

Whatever the specific project at hand, inform your team of the business goal, but also allow them to select the specific tools, both hardware and software, to use in working towards that goal.

This would be an important step if, say, you lack sophisticated tech knowhow yourself, but the team can dip into a broad pool of tech resources. Furthermore, letting the staff make the decisions will show that you trust them; this, in turn, can help you to foster a highly motivated team.

Naturally, though, you can't expect workers to choose and use particular tech tools effectively if they don't even know that they exist. Therefore, you should familiarise your team with new tools as you come across them and realise their usefulness to the broader company.

Let's assume, for example, that you wanted to transport some supplies to a new office, such as a satellite office that has recently opened a few miles away. In that case, you could assign a team member the task of searching for a removal “man with a van near me”.

Whether the team member uses a removal company's website or app to peruse quotes before eventually booking a removal service, that person can show their mettle for both tasks.

Know how tech motivates your workers

As per research, 34% of workers use technology out of curiosity and a desire to improve efficiency and teamwork. 37%, meanwhile, might instead choose to adopt new tech as a way of helping themselves in advancing their careers.