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How to motivate teams to achieve greatness

There are countless statistics that show employees who are motivated, engaged, and inspired perform better than those who aren’t. Take a look at these three examples from a recent study:

  • Companies with engaged employees will outperform companies with demotivated employees by up to 202%.
  • Employees who feel more engaged are 87% less likely to resign.
  • Over 80% of employees feel more motivated when they know the work they’re doing is part of a larger purpose.

Motivation matters, but some companies may not know how to find what motivates their team members or how to put it into practice. Motivation is not just about the attitude of the individuals, but rather an organizational attitude that flows through the company’s structure, processes, employee total rewards and more.

Culture Matters 
The culture of a company can often be over simplified or boiled down to just a mission statement. Because the mission statement is an incredibly important and strategic tool for articulating the reason a company exists, it shouldn’t simply be used as an empty phrase on the front page of an employee handbook; instead a battle cry for inspiration. In cases where there is little conviction behind the mission, company culture can end up being overly competitive, increasingly stressful, and has the potential for burnt out or unengaged employees.

In order to foster a positive and productive work culture where employees are valued and driven, it’s important to highlight that their voices matter, and what they are doing is valuable and appreciated. Employees won’t feel like they have a stake in the company’s success if they don’t see how their day-to-day tasks lead to the company’s overarching goals. This is where a well thought out mission statement can come into play. It’s vital to carefully select the company’s mission statement and communicate it well and often so your team understands how their work helps make an impact.

Every role at Digital Diagnostics contributes in a unique way to impacting the industry and customers we serve as we pursue our common mission to transform the affordability, accessibility, and quality of healthcare through the automation of medical diagnosis. We work from within the healthcare industry to design, develop, and deploy industry-leading AI technology that is focused on improving outcomes for healthcare providers and the patients they serve.

However, culture isn’t just about how a company rallies together behind a cause or mission. It’s also about balancing the stressful moments with lighthearted ones. Boosting morale and motivating remote teams involves more than just the occasional virtual happy hour; it requires a cultural emphasis on the importance of being a cohesive team.

Digital Diagnostics promotes team unity through a set of carefully selected core behaviors that serve as a common language and cultural cornerstones, contributing to the vision of a workplace that thrives and employees who flourish – together. During challenging times, Digital Diagnostics’ team members can lean on core behaviors such as, have your team’s back, do what you say you’re going to do, and have fun.

Collaboration Matters
A key component of healthy culture is effective collaboration. Collaboration is about more than just working together; it is also about information sharing and the transparent cascade of information from leader to associate or from department to department. Without clear communication, it becomes challenging for a company to build trust. Collaboration breeds innovation and creativity (and often, the motivation to succeed).

Digital Diagnostics operates in both the healthcare and AI sectors – two drastically different fields. Because of this, the Digital Diagnostics team consists of individuals with diverse expertise who routinely collaborate to tackle healthcare and technology challenges in innovative and industry leading ways.

Collaboration also helps employees feel more enthusiastic about what they do because they are doing it with other people. Being part of a team fosters a bond among colleagues. Employees are motivated not only to succeed personally, but also to support the team’s overall success.

Quick tips:

  • Be inclusive: Foster an inclusive environment where in-person and remote employees are encouraged to share their ideas. Whether during a virtual town hall or team video call, allocate time for employees to contribute. Working in isolation can lead to missed opportunities for innovation and creativity.
  • Build collaboration into your process: Discuss contribution opportunities with team members. There may be different areas employees want to explore but don’t know that they have the option to do so. Furthermore, foster an environment where it’s perfectly acceptable for employees to admit when they don’t have the answer. This openness allows team members to freely bring their ideas to the table without fear of judgment.

Commitment Matters
Strong culture and effective collaboration can be seen clearly through employee commitment. Commitment to the team should be demonstrated by leaders and team members alike. Employees are not likely to feel motivated to do their best work if they don’t see the same kind of commitment mirrored by their leaders. Honest communication from the top down is critical to building trust. Even when the message is hard to share, company leaders must remain committed to openly communicating as it is important to employees and build trust across the company.

Commitment is also about hiring the right people to manage teams. Autonomy and ownership are valuable qualities that can empower employees. This kind of management style allows employees to take responsibility for their work, fostering a culture of accountability and problem-solving.

  • Invest in employees: Companies can demonstrate their commitment to continuous learning by allocating resources toward continuing education or updating company-wide practices based on employee feedback.
  • Make transparency a priority: Establish a way to maintain open, two-way communication between employees and company leaders, ensuring that even difficult conversations can be approached constructively. Furthermore, when soliciting feedback, actively implement the suggestions or recognize those who contributed.

Motivation comes in many forms
There are many ways to motivate employees to achieve greatness. While the focus here has been limited to three areas, it’s important to recognize that these are not the only ways to inspire and drive employees.

At Digital Diagnostics we are focused on fostering a culture of collaboration and commitment. Check out our Careers page to learn more about how Digital Diagnostics motivates our teams to greatness and find expanded definitions of all 15 of our core behaviors.

  • Do what you say you’re going to do
  • Admit you don’t have the answer
  • Assume positive intent
  • Disagree and commit
  • Have your team’s back
  • Delight the customer
  • Have fun
  • Go all in
  • Have the hard conversations
  • Own your mistakes
  • Focus on the pursuit of perfection where it counts
  • Be inclusive
  • Make decisions with speed and confidence
  • Commit to continuous learning
  • Build from a place of empathy