With less than a year to go before London hosts the largest sporting event in the world, businesses in the UK are now starting to consider ways in which to increase staff motivation during the 2012 Olympics.
The recent release of an article from the Telegraph titled ‘Sickies to soar during Games’ not only reiterated Britain’s hunger to attend the games, but it has kick started business leaders into investing in effective motivational schemes to increase staff engagement and morale between the 27th July – 12th August 2012.
With over 8.8 million tickets available, companies are encouraged to establish official Olympic leave policies. The Telegraph revealed that 1 in 6 workers are planning to pull a ‘sickie’ during the 2012 Olympic period and 15% of employees intend to take annual leave.
With statistics like these it’s no wonder that one third of businesses are aiming to improve employee motivation during the games. Businesses are launching new initiatives such as installing TV screens within communal areas at work, increasing flexible working hours for employees and creating Olympic themed motivation schemes.
The use of effective incentives such as gift vouchers and gift cards are expected to increase as bosses need to ensure high levels of staff engagement and productivity throughout the summer months. With the London 2012 build-up in full swing, ensure that your staff’s attendance, engagement and motivation levels remain at an all time high.
The need to establish official Olympic leave policies within companies is crucial. Bosses need to demonstrate to their employees that the London Olympics can be incorporated into the workplace in a way that unites staff, creates a sense of pride and encourages a fun, friendly and positive culture versus pulling a ‘sickie’.
So with less than a year to go don’t make your employee’s jump through hoops to become part of the Olympics, incorporate it into your motivation, reward and recognition schemes, in order to receive gold medal winning performance!
John Sylvester is a divisional managing director at performance improvement marketing services agency, P&MM.
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