How finance leaders can motivate their teams (and themselves)

Motivation is indispensable in a finance team tasked with growing a business successfully.

Motivated employees are likely to perform better; they feel better doing their job and are more interested in learning new skills.

“Motivation is a core component that contributes to job satisfaction and is a key driver for productivity and loyalty within the team,” said Fiona Masuku, ACMA, CGMA, director at Creative CFO, a finance services consultancy based in Cape Town, South Africa.

Motivation is an invaluable asset for organisations, because it fosters engagement and promotes innovative thinking, said Ayelet Fishbach, professor of behavioural science and marketing at the University of Chicago in the US and author of Get it Done: Surprising Lessons from the Science of Motivation.

“A motivated team is more innovative, dedicated, and produces higher-quality work,” said Funmi Adesida, FCMA, CGMA, and head of finance at Infrastructure Delivery International in Nigeria.

But keeping employees motivated can be a challenge.

Tactics to motivate teams

Masuku, Fishbach, and Adesida offered advice on how to best motivate teams. Ranging from incorporating fun activities into the work routine to implementing clear structures that promote work-life balance, their tips are:

Identify burnout

Before an organisation can determine how best to motivate its finance team, it must know how to spot telltale signs of fatigue.

All three experts agreed that fatigue manifests itself in various ways: increased errors, irritability, decreased interest in work, and a higher number of sick days.

Ignoring signs of burnout and depletion amongst your team carries significant risks. Adesida warned that overlooking such signs can promote low morale and lead to high staff turnover. This not only creates learning gaps but also increases costs associated with recruitment and training new staff.

“It is vital for managers and business leaders to have regular check-ins with their teams to understand their state of mind. This enables them to address fatigue before it spirals into a major issue,” Masuku said.

“During periods when the workload is a lot, managers need to support their team to meet the department’s deadline,” Adesida said. They will feel encouraged by this because it signifies that you want them to succeed, she added.

“In a company I worked at, when the team [was] struggling with month end and we [needed] to do the forecast, I would take on the forecast process while the rest of the team was busy posting and doing recons,” she said.

Consider smaller teams

Motivation can be enhanced through two main strategies: smaller teams and clear division of labour, Fishbach said. This allows for better coordination and increases the likelihood that team members contribute more on an individual level — more than they would in a large team.

Fishbach also advocates for a shift in focus from past progress to what remains to be accomplished, particularly after reaching a project’s halfway point. “This promotes forward momentum and maintains motivation levels,” she said.

Encourage breaks and be empathetic

Adesida emphasised the importance of creating structures that limit the need for employees to work overtime and ensuring team members take regular breaks.

Having timetables, which the team must stick to, helps, she suggested.

“At the beginning of every year, I sit with my team and draw up a timetable,” Adesida explained. “They are the ones on the ground and understand the [issues] they are facing. My job is to listen, challenge, and come to a consensus that ensures they are still able to meet the deadlines set.”

It’s important to take the time and effort to think through the scenarios and seek clarity from the team members involved, Masuku said.

“For example, if someone misses a deadline, it might be due to fatigue,” she said. “However, in the heat of the moment, leaders might not consider that. That is why it is important to take a moment and review things, ask the right questions, and then react with the appropriate level of empathy.”

Fishbach and Adesida cautioned against telling people to work harder or ignoring signs of burnout. Instead, they suggested leaders should remove barriers, increase enthusiasm, and make work more rewarding and fun.

In addition, a strong focus on work-life integration (such as offering flexibility) and inclusivity can reduce potential burnout. Employers also need to be aware of mental health issues and offer appropriate support when needed.

An empathetic approach — understanding and addressing the root causes of stress and fatigue — is key to supporting a depleted team and reinvigorating their motivation.

Provide learning opportunities and a fun element

For Masuku, motivating finance professionals often involves providing opportunities for learning and career development.

“As we are an outsourced service, there is a massive risk to ignoring fatigue,” she said. “We push the value of our team, their skills and experiences. If people get burnt out, it is a huge risk for the organisation.”

Using elements of fun at work is important, Adesida suggested. “For instance, we introduced a week that was filled with games, fancy dress, and charity visits. These activities provided a refreshing break and had a motivating effect on the team.”

Keep yourself motivated

Even leaders have challenging days, and maintaining personal motivation is crucial. To keep herself motivated, Adesida sets aside “me time” in the mornings, reaches out to colleagues for advice, vents frustrations to a trusted confidante, and strictly observes off-work periods to recharge.

This approach applies equally to employees.

“I take breaks to recharge and when I do, I am switched off,” Adesida said. “I only take calls if it is an emergency. I also do not work weekends, and I [have made] that clear in every place I have worked at.”

Life-work balance is very important, and employees must push for that with their employers so that they also understand the need for it, she said.

Motivation is not a constant personality trait, Fishbach said.

“There are individual variations in motivation. I might be an unmotivated employee and dedicated mother, for example,” she explained. “Once you realise that motivation depends on the situation that you [and the world] have created for your employees, you should work with them to change the situation to increase motivation.”

Jessica Hubbard is a freelance writer based in South Africa. To comment on this article or to suggest an idea for another article, contact Oliver Rowe at Oliver.Rowe@aicpa-cima.com.

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“How Finance Leaders Can Develop Creativity in Their Teams”, FM magazine, 5 July 2023

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