How to Turn Your Seasonal Employees Into Top Performers

With the holiday season in full swing, many employers are wondering how they can motivate their seasonal workers when their jobs may only last a few months. Whether it’s a customer service center or a department store hiring extra cashiers, keeping employees performing their best is one of the greatest challenges when it comes to seasonal hiring.

Since the seasonal hire is usually critical this time of year, it is imperative to devise a strategy that will create engaged workers who are committed to what they’re doing on a daily basis—even if they’re only doing it temporarily. Below are four tips you can use to turn your seasonal employers into top performers.

1. Provide a reason for engagement. With seasonal hires, the unfortunate truth is that their loyalty to the company is generally low. They are there to do a job and get paid for it, and thus, the outcome is generally irrelevant to them.

Some people want to produce quality work for the validation of being a good employee, but overall, seasonal employees are there to make some extra cash around the holidays. This is why companies need to provide additional motivation for their temporary workers, whether it is intrinsic or through incentives.

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2. Create a cause everyone can get behind. On a deeper level, everyone wants to do work that makes them feel good, especially temporary workers with the opportunity to help others during this time of good will and cheer. By positioning their messaging to demonstrate that they care about the greater good rather than fiscal value, companies can make employees feel part of an intrinsic organization-wide goal that is validating on all levels — not just monetarily.

For example, if someone is working remotely at a Best Buy customer service center, the company can provide training to highlight that they are there to help and bring joy to customers during the stressful holiday season. They have the opportunity to make each caller’s lives a little bit easier. That shift in thinking can cause a significant increase in your seasonal staff’s productivity.

3. Provide a motivational incentive. When it comes to remote seasonal hires, it can be challenging to inspire motivation from a distance. Software that manages employee performance can help keep them engaged and on track to reach their goals. This is achieved by providing insight into their own individual performance and how it stacks up against their peers through gamification tools like leaderboards and score cards. Even if they’re working from home, no one wants to be ranked in last place.

Additionally, seasonal workers provide the perfect opportunity to test out new technology that you might be wary to implement across the board. Use them as an opportunity to try out new things like a gamification platform—they’ll be more open to providing honest, unbiased feedback.

4. Treat the position as a tryout. For temporary employees seeking full-time employment, raise the stakes by treating the seasonal position as an opportunity for workers to “try out” for a permanent job. If possible in your organization, offer the top performing temporary hire a permanent position with the company. This will add a sense of purpose to their day-to-day activities, and it will ultimately lead to more success within the company.

To properly succeed in the recruiting, retention and engagement of seasonal workers, employers need to value this segment of the team as much as their regular employees. Brought on to help during the busiest time of the year, this group is a crucial component in the success of the entire business. When treated fairly and shown value, seasonal workers can be the key to a competitive advantage for years to come.