Seminal research performed by psychologist Lawrence Lindahl over five decades consistently shows that workers rate "appreciation for a job well-done" as their number one motivator. Interestingly, supervisors rank it near the bottom. Tragically, most executives cannot discern that appreciation includes both rewards AND recognition.
Appreciation is vital to making high performance sustainable. Frequent pats on the back and "Thank yous" and "Well dones" are crucial. Shows of appreciation that fill the psyche not just the bank account are essential.
Next Generation Companies use a broad suite of recognition practices to tap into employees' intrinsic feelings of appreciation. Intuit, the maker of Quicken and QuickBooks software, employs a rich mix of recognition and rewards to keep its staff motivated and feeling valued. A "Total Rewards" Program emphasizes non-cash awards to recognize employee accomplishments. A "Thanks Program" features a variety of small non-cash awards such as gift certificates to restaurants or movie tickets, and written notes of thanks. "Bright Ideas" Awards provide recognition to employees for technical achievement and for everyday activities such as process improvements and eliminating bureaucracy. "On-The-Town" Awards are given for contributing to outstanding business results and can come with as much as $1,000 in merchandise or cash – or more –- depending on the magnitude of the achievement.
The Employee Choice program offers a web-based awards and incentives service that allows employees to pick a reward from the category of their choice. To increase recognition and visibility, the company is currently developing a spot on its Web site to showcase employee achievements to the entire company and its customers.
How do your employees feel about the rewards and recognition they receive from your organization? Here's a simple test - pick the description that best describes your organization:
Both reward and recognition are viewed as inadequate and/or unfair. (INADEQUATE)
Immediately take steps to identify and adjust those aspects of your compensation and benefits policies causing the problem. Explore whether lack of recognition is at the heart of the problem. If so, institute formal and informal recognition initiatives and make sure first-line managers are involved in and supportive of these efforts.
Organization provides adequate but mostly financially based remuneration and rewards. Other forms of recognition are rare. ($-CENTRIC)
Start doling out frequent "atta-boys/girls" and giving spot rewards for jobs well done. Stop waiting for formal reviews to tell workers they are doing a good job and that their contribution is appreciated.
Organization provides broad mix of financial and non-financial rewards and recognition to workers. (AMPLE PERKS & PATS)
Move away from one-size-fits all offerings to more individualized sets of rewards and recognition. Start introducing flexibility to choose and self-designate the types of rewards and recognition they value the most.
Entire organization shares the fruits of success and can choose desired mix of rewards/recognition. (SELF-CHOSEN)
Terrific – you are employing a Next Generation Company practice! Make it easy for staff to change the mix of compensation, benefits, awards, etc. that reflect changes in their life-phase or personal tastes and wants.
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