Building engagement and performance through Incentives
Engaging and motivating employees may be a low priority for many organisations at the moment. Yet companies that pay insufficient attention to keeping employees happy during these tough economic times will be exposed to the negative effects of low morale, poor productivity and increased costs through staff absence and high turnover, says a new white paper from Capital Incentives & Motivation, Building Engagement & Performance.
Despite the obvious benefits of maintaining an engaged workforce, a recent Ipsos Mori poll revealed only 12% of employees would recommend their organisation as a place to work - down from 24% in 2006. Added to this, motivation is so low in some sectors that research by YouGov for Investors In People (IIP) revealed that 43% of people are considering leaving their job in the next 12 months.Businesses, it seems, need to start taking this issue seriously and think creatively about how to increase employee engagement, motivation and productivity. Here Derrick Hardman, managing director at Capital Incentives & Motivation outlines some of the golden rules employers can take with regard to incentives programmes in order to achieve this.
Although many employers may think the natural way to increase motivation and productivity is to give staff more money, the Capital Incentives & Motivation’s annual Motivation Survey suggests otherwise. Pay is never ranked higher than third by employees when they’re asked ‘what motivates you at work’. So with this in mind, employers should think harder about what motivates their people and how they can leverage this as an engagement tool.
Motivation schemes and staff incentives are proven techniques to spark enthusiasm and passion back across the workforce, whether this is part of a short term initiative to pull staff out of the doldrums or a longer term programme to develop and sustain employee engagement.
To make your incentive programme a success, there are five golden rules to follow:
- Define the change you want to see - be clear about the change you want to effect within the organisation. Is this improved levels of customer service, ideas for saving money or improving efficiency of work processes, increased lead generation etc.
- Think about the rewards you want to offer - it’s important that you get the type of reward you offer right. Make sure your employees have a positive perception of the reward you’re offering because employees simply won’t put any value in rewards they’re not interested in. If possible conduct some basic research.
- Launch your scheme with a bang - securing the buy-in of directors and line managers is crucial to making the launch of your scheme a success. Encourage employees to take part in the scheme, inform them how to earn the rewards and create a buzz by having lots of winners. Consider how you can use the internet as an interactive tool that really gets your employees engaged and involved.
- Keep the momentum going - if your scheme is a success don’t be tempted to become lax. Maintain the momentum by re-communicating, rebranding and revitalising the scheme on a regular basis. You can also support this by making sure the rewards you offer are promptly delivered and that any negative issues are managed and resolved as soon as possible.
- Evaluate your scheme regularly - this will confirm that you’re meeting your objectives and that the change you want to see is happening. It will also help you refine and adapt the programme to the changing priorities of the business.
Everyone has been affected by the recession in some way, many are nervous about job security and plenty are eagerly anticipating the upturn. A well thought out and well run motivation and incentives scheme could work wonders to keep your staff engaged and motivated in tough times.
