In a results-driven marketplace, it’s easy to lose sight of the forest for the trees.
Many companies tend to think of employee incentives as rewards for superior work, but they’re called incentives for a reason. An incentive isn’t just provided to reward an overachiever. It’s provided to show other employees what’s possible.
But if you’re only rewarding the superstars on your team, you’re not seeing the big incentive picture.
No. Everyone does not get a pony for showing up. That’s not the point here. The point is that there are players on your team who are helping to create the great results the superstars are being rewarded for.
And that’s one mistake too many companies make when thinking about employee incentives. The forest those trees we talked about earlier are part of is where the superstars of the future are hidden in shadow.
Bringing hard-working future superstars out of the shadows is what incentives are all about. So, thinking about incentives in terms of how they can reward effort is just as important as using them to reward superior results.
Sure. You’re paying people to work hard. We know that. But an employer’s job is to do more than provide a pay check. We’re living and working in an employee’s market. That creates a world of opportunity for hardworking people.
And if you’re not inspiring them to reach higher, there’s no reason for them to stay with you. They can just clean off their desks and take all that hard, results-producing work elsewhere.
And turnover costs money.
Not supporting employee development by offering incentives for efforts aside from the most obviously stellar is tantamount to shooting yourself in the foot.
Incentives that recognize employees at every level of your organization are part of a culture that wins.
We’re not saying you should reward mediocrity. Many reading this may interpret what we’re saying that way, but it’s not what we’re saying. What we’re saying is that rewarding efforts by those who aren’t normally singled out for recognition or reward is inspirational. These are the unsung heroes you want to stick with your enterprise, growing it and pushing it forward. Superstars aren’t the only team members creating the results you’re rewarding them for, and that reality should be recognized.
No football team ever won the Super Bowl with just the quarterback on the field.
Incentives which are tied to team recognition and which speak of just reward for a job well done are the foundation of a winning culture. Not acknowledging their importance as a motivational tool for all your people is a mistake which will cost you key talent.
ITG’s been helping companies like yours create winning cultures for more than 20 years.
We’re the outsourced solution to programming, logistics, planning and the seamless execution of your incentives. With our experts expanding your human resources capacity, you get incentives that fire up your people and keep them on board. Contact us.
