Every employee would like to earn the highest salary possible at their job, but surprisingly it is not the number one motivating factor for them in the workplace. Human resources surveys indicate that salaries are not even among the top five motivating factors for an employee. What ranks as one of the highest factors is being recognized by his employer for his contributions.
Since today’s job outlook is known as a “buyer’s market,” job seekers have many positions to choose from. Employers, on the other hand, know that there are more jobs than candidates, so they have to boost their employees’ morale to retain staff or there may be even more vacancies to fill.
Bryant Garcia, a corporate recruiter based at Fiducial’s Technical and Administrative Support Center (TASC) in Columbia, MD, noted that if you have a motivated employee, you will have a productive employee.
“To motivate people you have to recognize their efforts,” he said. “It’s important for employees to feel that sense of accomplishment and for their employer or boss to feel like they’re doing a good job and contributing to the overall success of the company.”
While HR studies reveal that employees want to feel valued and know that their contributions are being recognized, some small businesses feel they can’t do much to show their appreciation. But Garcia says that is not true.
Energizing your employees
“There are a lot of things they can do and most of them are free,” he said. “At the end of a tough week, a word or two from the office manager or boss who can go and congratulate everyone on a job well done can go a long way. On Friday, you can let the employees go a bit before and tell them they’ve done a great job that week. That has such a knock-on effect on their morale that it just energizes people. That’s really what you want to do: get to a point where they’re energized.”
Other suggestions include having an employee of the month club with a small plaque or something displayed in the workplace for all to see. Another option would be to energize the entire staff by providing a monthly pizza lunch or something that everyone shares together. Depending on the type of business, prizes can be awarded for the number of calls received or the number of customers served. Milestones can be set for each job and when they are met ensure that employees are recognized.
“That increases productivity more than anything,” Garcia said. “It makes employees feel happy and productive and they will be loyal and want to do well because their job is important to the business as a whole.”
At a time when many companies seem to take their employees for granted, Garcia says that with the abundance of jobs available right now, employers don’t have to go broke to get a big return on their goodwill efforts.
“There are simple programs that cost little or no money that can go a long way toward keeping people happy,” he said.
The most valuable asset
David Moore, a Fiducial franchisee in Fort Lauderdale, FL, doesn’t have an awards program for his employees, but he does make a point of celebrating birthdays and special occasions like anniversaries.
“We have a little lunch with cake and ice cream,” he said. “On Fridays I’ll bring a dozen bagels and we’ll all sit down and talk and work together. It becomes very important. They don’t want to miss a birthday. If we missed it, they’d be upset.”
Every year, Moore hosts an after-tax season party at her home where she invites all of her clients, employees, and their spouses. “We had about 140 to 150 people attend this year,” she said.
Moore says that maintaining morality is very important to him. “Let’s face it: our employees are the most valuable asset we have,” he said.
In Flagstaff, AZ, Sean Duffy also spends time celebrating birthdays and anniversaries. Fiducial’s franchisee also takes his staff to Christmas dinner.
Like Moore, Duffy believes that morale is very important to the survival of his business, so he holds regular meetings, usually every two weeks, where issues or concerns are addressed.
“It could be anywhere from two to three minutes long to 45 minutes to an hour,” he said. “The topics can be anything from accounting problems with private clients, clients who keep making the same mistakes, or clients who are falling behind and how to solve that. We always have closure with ideas, as well as who is going to call which client and when.”
Since he has an investment license, Duffy wants to set up a retirement plan for his staff in the near future.
“It’s a major problem for a lot of people,” he said. “It’s not an incentive plan as such, but it really is. People of all ages, even 20-year-olds, should be worrying about retirement.”
With pride comes good morals
On the east coast of Florida, Jim Rizzolo tries to create an environment where his employees feel like they’re doing something worthwhile at the Fiducial franchisee’s Port St. Lucie office.
“I believe that and instill it in my staff,” he said. “And I try to get them to do work that they can be proud of and motivate them to be proud of the work that they do because it stands out in the community against everyone else.”
Rizzolo says that with pride comes good morals and one thing he always does is keep his word when he says he’s going to do something.
“If I say you’ll get a raise on a certain date, you’ll get it on that date,” he said. “That helps my staff’s confidence. They know what to expect from me. I’m pretty outspoken.”
Rocky St. John likes to surprise his employees at his Fiducial office in Colorado Springs, CO. Recently, he gave away two dinner tickets at a local restaurant to an unsuspecting employee.
“I appreciate what they’re doing,” he said. “That is something that will put something behind my words.”
St. John says he’s pretty liberal when it comes to giving employees time off. His payroll person has a husband who is in the US Army in Afghanistan. “Whenever he calls, no one bothers her,” she said. “We want to support her.”
He tries to say “thank you” to his staff when they have gone above and beyond the call of duty by putting a little extra money in his paycheck.
“We just wanted to say thank you with a purpose,” he said.
They usually have a birthday party with cake and ice cream along with a $25 check and a birthday card. It’s kind of a tradition for St. John that he admits he’s been doing this in his business “for as long as I can remember.”
Having created an environment that is conducive to getting things done, it is also an environment where employees know that their work is appreciated.
“I’m slow to attack people and hold them accountable,” he said. “I want my door to be open. I’m much more forgiving and focused more on fixing the problem than tearing them down. I’d rather lift them up.”
St. John also tries to teach its employees that their absence puts a burden on someone else, so they need to be considerate of their fellow staff members. He applauds initiative and will praise his employees during weekly staff meetings.
“I prefer that people find their own solutions because they take ownership of them,” he said.