Successful Blog

Employee Rewards Programs: Work Smarter to Get Your Employees Working Harder

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By Christopher Wallace

As hard as it is to find good help these days, sometimes it’s even harder to keep it. Even with high unemployment rates, you are not guaranteed to hold on to valuable employees if you do not convey how much you appreciate them. One of the best ways to recognize the worth of your staff is through an employee rewards program. If your business has already instituted some sort of rewards system to incentivize excellence from your people, you are already ahead of the curve!

But creating the program is only as good as the degree to which employee motivation and productivity increases as a result. If only there was a way to quantify the success of your own employee rewards program. Well, you’re in luck, because someone else has already done the lion’s share of the heavy lifting for you.

Recently, Amsterdam Printing conducted a survey of 1,277 business customers. Fifty seven percent of them indicated they had some sort of employee recognition program in place. Amsterdam asked both employees and managers to comment and rank various aspects of the programs to determine what works and what doesn’t. Although many different facets were discussed, several overall themes emerged: employees wanted to be rewarded and managers noticed increased productivity when workers were recognized for their efforts.

Positive Work Environment Translates to Increased Productivity

Not surprisingly, the survey revealed that the highest positive correlation between recognition programs and increased productivity came through programs that improved an individual’s working environment. Think about it: it’s hard to get anything done when you’re absolutely miserable or in an environment that hinders progress throughout the day. Accordingly, when the company sponsors events or programs that aim to improve one’s working conditions, increased productivity naturally follows.

It’s effective because it’s a nice little circle: when your employees want to be there, they’ll invest more of themselves in their work and because of that. The company turns back around and rewards them for it, which only motivates your employees to continue their good work to keep their positions within your so obviously appreciative company, and well, you get the idea.

Morale Must Haves (and also some things to avoid!)

In the same way that effective employee rewards and incentive programs improve productivity, nothing will kill employee motivation faster than “rewards” that don’t work or impact the working environment in a negative way. Here are a few things to keep in mind when you are designing your employee rewards program.

Clarity

Make sure the scope of the program and the criteria for success are clearly defined and uncomplicated. When the rules and conditions are easy to understand and everyone is on the same page about which things earn them what, there is little room for confusion and hurt feelings when all is said and done.

Consistency

Not only should your program be clear, but it should also not change before it has concluded. For example, Amsterdam’s survey revealed that the number one thing people wanted to be recognized for was “Performance Excellence” (by a whopping 69.5%). If you have a program in place that has historically awarded prizes for performance excellence, you can’t switch mid-stream and suddenly decide to promote “Flexibility” (much lower on the list of preferences, receiving only 22.8% of the popular vote).

Equality

And speaking of popular votes, if it becomes clear that the program you have in place is really a front for the company “popularity contest” in which only the “cool kids” ever win anything, the majority of your employees will start to feel insecure about their own merit and worth to the organization. In addition, you are creating the perfect breeding ground for suspicion and resentment. This is easily avoided by making sure your team managers know to spread around the rewards and to switch gears if the same person is consistently earning the honors.

Variety

This is not to say that a person who is clearly superlative should not be rewarded for being amazing; rather, the trick is in developing a program designed to reward the superstar in us all: we all excel at different things and are important in different ways. If you include enough factors for consideration, you increase the likelihood that different people will win each time you award the honor, and you highlight their success due to the quality that makes them unique.

The Most Enticing Rewards

Now that you have determined that you do indeed need an employee rewards program, what should you offer as incentives? Without fail, Amsterdam’s survey revealed that people still respond to the classic monetary prize: cash, gift cards and bonuses always work. The employees also indicated that they value personalized gifts and employee perks, such as a desirable parking space or paid time off.

There are also priceless rewards that don’t cost a company anything other than a moment of time. For those businesses without the means to convey lavish gifts, a good old-fashioned pat on the back still goes a long way to let those around you know that you appreciate them.

For those of you with a program already in place, what are the most effective rewards for your employees? If you are going to develop a program now, what sorts of benefits do you plan to include?

Author’s Bio: Christopher Wallace is Vice President of Sales and Marketing for Amsterdam Printing, a leading provider of custom business pens and other promotional products such as imprinted clothing, mugs and customized calendars. Christopher regularly contributes to Promo & Marketing Wall blog.

Devil’s Advocate or Guardian Angel?

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By Lindsay Bell

Why are people afraid of being challenged? I’m not talking about the “throw down the gauntlet”, back alley type of challenge, which of course would be unsettling.

I’m talking about healthy debate – defending your ideas, and being asked to think otherwise about a certain subject or path of action. Sure, I’m making a sweeping generalization, as there are loads of people who rise to a spirited exchange of ideas, but in my experience, there seem to be many these days who view it as a negative.

DEVIL’S ADVOCATE OR GUARDIAN ANGEL?

Being a proud devil’s advocate myself, when I stumbled upon an old post by Liz recently, where she dissects devil’s advocates and guardian angels in the workplace, it caught my eye.

Here’s what she had to say about them both:

The position of devil’s advocate is inherently negative. The role is to find holes in the proposed idea. Arguing for the sake of arguing easily can degrade into arguing for inconsequential details or arguing to show how clever the person presenting the argument can be.

The position of guardian angel is inherently positive. The role is to find and fill holes in the proposed idea. Arguing for the possibility of what might work, while checking for risk, leads to dialogue that builds and moulds ideas into useful realities.

FACING THE CHALLENGE

Religious imagery aside, I respectfully disagree.

If the devil’s advocate is looking for holes, it’s to stick a big ol’ red flag beside them so you don’t fall in! They are brainstorming, and looking to better an idea or proposed path. They are thinking of the company’s bottom line, and are trying to avoid the cost of cleaning up after something has gone wrong.

When I’m playing devil’s advocate, I always let people know: “Just playing devil’s advocate here…” – and the reason I do is to NOT insult whoever’s idea it is that I’m challenging. It’s my way of saying “Hey, I’m not asking this to be a jerk, I respect you, but let’s look at it from the other side. I don’t find it ‘inherently negative’. And I certainly don’t “argue for the sake of arguing”.

Granted, my career for the most part has been in journalism/television production. Trust me. You don’t even know what being challenged means until you’ve had your story/idea/interview flayed from top to bottom by a TV executive! But I look back on those formative years with appreciation.

Being challenged like that – daily – teaches you to think differently, it makes you always question “what else” or “what if”, and it forces you to always look at what you’re producing through the eyes of your audience – your community.

An employee fearful of speaking up or proffering an alternative thought is not a productive employee.

Fear creates a culture of complacency within an organization and its teams, and inevitably leads to miscommunication and needless extra work being done.

And yes, both sides of the spectrum need to take responsibility for opening the lines of communication.

Employees need to buck up, get a backbone, and not fear that their manager will think poorly of them if they bring up something that she/he doesn’t agree with. They also need to be prepared to argue their points, thoughts and ideas.

Management needs to ensure there are safe spaces where anyone can raise issues without consequences.

Let’s stop seeing devil’s advocates – who actually have the confidence, candor, and courage to speak up and challenge – as somehow negative.

They might be a little feistier and more fiery than your other employees, but if given the option, I would choose devil’s advocate over guardian angel any day.

And I sure as heck would want one on my team.

What do you think? Do you see the value in healthy debate and a good challenge, or do you immediately feel it’s a negative? Would you choose a Devil’s Advocate or a Guardian Angel? Would love to hear your comments! 

Author’s Bio: Lindsay Bell is the content director at Chicago-based strategic communications and online marketing firm Arment Dietrich, and works in Toronto. A former TV producer, she’s a strong advocate of three minutes or less of video content. She has a cool kid, a patient husband, two annoying cats, and just welcomed Hank, a Vizsla/Foxhound cross, into her home. 

Business Success: Power of Negative Thinking?

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By Deb Bixler

If you are looking for home business success, then you start to realize that there is power in everything. People believe in the power of positive thinking and everyone understands that knowledge is power. But would you believe it if you were told that there is power in negative thinking as well?

To find home business success, you should not dwell on negative thinking for too long. But since it is inevitable that you will come into contact with people who are always looking at the down side of any issue, you should learn how to cultivate the power of negative thinking.

It Forces Alternatives

goals for success

The great thing about people with negative attitudes is that they are always looking for a way for something to fail. Before you roll out an important plan or program that will cost your company a lot of money, give the idea to a negative person. He will start poking holes in the plan and find ways that it will fail. As long as you are taking notes, you will have all of the information you need to find ways to fix the plan or offer alternatives to make the plan stronger.

Negative Thinking VS Positive Thought

Sometimes sharing your thoughts and business success strategies with negative people you will learn how they will be received in the market place.

If you have a marketing plan you are ready to roll out but you are unsure of some of the ideas or theories you have in the plan, then run it by a negative person. If anyone is going to put your theories to the test, it is someone who wants to see them fail.

If your theories and ideas hold up against a negative point of view, then they are very strong.

Success Plan

When you are putting together any kind of business success plan, you always try to consider as many options as possible. Negative people love to turn the presentation of ideas into a game of “I bet you didn’t consider this.” When you spend some time reviewing your plan with a negative person, you will eventually consider all possible options.

It Tests Your Resolve

Nothing tests the resolve of a human being more than the power of negative thinking. Just when you think that you have everything figured out, a negative thinker will find a reason to have you start all over again. If you can stand the kind of scrutiny that comes from a person who is always looking at the world from the negative side, then your resolve is strong enough to succeed.

There is a power to negative thinking that, if harnessed properly, can work to your advantage. You do not want to develop the habit of being someone who is perpetually negative. But if your ideas and plans can withstand the kind of microscopic scrutiny that a negative person will give them, then those plans are ready to become part of your company’s business culture.

Author’s Bio:
Deb Bixler retired from the corporate world using the proven business systems that made her a success working for others by incorporating them into her home business. In only 9 months Deb replaced her full time income with the sales and commissions from her home party plan business. Find her on Twitter at: http://www.Twitter.com/debbixler

Online work is never “done”

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This morning I woke up to the latest Google+ change to the cover photo and did a classic face-palm. I thought that was done. Handled. Taken care of.

Except, when your business is online, there is no “done.”

There’s a classic myth about King Sisyphus who was cursed to roll a huge boulder uphill only to watch the boulder roll back down and repeat the process. For eternity.

Perhaps that’s an extreme reference, but sometimes dealing with the shifting sands of online business feels that way, doesn’t it?

Don’t worry, we’re all in this together.

You can maintain your sanity with these handy tips:

Don’t get caught by surprise

Stay on top of breaking news in your niche and for online business in general. Sites like Mashable, ReadWrite, TechCrunch, and TheNextWeb all offer quick punches of information, and you can often get a heads-up on trends before they catch you flat-footed. Consider subscribing to the technical blogs of the big social networks, to get advance notice of design or other changes (like this post where Twitter warned of upcoming API changes).

Do your chores consistently

Set aside time each week for housekeeping, tweaking graphics, updating links, and fixing your site. If you schedule specific time to do this, you won’t end up shoehorning it in between client calls. Use a block of time consistently to line up chunks of content, or batch change graphics, or do other maintenance tasks.

Delegate if you can

Some repetitive tasks can be outsourced or delegated, so you can invest your own valuable time doing the things that only you can do. Find a virtual assistant, get a freelancer to write some content for you, or judiciously use automation tools to gain efficiency. One of Tim Ferriss’ key suggestions in The Four Hour Work Week is to use outsourcing as a time saver.

Finally, recognize that everyone else is scrambling to keep up too. We all have our boulders to roll.

(If you’d like to update your Google+ cover photo, you’ll need an eye-catching 2120 pixel by 1192 pixel picture that conveys your brand message.)

Do you have any tricks for keeping pace with constant online developments?

Author’s Bio: Rosemary O’Neill is an insightful spirit who works for social strata — a top ten company to work for on the Internet . Check out the Social Strata blog. You can find Rosemary on Twitter as @rhogroupee

 

Image: pasukaru76 via Flickr CC license.

Does Your Accounting Software Account for Success?

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While saving money is a great thing for the small business owner, trying to do that at the cost of service to your company can come with a price. Unfortunately, that price over time can be lost business.

For those owners who are looking for an accounting software program, be it for the first time or to replace the one they currently have, a number of factors should always go into the decision making process.

Meantime, those business owners looking to outsource their accounting needs should do so with the idea that such a decision should be well researched. If you choose the wrong accounting provider, you could be left with more than just financial headaches.

In searching for the right accounting provider at the right price, remember to:

* Determine your needs – What got you to consider outsourcing your accounting needs in the first place? For many small business owners, their workforce size is manageable enough that they can hire an in-house accounting person and/or even oversee it themselves. In the event the company grows over time, then they can outsource the need if it becomes too big a responsibility for the person on staff. Take a look at your current needs, your projected growth in the next year or two, and if you will save more money by keeping the task in-house;

* Shop around – If you pick and choose the first accounting company you come across, you may get lucky, then again you may not. Just as in shopping for other important needs for your company, choosing an accounting provider demands the right amount of time too. Look at each company’s financial stability, customer service record, any issues with the Better Business Bureau (BBB), rates, and its ability to meet your needs. At minimum, get anywhere from 3 to 6 quotes, giving you a number of providers to choose from;

* Look at more time in the office – In the event you do go with outsourcing your accounting needs, think of the time and manpower you free up in your office. Presumably, one or more of your workers has been or would have been doing accounting tasks for you. With the need outsourced, that person or persons can direct their efforts to other responsibilities. You also presumably put your accounting needs in the hands of a company that does this on a regular basis, meaning you should get quality service in turn for your monetary agreement with them. By outsourcing, you also lessen the need by one employee (at least) to have someone on hand strictly do accounting. You not only save on salary, but also health benefits, etc.;

* Impress upon security – Finally, whether your accounting needs are handled in-house or outsourced, security should never be taken for granted. Given you are dealing with personal information of employees including incomes, Social Security numbers, addresses and more, security needs to be prioritized. Make sure any outside provider makes security a priority, preventing you and themselves from running into any potential legal issues.

If this is the year you decide to outsource your company’s accounting responsibilities, make it your business to run the numbers on which provider best fits your needs.

Photo credit: Zodiacproedge.com

Dave Thomas covers a wide array of topics for various websites, including gray hair treatment.

Positive Attitude Tips for Business

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By Sarah Gotheridge

Starting a business requires a number of things, including the initial capital, a business plan, and a location. An equally important factor is the right attitude.

A negative attitude is always bad for business. It is bad for you, bad for your colleagues and employees, and bad for the work environment in general. Potential customers and clientele are equally put off by a difficult or negative attitude. They will quickly take their business elsewhere.

It is easy to become jaded in the world of business if you don’t have strong emotional resources to draw from. Having the right attitude in business requires a positive attitude towards life in general. A negative attitude in business is like a runaway train that increasingly picks up speed. It will be a constant drain on the energy, creative drive, and ambition necessary for keeping a business viable and profitable.

In other words, if you approach life with a gloomy or negative outlook, you are doomed before you start

Business Tips

Business Relationships

Establish cordial relationships with similar business operators and owners. This will provide a broader perspective by which to gauge the strengths and weaknesses of your own business. Establishing a good working relationship with your competitors will also provide ideas and insights for improving your business.

Know When to Take a Break

It is difficult to maintain a positive viewpoint if everything remains dull and boring. Knowing how and when to take a break is an important skill to hone and savor. Many new business owners feel guilty if they take time away from the business. This means late hours, missed lunches, and taking work home. Now and then it may be necessary to work excessive hours to cover all the bases, but knowing how to take a break will pay off in the long run.

Avoid Unrealistic Goals

While it is important to be goal-oriented, unrealistic expectations will disappoint rather than fulfill your business aspirations. It is sometimes difficult to discern the balancing line between whimsy and inspiration. Inspiration can lead to creative innovations and solutions. Whimsical ideas, on the other hand, can be a useless expenditure of money and time. This can easily lead to a negative attitude, self-doubt, and the inability to make the important decisions. It helps to have a way of critically and objectively evaluating business practices and decisions. Strategy meetings and/or bringing in an outside consulting firm are two such options.

Networking

Once the business is up and running it is important to continue networking and developing contacts. Connections and contacts will continue to be a good resource for ideas and insights. A good contact base will also help you to stay up-to-date and more objective about how well your business is functioning.

Life Tips

Self Reflection

Our personalities are not set in stone. It takes courage to confront oneself and deal with our insecurities and perceived flaws. The Greek philosopher, Socrates, said the beginning of wisdom is to “know thyself.” One of the insights of psychoanalysis is that many people choose to keep many aspects of their personality in the dark. Taking the time to be reflective helps keep things in perspective. You will have a much better appreciation and attitude towards yourself and life in general.

Enjoy Life

Nourish other interests and desires besides the passion for work. This could be any number of things such as playing your guitar in a band on the weekend, going white water rafting and hiking, visiting museums, or reading some of your favorite authors. It may simply involve spending more time with family and friends. A person that doesn’t find time to enjoy things will have a difficult time keeping a positive attitude about life.

Author’s Bio: Sarah Gotheridge represents a site called Monetise.co.uk. She enjoys writing about business online and giving advice to new businesses.