Is Your Company Playing Musical Chairs?

Last week I attended a luncheon hosted by the local Chamber of Commerce.

The keynote speaker was Florent Francoeur, President & Director General who heads up the 10,000 member strong Quebec HR Association.

Florent's message spoke to the reason why companies need to become employers of choice.

Simply put, the talent crisis is now upon us. In the Province of Quebec where I live, more employees will retire in the year 2013 than those who will enter the workforce. This includes those who immigrate to our province.

And this is not just happening in Quebec... it's a phenomenon that's starting to happen all over the world!

This morning on television, I saw an ad from a company urging job seekers to visit their website and "check out what prospective employers were really like by checking under the hood".

Think about it... a global talent crisis combined with knowledgeable job seekers who want to know what their potential employers are really like! These job seekers have the online tools to see which companies really do live up to the promise that "employees are our greatest asset".

Good luck to the ones that don't because they're playing musical chairs and they are bound to lose.

So what can you do?

Create employee referral programs and monitor their success closely. If participation is low, you can bet your bottom dollar that your company is in the danger zone.

Take a look at whether employees who are eligible to retire are charging out the door. If they are, you might want to review how you are treating them. There has been so much focus on millennials, Gen Y and Gen X that many companies now have reverse age discrimination going on. Place more emphasis on retaining your boomers and focus on the things that will make them want to stay with your organization.

Take a hard look at your people policies. Make sure your company respects people for who they are, regardless of their age and recognizes them for what they do, otherwise your company may end up without a chair when the music stops.

Putting Our Money Where Our Mouth Is: Training (and Recognizing) Our Own Team

Incentive Magazine just published another of my articles on the importance of employee training. Empowering your employees is one of the greatest steps you can take towards employee engagement. Read why here.

Understanding the New Generation Worker

Want to learn how to win the talent crisis? Join my friend and colleague Gord Green on December 9th at Recognition Professionals International’s website for a webinar on “Understanding the New Generation Worker”!

Register for Gord’s webinar here!

Gord’s webinar will show you how to use recognition to win the War of Talent by better understanding the New Generation Worker.

I know the economy is a mess and unemployment is rising but this won’t last. By 2011, there’ll be a shortfall of 3 million workers between the projected workforce and the number of jobs required to keep the economy moving by 2016. Attracting and retaining talent is a no brainer anytime… especially millennials! Gord will teach attendees how to:
1. Use recognition to influence the relational value of your corporate culture
2. Use recognition for retention, recruitment and engagement
3. Motivate your new employees to align their behaviors to your corporate values!

Gord’s one of the foremost Thought Leaders and Program Strategists in the Recognition & Reward marketplace. He’s been instrumental in helping global corporations develop and maintain highly effective employee engagement solutions. He writes, lectures and is frequently quoted on recognition and reward strategies, behavioral alignment to brand strategy, maximizing employee engagement and tactical reward program implementation.

I hope you enjoy his webinar!

What Makes A Recognition Expert?

All too often I have attended industry conferences and seen many so called "recognition and reward experts."

Scratch a bit deeper and the veneer comes off! I don't mean to demean, but there are a lot of people out there who are "reward" experts but they sure aren't "recognition" experts.
Recognition and rewards are very different things.

Rewards are material things. Cold hard cash, merchandise, gift cards are all examples of rewards. They are easily understood because they cost a certain amount and are distributed a certain way. There are a lot of reward experts.

Recognition on the other hand, is a feeling, an emotion. It is not easily quantified... ever try measuring how deeply you love your wife? In many cases it is not easily distributed or given.
So how do you determine whether you are speaking to a recognition or reward expert? It’s relatively simple.

• Ask what trade organizations the person belongs to.
• Are these organizations focused on products or on the art and science of recognition?
• Do they have a professional certification? For instance, have they taken Recognition Professionals International "Certified Recognition Professional" (CRP) course?
• When they speak to you, is it about product and delivery or about emotions?

Remember, just because you give someone a gold watch, doesn't mean you have recognized them!

Cash is Not King!!!

Today's post is for those managers who think cash is the most powerful motivational tool available.

I do agree that cash compensation is important. It forms the foundation in Maslow's hierarchy of needs pyramid.

However, I think it is significant to note that cash sits at the "base" of the pyramid. It is certainly not king of the pyramid!

Cash alone will never take you to the top of Maslow's pyramid. And that's where you want your employees to be... at the top!

Happy! Satisfied! Engaged! Productive!

So how do you get employees to the top?

I believe managers need to "pull" employees up the pyramid! They need to "lend a hand" and they can do this by practicing "Real Recognition" techniques.

Real Recognition is a concept invented by my friend and colleague Roy Saunderson who is the Founder and President of the Recognition Management Institute. Real Recognition is simple enough, all you have to do is remember to actually practice it. For example, he’s blogged about the steps you should take to recognize employees who work from home. “Even a simple question asked in a P.S. tag line in an email can keep you in touch,” says Roy. This of course does not cost anything, and is a lot more meaningful than a check.

Real recognition, while not the only factor, can help managers pull employees up Maslow's pyramid and take them to a higher place.