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.

The Platinum Rule of Recognition

A couple of weeks ago I wrote about the "Golden Rule of Recognition" meaning you treat your employees exactly as you would like them to treat you and your company.

Today, I'd like to talk about the "Platinum Rule of Recognition."

But first, let's examine the relationship between your company, your employees and your brand.

While your company may promise a great brand experience it is actually your employees who deliver it. Employees are your company's "promise keepers."

I'm sure all of us have had our own personal experience with employees who have made a difference... both good and bad! The type of employees who have made us vow "never again" and those who have made us come back to purchase time and time again.

More and more research shows there is a clear link between employee satisfaction and customer satisfaction. (If you want to read some great articles on this and other relevant topics go to the Forum for People Performance Measurement and Management's website at www.PerformanceForum.org.)

It is no coincidence that some of the most profitable companies in America are also the best companies to work for.

And this is where the Platinum Rule of Recognition comes into play... make sure you treat your employees just like you want them to treat your company's customers!

The Golden Rule of Recognition

"Greed, for lack of a better word, is good. Greed is right. Greed works. Greed clarifies, cuts through, and captures the essence of the evolutionary spirit. Greed, in all of its forms, greed for life, for money, for love, knowledge has marked the upward surge of mankind."
- Gordon Gekko from the movie Wall Street

Who can forget Michael Douglas’ lines from Oliver Stone’s classic movie Wall Street?

Although the characters were fictional, the times they portrayed were real. Consolidation and mergers were the rage. Those were the days of “right-sizing,” “down-sizing” all code words for “you’re losing your job!”

Isn’t it ironic that today’s managers bemoan the lack of loyalty from their workers? Is it any wonder? We have taught employee’s not to expect any loyalty from the corporation. So why should they be loyal to the corporation.

It is called the ethic of reciprocity. Don’t expect loyalty if you don’t give loyalty. Likewise, don’t expect commitment if you don’t give commitment.

At Rideau, we call this the “Golden Rule of Recognition”… treat employees like you would like them to treat the company. You’ll be amazed how far a little loyalty goes in improving your retention rates.

Practice the “Golden Rule of Recognition” because loyalty is a two way street!

Where Everybody Knows Your Name!

Who can name where today’s topic came from?

Here are a few hints...

- It was a famous tune
- It came from a hit TV show
- Norm, Carla, Diane and Sam
- It described a place
- A bar to be specific

Of course it came from the long running TV show "Cheers."

Company managers should catch up on Cheers reruns because the show’s basic premise provides a simple but powerful lesson in employer engagement.

In my last post I stated my belief that “employer” engagement is the prerequisite for “employee” engagement. In other words, don’t expect employees to be engaged if your managers aren’t engaging them.

This seems pretty basic, but as common courtesy goes, this is the first step to actually feeling like a valued part of anything.

For example, when you enter a restaurant and the maître d’ greets you with a, “Heeey Norm!” You feel like you’re a part of something: you feel respected and appreciated.

However, what if the maître d’ can’t remember your name? Even though you eat lunch there five times a week and have put the owner’s four children through college. What if all you get is an awkward look? But you know he remembers you, he knows who you are. You realize he may be just having an off day, maybe his hamster fell off the wheel temporarily. Nevertheless, you can’t help think he just couldn’t be bothered to retain your name.

It’s a situation neither of you want to be in and nobody feels good about.

So what can “Cheers” reruns teach us? That it’s important to have a company culture “Where everyone knows your name!”

Knowing and using someone’s first name is an important step to “real recognition.”

Recognition starts with a name!

How About Employer Engagement?

How often have you heard the words “employee engagement”? If you are like most HR Professionals, probably too often and to be frank, I think we may be putting the proverbial cart before the horse!

Let me explain…

The word “engagement” in our personal lives is a commitment two people make with each other. It’s a two way street! And I don’t believe a corporation can ever have great employee engagement if there is no real “employer engagement.”

Employees are usually considered engaged when they feel a strong emotional bond to their company. But who represents the company? It’s your managers and if they don’t reach out and make an emotional connection to employees, engagement just isn’t going to happen. In other words, it takes two to tango!

I believe there is far too much emphasis placed on employee engagement and not enough on employer engagement. The company and its managers must do more to engage their employees.

Future Shop is a company that gets it. A recent issue of WorkPlace-Mag.com detailed how Future Shop reaches out to employees with some very innovative benefits. One is the ability to go to university right at a store! How cool is that? Future Shop University provides leadership training to those who want to become general managers. Future Shop store managers receive increases that are partially linked to their employee’s engagement. Employer engagement works: turnover at Future Shop improved 10% over a two year period.

Employer engagement… try it. It works!

What do you think?

Thank You Thoughts Archives

"It is up to us to give ourselves recogniton. If we wait for it to come from others, we feel resentful when it doesn't, and when it does, we may well reject it." --Spencer Tracy

"Don't worry when you are not recognized, but strive to be worthy of recognition." --Abraham Lincoln

"Motivation is the art of getting people what you want them to do beacasue they want to do it." --Dwight D. Eisenhower

"Management is nothing more than motivating other people." --Lee Iacocca

"People often say that motivation doesn't last. Well, neither does bathing -- that's why we recommend it daily." --Zig Ziglar

"What every genuine philosopher (every genuine man, in fact) craves most is praise -- although the philosophers generally call it ‘recognition’!” —William James

"The deepest principle in human nature is the craving to be appreciated." - William James

"Flattery is from the teeth out. Sincere appreciation is from the heart out." - Dale Carnegie

"Admiration, n. Our polite recognition of another's resemblance to ourselves." - Ambrose Bierce

"In the arena of human life the honors and rewards fall to those who show their good qualities in action." - Aristotle

"Don't worry when you are not recognized, but strive to be worthy of recognition." - Abraham Lincoln

"The only way to get people to like working hard is to motivate them. Today, people must understand why they're working hard. Every individual in an organization is motivated by something different." -Rick Pitino

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