Should Managers Reward Staff More?

Posted by Gary Purcell on Mar 28, 2018
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“People join companies, but they leave managers”.

This often heard phrase is actually supported by numerous studies, including a Gallup poll of more than 1 million employed U.S. workers that concluded “the No. 1 reason people quit their jobs is a bad boss or immediate supervisor”.

On a daily basis, an employee’s perception of their company reflects their interactions with their immediate boss. While the work itself, the company culture, working environment, colleagues, comp & benefits etc, all play a part, it is the immediate manager who has perhaps the largest influence on the employee’s workday.

So, it stands to reason that if a company wants to improve employee motivation and retention, there needs to be a big focus on the people managers.

One of the constant recurring themes we find in talking to HR Professionals is how many high-performing employees feel their work is not adequately acknowledged by their immediate boss, and by extension the company. It is as if their bosses are too pre-occupied with managing the less productive staff (or themselves!), and the consistent performers are sort of forgotten about, or perhaps even taken for granted. Taken for granted that is until they leave.

So, this lack of low-level, regular recognition from the manager, actually ends up leading to de-motivation and disengagement from good staff!

According to a Gallup poll, employees who do not feel adequately recognised are twice as likely to say they'll quit in the next year.

And while some people managers have developed great skills in motivating staff, sometimes a more systematic approach is needed to help all managers improve the general level of recognition.

Very often, we are asked in Allgo to design programmes that will help get people managers to say thanks more to staff. And while every company has slightly different requirements, most Manager Reward programmes fall into one of these categories-

  1.  Instant Manager Rewards
    This is where managers have a monthly "Reward Budget" and use an online reward tool like Allgo's Reward Hub, to issue on-the-spot rewards to employees for great work. This instant
    recognition is really powerful as it allows ,managers to recognise employee effort in real-time, and creates a direct link between the behaviour and the reward.

  2. Manager Nominated Rewards
    This is where people managers are tasked with nominating one of their own employees each week or each month. Managers are required to give a reason to support their nomination(s), and a management group then meets to select the winners. The winners are then reconsidered official, either in person, by email, or at a regular company event. The great thing about this type of rewards is that because of the limited number of "winners" each month, it actually allows senior managers to congratulate them personally, which can be really powerful,and motivating.

If you would like to find out more about how to implement a Manager Rewards programme in your company, just contact Allgo and we'll be delighted to help.

Download our eBook
In the latest eBook from Allgo, we look in detail at how employee rewards can help improve both recruitment & retention. Download it for free today by clicking the Download Now button below

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Download our FREE eBook:
How Employee Rewards Can Improve Recruitment & Retention 

Learn how employee reward programmes can help recruitment and retention by:

  • Building a strong Corporate Culture
  • Getting Managers to Reward Staff more
  • Recognising Employee Performance
  • Making Bonuses Tax-Free
  • Revamping your Service Awards
  • Replacing December-only gift cards with year-round rewards

Click here to Download eBook Now

 

Tags: employee rewards, employee recognition, manager rewards, staff motivation

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