How to reward and incentivise your staff

It’s time when most organisations wrap up their operations and take stock of what happened in the year as they plan for 2018.

Most companies are at a loss on what to gift employees during this festive season. There are some common monetary and non-monetary ways an organisation can use to reward employees this festive season.

Some of the non-monetary rewards include recognising the most loyal and high performing staff through an employee of the month award.

This could be a simple display of their famous quotes on the office wall. The company can be even more creative and display the employees’ portraits. The purpose of having an employee of the month award is to encourage staff to be more competitive in meeting targets.

Sending out hand-written or email appreciation letters to your staff can also help motivate them, especially if an organisation has a small number of staff.

Management can also show them appreciation for their good work by sending each a personalised hand written note. Indicate in the note what management likes most about the employee and highlight the value that they add to the organisation.

If it’s a large organisation, a personalised appreciation for every department, through email, will work. Companies can also create a hall of fame wall on an office corridor.

Although this may be a new concept in the Kenyan work environment, it can go a long way in showing that the firm values employees’ hard work.

The wall can have photos of exemplary employees. The visual appreciation can be a key motivator that can challenge other staff to work harder next year to appear on the wall of fame.

For companies with newsletters or magazines, set aside a segment for your employees in this year’s final edition. Indicate their job titles and key roles as well as the value addition they bring to the organisation. This will boost their morale. Fatigue can cause employee burn-out and reduce productivity. Reward your employees with an early break for Christmas and New Year festivities.

Give them enough time to unwind with their families and come back recharged. An organisation can also spice up the tough year by holding end-year training.

On the other hand, training is a good way to motivate your staff to worker harder and realise their potential. A company can also close the year by giving employees bonuses. Money is a good way of keeping employees motivated and ready to get back to work.

An organisation can also offer employees prizes and awards for their job performance. It may be costly but in the end it will go a long way in motivating them to stay come next year.

A company can invest in team-building activities and retreats. Make sure that the location has a welcoming ambience with a variety of recreational facilities where the team can to bond.

Alternatively, a company can offer staff gift vouchers either for shopping or a weekend getaway. The vouchers can go a long way in buying goods for merrymaking during this festive season.

Whether a company is using monetary or non-monetary rewards, the bottom line is to prepare for 2018 and retain staff.

Without employees your company will collapse, hence the need to ensure that you still have a solid team come January.