| The current 'credit crunch' has got business owners | | | | long-term goals, i.e. not ruining the economy. Reward |
| across the country looking for ways to motivate | | | | schemes have engendered a culture of risk-taking |
| their employees into going 'above and beyond the call | | | | that unsurprisingly couldn't last. This is a warning to |
| of duty'. In hard times we all have to work harder, | | | | everyone; employees will be happy to aim for any |
| and business owners know that in order to survive | | | | extra money that's offered to them, and it's up to |
| unscathed this year they're going to have to knuckle | | | | the company to make sure these aims are correct. |
| down. Sometimes this means making cutbacks in | | | | Whilst it's unlikely that reward schemes within your |
| outgoings i.e. redundancies, but sometimes employers | | | | company could have effects on a similar, global scale, |
| would prefer to motivate their staff in order to | | | | the fact remains that you, like the banks, will have to |
| make sure business grows despite the slowdown. | | | | plan your measurements carefully to focus on the |
| One way to motivate employees is to implement a | | | | right goals. This is where HR comes in - human |
| reward scheme. The idea is that good work gets you | | | | resource professionals understand what motivates |
| a financial reward and in these economic times | | | | employees and also what direction businesses should |
| employees will be happy with the potential for extra | | | | take when it comes to employee relations. An HR |
| money on their payslip. A reward scheme also has | | | | consultant can help you to plan and implement your |
| the knock-on effect of acting as a measuring-stick. If | | | | reward scheme so you don't lose sight of the end |
| an employee consistently doesn't get any rewards, | | | | goal. They'll also cover things like what to do if it |
| either they really don't care about the money | | | | turns out your employees are abusing the system |
| (maybe they just want an easy life!) or they're not | | | | which is an unsavory but most possible outcome of |
| working as hard as everyone else. Reward schemes | | | | any scheme were money is involved. |
| set goals by which to get rewards and a clever | | | | If the big banks had planned their reward schemes |
| employer will also make these goals a part of an | | | | properly and not focussed on such short-term aims, |
| employee's personal development. That way the | | | | it could be that we wouldn't find ourselves in this |
| employee has to aim for them or risk failure. | | | | mess. HR will help you to find the right goals - even if |
| The funny thing is that reward schemes have | | | | these are long-term they'll ultimately be sustainable |
| actually been blamed for the situation we now find | | | | for your business. Sometimes it's easier to let an |
| ourselves in. City workers after all were offered | | | | outside agency help - they can take an objective |
| rewards for making money on certain trades, which | | | | view of your situation and give impartial advice. They |
| is why they all got so rich so quickly. These | | | | focus on what's necessary, not what's easily |
| short-term goals, i.e. getting the reward, took the | | | | achievable. |
| emphasis away from (it turns out) more important | | | | |