03/ 29/ 2005
by Judy Artunian
You don't have to spend a million to make your employees feel like a million bucks. Fortune 500 companies might make headlines for the generous bonuses and exotic vacations that they bestow upon their star performers, but extravagant gifts don't necessarily lead to happier employees.
The purpose of employee perks — those extras you give to employees for a job well done — is to keep employees motivated by showing them that you appreciate their work. One sure-fire way to win your employees' devotion is to ask them what you can do for them. You might expect a flood of requests for a company car or other budget-busting perks. But small-business owners who ask employees what they need report that most workers come back with modest requests such as a job title change or training in a new skill.
If you would rather surprise your employees with a unique gift, consider tailoring your perks to each person. One advantage of having a small organization is that you get to know your staff well enough to have a sense of who would throw their arms around you in joy if you presented them with a Home Depot gift card, and who would respond with a weak, "Oh, thanks."
Avoid group rewards. A monthly staff lunch at an upscale eatery is a thoughtful gesture, but most employees would tell you privately that lunching with co-workers doesn't make them feel personally rewarded. It also bypasses that all-important element of surprise. It's like a birthday gift that you have selected for yourself. You appreciate it, but you know that the gift-giver didn't take time out of his day to think about what would make you happy.
That doesn't mean you can't provide a perk that everyone can enjoy. One small business hired a financial adviser to meet with hourly employees who typically wouldn't have access to the advice of a professional financial adviser. When the employees were interviewed later, they pointed to that perk as one of qualities they most appreciated about the company.
Consider offering a certain number of paid days off for employees who want to take a break for a few weekdays to unwind after completing a stressful project. This bonus could yield a double benefit. In addition to rewarding your employees, you are indirectly rewarding the entire company by helping an employee avoid burnout by letting him regroup away from work. Another way to address the needs of employees under stress is to a give gifts to spouses of workers who put in long hours.
Remember, if you are rewarding employees based on a performance outcome such as meeting sales goals, reward only those who were directly involved in the successful endeavor. If it was a team effort, think equality when deciding how to reward the team members. That means avoiding large discrepancies between the perks of executives and clerks. For instance, if your marketing department orchestrated a successful advertising campaign, don't present the senior marketing manager with a $20,000 bonus if the assistant graphic artist is getting a $500 bonus. The reason? In a small company people talk to each other. A better strategy is to make the bonus an equal percentage of salary or sales, and let everyone know that is how the bonuses were structured.
Finally, there is a less tangible way to acknowledge an employee's performance that may be more powerful than anything money can buy. In addition to presenting a traditional perk, ask the employee to sit down with you and his other colleagues and explain how he accomplished the feat for which he is being honored. Staffers who work away from the limelight will be particularly flattered by this request. We all have war stories and insights that others can learn from. When you ask employees to share those experiences, you remind them that you value their role in the company's success. And that's something that a pricey exotic vacation can't quite touch.
