Reward and Recognition

When you’re at the head of a busy company, rewarding your team might not be a top priority, especially in the context of the recent recession.

Rewarding staff is a luxury that many business owners I’ve come across feel they can ill afford however much they’d like to show their staff that their work is appreciated.

If this is the case for you, you might be surprised to learn that research shows that recognising the work of your staff is actually a more cost effective way to budget than not rewarding them. Because in fact, organisations that do not train are 2.5 times more likely to go bankrupt, and they are less likely to retain the vital talent, simply because these people aren’t getting the recognition they deserve.

The Chartered Institute of Personnel & Development’s research suggests that over a third of all workers aim to leave their current employment once the recession has subsided and the job market has been re-ignited. This could leave UK organisations with an unwieldy bill of £63 billion upwards to foot over the next year; all because they aren’t making sure that their staff feel appreciated.

Prevention is definitely better than cure because in my experience finding and training new staff is not only a time-consuming hassle; it’s expensive. And the great thing with reward schemes is that they create a win-win situation; your staff feel happier because they know their work is appreciated, they get on better as a team, and as a result the business is more successful.

So what can you do that will help to ensure that staff feel valued and recognised?   There are loads of effective ways to do this without it costing the earth and you might just have some fun along the way too.  Good luck!

By Amelia Strawson