Rewards and incentives for staff
09/08/2009
A recent survey has shown that career progression and recognition are more important than a hefty wage packet for many employees. Other factors that were deemed important in the survey included incentives such as health insurance, equal pay and performance reward initiatives.
The research also showed that organisations are increasingly recognising the importance of rewarding and incentivising their staff. Over half (57%) of companies are now doing this, compared to a similar survey of IT service management (ITSM) staff in 2003, when only 37% of decision-makers felt it was important to build reward and recognition elements into their recruitment incentive packages.
This change in attitude has meant that staff are staying longer in their roles, with 46% of ITSM employees now remaining in their jobs for between four and six years, compared to 37% staying for the same duration in 2003.
The Service Desk Institute (SDI), which carried out the survey, advises businesses: “Give people incentives. Obviously salaries are important, but so are other incentives to encourage staff wellbeing, such as private health insurance, subsidised gym memberships and allocated parking to name but a few.
A healthy work-life balance is also important, so where possible offer flexible working hours. Most importantly, don’t forget that a ‘thank you’ goes a long way to making your team feel valued and appreciated.”
SDI’s Chairman, Howard Kendall, commented: “Good recruitment practices are key to good retention, so all aspects of the recruitment process have to be carefully considered from the outset. The first steps when developing an employee retention strategy are to consider what employee turnover is costing your organisation, and why your employees are leaving? The next phase is to implement as many best practice strategies as possible, to ensure your company can recruit and retain best talent.”
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