Are Your Reward Systems Working By Rebecca Miller

“My team isn’t performing at the level I would like them to. I have offered them incentives, but I still feel like they’re not giving it their all” – does this sound familiar?

An integral part of maintaining an engaged and motivated team is rewarding them for their efforts but what may surprise you is that whilst money is a motivator, it’s not the be all and end of all why people work with us!

Many rewards structures in our industry revolve around financial remuneration but research indicates that employees hold feelings of acknowledgement and appreciation for their efforts in a much higher regard.

Meaningful actions, taken by leaders, can boost your employee satisfaction much higher than some extra cash in their pocket; it comes down to uncovering what it is that actually motivates and intrinsically drives them.

The key to building an engaged workforce is putting in place the necessary measurements and reward systems to capture our team’s extrinsic motivators, while also understanding their unique intrinsic drivers. These will come from our own personal desire to meet our 6 human needs (which are certainty, uncertainty/ variety, significance, love/connection, growth, and contribution). Knowing your team members’ number one primary human need driver is essential to have in your tool belt to better understand their intrinsic and extrinsic drivers. For example, if certainty is their number one core need driver, your team members need to feel safe and secure about their future. If it’s significance, they like to be seen, listened to and receive recognition.

Building a business that has meaning, while embodying the purpose and values into the culture to create alignment and connection is key.

Today, we’re going to explore four different styles of reward systems and how they work (and sometimes don’t work) in a salon, spa, or clinic environment.

THE MOTIVATIONAL REWARD SYSTEM

A motivational reward system is based upon rewarding an individual for their efforts if they achieve a certain goal. For example, “if you increase your rebooking rate this month to xxx, I will give you xxx in return”.

Most salon owners follow this formula of rewarding their employees with something physical, most commonly money, in exchange for their peak performance but with it only working for around 20% of people, it’s evident that this method doesn’t always align.

This form of reward system delivers a short-term win or boost in productivity to achieve a particular target. Once it’s achieved and the exchange has been made, the high that comes from the reward is over. Whilst this method does motivate some people, the large majority of employees would prefer to be compensated in more meaningful and long-term ways.

THE SURPRISE REWARD SYSTEM

The next reward system is one that feels completely out of the blue for the employee where when they achieve something, they’re rewarded as a surprise.

For example, an employee has smashed their retail target for the month and receives a reward in return, exclaiming, “wow, I didn’t expect that!”.

Whilst this is an amazing feeling for both parties, it’s important to not do this too often as you run the risk of it becoming an expectation from the individual rather than the intended surprise and delight.

When it turns into a “if I do this, I’ll receive that” mentality, people can become confused or experience mixed messaging as to why they haven’t been rewarded this time around, despite achieving a similar outcome. This devalues the positive reinforcement, so be careful on how frequently you pull this one out.

THE SOCIAL ACKNOWLEDGEMENT REWARD SYSTEM

The best reward system you can use for your team is social acknowledgment, it is more powerful than the previous two models combined. In fact, studies have shown that employees are willing to depart their current job for one that favours regular acknowledgment so it’s safe to say, it’s more integral to employee satisfaction than you may think.

When designing your employee rewards structure, don’t forget the power of social recognition. It is a powerful tool for raising employee engagement and leaves them feeling fulfilled and empowered to keep performing at this level, not to mention inspiring those around them to follow suit.

We are mammals and when we are acknowledged socially, it gives us what we refer to as ‘social status’, something we all naturally crave as human beings. One of the most powerful forms of recognition you can give to any single one of your team members is social acknowledgement because it meets so many basic human needs and doesn’t cost a cent to do.

THE INTRINSIC REWARD SYSTEM

The first three reward system models are what are known as extrinsic reward systems. This means that the individual is being motivated by something outside of themselves such as praise, approval, money, or gifts. The final reward system model I am sharing with you today is an intrinsic one; meaning you are doing it because you love it and know the feelings of success and satisfaction associated with it.

Being intrinsically motivated is much easier said than done as nobody can provide you with this kind of motivation other than yourself. It is a lot to expect from your leaders and team as intrinsic reward models essentially say, “I don’t need my leaders to congratulate me, I can do that myself”.

Believe me, these kinds of people are few and far between but as a leader of your business, this is something YOU need to harness otherwise it’s going to be an arduous time as a business owner. If you’re sitting there waiting for someone to tell you how good you are, you might be waiting a very long time...

When it comes to self-acknowledgement, the only person’s opinion that matters are your own.

If you can’t acknowledge yourself authentically, how can I expect someone else to do it? Once you get to the point when you don’t need anyone to tell you how good you are and all you need to do is look yourself in the mirror and say, “I nailed that!”, you’re free. It’s the most powerful place to be and the one to work towards.

Go out of your way to compliment yourself and acknowledge your hard work internally as a form of reward. Getting into the habit of regularly self-acknowledging your efforts doesn’t happen overnight but practicing this every day will soon turn this into a natural habit.

Like every part of your existence, especially business ownership, this should always link back to your purpose and acknowledge the ways you are fulfilling it.

A simple way we reward our La Bella teams are monthly WOWSER Awards. Our team acknowledges two team members for their efforts, as well as the way they live our La Bella code & values plus one team member that has been a particular stand out. These Wowser Award winners receive recognition and a prize at our planning day. Social recognition by their La Bella peers has proven to be a simple yet effective reward system with staff responding very well to these awards.

If you are a salon or clinic owner that needs help with your planning, let me know I can jump in and help you. Planning is my superpower! Together, let’s make 2022 your best year yet. Contact Rebecca at rebecca@zingcoach.com.au