Accolade Driven Performance

Accolade Driven Performance

 

Are you still in the workforce, or perhaps you still operate your own business?  Well, either way this is for you.  In my lifetime I’ve been fortunate to participate in all sides of the workforce.  I’ve owned my own successful businesses, worked for very large corporations, educational institutions, and Public Sector.  There are positives and negatives in every one of the above mentioned sectors.  However, in this particular instance I am addressing the labor force that is the heart of every one of those sectors.

 

No man is an island, and neither is any successful business enterprise be it private or public.  A successful business is a combination of great administration, excellent business plan execution, and the loyal labor force that makes it all happen.  I’ve often talked about not killing the goose that lays the golden eggs. In this instance and every instance the labor force is that metaphorical goose.

 

It stands to reason that a successful business should be able to compensate their labor force according to their contribution.  It goes without saying that the labor force should also understand that the cash intake is not all profit, and that management takes on financial responsibility to achieve the successful outcome.  So you see, both sides need to see the whole picture and that is why an annual report to the staff is important and not just to the board of directors or in some cases investors.

 

During the annual all staff meetings accolades in place of promotions or pay increases should be bestowed on the staff.  Where finances are not a problem pay is better. Where possible a committee should be assigned to evaluate the plan and execution of the awards to make sure that fairness is in play.  As an employer I always preferred the pay compensation.  In most instances a bonus is preferable to a pay increase for many reasons, the biggest reason being that a pay increase is ongoing year after year, where a bonus is one time and is dependent on the company’s financial success annually.

 

As an employee I could always tell when I was being given a title only promotion to keep me happy.  If the company was solvent and could have given me a pay increase, I would speak up.  My attitude has always been that I can’t eat a title.  Equally important or even more important: always know what you are worth, and remember in negotiations the first person to throw out a number is at a disadvantage.  I remember a time when I was negotiating a personal services contract, and I was hesitant to say the dollars I wanted, and they finally threw out a number that was 10 times higher than what I had in mind.  My response was to keep my joyful reaction in check, followed by, we’ll try that for a year and see how it works out.  Winning!!!!  Sorry, I sounded like Charlie Sheen for a split second.  My bad.  The best is yet to come….