Motivated employees are key to the success of your organization. And as an employer, you too want your staff to enjoy going to work. But how do you motivate your employees? The answer: reward them. According to Dr. Marius Rietdijk , lecturer at the VU, there is only one means by which you can positively and effectively change people's behavior: with compliments. According to his theory, every Dutch organization could even double its profitability if it relied on rewards and compliments. Good behavior must be rewarded.
Reward
But what do we really mean by rewarding? Rewarding is about highlighting the good work of employees. Giving attention the moment an employee shows 'good behavior'. This can also be done in words. With an appreciation you actually say that this employee is doing a good job and should continue like that. "But why focus on employees who are doing well? Wouldn't it be better to take the rotten apples out of the basket?" I hear you thinking. The nice thing about rewarding is that you focus on the positive. By doing so, you evoke positive feelings in other people as well. It makes people happy and they want to pass it on. You know the saying: a good example follows. Chances are that other employees will also perform better as a result of this approach. After all, doesn't everyone want to be rewarded for their good work?
To return briefly to Dr. Marius Rietdijk's research. He gives a perfect example in his research: A friend of his had a parakeet that hardly moved. He borrowed this parakeet to apply the reward theory to. Very occasionally, the parakeet moved. The perfect time to apply the theory: reward. But how? Rietdijk started yelling loudly and tapping on the table, "Well done! The parakeet did not immediately see a connection between Rietdijk's behavior and himself, but the more often they played the "game," the more he caught on. And little by little he began to behave the way Rietdijk wanted. At one point, Reeddijk started rewarding only after two or three times. The parakeet became more and more enthusiastic. So enthusiastic that he flew like crazy through his cage and it almost became dangerous. From that moment on, Rietveld had to start rewarding his calm behavior again. And actually that's how it works in business, too: Ignoring bad habits and rewarding good ones is the best combination.
Intangible rewards
When it comes to rewards, we quickly think of money or some other material reward. But unfortunately, not every manager can just give his/her employees a bonus every time they do a good job. In fact, monetary rewards are one of the first things a company cuts back on. Fortunately, you can also give your employees intangible rewards . In fact, several studies show that an intangible reward often works better than a material reward. Every person needs recognition and appreciation. A little creativity can be enough for this, but since not everyone possesses this trait, we'll give you a hand. Here you go, 3 examples of easy, intangible rewards:
1. The organization's toppers.
And no we don't mean René Froger, Gerard Joling and Jeroen van der Boom. What we do mean? For example, an employee of the month. Who performed well last month and why? Give this employee a podium.
2. Status
Don't have enough budget for a bonus or pay raise? Then a status increase is a good solution. Give this person a different job title, more responsibilities or a new title. Think of your employees as entrepreneurs. It is important to know what you make your employees happy with, though. Some are very happy if they get to lead a project, while others prefer not to.
3. Compliment
What Dr. Rietdijk did with his friend's parakeet: compliments. Just a few words like "well done" can make an impact on the other person. But giving compliments is also very difficult. We, the Dutch, tend to think: "What would he mean by it? What a slimeball...". While we often don't think this when receiving criticism. A few short tips for a good compliment:
- Be sincere
- Name something recognizable and make it specific
- Take your time
- Avoid the word 'fun'
- Say something about what the person does well, not about the outcome.
Of course, there are many other intangible ways to reward employees. Do you have any great ideas? Let us know in the comments below.
Work happiness, a hot-topic lately. But what factors actually contribute more to work happiness? And does work happiness have to do with the opportunity to grow and develop? And how do you, as management, make your employees aware of these development opportunities? Is work happiness perhaps even a new business model? And if it were a business model, should it also be measurable? This and much more about happiness at work can be found in our happiness at work magazine. You can download it here.