Praising Employees
6 November 2007
I work at a company that gives employees rewards for doing their work well. The rewards consist of a certificate and a gift voucher, and are given out at special meetings. I got one today for my work in training new employees. I have always been a private person, and don't like people taking notice of me. As a result, I didn't appreciate the reward, and felt uncomfortable. I was being rewarded for simply doing my job. Other people in the company work hard too, and it is unfair to single people out.
This raises the question of how employers are supposed to reward employees for the work. Many books have been written about this. There is a major problem, though: every employee likes to be rewarded differently. While people like me are happy just to receive their paycheck, other people like the reward schemes. Wouldn't it be appropriate for employers to ask employees how they would prefer to be acknowledged? The employer can then get the best of every employee.
Employers are well intentioned with the rewards schemes. However, employees are drawn from the wider society, and as such, a one-size-fits-all approach does not work well. More flexibility is required in order for the schemes to work well.