1001 ideas to reward and motivate employees by Bob Nelson - book summary

People are the most valuable and at the same time the most problematic asset of any organization. How to make a person feel good at work? How to achieve full return? How to protect the company from “brain drain”? How to get the most talented, bright and productive employees themselves, and save money on salaries? “Everything is possible”, says Bob Nelson, because money is not the main thing.

America and Europe’s leading industrial relations company, and rightly claims to underestimate the power of praise today, with hundreds of case studies, it shows that rewards and positive incentives work, can work for you.

The book will undoubtedly be interesting for managers, for parents and teachers, for entrepreneurs and representatives of the nonprofit sector - for all those who, on duty, contact with people and are interested in the maximum productivity of such contacts. Our summary based on materials from Bob Nelson’s books “1001 ways to motivate a worker”

The system of non-material staff motivation - 5 basic rules for creating

1. Non-material motivation should solve the tactical tasks of your business

First of all, the incentives used should be aimed at solving specific problems that your business faces. For example, if you are developing a branch network, then you must form teams that can work according to the standards adopted at the head office. Accordingly, your non-material motivation should be aimed at training your employees, for example, attending training on effective communications and team building.

2. Intangible motivation should cover all categories of workers.

In most cases, when we talk about motivation, the emphasis is on those people in the company or unit who make a profit. Not only motivational programs can be applied to such people, but simply recognition of work, praise.

In small businesses, where the manager knows each employee, it’s easy enough to light a fire in the eyes of every employee. The task is more complicated when it comes to a large company. The CEO can no longer influence everyone. At this stage, line managers come into play, who have subordinate small groups of people, usually 7-10 people. Line managers constantly communicate with people from their team and therefore know what can stimulate everyone.

3. Non-material motivation must take into account the stage of development of the company

In a small family business, enthusiasm is the main motivator. When a company moves on to the next stage of its development, when more and more employees become formalized, motivation programs should be focused on recognizing the merits of each employee, but it is also important to take into account the possibility of collective recognition of services, for example, a department or division of a company.

4. The right choice of methods of non-material motivation of staff

It often seems to us that what motivates us will motivate others as well. But this is not so. In order to choose the right methods of motivation, you must first collect information about the true needs of employees. And in this case, the pyramid of needs will help you. With its help, the system of non-material motivation of personnel takes on a clear form. So, it is important to determine what needs are leading for your employees and develop appropriate motivation factors.

Physiological needs. If this group is important for an employee, then it is necessary to provide him with a comfortable level of salary. The need for protection and security. For such people, it is important to organize a friendly atmosphere in the team. Accordingly, information on the negative components of work should be minimized: bankruptcy, dismissal.

Social needs. It is important for employees in this category to receive support from colleagues and management, and it is also important for them to be constantly in the circle of people.

The need for respect and self-esteem. These employees need to be bestowed with constant attention. It is important for them to realize that their actions will be appreciated.

The need for self-realization. This is the main need for creative employees. It is important for such people to do creative work. They are able to solve the most complex, non-standard problems. And remember that any of your employees constantly want something. And when the desired is achieved, then the needs move to a higher level.

5. The effect of novelty

Incentives should not become commonplace, because uniform incentive programs only depress your employees. Therefore, once every six months it is worth coming up with some kind of new motivational program.

Ways of non-material motivation of staff

You can come up with a large number of different ways of non-material motivation for your employees, but we tried to give you only the most effective ones. So there they are:

  • Motivational meetings
  • Competitions
  • Congratulations on significant dates
  • Service Discounts
  • Achievement
  • Incentive Travel
  • Peer ratings
  • Help in family affairs

Here are some secrets of your employees daily inspiration:

  • Greet employees by name
  • In letters and in oral communication, do not forget to say "Thank you"
  • Give employees extra days off or leave work early
  • Bring something tasty to the office once a month: cake, pizza, sweets, apples
  • On each desktop, hang up employee nameplates. People like to feel their worth.
  • Make sure you have the opportunity to listen to the employee, not just inform
  • Develop a special reward for those people whose activities are usually not noticed
  • Try to arrange meetings once a week with employees with whom you usually do not have the opportunity to talk.
  • Ask them about work, problems.
  • Tell employees about an important issue and ask them to suggest their solutions. Simply put, give you advice.
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