Investing In and Rewarding Employees

When I think of investing in and rewarding employees, a few thoughts come to mind:

• Is the team or individual reasonably happy and motivated? If not, some issues may need attention before attempting to invest and reward employees.

• Assuming the team or individual is happy and motivated, as leaders, we should seek ways to “light fires within people.” Along this path, leaders need to explore ways to continuously invest in and reward talent for retention purposes.

• Notice the image above. The red fire suggests leading by fear or threats, while the blue fire suggests a more inspiring approach – of which I prefer. Don’t get me wrong, there are occasions where certain people need “a fire lit under them.”

Below are some unique and different ways to invest and reward teams or individual talent that I have found to be successful over the years. A disclaimer note to my HR friends: a couple of these suggestions may seem a bit out of the ordinary, but they worked!

• For teams that have had a profitable and productive year: Get the team together and celebrate together! Have some fun together! And while doing so, review the company’s mission and vision.

• For top performers, identify an event he/she can attend and feel like they are among other industry top performers. Following their return, invest some time into listening what they gained from the experience.

• For productive teams: Invite a guest speaker to speak on a specific topic of interest to the team. The topic may be an industry sector update or professional development focused. Following the presentation, go out for a meal together.

• For younger talent that is showing promise: Plan a business trip with him or her. This may include client visits or a trade show. Don’t cram the schedule too full; allow time to learn more about the employee. This is a great time to demonstrate the potential you see in him or her! International business trips (conferences/trade shows) are a great idea here! Early in my career in 1992, my boss sent me to England to attend and evaluate some training programs. This experience drastically influenced my career!

Share how you reward your employees by participating in our annual Agribusiness HR Review. Or, learn how to ask your employees what type of investment they are looking for in a performance review by attending this webinar.