Dos & Don'ts
Good pay isn’t always the key to retaining staff. Making people feel they are treated properly and rewarded fairly is just as important, says Jonathan Magee
Your staff have probably worked harder than ever before during the past 18 months. Their commitment to tenants and their colleagues means that they have been happy to make this sacrifice, often putting in extra hours in the face of pay freezes and redundancies. A recent Hay Group survey of 1,000 UK workers, including housing staff, proves this point - 60 per cent of employees say they remain actively committed to their work despite the recession. Yet the results, gathered last September, also reveal some disquiet emerging:
- 52 per cent believe there is no reward for extra effort;
- 45 per cent think their employers don’t appreciate them;
- 21 per cent say they are actively looking for other jobs.
Leaders must react quickly to ensure employees don’t walk. It might feel like the only way to rebuild loyalty is to increase pay. This is not necessarily the case. There are many tools to engage your employees that won’t increase your wage bill. According to Fortune magazine’s list of the world’s most admired companies, MACs, as they’re known for short, pay 5 per cent less than their competitors.
Here are eight simple dos and don’ts to help you follow suit so that you can engage your staff and still keep costs down.
Do lead
It’s been said many times before, but it’s true: people leave managers, not organisations. Great leadership has a huge role to play in engaging staff. Hay Group research shows that leaders can influence up to 30 per cent of the variance in performance between teams. With the recession testing employees’ trust in their leaders, communicating honestly and regularly with employees and being clear about what is required of them is even more important.
Don’t treat everyone the same
You need a reward strategy that enables you to hold on to your most talented people. This means spending the little money you do have recognising those that have put in the extra effort and, by definition, not your poorer performers. This means making some tough decisions but there is nothing more frustrating for a high performer than the feeling that poor performance is tolerated or there is no reward for extra effort.
Do keep on top of benefit packages
Benefit provision swallows up a great deal of the budget, yet often organisations don’t know how much they are spending or how employees value the gesture. You can keep costs down, increase the effect of your benefits and still remain competitive by considering carefully the demographics of your workforce and what really motivates them.
Don’t overlook the simple things
A personal, ‘thank you and well done’ for specific achievements will always go a long way towards boosting employee morale.
Do communicate your reward packages
It is not uncommon to find that employees are unaware of the total value of their package. A reward programme can only serve as a motivator if it is understood and accepted by staff. Total reward statements and accurate benchmarking against other companies are ways to clearly demonstrate the value of the whole package to individuals.
Don’t scrimp on training
Expensive, external courses become an easy target when budgets tighten. Cuts can make staff feel they are not worth the investment. Instead of cutting across the board, focus your investment on critical business areas. Look for innovative ways to provide less pricey training solutions such as webinars (an online seminar), internal mentoring, coaching and workshops.
Do look after your managers
Managers are the vital link in communicating the value of the total reward package, knowing when to give a pat on the back, managing recognition schemes and dealing with poor performance. Now is the time to invest in managers to increase their confidence and capability to manage staff.
Don’t put noses out of joint over pay
This will let you control your remuneration costs and stick to your budget. You will need:
- An overall reward strategy - do you want to pay above the average, median or below average? Do you want to pay your high performers more?
- An understanding of where you fit in the market and which sectors you recruit from so you know who to benchmark against.
- A way to measure the size and scope of roles to ensure consistent and fair pay and guard against equal value claims.
Jonathan Magee is head of housing at management consultancy Hay Group
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