ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1995, Roanoke Times
DATE: Sunday, December 10, 1995 TAG: 9512080025
SECTION: BUSINESS PAGE: G-3 EDITION: METRO
COLUMN: WORKPLACE
DATELINE: CHARLOTTE, N.C.
SOURCE: TAWN NHAN KNIGHT-RIDDER NEWSPAPERS
For their birthdays, workers at Lowe's Cos. Inc. get a free lunch in the company cafeteria.
Managers at Bell Atlantic's cellular phone division name cell sites after top employees.
One night every year, Walt Disney Co. opens its parks exclusively for employees. Executives and top managers don Disney character costumes and operate the rides.
These are examples of relatively inexpensive employee rewards cited in a best-selling book called ``1,001 Ways to Reward Employees'' by Bob Nelson.
Nelson says rewarding employees doesn't have to cost a bundle. And the results of doing so are priceless.
``Most managers think people only work for money, for job security or other tangible reward,'' says Nelson, who has sold 280,000 copies of his 1994 book.
``But when we ask employees what motivates them at work, money is never on top. They want to be recognized by their bosses, they want to be involved in decision making. They want interpersonal rewards.''
``Money has never been enough to motivate employees. If you want more creativity and productivity, you will never get it from building a fire under them and treating them with a `my way or the highway' philosophy. You only get that if you build a fire within them,'' says Nelson, a consultant at Blanchard Training and Development Inc. in San Diego.
However, even Nelson has difficulty getting away from the monetary carrot-and-stick routines. Some of the examples he cites in the book - such as MicroAge Computer, which fines late employees and distributes the largess to workers who arrive to work on time - are a variation of cash for performance.
But many of the employee reward programs cited in the book are touching gestures that cost very little or nothing at all.
For example, Apple Computer placed the signatures of all employees who worked on the first Macintosh computer inside the product. Hunter Simpson, the president of Physiology Control Corp. in Redmond, Wash., spends one hour with every new employee. Mary Kay Cosmetics' white-collar manufacturing officials spend one day a year working on the factory floor.
At North Wilkesboro, N.C.-based Lowe's, all hourly workers qualify for the Gold Star Customer Service Award. Under the popular program, managers punch holes in a worker's Gold Star card each time he or she does something commendable.
When the 10th hole is punched, the manager walks over to a cash register and gives the worker $50 cash on the spot. Lowe's distributes $1 million a year in Gold Star awards.
``Money is certainly high on the list, but recognition is far more effective,'' says Ed Spears, senior director of resource operations.
``I think that's what makes the Gold Star customer award so effective. It's more effective than a manager calling them into the office and telling them they've earned a bonus and the check is in the mail. Presenting it on the spot is more rewarding. It lets their peers know. We think recognition and treatment of employees is just as important as money.''
Nelson says the key to motivating employees is to make the rewards and recognitions as personal and spontaneous as possible. Leaving a personal note praising a worker's performance is one of the most effective motivating tools available to managers.
``Managers hold the switch. They don't have to wait for top management to do something, and they certainly don't have to wait for a budget to give people some recognition,'' Nelson says.
Investing resources and energy in motivating employees is especially important now, with employee morale suffering from layoffs and cost-cutting.
``Some companies say with the money we spend on plaques, we could have saved another job. The truth is, the people who are left - the 70 percent who didn't get laid off - are your future,'' Nelson says.
Want more ideas? Here are a few from the book:
Hecht's department stores, based in Arlington, Va., reward employees with points toward a shopping spree every time they are overheard calling a customer by name.
At the Angus Barn Restaurant in Raleigh, N.C., anytime an employee is ``caught in the act of caring,'' he or she gets a choice of an entree.
Cygna Group, an engineering consultancy in Oakland, Calif., has a ``Take The Rest of the Day Off and Do'' reward. After finishing a big project, a manager may spontaneously give everyone the day off and take them to a ballgame.
The Walt Disney Co. gives an extra five-minute break or a candy bar to the worker who finds the guest who has traveled the farthest to come to the park.
Rosenbluth Travel in Philadelphia has an Associate of the Day program, in which any employee can spend the day with the chief executive. Every new employee spends two days at corporate headquarters, meeting top managers and performing skits about good service experiences. Officers also serve afternoon tea to new hires.
LENGTH: Medium: 96 linesby CNB