Creative suggestions for rewarding and motivating employees without spending a lot

Business Week Online’s Entrepreneur’s Byline by Larry R. Stewart has this: “A Good Boss Is a Master of Manipulation.”

“Manipulation, in the best sense, can be used effectively to motivate workers in entrepreneurial companies. By ‘manipulate,’ I don’t mean the unethical variety, but rather doing what encourages employees to perform at their best in a setting that is, by definition, risky.”

“In entrepreneurial companies, . . . [b]ecause so much is at stake — indeed, the enterprise itself, if it fails to perform — the people whom founders should hire ought to be entrepreneurial. They must be workers who are engaged, creative, demanding of themselves and others. . . .”

“When it comes to compensation, there’s no substitute for a core of cash that puts a roof over one’s head and food on the table. However, compensation involves more than cash. Like the holiday gift-giver who selects an object befitting the recipient, the entrepreneur must also turn to supplemental compensation of a particular type to motivate workers. And I don’t mean bonuses. They are the equivalent of the cash gift or impersonal gift certificate. They tend to disappoint — even to diminish motivation.”

“Instead, the forms of noncash compensation that make sense involve little gifts, time off, trips and fame.”

He discusses each of these with some insight. Worth a read for HR or business owner types.

A similar topic is covered, with posts from readers, at this Workforce Management page (Workforce Community Center Forum Index » » Benefits & Compensation » » Low or no cost benefits). A wide range of suggestions are offered.

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