What is motivating in a knowledge based company?
April 26, 2017 8:01 AM Subscribe
I'm putting together a list of employee recognition ideas, where the recognition is more than a pat on the back or a gift, but geared towards life long learners and other growth-based individuals. Details within.
Hi metafilter, I'm looking for ideas on what would be rewarding to someone in a knowledge based industry like tech. Jobs where people develop expertise over time, are used to a high degree of autonomy and are already well compensated with somewhat flexible work hours. More intrinsically satisfying recognition. Aside from promotion (to Sr tech guru, or management) what would leave you feeling recognized? The opportunity to present ideas to management? Attend conferences? Leave early if you work is done for the week? Pick a team building activity for the group? Donation to a charity of your choice? Harder tech problems? Have the impact of your accomplishments highlighted to the team?
What satisfies higher order needs?
Hi metafilter, I'm looking for ideas on what would be rewarding to someone in a knowledge based industry like tech. Jobs where people develop expertise over time, are used to a high degree of autonomy and are already well compensated with somewhat flexible work hours. More intrinsically satisfying recognition. Aside from promotion (to Sr tech guru, or management) what would leave you feeling recognized? The opportunity to present ideas to management? Attend conferences? Leave early if you work is done for the week? Pick a team building activity for the group? Donation to a charity of your choice? Harder tech problems? Have the impact of your accomplishments highlighted to the team?
What satisfies higher order needs?
Comprehensive time off. You mention "leave work early if your work is done for the week," but that's a bit of the pat-on-the-back variety that you say you'd like to avoid. In my org, we have conditions in which one earns an additional week of vacation time off (and it's generally meant to be added on to a week of vacation one plans to take, leaving you with two consecutive weeks off). That's real recognition of the value your brain has brought to the org, and the value the org places in making sure your brain is sufficiently well-rested to keep performing extraordinarily.
posted by late afternoon dreaming hotel at 8:11 AM on April 26, 2017 [26 favorites]
posted by late afternoon dreaming hotel at 8:11 AM on April 26, 2017 [26 favorites]
My team appreciate that so much of their work day is training paid for by the org, which includes a reduction in tasks so they can be learners with adequate life balance. The training allows them to do their job more efficiently and effectively, so they get more done in less time.
posted by saucysault at 8:14 AM on April 26, 2017 [8 favorites]
posted by saucysault at 8:14 AM on April 26, 2017 [8 favorites]
Adding to the time off theme, I've been in some jobs along these lines where the time off was "unlimited," but job obligations severely limited how much time you could actually take off. So enforced time off -- "Hey great employee, you need to be not at work for three weeks in the next six months. Let's get those on the calendar" -- may be helpful if that's your setup.
posted by craven_morhead at 8:17 AM on April 26, 2017 [16 favorites]
posted by craven_morhead at 8:17 AM on April 26, 2017 [16 favorites]
I've worked in several different fields but in the postions where I have had deep expertise the opportunity to shape my legacy has ranked extremely high on my personal list of satisfaction priorities.
On a similar note a Senior Engineer once told me that they felt that their greatest responsibility, their zeroth priority, was to 5 why their way out of their job and into a more fundamental one. Thinking back this could only happen when sufficient autonomy is matched with multidisciplinary verticals and horizontal integration of responsibilities. Their's something to be said for acknowledging rewarding competance with greater responsibility for the role instead of peter-principle'ing domain competance into managerial incompetence/irrelevance.
Every highly competent person I've ever worked with (anecdata to be sure) has become so as a result of what might appear as a tendency towards workaholicism. I would like to echo craven_morhead - a break, a change of pace, immersion novelty, call it what you will - creative people (ie: anyone who does anything at all differently from anyone else in anyway; creative gets defined too narrowly) require fresh inputs. Making time 'off' available can require both enforcement and facilitation. It does no good to say "you have this time available - use its you can not be here" but only if it's actually possible to your organization and the individual to both go away, be gone and return without unbearable opportunity costs. Too often good people in valuable positions are allowed to become irreplaceable to such an extent that it can feel like they are shackled to their responsibilities Atlas-like. Personally I can attest to the idea that this feeling can be addictive.
posted by mce at 8:50 AM on April 26, 2017 [2 favorites]
On a similar note a Senior Engineer once told me that they felt that their greatest responsibility, their zeroth priority, was to 5 why their way out of their job and into a more fundamental one. Thinking back this could only happen when sufficient autonomy is matched with multidisciplinary verticals and horizontal integration of responsibilities. Their's something to be said for acknowledging rewarding competance with greater responsibility for the role instead of peter-principle'ing domain competance into managerial incompetence/irrelevance.
Every highly competent person I've ever worked with (anecdata to be sure) has become so as a result of what might appear as a tendency towards workaholicism. I would like to echo craven_morhead - a break, a change of pace, immersion novelty, call it what you will - creative people (ie: anyone who does anything at all differently from anyone else in anyway; creative gets defined too narrowly) require fresh inputs. Making time 'off' available can require both enforcement and facilitation. It does no good to say "you have this time available - use its you can not be here" but only if it's actually possible to your organization and the individual to both go away, be gone and return without unbearable opportunity costs. Too often good people in valuable positions are allowed to become irreplaceable to such an extent that it can feel like they are shackled to their responsibilities Atlas-like. Personally I can attest to the idea that this feeling can be addictive.
posted by mce at 8:50 AM on April 26, 2017 [2 favorites]
Consider featuring their pinnacle achievements in your PR plans, or sponsoring them to give talks at relevant conferences. Many high achievers are motivated by notereity and respect of their peers.
posted by pazazygeek at 9:00 AM on April 26, 2017 [1 favorite]
posted by pazazygeek at 9:00 AM on April 26, 2017 [1 favorite]
My husband's work has the option of "peer bonuses" where your colleagues that you have helped/worked with can award you a cash prize (around $200 iirc) and certificate on the spot. Each division usually posts a quarterly list of the winners and highlights people who have earned more than 4. Your individual manager is also able to award something similar called a spot bonus. The very well paid engineers get very excited about these relatively small $$ rewards as it's really about the tangible and visible recognition of their hard work.
posted by saradarlin at 9:14 AM on April 26, 2017 [4 favorites]
posted by saradarlin at 9:14 AM on April 26, 2017 [4 favorites]
This is a huge question around which there is an entire industry of subject matter experts. Josh Bersin has some good primary research on this, including a proprietary recognition framework. Some of his research you must pay for, but you can learn a lot about his work just from Googling around.
One insight my team has found is that how folks prefer to be recognized varies widely and is influenced by the person's age, role, working style, personality type and cultural background. For instance, in an office of 5,000+ in Delhi with many millennial-aged employees, it is very important for your contributions to stand out from the crowd. So being publicly recognized in front of everyone at an all-hands is rewarding. For some employees in certain countries in the EU, or even simply introverts who dislike attention, public recognition can be the opposite of motivating.
That said, in general, if you focus on offering experiences over things, and recognition that is specific and personalized, it's hard to go wrong. So a learning opportunity hand-picked by a person's manager to help them along their growth path, or even a trip, meal, or other experience arranged by those closest to the person (even aided by the person's spouse or partner if you have this kind of culture!) will be more valuable than a spot bonus or a trophy, every time. This is harder to do at scale, but the payoff is huge in terms of retention, engagement, and job satisfaction.
posted by lieber hair at 9:20 AM on April 26, 2017 [1 favorite]
One insight my team has found is that how folks prefer to be recognized varies widely and is influenced by the person's age, role, working style, personality type and cultural background. For instance, in an office of 5,000+ in Delhi with many millennial-aged employees, it is very important for your contributions to stand out from the crowd. So being publicly recognized in front of everyone at an all-hands is rewarding. For some employees in certain countries in the EU, or even simply introverts who dislike attention, public recognition can be the opposite of motivating.
That said, in general, if you focus on offering experiences over things, and recognition that is specific and personalized, it's hard to go wrong. So a learning opportunity hand-picked by a person's manager to help them along their growth path, or even a trip, meal, or other experience arranged by those closest to the person (even aided by the person's spouse or partner if you have this kind of culture!) will be more valuable than a spot bonus or a trophy, every time. This is harder to do at scale, but the payoff is huge in terms of retention, engagement, and job satisfaction.
posted by lieber hair at 9:20 AM on April 26, 2017 [1 favorite]
As someone in tech who is reasonably well compensated, I would feel rewarded by being even more well compensated. Some of what you mention (the opportunity to present ideas to management, attend conferences, impact of accomplishments highlighted to team) I can't even imagine as reward/recognition but just as standard parts of working in tech and should already be happening.
A sabbatical/additional paid time off is a good idea, but that's really just more compensation.
Short version: give them a raise.
posted by ndfine at 9:32 AM on April 26, 2017 [9 favorites]
A sabbatical/additional paid time off is a good idea, but that's really just more compensation.
Short version: give them a raise.
posted by ndfine at 9:32 AM on April 26, 2017 [9 favorites]
I have seen peer bonuses devolve (quite expectedly) into plotting, alliance building and backstabbing. It becomes not a reward but just another game to play. Being public about it (with leaderboards!) sounds like the express intent IS gamification. I think that would de-motivate a lot of people.
There is a lot of game theory involved in understanding what people will see as a celebration of achievement and what they will see as unfair or preferential treatment. One distinction is the regular scheduled choosing of "winners (and implied losers)" versus recognizing exceptional performance when it occasionally arises.
What I have seen go over well is (private) spot bonuses and simple recognition (public and private).
Comp time for extra hours committed should just be policy. The ability to present ideas to management shouldn't be a reward per se, but the natural responsibility of someone at a high enough level. Education/conference allowances should be one or the other, depending on your org.
posted by danny the boy at 9:35 AM on April 26, 2017 [6 favorites]
There is a lot of game theory involved in understanding what people will see as a celebration of achievement and what they will see as unfair or preferential treatment. One distinction is the regular scheduled choosing of "winners (and implied losers)" versus recognizing exceptional performance when it occasionally arises.
What I have seen go over well is (private) spot bonuses and simple recognition (public and private).
Comp time for extra hours committed should just be policy. The ability to present ideas to management shouldn't be a reward per se, but the natural responsibility of someone at a high enough level. Education/conference allowances should be one or the other, depending on your org.
posted by danny the boy at 9:35 AM on April 26, 2017 [6 favorites]
On a personal note, the times I have felt most appreciated by my manager have simply been when they tell me (consistently) they appreciate me, and why.
This is assuming all my other basic needs (comp) are satisfied.
posted by danny the boy at 9:40 AM on April 26, 2017 [5 favorites]
This is assuming all my other basic needs (comp) are satisfied.
posted by danny the boy at 9:40 AM on April 26, 2017 [5 favorites]
I think it's going to be different for different people. Personally, I just had a kid, and I'd love to be rewarded with extra time off (even just a half day here and there) so I could spend more time with her. Some of my younger, single, childless colleagues might not be so excited. I find conferences dreadfully boring, but I could see other people being really excited to attend a conference.
One thing I've seen people do is to provide an allowance for books and other materials. That might be worth checking out.
I'll go back to time off, though, because there's no upfront cost to your organization.
posted by kevinbelt at 9:42 AM on April 26, 2017
One thing I've seen people do is to provide an allowance for books and other materials. That might be worth checking out.
I'll go back to time off, though, because there's no upfront cost to your organization.
posted by kevinbelt at 9:42 AM on April 26, 2017
As lieber hair says, this varies so widely by person and by organization that universal advice isn't really possible. I have a friend who worked in HR who did some research into these things and compiled a list of possible things:
* A Bonus - pretty self-explanatory and no one likely would turn this down
* Stock options - pretty self-explanatory but not everyone understands them or can properly value them.
* A Raise - also self-explanatory
* Recognition from Management - As mentioned some people don't like being put in the spot light and more insidiously some people don't value management's opinion
* Recognition from Peers - some people value their peer's thoughts over management
* More vacation - At a certain point in a person's career, more vacation starts to become harder to use so it is less of a perk
* Trips to a recognition retreat - Often a feature of sales organizations or sales adjacent ones. I doubt anyone wouldn't like this but by their very nature it is an expensive and rare perk to dole out.
* More control over work responsibility i.e. what work you do and what work you can get to involve.
* Funding of training in interest areas or things that broaden your horizons
posted by mmascolino at 9:46 AM on April 26, 2017 [1 favorite]
* A Bonus - pretty self-explanatory and no one likely would turn this down
* Stock options - pretty self-explanatory but not everyone understands them or can properly value them.
* A Raise - also self-explanatory
* Recognition from Management - As mentioned some people don't like being put in the spot light and more insidiously some people don't value management's opinion
* Recognition from Peers - some people value their peer's thoughts over management
* More vacation - At a certain point in a person's career, more vacation starts to become harder to use so it is less of a perk
* Trips to a recognition retreat - Often a feature of sales organizations or sales adjacent ones. I doubt anyone wouldn't like this but by their very nature it is an expensive and rare perk to dole out.
* More control over work responsibility i.e. what work you do and what work you can get to involve.
* Funding of training in interest areas or things that broaden your horizons
posted by mmascolino at 9:46 AM on April 26, 2017 [1 favorite]
-Flexibility including work from home options and the ability to work 9-5 one day and 7-3 another.
-Regular anonymous surveys to report chronic issues to upper management without being seen as a complainer.
-Our milestone anniversary gift is a list of 20-30 things we get to pick from. I use those more often then the standard gifts that everyone got.
-Money and time off is always welcome, but I know it is not always easy to give out.
posted by soelo at 10:00 AM on April 26, 2017
-Regular anonymous surveys to report chronic issues to upper management without being seen as a complainer.
-Our milestone anniversary gift is a list of 20-30 things we get to pick from. I use those more often then the standard gifts that everyone got.
-Money and time off is always welcome, but I know it is not always easy to give out.
posted by soelo at 10:00 AM on April 26, 2017
I work in an environment something like what you describe. One thing that's really nice is public recognition when you've done something well. For instance, our supervisor occasionally sends out an email to everyone (we're a small company) saying something like "So-and-so wrote a script to automate X process, which saved me Y amount of time this week and will continue to do so forever. Nice job, So-and-so!"
posted by number9dream at 10:09 AM on April 26, 2017 [1 favorite]
posted by number9dream at 10:09 AM on April 26, 2017 [1 favorite]
I read something about a tech place that gave the employees a certain amount of weekly time to work on any projects they wanted. I wish I could remember details. My recollection is that some employees came up with unique inventions - not sure how much of the inventions belonged to them and how much to the company. Sorry this is so vague. I hope someone else will recognize it and remember more.
I definitely felt more appreciated when a company paid for conferences and continuing education. I would not want a "recognition retreat" if it meant spending my free time hanging out with coworkers. To me, peer bonuses sound potentially disastrous if you work in a place with cliques.
posted by FencingGal at 12:41 PM on April 26, 2017
I definitely felt more appreciated when a company paid for conferences and continuing education. I would not want a "recognition retreat" if it meant spending my free time hanging out with coworkers. To me, peer bonuses sound potentially disastrous if you work in a place with cliques.
posted by FencingGal at 12:41 PM on April 26, 2017
I think the only things that will most reliably make people feel rewarded (and not like they have more obligations) is time off and/or increased pay. Some people might love to give presentations and go to conferences, but others will just see it as more work.
posted by delight at 12:45 PM on April 26, 2017 [3 favorites]
posted by delight at 12:45 PM on April 26, 2017 [3 favorites]
I am in the tech industry. To my mind, the better I am at my job, the more value I bring to the company. If the company gains from my expertise, skill and general awesomeness, then I should be compensated accordingly. I see way too much BS "recognition" crap that costs the company nothing and feels like lip service. Recently I busted my ass on a major presentation and accompanying work effort, and got a cheesy $5 gift card. It was insulting. But I can't complain- I'll appear ungrateful!!
Clueless management hoards these gift cards and doles them out whenever they think people are feeling unappreciated. It's so transparent but they think it's awesome. Anyway.
I am firmly in the "hard cash" camp. That sends a message like no other.
posted by I_Love_Bananas at 1:47 PM on April 26, 2017 [9 favorites]
Clueless management hoards these gift cards and doles them out whenever they think people are feeling unappreciated. It's so transparent but they think it's awesome. Anyway.
I am firmly in the "hard cash" camp. That sends a message like no other.
posted by I_Love_Bananas at 1:47 PM on April 26, 2017 [9 favorites]
More intrinsically satisfying recognition.
Your employees work for money.
Period.
It is insulting to them to say they want something more than that. They are not working for a charity, they are not working for fun, and they are not working to be "satisfied." They are working because they want money.
You already know the answer to this question. If you value your employees, pay them more. Your business doesn't work off of satisfaction, it works off money. There's no reason you should view your employees differently.
posted by saeculorum at 2:57 PM on April 26, 2017
Your employees work for money.
Period.
It is insulting to them to say they want something more than that. They are not working for a charity, they are not working for fun, and they are not working to be "satisfied." They are working because they want money.
You already know the answer to this question. If you value your employees, pay them more. Your business doesn't work off of satisfaction, it works off money. There's no reason you should view your employees differently.
posted by saeculorum at 2:57 PM on April 26, 2017
FencingGal - 20% time?
My take on peer bonuses or any public recognition is that its a mixed bag, overall positive. Yeah, if you're having a crappy day and your superstar teammate gets a peer bonus / managerial pat on the back, the mail is sent to the whole team, it feels bad. But then sometimes you get thanked / peer bonused for something you did but barely remember, which turned out to be quite useful for some team. In that case, it's free money from the sky, which is a nice morale boost, if short-lived.
posted by batter_my_heart at 5:27 PM on April 26, 2017
My take on peer bonuses or any public recognition is that its a mixed bag, overall positive. Yeah, if you're having a crappy day and your superstar teammate gets a peer bonus / managerial pat on the back, the mail is sent to the whole team, it feels bad. But then sometimes you get thanked / peer bonused for something you did but barely remember, which turned out to be quite useful for some team. In that case, it's free money from the sky, which is a nice morale boost, if short-lived.
posted by batter_my_heart at 5:27 PM on April 26, 2017
I worked for one of those "Top 50 companies for job satisfaction in the nation", and they showed their appreciation by respecting the work/life balance...
Childcare reimbursement for those with kids
Access to a personal assistant willing to step in with non-work projects
Fitness club memberships
Employee discount programs
All of those things were popular programs and could also serve as good "rewards" for performance.
posted by Libelula y colibri at 6:58 PM on April 26, 2017 [2 favorites]
Childcare reimbursement for those with kids
Access to a personal assistant willing to step in with non-work projects
Fitness club memberships
Employee discount programs
All of those things were popular programs and could also serve as good "rewards" for performance.
posted by Libelula y colibri at 6:58 PM on April 26, 2017 [2 favorites]
My workplace recently recognized my accomplishments by paying for a week-long leadership development training. I was told that I could make a proposal for a professional development opportunity and they would pay for it (as opposed to my workplace choosing something for me), so I got to do a program that I had wanted to do for several years, but couldn't really justify/afford paying for by myself. And the program was something that was really geared towards me and not towards my organization (though they indirectly benefited).
So allowing people to choose a significant, meaningful to them, learning opportunity and then paying for it could be really gratifying. It was for me.
posted by brookeb at 9:11 PM on April 26, 2017 [1 favorite]
So allowing people to choose a significant, meaningful to them, learning opportunity and then paying for it could be really gratifying. It was for me.
posted by brookeb at 9:11 PM on April 26, 2017 [1 favorite]
Access to a personal assistant willing to step in with non-work projects
Interesting that a place does this. I was thinking about something along those lines.
There's so much life admin to do, and I don't have that many spoons.
You should get a fixer.
Their job is to sort out anything, work related or non. So your staff can focus on their specialities.
posted by Just this guy, y'know at 1:09 AM on April 27, 2017
Interesting that a place does this. I was thinking about something along those lines.
There's so much life admin to do, and I don't have that many spoons.
You should get a fixer.
Their job is to sort out anything, work related or non. So your staff can focus on their specialities.
posted by Just this guy, y'know at 1:09 AM on April 27, 2017
When the entire team does a great job, give everyone a scheduled day off, and tell the teams they support typically to politely bugger off that day.
Or, when teams are all working really hard, bring in lunch or breakfast (or dinner, wah) for the group.
posted by ellerhodes at 7:40 PM on April 27, 2017
Or, when teams are all working really hard, bring in lunch or breakfast (or dinner, wah) for the group.
posted by ellerhodes at 7:40 PM on April 27, 2017
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