“Thanks For Nothing” Page 207

1. “Thanks For Nothing”Page 207 By: Ashton Moss ChiomaOguejiofor Kent Nunn

2. Case Overview • Take Ko a 50 year old former employee of a Dot-com in California • Company instituted a reward program • Employees received badges for a Job well done • Problem was badges were handed out arbitrarily • Employees felt patronized and weren't motivated • According to a Gallup Poll 61% employees never received a sincere “Thank you”

3. If praising employees for doing a good job seems to be a fairly easy and obvious motivational tool, why do you think companies and managers don’t often do it? • Companies and managers have a very busy schedule as sometimes they do not have time to individually evaluate each employees performance. • Sometimes managers have been employers almost their whole entire life and do not really know how good a pat on the back feels. • Too much praise can lead to employees being counter-productive and not motivated.

4. As a manager, what steps would you take to motivate your employees after observing them perform well? • -Even as little as patting an employee on the back or saying "thanks" can make them feel very involved in the company. • -A Gallop poll found that 61 percent of employees stated that they have not received a sincere "thank you" from management in the past year. • -When an employee does an important task for the organization make sure to let them know how they are really helping the company succeed in production. • -Things like these will not just help the employee but also it can lead to more motivated staff building stronger human resources.

5. Rewards Programs Many larger corporations use rewards programs. A lot of the times these are indirect to the employee and are given at fixed intervals each year. An example from our case study was Ko who was a 50 year old employee of a dot-com in California. Staff from this company would receive a badge that said “U Done Good” each year. After a certain amount of badges collected, trading them in for a T-shirt was their next reward. The company consisted of a strict dress code therefore they could not even where the T-shirts at work if they wanted. Rewards programs could be motivational but obviously this one is not working. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FGBVQkvdcUc&feature=related

6. Are there any downsides to giving employees too much verbal praise? What might these downsides be, and how could you alleviate them as a manager? • There are downsides to giving employees too much praise • Employees may become complacent and unmotivated • Managers need to ensure that praise is given in conjunction of with the specific accomplishment

7. As a manager, how would you ensure that recognition given to employees is distributed fairly and justly? • Each employees accomplishments would be monitored • Rewards would be given out in a timely fashion by means of quarterly reviews • Employees evaluations would be mandatory in order to reward those that have put forth an extra effort

8. Conclusion • It is Managers responsibilities to make employees feel valued • Verbal rewards are not only inexpensive but are quick and easy • When employees are not properly rewarded they become disengaged • A simple “Pat on the Back” is worth a lot.

9. Questions?