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As a follow-up to my previous post “How to Motivate Clients To Do The Right Thing,” I thought that it will be beneficial for small business owners to motivate their employees to do the same.  After all, employees are considered your business’ most valuable asset, right?  You want your employees to put in a good day’s work, stick around and help build your business  Even better, you want them to want to.  So, here’s the carrot approach to consider.

Recognition.  Although a raise is always nice, you may be surprised to hear that a little recognition and TLC will go a long way.  People don’t always know what the carrot it.  A lot of companies think they have to give more money.  The real carrot is often announcing at a meeting that this employee has done something special, or a handwritten note from the CEO or owner will do the magic.

Food, glorious food.  Food and drink go a long way toward making people feel taken care of.  Stock up on snacks like microwave popcorn, chocolate, and flavored water.

Time will get them on your side. A lot of businesses close between Christmas and New Year’s.  That works out to three to five bonus days a year.  It’s usually a dead time for most businesses anyway, so consider giving your employees a chance to recharge their batteries at the end of the year.

Fit the perk to the workplace.  Obviously a policy that works great in one workplace can be a disaster in another.  For example if your company is a children clothing manufacturer consider allowing new parents to come to work with their babies; you may find that this practice actually increases productivity of your staff.

And the stick?  if an employee is dishonest or consistently deliver poor performance and you think that you’ve given the proper training/coaching, then it’s time to to let the employee go.  Before the ultimate decision to terminate is made, company management should spend a few minutes discussing the proposed termination with the company’s general counsel, outside labor counsel or the company’s human resources department. These professionals will see potential pitfalls that the management team may have missed and they can provide a reality check on the reason for termination.

Photo Credit:  Bruce Thomson