If you can't give an employee a raise, what are other ways to reward them?

One of the methods that has worked for me is public acknowledgement of achievement. I think it is an often underused method of rewarding employees, whether or not you can give them a raise.

Hello, if you can't give him a raise, another way of rewarding someone can be letting him participate in a longterm or shortterm workproject he is interested in, or also (if possible and if candidate wants to) by giving him (partially) another job content in which he can find a challenge...

I agree with others and particularly like Rob's response. Giving an afternoon off is something that most employers can afford to do on occasion and I think it would be very much appreciated. Also, as others have said, letting the employee get involved in a project that he or she may want to do just because it is of interest to them. The problem with buying gifts or sending folks on courses, is that it can get costly if you have a fairly large group of employees. Time off feels good - almost like playing hooky from school. I believe it does give them a bit of an opportunity to recharge as well.

According to recent research on the matter, personal treats, either related to job content or professional development or to personal passions, interests and hobbies are considered more relevant and engaging than a pay raise.
Look at it this way: do you prefer to be considered and valued as an individual for whatever personal or professional qualities or simply receive a pay check just like all the others?
Say the person for your case at hand is really intersted in specific projects, why not allow him/her to free up some of his/her time from other tasks and let him/her undertake or participate in such projects?
On a more personal level: say the person is passionate about photography: why not offer him access for one day of a photography course/ conference/ exhibition/ ... of course this requires you knowing a lot more on your teams and employees than just about their professional value and ambition.

It's hard to disagree with any of the comments made above. These are all reasonable ways to recognize an employee and their contributions.

I believe being honest with each employee, regardless of their level or position, about what is possible and what is not is the best policy. If you are straight forward and communicate that raises are just not possible at this time but here's what we CAN do, you have much better chance of keeping the individual engaged.

All of the ideas from bonus money to public recognition to time off and the rest are good and I would emphasize to the individual the value that they bring to the organization and how much you appreciate them.

If an individual knows that you are working for them, doing career pathing, exposing them to other senior individuals via stretch assignments and participation in high visibility initiatives, they are far less likely to defect.

This year we were unable to to provide salary increases.
We instead provide flexible work schedules which allowed employees to chose a standard 5 day a week schedule, a 9/80, (every other Friday off) and a 4/10, (4 ten hour days).
We allow employees the opportunity to change their choice of work schedule up to three times per yera since a 4/10 may work during the summer but not during the school year, etc

There's a technique I saw used very successfully a few years ago which puts a different spin on recognition. The business owners bought a stack of blue poker chips. The first time they thought someone did something well, they presented the employee with a blue chip and a water glass in which to display it on their desk. Every time the employee did something well after that they were given another blue chip. An informal competition began amongst the employees to see who had the most chips. After all, who doesn't want to be thought of as a "blue chip" investment.

There are many incentives that can help develop loyalty, hard work and dedication. Let your people know that you care about them and their lives. Be honest and sincere.
Methods for demonstrating appreciation and building morale include:
• Sincere, daily, positive reinforcement through dialog
• Trade-show attendance (expenses paid)
• Online education to immediately increase their value
• Technology certification to enhance their value and their career
• Other personal development functions such as a leadership class
• Additional responsibilities that will increase their contribution, value and self confidence – challenge them with new goals slightly outside of their comfort zone
• Offer paid time off to lend assistance for a family event such as a recital or baseball game. It may be just stopping work a couple hours early.
• Learn the names of spouses and children to demonstrate you care
• Organize non-work activities or events for the team to boost morale and make the environment more friendly (e.g.; a ball game, a fishing trip, golf, a BBQ, etc.)
• Create a social reward that can be displayed and is recognized by all such as 'IT Employee of the Month' or an 'Outstanding Service' certificate.
................. Be creative.

Try saying "great job" -- but only when it's deserved. You'd be surprised.

Measure and celebrate achievement.

I also thank my employees when it's appropriate -- they've done something good for me or for the company.

Sincerely help them develop their career and skills.

When you give away tickets or invites to events, give away the ones that are good, not just the ones you can't make or don't want to go to :-)

Lastly, let them have time for community projects and events and celebrate that.

What was that line from the first policy manual. Oh yes, "do unto others as you would have them do unto you." Old, but still relevant.

Jim Love
www.chelseagroup.ca
www.performanceadvantage.ca

Training. Really good training, let the employee develop an area of expertise valuable to them and the company.

Give them additional holiday besides the weekends ! Which means that it would then be either FSS ( Friday ,Saturday,Sunday ) or FSM ...

Cheers,
RK

All the above are valid, and I agree with tem all. However, keep in mind that these are all band-aids. People cannot put food on their tables and pay their bills with these suggestions.

Ask them what they individually like and don't like, especially as it impacts their effectiveness at work and in the rest of their life. Then do more of the former and less of the latter. People are different. Life circumstances are different. One size doesn't fit all. This a) shows that you don't think they're all interchangeable "resources," (a positive right there) and b) provides things they value and removes things they don't like. Rather than eliminating negatives, I think too many managers try papering them over with positives.

Ask every employee in your organization or elsewhere what is the best type of motivation to give to a staffmember for a job well done, and immediately without a doubt they would all say, "a raise!"

There are many other ways to reward employees if you can't give them a raise.
The best one yet is to ask them the question - "besides a salary increase, what is the best motivation for you on the job?" Chances are that you will get a genuine answer, and their request will be something very simple. Something that you can afford without hurting your pocketbook or breaking the bank. You also saved yourself from a headache and sleepless nights.

I would have to agree with Daniel Pink.

Autonomy
Mastery
Purpose

His TED talk is def worth a watch.
http://www.robertderow.com/dan-pink-on-the-surprising-science-of-motivation-v...

Why try and ask them what they would like to have if you can't afford to pay them more.

Remember you motivate and reward people the way they want to be rewarded not the way you think they want to be rewarded.

Simple things that doesnt cost a company anything and can be very effective tools are : praises, acknowlegements, saying "job well done:, thank you etc.
What some managers fail to understand is that, not all employees are employees are motivated by the extrinsic factor of money. Yes, everyone wants money, but it is not always the main motivating factor. Some people are intrinsically driven my self gratification or simply being reminded that they are the best at what they do. People like feeling appreciated and important.Managers sometime forget to say simple words like "Thank you" and you would be surprised to see good it makes an employee feel.

I find myself asking, "How many of you have ever been employees on the other end of the shtick??

Great employees work 24/7. Because their mind is always working, always solving problems, they bring solutions to you that nine to fivers never could and never will. In response to their willingness to put their mental prowess into their company's needs during personal hours, they are often rewarded by receiving kindergarten treatment, intrusive questioning of medical leave, vacation requests micromanagement and so on.

I have always found my employees respond best to equal treatment. Do they put personal time into the needs of my company? Then I ought to allow company time for them to care for their needs, even if those needs are simply some time to unwind and get their focus back.

Do they spend that time looking for other work? Not likely. Where else will they go to get reciprocal treatment for the work they do? Do they somehow think I give this treatment because I can't afford to pay them? On the contrary, they recognize there is more value in this world than money, and that I recognize that too.

Those employees solely motivated by money seldom work out in my companies for the simple reason that they are not team players, are not willing to put their mental abilities to work for me, and therefore are seldom my most valuable people in the first place.

The vast majority of answers to this question assume companies ought to be exchanging their dollars for their employee's hours. That thinking is antiquated and useless. Successful companies trade their dollars for results and accomplishment. If those results are forthcoming, what do you care if it takes 8 hours, 4 hours or 6? The employee who can make it happen in 4 is arguably one of your most valuable people. So, ask him to train his fellows for a couple of hours, then cut out early for a round of golf,

Create other forms of incentives like public acknowledgement (which makes a huge difference) and many others that will ultimately lead to providing them that which is due to them when things get better. God bless.

A more significant job title, an office if they are in an open space area, time off, training/personal development, better toys (laptops, mobiles etc), benefits that may not cost you much as employer but saves the individual money (gym membership, mobile phone usage...) public recognition are all some things you could consider..

A one time bonus is nice, a couple of three day weekends, public recognition, department lunch with recognition from the CEO

There are also indirect employees, and at least few from this category deserve good training programs, especially ones to get on the same page as the rest of the team sharing the workload, solving problems at hand, and pulling the weight together everyday, in my case for nearly 15 months.

Yes, I agree with trainings, good and necessary ones.

Intrinsic motivation (see for instance http://www.psych.rochester.edu/SDT/) is crucial for any human being and it is in my opinion even more important for IT professionals. Indeed, if they were not intrinsically motivated to learn technologies and fully understand the world around them they would pursue a different career.

As a consequence, the single most important thing any HR department or management team should do is not demotivate IT professionals. Most of the time this can be done at zero cost.

Let me give you an example of bad management practices that demotivate employees. In some companies there is the assumption that in every team there must be a top performer and a top underperformer. Why? For statistical reasons. This is ludicruous. Clearly someone was absent-minded when the teacher was explaining the basics of statistics. Nevertheless, this is the explanation. As a consequence of this assumption some people are "punished" each year simply because someone must be "punished".

I think almost everyone could provide many examples of these demotivating processes.

I find all these suggestions of extra time off rather humorous.
It reflects, or more likely confirms, what many employees think: that their employer is oblivious to the realities of their situation and/or greatly underestimate the employees' intelligence.
Think about the MESSAGE that these two things send:
1) The company does not have enough money to pay you more.
2) The company can afford to operate without you (for whatever "bonus" time you offer)

Most thinking people will get the signal that the company they work for is not doing well. The really smart ones will use the time off to look for another job... and the really, really smart ones, will find them.
Even if it's 1%, a meager pay raise sends a better signal than 0% and more time off. What's more, if you "can't afford" to give employees a pay raise, you had better be transparent about it. You don't have to open your books for public view, but you must put some numbers on the table that show why you're challenged financially -- and (this is most important) how you plan to change that.

Failing those two things, all the proposals here will have employees scrambling for the exits. Even with a very tough job market, your best employees (assuming they're your best for a reason) will find someone who can/will offer more security.

When you consider the cost of recruiting and training new employees, a small increase might look more 'affordable' for your business.
Go on the offensive, consider how all the folks here are thinking. That small pay raise might draw the best employees away from your competitors, they'll stop by for an interview on the free afternoon their (soon-to-be former) boss gave them in lieu of a raise.

To add to what has already been said:

1) Employee of the month parking space closest to the front door!
2) Wall of Fame where acknowledgments are posted.
3) Opportunity to work flex hours, if possible.

By the way the #1 of the top 10 of motivating employees is acknowledgment.

Just wanted to add a few.

Public recognitoin at a team meeting is easy and usually well received; have had some good success in letting the associate take their spouse or significant other to a nice dinner and picking up the bill for them; finally, some extra paid time off after a particularly lenghty project in which they put in many extra hours

Chester Elton's thought leadership on creating a recognition culture in the workplace when and because pay increases aren't the way to keep your best people led us to choose him to keynote Snagajob's Hire Minds conference this week. The Carrot Principle is one of Chester's bestsellers and is highly actionable. I've blogged about it here: http://www.snagajob.com/business-solutions/2011/08/24/thinking-about-carrots-...

"Yes" to most of the above. Recognition is always a good thing, in any circumstance. Training is a fantastic investment in the future. Tiome off might or might not be good. But, a lingering question remains.

If a solid employee, performing at a high level, isn't worth a raise, what is wrong with your business model, your overall managment, your product or service, and/or your vision that you can't support the foundational precept that "the workman is worthy of his hire?"

I don't think anyone mentioned flexible scheduling, especially if it includes the opportunity to work from home when appropriate. I also totally agree that more freedom and autonomy in general is a huge benefit that costs the employer nothing. Finally, how about the opportunity to provide real input, that is taken seriously, into the day to day operations, direction, and even vision of the organization.

There are two things that immediately come into mind:

1) See what kind of flexibility options you can offer the employee. Some people would rather forgo a raise in favor of more flexible schedules.

2) See if there are ways to reduce costs for the employees in lieu of raises. Can you take on any transportation costs or costs for meals? Can you give away accumulated rewards points (amex points) for certain amenities? I once had a boss who paid for my vacation flights from his amex points in lieu of a raise. I was delighted since that saved me a significant cost.

But why not just be open and ask your employees? Perhaps you can have an open conversation and see what works for each individual. For sure there's no one-size-fits-all answer.

First of all I think you should catch them doing things right and take a moment to sincerely praise them for their efforts.

For many companies who are not able to give someone a raise the idea of giving them the ability to take an eLearning course at their convenience is a great way to show a commitment to their personal and professional development. Basic office 2010 courses, the working single parent, how to write an effective email, phone etiquette, and management courses for the new leader are great offerings available that will allow your employees to develop their skills for success!

As an employee, if I was given additional training as a reward, unless it would clearly increase my chances of promotion in the near future, I would consider it an insult as I'd be wondering why you didn't consider me worthy of additional training anyway if it helps me in my job??

A paid day off would be better - if I was in work you'd be paying me anyway so nothing changes with regard to cost to the company, and one paid day off vs. a few sick days is not going to catastrophically affect productivity (and in fact because you gave a paid day off you might just find productivity increases, not only in the employee taking the day off, but in others who are now working harder for their paid day off).

Few will probably admit it, but how many people reading this have had more than a few slack days at work where they could have quite easily gone home several hours early with no detriment to anyone? One problem with working 9 to 5 is that you are looking for stuff to do to fill the time, instead of doing what is necessary. This kind of behavior creates stress, that will ultimately affect your employees later on. Sorry to digress, but I feel it is relevant to the point that a few made that they can't afford a day off for a hard working employee.

I answer the question earlier but after rereading all of the suggestions. It comes back to a list of the things that have proven more valuable to employees than money. (Just remember in most case money is not a motivator but lack of fair compensation over the long term is a demotivatore.

Now the research shows that most employees want the following things in a job no matter of the demographic makeup.
1. Great Boss
2. Great co-workers
3. Interesting work
4. Growth/stretch
5. Learning new stuff
6. Opportunity.
7.. Family Friendly environment. (Note I did not say work live balance)
8. Fun
9..Honesty straight forward communication
10. RECOGNITION

I am going to come back on this issue. All of the suggestions have merit in one scenario or another. But, none are suatainable substitutes for rewarding performance that contributes to enterprise success. Maybe the reward is not always a salary increase; perhaps it is stock, or options. Ray Kroc's secretary retired as a millionaire. But pizza, a night at the opera, and/or an employee of the month parking slot are NOT adequate long-term ways to avoid recognizing value, no matter the condition of the income staement.

PS: Many of the suggestions offered are seductive, in that they involve one-time event costs rather than longer-term salary increases. But, they are not free, and they might not be as cost-effective as thought when the need to repeat them is considered.

I would recommend sending them on an outward bound course; or a survival course.
Regards, David Brown McDougall MCQI CQP
PS For all my achievements with the SSEB (South of Scotland Electricity Board) as an apprentice, I was awarded a 1 month course at the Outward Bound Moray Sea School in Burghead Scotland; It was fantastic!!, I learnt so much about myself as the Vice Watch Captain, of Duncan Watch.

What you have here is a young, keen person,who has pulled out all the Stops, a top student for the company both day and night; my critics obviously do not understand what such an 'Outward Bound course' does for you and the COMPANY they represent; they end up totally Fit and Company Motivated; how do you cost that!!.???.
David Brown McDougall MCQI CQP