by Cynthiann King, C King Unlimited Educational Services

Several years ago an IBM junior executive lost more than $10 million in a risky venture for the company. When the contrite young man offered his resignation, Tom Watson, the company's founder, replied "You can't be serious. We've just spent $10 million educating you!"

Most of us could not afford a venture that would risk $10 million yet many of our best ideas are built around taking a risk of some magnitude. Many progressive property management firms emphasize the need for their employees to look at the way business is conducted and challenge the established routines to impact time and energy levels. The following is taken from the book "How to Recognize and Reward Employees," by Donna Deeprose.
"A Baker's Dozen of Behaviors Worth Recognizing,"
1. Learning new skills.
2. Pitching in to help a coworker.
3. Mediating a conflict.
4. Volunteering for grunge work.
5. Giving a customer extra attention.
6. Mentoring a new employee.
7. Tackling a problem in a fresh way.
8. Making people laugh in a stressful situation.
9. Sharing information.
10. Taking notes in a meeting.
11. Perfect attendance.
12. Adapting willingly to change.
13. Cross-training another employee.

How can a supervisor determine what rewards will please which employees? The most obvious suggestion is for the supervisor to ask. Either a formal survey of employees can be conducted or even better individuals can be asked in a private conversation with the supervisor. Ideal times for this conversation could include: a goal setting meeting, performance appraisal session, at the start of an employee's promotion, when outlining educational opportunities with an employee, and even when performing job counseling.

Next a supervisor should give a few suggestions and then encourage the employee to modify the list to best meet their desires. A method in which to collect potential
suggestions is for the supervisor to observe the employee in action and determine what seems to make a particular employee to respond positively - is it a flexible schedule, a good book at a break, more of one type of work, less work overall, more responsibility, an uninterrupted lunch hour? What does this employee talk about in casual conversations?
This may give the supervisor clues as to what makes that employee happy.

The following represents a list of ways in which to best motivate your employees taken from my consulting work with clients and their employees.
• Establish an education fund for offspring.
• Keep employees informed on the status of the company in a brief report given with each paycheck.
• Share the glory.
• Implement at least 20% of all suggestions received from employees.
• Inspect what you expect.
• Explain and regularly review the key objectives of the owner and asset manager.
• Reward innovation.
• Promote from within whenever possible.
• Respect employees' personal time.
• Allow for mistakes to encourage creativity.
• Conduct an "If I Ran the Company" survey.
• Award a "Suit (executive) for a Day" to an employee.
• Deliver unexpected and intermittent rewards.
• Allow flex share of schedules and responsibilities.
• Provide resources for continuing education.
• Support employees' social and/or charitable causes.
• Provide time and stress management tools & training.
• Encourage participation of significant others at company events.
• Provide a gift certificate or telephone or gasoline card from Stored Value Marketing Company at reasonable rates
Allow employees to choose from a gift catalog with gifts

As supervisors continue to expect employees to perform a multitude of roles and work more intense schedules, the employee's support team of family and friends becomes even more significant. Many successful employers recognize not only the employees but also the employees' support networks as well. Some management companies have recognized employees' support members with sweatshirts for all employees' family members, "Bring your children to work" day, and $5 telephone cards for calls to home when the employee is on a work assignment away from home. Other rewards used in successful employee recognition programs include:
• manicures
• foot massages
• workouts with company sponsored fitness leader
• heel tips and shoe repair certificates
• car washes and oil changes
• subscriptions to an industry magazine
• company-sponsored park district sports teams
• volunteer days with pay
• certifications for education class
• attendance to association events
• commission pools on lease renewals shared by the entire on-site team
• nutritional meals on wheels at lunch at minimal cost to the employees
• N.O.I. bonus pools.

Of course no employee expects a bonus or award or special reward every day. But all employees desire feedback on their performance in regular reassurances that can be delivered by the responsible supervisor. These include thank you notes, and "brag" paragraphs in employee newsletters, with paychecks or on strategically placed bulletin boards.

Another excellent way to continue to reinforce employees is to receive their feedback on the supervisor's performance as well. The following represents questions a supervisor can ask to determine their effectiveness with employees.

1. Are my instructions clear, or must you spend time trying to figure out what I want you to do?
2. Do I change my mind often and ask you to alter your assignments after you've started working?
3. Do I edit or make changes in your work without really improving it?
4. Am I open to new ideas?
5. Do I often seem disappointed in your work?
6. Is my criticism usually constructive?
7. Do you feel you can trust me?
8. Do I help you develop your skills?
9. Am I usually available when you need help?
10. Do I operate in a crisis mode too often?
source: Managing, Matthew Bender & Co., Albany, NY

About the author: Cynthiann King is known as both an inspirational educator and seminar leader. As President of C. King Unlimited, she lends her expertise in seminars and educational consulting services to management companies and associations located in diverse markets throughout the U. S. Cynthiann can be reached at (847) 487-8791 or e mail address: cynthiann@mindspring.com.