Incentive Motivation

In business, there are two main types of compensation: pay compensation and non-pay compensation. A mix of the two is necessary in order to attract and retain top-quality employees. In past decades, pay compensation was enough to keep good people on board. If a company paid an employee well over the course of several decades, with raises at reliable, regular intervals, an employee would likely be loyal to his company for life. However, Generation X changed all of that. This generation, born from the mid-1960s to the late 1970s, ushered in a new era of employer/employee relations. This new generation wanted something more from their job than just pay. They wanted recognition, motivation and incentives. They also wanted a healthy work/life balance in the form of generous paid time off. In the economic boom of the 1990s, when competition between employers was at its most intense, non-pay compensation really began to take hold in the business world.

This trend has continued to be the norm, and employers are constantly on the lookout for new and interesting ideas for ways to provide incentives and motivation to their employees in order to retain them. Employers are also seeking ways to enhance job performance through innovative pay programs.

Pay Compensation in the Corporate World

As a result of this trend, today's job performance evaluations are more than just boxes checked off on a form. In fact, many businesses have done away with forms altogether. Now, performance evaluations are a collaborative process and incentives are a big part of the event. Contact Fox Lawson & Associates, a division of Gallagher Benefit Services, Inc at jfox@foxlawson.com for help putting together incentive packages for employees.