It looks so very simple, don't you think? "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you." The Golden Rule seems so global that it should be a solution for all relationships. Just handle everybody the same way you would appreciate being handled and all will run smooth as silk, correct?

But wait... Something appears to be off...

Would your business' twenty-something hotshot sales guy hope for the same goals from their career that your forty-something office clerk wants? Is your technical staff aiming for the same goals and rewards as your receptionist?

Indeed, their wants are quite different, but too many business owners implement a universal method when commending their highly valued staff. Once an important contract is completed, everybody gets an identical award, whether it's a meal or a gift card. Delivering the same thing to each contributor is what's right, isn't it? But do you think it's really fair for your company's key people?

Keep Your Key People

Surprisingly few entrepreneurs understand that the Pareto theory lesson regarding their workers means that 2 out of 10 of their workers are producing 80% of your entire company's income. In addition, almost every management book cites studies comparing the productivity of the key staff to the not so capable (yet still effective) staff. The spread between the best and worst have been found to be as high as 100 to 1. The closest these ratios ever seem to get to one another is at best 4:1. So now how much more does this extreme sway in value wind up costing?

Assuming that your yearly cost for the least capable staff member is $30,000, what does it cost for your key staff? Since a decent amount of the costs for an employee don't change, those costs don't increase in relation to base pay. For the purposes of this example, let's use some worst-case , $60k. Assuming that your $30k employee generates $30k of value (otherwise they'd be gone, right?). If your key employee is a measly four times as productive as the worst, they deliver far more value for how much more they cost.

If your business invests in more classes for the bottom-rung staff, costs immediately increase, but without any assurance that productivity will similarly increase. Consider, also, how much of your salary is factored into the "cost" of this moderately competent employee? Probably none. Management costs are usually invisible, factored away as overhead. It certainly feels like you're being productive - trying your hardest to bring along the strugglers, hoping that they eventually rise above their shortcomings. Consider how much of your time is spent with either of these employees:
The self-managing dynamo who, with speed of a bullet train, handles customer complaints, delivers defect-free results, and even cleans up after himself in the break room
The new guy who has a few interpersonal issues, occasional product defects, problems following instructions, and shows up late on Mondays because of his occasional hangover

Indeed your key performers are worth their salt. As such, it's crucial for every small business owner to retain their top performers, as this group of your greatest makes up the bulk of your team's value. Their familiarity with your unique processes together with their talents and ability to get the job done in a pinch makes them nigh unto priceless.

So, what's the most effective way to reward your key people? What should you do to indicate to those high performers that they're appreciated, and boost the likelihood that they'll be there for you when you need them again?

What's the most effective way to reward your best people?

Pay them cold, hard cash. If your $30k staffer cranks out 70-hour weeks during the final push of a key effort, most pure cash rewards would come in at a rate less than minimum wage. Just reconsider this choice. This can be quite offensive, seen, instead, as a paltry offering to pay them off and ease your guilty conscience. If you do decide to follow this path, after the taxman gets his share, the net impact of this cash might be far less than it costs to pay it out.

Pay for a training trip. Some folks might be happy to be rewarded with an opportunity to attend a conference in a new city on the company dime. They may even try to spend a few days before or after, out of their own pocket, just to cash in on this chance to get away for a bit. Be careful though, this could appear to your top performer that you noticed their performance in need of training. They might wrongly assume that they should get further classes to be worthy of the real reward that they'll eventually get. If your achiever is thin-skinned, they could get concerned that their effort they exerted was a warning sign to you that they were not so doing well at their job. Proposing a training reward in this situation could be mistaken that their struggle was apparent to you, and now you are taking corrective action.

Promote them. Though the appeal of an impressive title or material benefits associated with a promotion may inspire some, more and more workers have come to understand the risks of the Peter Principle. They fear that their world will change a great deal when they become manager. Your turbocharged talent probably delight in what they're doing right now. That's why they're so gosh darn capable at it. Before considering a promotional reward, make sure that the new position honest uses the skills and capabilities present in these high achievers, or you may end up losing them. If you think it's best to go for it, make sure your top performer understands that it's alright to get their old job again if things don't work out in the newly promoted role.

Offer more time off. Everybody needs to get away, right? However, if you give this bonus to a very committed worker who is so completely committed to their occupation that they don't have many friends of the workplace, they may not know how to conduct themselves during this spare time.

Do unto others as they would have done unto them.

As you can see, there are quite a few mechanisms to reward your best. It's dangerously simplistic to give each of your employees the same reward. It's especially easy to give them an award you would be happy to get.

All of this leads to a very simple concept: communication. In a nutshell, ask your best what they really would like. What is it that will allow them to truly understand that they are loved? The path that leads a person to be an excellent account rep is quite distinct than the life of a great administrative assistant. You may be shocked by the replies you are told. If truth be told, your staff may be amazed, as well, to discover that you are truly listening to their ideas to decide upon the award for their hard work.

Do they want cash?
Do they want more challenging responsibilities?
Do they want some time away from work to appreciate their children?
Would they rather have more mentoring?
Do they simply want to be praised at a company get-together?
What rewards have they received previously that really made them feel appreciated?

The answers can differ notably for each person, depending upon their long-term ambitions, how their desires are currently being fulfilled in Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs, and the current difficulties in their life. Don't make the mistake of taking for granted that the answer you hear today will remain the same throughout your top performer's career.

At the end of the day, rather than attempting to reward your staff the way you would like to be rewarded, break The Golden Rule, and invest the time actually understanding their needs and wants. By involving them in decisions that affect their lives so directly, you might inadvertently cash in on the Hawthorn Effect, and inspire your people by demonstrating you care. You will likely notice that you've produced a work setting that makes your high achievers happier than they've ever been. Consequently, they will discover ways to push themselves to new levels of efficiency, understanding that their efforts will bring about rewards that are truly important to them. You may even earn their respect and loyalty for a lifetime.

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