What's New in Incentives and Performance Improvement

June 2008

Cycle Source Group Becomes Cycle Force Group

The Cycle Source Group recently announced that it has been acquired by the British company Cycle Force UK Ltd.  “We are pleased to announce our sale to our long time friends and industry associates Cycle Force UK Ltd.,” says Cycle Force Group President Nyle Nims. “A new company has been formed named Cycle Force Group LLC, with full expectations that business and customers of Cycle Source will have a seamless transition. Many of our loyal staff remain with us. Bringing the financial strength of Cycle Force UK Ltd. to our Ames, Iowa warehouse will enable us to expand our planned deep inventory levels of Kawasaki, Polaris, Ford, Smith & Wesson and Mantis bicycles, along with several new and innovative products and lines to be introduced shortly.” Cycle Force UK Ltd. is Great Britain’s leading provider of police and emergency bicycles and accessories. Cycle Force Group LLC, a leading supplier of licensed wheel goods worldwide, is located in Ames, Iowa.

Generational Motivations Not Very Different

Contrary to the widespread belief among older managers that there are distinct generational differences in attitudes toward work and engagement, these variations are actually relatively small, according to a study by Sirota Survey Intelligence. “With the exception of employees age 63 and older, the differences between employees’ levels of engagement in their jobs are fairly narrow,” says Douglas Klein, Sirota President. “Our research dispels the myths about younger employees being more disengaged from their jobs.  It also refutes the contention that Generation X employees (ages 28-42) are the most cynical of age groups,” he adds. Sirota conducted a major study of cross-generational attitudes of more than 300,000 workers in over 50 organizations during 2006 and 2007. Another key finding: Although an overwhelming majority of new employees are enthusiastic when starting a job, there is a measurable decline in their morale after the first year (often after the first six months) which continues through the fifth year. “Many new employees begin losing their enthusiasm for their new jobs regardless of how old they are,” says Klein. Employees’ continued level of engagement depends on how well management meets their needs and expectations during their time with their employers. Interestingly, data show employee engagement levels typically begins to recover after workers have been with a company for six years or more.

Incentive Buyers Focused on CSR

The annual Society of Incentive & Travel Executives (SITE) Executive Summit identified corporate social responsibility and sustainable meetings as two of the primary issues that are top-of-mind with corporate execs. “The speed at which our industry is changing is more rapid than before,” says SITE President Padraic Gilligan. “Just when you figure out a new trend, another comes along. CSR is like the ROI of 2008 – everyone is focused on it. While it has been a growing item of discussion for the past few years, it has moved to a point where you can't be willing to take a risk and not have a company position on it.” The summit, held in Malaysia in March, found buyers and service providers are focused on “voluntourism” and lifestyle travel with a health and wellness component. SITE attendees also felt the buyer decision process has been shifting up a level, and that the trend of clients wanting to get ultimate value out of their budgets was continuing, affecting destination selection, programming and the overall experience of the incentive program.

Employees Leave Bosses, Not Companies

Why do people leave teams and organizations? The primary reason, says Jim Welch, Founder and President of The Growth Leader Inc., a business leadership consulting firm based in Overland Park, KS,  is that they fail to connect with their bosses as leaders and as people. “Too many associates that depart follow Jimmy Conway’s advice in the 1990 hit movie Goodfellas, who told Henry Hill, ‘Never rat on your friends, and keep your mouth shut,’” says Welch, who recently authored the book, Grow Now: 8 Essential Steps to Flex Your Leadership Muscles. “As a leader, you are personally accountable to acquire and retain the very best people. It is that simple. If you fail to recruit and retain the top talent, you will not sustain growth over time. The effective leader must embrace a plan to retain the very best talent.” Among the methods Welch recommends are special events for employees. Particularly successful are surprise side trips during business outings, which act as both a reward and a welcome chance for team members to bond in a new and exciting environment. Taking employees out for a reward dinner or lunch is also appreciated. Another more unorthodox suggestion he has is to contact an employee’s family member directly as a way of letting them know how important the employee is to the company and also connecting on a more personal level with them. However, always ask permission first if you’re going to contact anyone beyond the spouse – you need to be sure the employee will be comfortable with your contact, advises Welch.

Employee Shortages a Primary HR Concern

A shortage of skilled workers has become the most pressing concern among employers, according to the annual Top Five Total Rewards Priorities survey conducted by Deloitte Consulting and the International Society of Certified Employee Benefit Specialists (ISCEBS). Nearly three-quarters of the 413 HR executives surveyed cited talent as their top concern, supplanting the perennial leading problem in the survey – rising healthcare costs. “Talent management is the top organizational challenge, higher than managing the cost of total rewards – especially healthcare,” says Tim Phoenix, a Principal in Deloitte’s Human Capital Service Practice and Co-Director of the survey. “We find that HR organizations around the world are becoming increasingly business-driven and strategic, shifting their focus from HR administration and cost reduction to long-term ROI and growth in a way that directly impacts the bottom line.” Just over 70% of respondents say they plan to increase employee communication and education surrounding reward programs, and a majority (56%) plan to redesign some of their reward programs to better align the interests of employees and the organization and promote employee engagement.

Companies Banning PDAs at Meetings to Boost Productivity

Silicon Valley companies have started banning mobile phones, PDAs, laptops and other portable electronics at meetings to get employees to pay more attention. Long one of the most disliked aspect of the corporate environment, meetings have become secondary to people who would rather read their e-mail or text friends than stick to the meeting agenda, according to a recent article in the Los Angles Times. “Face-to-face meetings have become a low priority because they’re constantly being interrupted by technology, and many people can’t figure out what to do,” Sue Fox, author of Business Etiquette for Dummies, told the paper, adding, “What’s more important – the gadget or the people you’re with?” And it’s not just employees who are the major offenders – managers are often cited as being distracted with their devices as subordinates give presentations. And nothing says lack of respect faster than a boss texting on a Blackberry, say experts. Instead of banning mobile devices, some firms are opting for novel solutions such as forcing everyone to stand at meetings or shutting off Internet access altogether. At UCLA’s School of Management, for example, one survey found that 75% of professors shut off internet access to their classrooms to prod students into giving their undivided attention.

Children at Work an Increasing Option

Bring Your Child to Work Day is expanding. The number of companies that allow children in the office on an occasional basis currently stands at 29%, up from 26% in 2006, according to Society of Human Resource Management (SHRM) statistics recently cited in a USA Today story on the topic. Even infants are welcome in many businesses these days – more than 80 companies in the U.S. allow babies in the workplace, and the Parenting In the Workplace Institute in Framingham, MA says the figure is likely higher than that. The policy is seen as fostering greater loyalty among workers who are parents and boosting morale overall. Many firms are letting mothers bring their babies to work after returning from maternity leave, while others are seeing fathers in the workforce bringing in infants a few days a week as part of a rotation with their spouse. At T3 Advertising in Austin, TX, 50 parents have taken advantage of the opportunity, providing a valuable bridge between the end of family leave and the time when day care often starts. There are concerns over the practice, however. One is that children can be a distraction to others when crying, and then there’s the issue of liability. Companies that succeed at the practice work to inform non-parent employees about the upside to such policies, including fighting the perception that new parents are being given preferential treatment.

Should You Consider Paid Volunteerism as a Perk?

Law firms have a long history of paying employees for volunteer work – otherwise known as pro bono representation. Now it seems the rest of corporate America is jumping on the bandwagon. A recent Wall Street Journal article reports that 79% of 18-to-29-year-olds want to work for a company that cares about how it contributes to society, encouraging volunteerism in its efforts to recruit and retain talented workers. According to Cone, Inc., a Boston-based brand strategy firm, 64% of these so-called “millennial” workers say the social and environmental values of their employer are an important consideration. At PNC Bank, for instance, the company has partnerships with 200 nonprofits that offer employees job-related (and unrelated) volunteer activities. Target told the Journal that the company’s reputation for commitment to the community is among the top reasons younger employees want to work there. In addition to the good works being performed, employees say corporate volunteerism allows them networking opportunities with colleagues and superiors.

Author Says Dictating Behavior Can Boost Workplace Morale

It may seem counterintuitive, but dictating employee behavior can have a positive effect on employee morale and customer service, says Quint Studer, author of the recently published book, Results That Last: Hardwiring Behaviors That Will Take Your Company to the Top. “Don't assume people will feel that you’re infringing on their rights when you create a set of behavioral rules,” says Studer. “Most of them are as irritated by the offenders as you and your customers are. Besides, most people appreciate having ‘official guidelines’ – it eliminates their own confusion, as well as that of their co-workers. Studer notes that employees who frequently behave inappropriately aren’t contributing to a happy, unified and productive team. “And if you don’t spell out which behaviors are acceptable and which are not,” he adds, “you can’t hold people accountable for them.”

Studer recommends that every company implement a “standards of behavior” contract that applies to everyone from the CEO on down. The keys to creating a successful set of standards, he says, include:

• Seeking input from all employees in creating the document
• Aligning desired behaviors with corporate goals and desired outcomes
• Being crystal clear and very specific in your wording
• Holding a ceremonial Standards of Behavior roll-out
• Holding people accountable when they violate a standard
• Creating a designated “Standard of the Month”
• Continuously updating the Standards of Behavior
• Having new applicants sign the document up front.

Industry Events

July 17-18
Internet Strategy Forum Summit
Portland, OR
http://www.internetstrategyforum.org/

September 23-25
The Motivation Show
Chicago, IL
http://www.motivationshow.com

October 6-7
Brand ManageCamp
Las Vegas, NV
http://www.managecamp.com/bmc2008/

October 11-16
DMA ‘08 Conference & Exhibition
Las Vegas, NV
http://www.dma08.org/

November 18-19
Extending Your Brand to Employees Conference
Chicago, IL
http://www.conference-board.org/conferences/conference.cfm?id=1727&nav=hr

In the Current Issue of Motivation Strategies

Don Peppers Discusses Connectivity, Engagement and the Power of Positivity
Don Peppers and Martha Rogers, co-authors of Rules to Break and Laws to Follow: How Your Business Can Beat the Crisis of Short-Termism, argue that a “customer centric” strategy starts with networked culture and engaged employees – employees who enjoy their work and take pride in it, and who have the right tools, the right information and the right training, support and reinforcement. Motivation Strategies recently sat down with Peppers, who will also be the keynote speaker for the Brand Engagement Conference at this year’s New York Incentive, Rewards & Recognition Show, May 7-8. He discussed why employee engagement – and encouraging a networked culture and an attitude of “positivity” – is critically important to companies that want to succeed in today’s fast-paced and highly competitive marketplace. To read the full article, click here.

Gift Card Marketers Respond to Sharper Image Bankruptcy
Will gift card marketers see their product’s popularity take a hit in light of new concerns over redeemability? A recent Associated Press story concerning The Sharper Image’s Chapter 11 filing on February 19 focused on the fact that the retailer’s gift cards are no longer being honored, branding them “worthless pieces of plastic.” Despite the problems presented by the Sharper Image bankruptcy, industry insiders believe the popularity of gift cards will remain strong. “Gift cards continue to be a vital part of the American shopping scene and are still the preferred choice of award and incentive recipients,” says Deborah Merkin, Chief Operating Officer of GiftCard Partners, Inc., adding that it’s always a good idea to do your homework before selecting a retailer: “The gift card market mirrors the retail environment – it’s incumbent upon consumers and program directors to choose merchants wisely.” To read the full article, click here.

A Look at Brands from Both Sides of the Glass
Mark Schumann, one of the Keynoters at this year’s Brand Engagement Conference in New York City, says that while external branding gets most of the money and attention, internal branding is just as important. He says that a brand is at its most powerful when it reaches beyond the product to represent an idea emerging from the soul of the business. When purpose reaches beyond the sale to advance the relationship – to engage you, first on a functional level for being reliable, and then on an emotional level that will touch your feelings. Real brand power occurs when the brand reaches you inspirationally; when you connect with the “big idea” the business and brand stand for. To read the full article, click here.

How to Gain the ‘Loyalty Advantage’
What do American Express, Harley-Davidson, Waterford, Ben & Jerry’s, KitchenAid and Whole Foods have in common? They’re all companies that sell more than products – they are part of a lifestyle that customers can identify with. Over time, these companies have created a synergistic relationship with their customers, so that the experiences customers have with the product – as well as with the retail stores carrying it, customer service, billing, catalogs and every other touch point – reinforce their belief in the brand and its ability to change, improve, or maintain their quality of life. In an excerpt from her book, The Loyalty Advantage, Brand Engagement Conference speaker Dianne Durkin reveals what one of these popular brands can teach us about loyalty. To read the full article, click here.

About Selling Communications Inc.

Selling Communications, Inc. is a fully integrated, target marketing, media and technology agency that improves results for clients by focusing on the people who matter most. We can help your business grow and save you money by targeting key prospects, getting their permission and strategically integrating your marketing and sales communications with the specific audiences most likely to affect your business performance.

Take advantage of these SCI services to improve your business development:

• Results Marketing Agency Solutions: Identify and get permission to communicate with the people who matter most through an integrated program rooted in permission-driven databases, direct mail, e-mail, Web sites, brochures, newsletters, public relations and sophisticated telephone sales that produce results. Go beyond the traditional sales and marketing approach by providing useful information and resources to build better, more measurable relationships.
  
  
• Target media: Build your brand and bring it directly to your power buyers through our stable of established niche print and online magazines in the sales, marketing and meetings fields (including this newsletter), the Sales Marketing Network at Info-now.com and SMERF Meetings Journal.
  
  
• Integrated Communications Technology: Build permission-based databases through Solata software to effectively communicate with the people who want to hear from you and precisely track the results in real time. Solata is also available to other media companies and marketing agencies seeking to profit from integrated, permission-based marketing and communications.

For more information on Selling Communications, its products and services, contact Jim Kilmetis at 914-591-7600, ext. 229 or send an e-mail to jkilmetis@sellingcommunications.com.

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