Sales compensation programs usually get the most hype when talking about employee performance bonus strategies. After all, sales is the engine behind business success and growth, and compensation programs are seen as integral vehicles to advancing employee motivations and engagement. However, what’s good for sales is good for the entire workforce, and businesses that don’t extend the same type of performance-based initiatives to other departments and areas of the company might not be getting all they can out of the entire staff. The first step to accomplishing this is establishing a compensation program that works for the entire office. The Houston Chronicle recommends that businesses first identify and allocate funds needed to power a compensation program, then develop a scoring system that takes into account different employee responsibilities and performance measurements. From there, firms can implement incentive compensation software to monitor general progress toward departmental and personal goals or check how well an employee is fulfilling his or her duties and if their performance warrants a merit increase. Employers also have a number of options regarding what performance bonuses they can offer workers. Choices range from rewarding employees with cash or added sick time or paid time off, to making other perks – like entertainment tickets, gym memberships and gift cards – and company shares available through performance bonuses. However, one cautionary tale employers may want to heed in regard to office-wide compensation programs is not giving the issue enough attention and only setting year-end bonuses. Such strategies often do not give businesses good results because they work against the core concept of performance bonus programs – consistent motivation achieved through varied initiatives – and don’t have as much of a lasting and measurable effect on employee behavior and performance.
