Delivering exceptional customer experience starts with employee recognition and appreciation, which is often delivered in a form of various rewards and incentives. A combination of those employee-motivating factors however, is often incomplete and therefore challenges Staff Retention within the UK’s Hospitality Industry.
Wage increase: the timeless monetary trick of incentivizing the staff not only became the daily bread of many businesses, but possibly the pioneer of a Strategic Reward System. In fact, wage increase is no longer the sole case for rewarding staff we must consider a number of elements for an attractive employee reward scheme.
The plunge into the pool of other reward options is potentially an effect of the fierce competition; which can put a financial pressure on businesses. Strategic Reward System executed at Pret a Manger is an ideal example of how costly yet effective incentivisation can be.
Richard Harpham, The Head of Strategy at Pret a Manger, explains in the “Wake up and Smell the Coffee” article; that with the current economic uncertainty there maybe no better time than now, to be embracing the benefits of non-monitory motivation. However, Pret a Manger are spending huge sums of money on staff incentivisation schemes based on mystery guest performance feedback. The cafe is shopped by repeat customers between 1 and 4 times a week, results of which are then shared with the serving team for that period. Good feedback gets rewarded with financial incentives, and even though we could debate over the fairness of the whole agenda, the system is indeed applauded. But not every table serving business will be able to support a programme on such a financial scale.
According to “Entrepreneur” magazine, individual incentives are particularly effective. Proficient staff is crucial to a restaurant’s success, no matter their role or position; individual bonuses are always a motivating factor. The advice is to monitor the progress amongst the staff during a year and handing out rewards when you see fit. Keeping a close eye on who is giving the best customer service or going above and beyond to create a positive dining experience reassures your knowledge on the standards maintained by your staff.
As employees we are no longer satisfied nor interested in singular wage propositions, we expect a pay package, filled with potential rewards and opportunities which we often hope are personalized to our wants. We could refer to those as non-monetary rewards as they naturally attract commitment and role development.
The diagram outlining the Rewards and Incentives that you may use to motivate your staff is a mere textbook reflection of examples that you have probably heard of before. However, sometimes even those most common solutions trouble us as we have no structural or financial mean of implementing them. And so, in order to strategise against the Staff Retention as a major Hospitality Industry challenge; our concluding topic will focus on a Strategic Reward System.
Later this week, we will attempt to break down the Strategic Reward System into chunks which can be achieved through the use of the getWaiter! customer experience tracking tool. Ultimately, defining the level of Employee Value Proposition which most definitely helps to reach the overall goal of Staff Retention.
