Employee reward and compensation program plays a crucial role in creating employee motivation and achieving their retention. This includes providing the employees with reasonable salaries and competitive rewards and recognition program that makes the employees feel to be part of the organization. The presented case scenario however, indicates a high level of employee dissatisfaction and also little motivation that has made the employees seek alternative employment opportunities where their needs are catered for. Reasons behind this issues could be that the current benefits and compensation program used in the organization does not motivate the employees either because it is lower compared to that of the employees in other organizations, or because the work environment and motivation strategies are unsatisfactory. As a way of deriving a satisfying salaries and remuneration program, it is essential to carry out a job analysis and description for each job in the organization. This is crucial to carrying out an informed job evaluation that will help in determining the appropriate salaries and benefits to be given to the employees. In addition, the analysis will assist in evaluating employees’ performance as a way of determining the appropriate incentive and allowances suitable for each employee.
1. Job analysis
Job analysis is the fundamental process of determining the tasks and responsibilities of the employees in different departments and different roles within the organization. Conducting a job analysis is also an essential tool for creating a detailed job description as it gives the primary information on the tasks responsibilities and qualifications through collecting, analyzing and interpreting data provided by the employees. The analysis involves collecting primary data by use of job analysis forms and questionnaires where employees are supposed to answer questions such as the type of tasks they do and the duration per task, current salaries and remunerations and the employees skills and experience among other factors.
In addition, the analysis should involve collecting employees’ log sheets containing each employee’s duties and the number of hours they complete each task. Direct observation of the employees’ routine duties for at least one week is another strategy used as a way of incorporating employees’ behavior in addition to understanding what they do and how they carry out their tasks. Interviewing the supervisors concerning the duties of their teams as well as comparing the tasks performed in different departments also provides a detailed job analysis necessary to construct an effective reward and incentive program.
2. Resulting job description
A detailed job description is derived from the results obtained from the interviews and questionnaires used in the job analysis process. The job description provides a written summary of the requirements of each job title (Mathis & Jackson, 2011). These include the major tasks, roles and responsibilities of the jobholder as well as the expected professional qualifications and skills. In addition, the description includes the expected working hours for each job title and the senior personnel whom the jobholder should report to. A detailed job description is essential in evaluating and planning the appropriate reward and benefits package to be assigned for each employee in the organization. An example of a job description of an office administrator:
Duties and responsibilities
- Receiving and directing visitors to respective offices
- Supervising the front office operations
- Ensure efficient telephone communication
- Marinating cleanliness at the front office
Qualifications
- Certificate in secretarial studies
- Good communication skills
- Computer knowledge
- Good interpersonal skills
3. Job evaluation
Job evaluation involves determining the worthiness of a particular job title in relation to other jobs within and outside the organization as a way of determining the appropriate value of the salary to be issued upon completion of the job (Mathis & Jackson, 2011). Job evaluation is done by determining the tasks, number of hours, professional and skills required to complete the tasks, as well as the extent of the supervisory roles in the job title. The evaluation will also involve carrying out market survey to determine how other organizations especially those in the same market evaluates and allocate remuneration and reward to their employees. This is done by reviewing various organizations’ websites and databases, observations, and custom surveys.
4. Incentive program
An incentive program involves monetary and non-monetary program mostly used to motivate people to work hard on their specific tasks as well as reduce the temptation of having to move to other organizations with better reward and recognition program. The incentive program is based on the results of the job evaluation, organization’s corporate culture and strategic goals, and the market analysis concerning the rewards program provided by the competitors (Ventrice, 2003).
Monetary incentives applicable in this case include recommendable salary that meets the job title, lump-sum bonuses, paid leave, profit sharing and stock options. Non-monetary rewards, on the other hand, involve recognition program such as the employee of the month program, paid trips, employee training, favorable working environment and performance appraisal.
Non-monetary incentives rewards such as the certificate of recognition, trophies, and medals, t-shirts and caps among other material incentives are also useful in motivation the employees. Other programs such as the provision of the organization vehicles to senior management staff also motivate the employees at the lower management levels to work hard and get promoted so as to enjoy the incentives at the top levels.
5. Measuring the employees’ performance.
Evaluation and measurement of employees’ performance is an essential process that is necessary for deriving an effective benefits and compensation program. Employee performance is evaluated in relations to the workplace culture, supervisor-employee relationship, and the employee’s job category. In this case, three methods that involve management by objective, 360-degree feedback and graphic rating scales will be used in measuring the employees’ performance. Graphic rating scale is the easiest method, and it involves coming up with a scale or a score card for each employee and his/her job performance is recorded on the appropriate number in the scale. Performance involves number of hours used to complete a task, number of days absent without a valid reason, and relationship with the supervisors among other work related duties (Ventrice, 2003). 360-degree feedback, on the other hand, will involve rating an employee by getting feedback concerning the person’s job performance, professionalism, and interpersonal skills from different persons who have a close working relationship with the individual. Management by objective, on the other hand, involves accessing the performance of an employee for a longer period. This involves accessing the employee’s goals and what he/she does to align such objective to those of the organization. This is done through a routine discussion with the supervisor so as to evaluate the progress of the employee towards achieving personal goals, as well as the objectives of the organization.
6. Benefit program
The last step after determining the employee performance involves coming up with a strategic package that ensures employees’ current and future is secured. In retaining the employees, they need to be sure that their families’ welfare is taken care of by the organization. As such, the suitable benefits package in this case involves designing a fringe benefits and retirement benefits program for each employee, disability benefits, paid leave and paying for their medical insurance covers and housing allowances. A clearly outlined benefit program serves as an additional incentive to the regular salaries thus making the total reward to be higher than that of the competitors and it also makes the employees feel valued and part of the organization.
References
Ventrice, C. (2003). Make Their Day! Employee Recognition That Works. NY: Berrett-Koehler Publishers.
Mathis, R. & Jackson, J. (2011). Human Resource Management: Essential Perspectives. NJ: Cengage Learning.
