Reward management
To have an efficient Reward System then, is mandatory that employees know exactly what their task is, have the skills to do it, have the necessary motivation and work in an environment allowing the transformation of intended actions into an actual behaviour.
[3] Reward management deals with processes, policies and strategies which are required to guarantee that the contribution of employees to the business is recognized by all means.
It is equally concerned with non-financial rewards such as recognition, training, development and increased job responsibility.
[4] Kerr (1995) brings to attention how Reward Management is an easily understandable concept in theory, but how its practical application results often differ.
The example made is the one of a company giving an annual merit increase to all its employees, differentiating just between an "outstanding" (+5%), "above average" (+4%) and "negligent" (+3%) workers.
A firms Reward Management System may contain the organisation's processes, practices and policies which correspond to the employees contributions or abilities.
A basic definition of motivation in employees is the capability to change behaviour and the drive that holds one to act towards some goal.
[17] Content theories are highly related with extrinsic rewards, things that are concrete like bonuses and will help improve employees' physiological circumstances whereas process theories are concerned with intrinsic rewards, such as recognition and respect, which will help boost employees confidence in the work place and improve job satisfaction.
[20] Theories of motivation provide a theoretical basis for reward management though some of the best known ones have emerged from the psychology discipline.
According to Herzberg, real motivation comes from the work itself, from completing tasks, while the role of reward is to prevent dissatisfaction arising.
There are a lot of attractions for this kind of approach, particularly for employers who can target their motivation effort and anticipate a definable mathematical return for them.
In the United Kingdom, it is now illegal to discriminate workers' pay levels and benefits, employment terms and conditions and promotion opportunities.
[24] Job evaluation is one method that can be adopted by companies in order to make sure that discrimination is eliminated and that the work performed is rewarded with fair pay scales.
[25] It has been said that fairness and objectivity are the core principles using an assessment of the nature and size of the job each is employed to carry out.
Therefore, there is a large gap for research on job evaluation collecting quantitative data for a more statistical analysis.
The effectiveness of an organization's performance and reward management system can have a significant impact on employee motivation, morale, and ultimately, their productivity.
According to a 2008 study, a poorly designed or implemented reward system can lead to counterproductive behaviour and ultimately undermine the goals of the organisation.
However, the "path-goal model" highlights a positive relationship between a well-designed reward system and employee performance.
[31] This compares employee work behaviour with the organisations pre-set standards to provide feedback on job performance.
Performance appraisals have been described as a "flawed system", One must ask, can an entire year's work be reviewed at one point in time?
Then there is the critical incident technique by which the organisation collects information and observes human behaviour that have a strong impact either positive or negative on an activity or procedure.
The training and development needs should begin with an assessment of the company as it lies currently, how it operates and what each employee is best at.
Knowledge of the organisation's strategic plan and its needs for the future must help the training to bring the company up a step on the ladder.
