Employers looking to attract newly qualified graduates need to understand exactly what motivates them, and surprisingly, a new study suggests it isn’t cash.
According to research from One4all Rewards that questioned 1,000 UK workers about what motivates them most, a staggering 78% said they would not work significantly harder in exchange for a bonus equivalent to 10% of their annual salary.
Cash incentives aren’t the answer
Interestingly, even incentives equivalent to 25% of annual salaries would not motivate 59% of employees.
These findings clearly indicate that simply increasing somebody’s bank balance doesn’t incentivise the modern British workforce, and suggests that employers that are distributing these bonuses should design them much more carefully.
For those employers on the lookout for alternatives to financial incentives to retain and attract the best graduate talent, the research identified a number of effective options.
What workers really want
For example, one in five workers are motived to work harder by regular rewards such as weekly or monthly treats.
Benefits that make salaries go even further – including pension contributions, health insurance and savings on travel and/or food – were also found to be favourable to 18% of employees.
Declan Byrne, UK Managing Director at One4all Rewards, said the research clearly highlights that while bonus culture does benefit some, it isn’t always the driving force behind increased productivity or motivation for many workers.
John Byrne, Performance Coach at MindCoach, said that it’s clear from the research that direct monetary incentives work more effectively for some people than others, so the results aren’t all that surprising.
If employers want to get the best return on their investment in rewards, they must ensure that all schemes are tailored to individual employees, he added.
John Bryne concluded that it’s often quoted that businesses lose customers if their clients don’t feel valued and that the same rules apply for employees.
Are you interested in hiring recent graduates? Speak to Discovery Graduates now
SOURCE: http://www.onrec.com/news/statistics-and-trends/money-isnt-everything-for-78-of-workers
