Managing Stress for Success

Motivational Speaker Carole Spiers
illustrates why it takes more than money to keep good staff

When a key employee moves on to a new job, usually on a higher salary, it is assumed that money alone was the incentive for the move.

A salary represents one of those 'fixed points' that psychologists talk about - the simple explanation we want to believe in, without having to dig into motivational theory.

However, there really are two kinds of remuneration. There is salary, which is the reward for hard work and/or success and then there is compensation, when, for instance, an individual has to work in unpleasant conditions, undertake compulsory overtime or work away from home for long periods of time.

In the UK, some of the bitterest and longest-running strikes are by highly-paid workers, unhappy about some poorly-defined grievance that is apparently not salary-related.

Now if we’re talking about an employee whose departure is a serious loss, then we may assume that the old salary was quite reasonable. So it must have been something else that made him feel under-valued. (Clearly that salary-figure is not the fixed point that it looks to be.)

Alternative motivators

What issues in his daily work might get that employee to think in such a negative way?

One is the feeling of being taken for granted. You perform to a very high standard, over a period of time, and all you get in return is a printed-out payslip. That is certainly remuneration - but no active appreciation, no glory. Another is being under-used. Talent and training are there to be used, and will cause discomfort and resentment if left untested. There can be a fine line between a normal workload and under-utilisation of ability/qualification, and employers need to monitor this balance with care.

Finally, it is essential to keep your employees' skills updated, however costly this is, and then ensure that they are kept fully tasked and absorbed in utilising this new expertise. Failure in this area can so easily lead you to finding them scanning those appointments pages, looking for that mythical job where 'the grass is always greener'.

Staff retention - Summary

• With key employees, salary may not be the main cause of discontent
• You can make employees feel appreciated through better people-skills
• Invest in training-programmes, It makes employees feel more valued and enables the development of talent within the organisation

Another key insight from Carole Spiers, International Leading Authority on Corporate Stress,
Motivational Speaker and BBC Broadcaster.