Employment is the exchange of your time and effort for reward.
We all have firm ideas of how that works, don’t we?
The rewards of work vary widely though.
Money and lots of it
This means life-changing amounts of money.
Our Eastern European economic migrants were coming here to do minimum wage jobs, picking strawberries here in East Anglia, which allowed them to save enough over a few years to buy their own farm back home, to change their future dramatically.
Closer to home we have our City of London bankers. The lure of eventual million-pound bonuses was enough for one 21-year-old intern – unpaid volunteer – to die after working 72 hours straight off.
The excesses of the banker behaviour are well documented and we’re still paying for it.
Then we come to the CEOs. Who doesn’t want a gold door on their tower block? Obviously, the greater remuneration the greater the worth of the CEO. Are we sure about that?
The most rare and valuable reward
Let’s turn our attention to the majority – not looking for a life change or a measure of our self-worth – the ordinary working person.
The most rare and valued reward is a little of your time – the manager’s time.
You know that buying a loved one an expensive present is no substitute for your time.
The people you employ are made of the same stuff as your loved ones.
You reward them with some of your time.
A personal thank you, face to face ideally, for a job excellently done.
A coaching session to share your wisdom and insight perhaps.
A regular “performance review” where you talk over performance, how to improve and opportunities.
Luckily, there is a name for this – management.
Fair Pay
None of this suggests that people should receive less than the proper rate for their work.
People are not stupid and will quickly realise they are being fooled. Good luck getting them to help you after that!
The Outcome
It is amazing what happens when the people managers give time to their people.
Greater performance
Greater productivity
Greater profit
Greater job satisfaction
Greater job security as productivity increases
Greater pay as profits increase
Greater Government Tax income so better infrastructure, NHS, education and so on
The Cost
The cost is just management time.
What else are the managers supposed to do if it isn’t to raise performance and profitability?