GLOBAL FEATURE
Renumeration and recognition
Remuneration , the total compensation and rewards that an employee receives from an employer for their work , is often considered to be a basic hygiene factor rather than an engagement factor . Hygiene factors , including wages , refer to employees ’ basic needs that do not give positive satisfaction or generally lead to higher motivation , but from which dissatisfaction can arise if they ’ re absent .
“ We typically don ’ t see [ competitive wages ] as a huge driver of engagement unless [ wages ] start to get low ,” Culture Amp ’ s Hamman said . “ If it starts to get low , it becomes something that grates on people . But once the bar is met , everything else matters [ more ].”
While uncompetitive salary packages can make it hard for some retailers to attract and retain top talent , as long as remuneration is fair , most employees will feel a sense of value , commitment and engagement from their job . However , failure to achieve pay parity potentially has a negative effect on employee trust and morale and , in turn , engagement and productivity .
On the other hand , employee appreciation and recognition can drastically increase engagement . Qualtrics suggests acts of appreciation centre around who your employees are and recognition focuses on what your employees do . Together , acts of appreciation and recognition can create a positive feedback cycle that rewards effort and behaviour .
“ One of the key [ trends ] that we see is people wanting to be recognised sufficiently , so providing recognition within the workplace , ensuring that there ’ s a career development aspect for them and where they go with that ,” Steve Bennetts , employee experience solutions strategist at Qualtrics , told Inside Retail .
Appreciation and recognition have been linked to higher rates of employee engagement and satisfaction . “ Employee recognition is the exact thing that you see differentiating between really great employee experience programs and those that are mediocre – the difference you see there is they are hyper-personalised ,” Bennetts explained .
Retailers would be well advised to focus their remuneration and recognition efforts on frontline workers . Qualtrics ’ 2024 Employee Experience Trend Report stated that only 50 per cent of frontline workers were happy with their pay and benefits ; 60 per cent were satisfied with their career development and 61 per cent felt sufficiently recognised .
The link between a good customer experience and good employee experience cannot be understated when it comes to retail . “ These are often challenging , on-your-feet-all-day jobs ,” said Mathew Evans in Qualtrics ’ 2024 Employee Experience Trends Report . “ And yet , we ’ re seeing the biggest gaps here in recognition , low satisfaction with financial rewards , and a lack of growth and development opportunities offered by the organisation . Frontline workers simply do not feel appreciated .”
Who is doing it well :
Publix Super Markets Every employee at US grocery chain Publix Super Markets , regardless of their position , receives company stock after 12 months of ongoing employment .
The Employee Ownership Foundation stated , “ Employeeowners are more accountable for their job performance and their fellow workers ’ job performance , simply because they have a common stake in the success of their company .”
With its 1376 locations and over 255,000 employees , Publix is the largest employee-owned company in the US . Employees and former employees own an estimated 80 per cent and the founding Jenkins family members own the rest , Forbes has reported .
Publix ’ employee share ownership program provides recognition for long-term service and remuneration for productivity . Employees are incentivised and motivated to take ownership of their performance .
While Publix is the largest employee-owned retailer , there are others that have adopted a similar model of recognition and remuneration , including American grocery chains WinCo Foods and Brookshire Brothers .
26 www . insideretail . asia August 2024