Why Incentive and Engagement Programs Fail (not what you think)

For 20+ years I've been seeing information on how to motivate, engage, retain, and influence, employees and channel partners.

For
20+ years I've been seeing the SAME information on how to motivate,
engage, retain and influence employees and channel partners.

I
continue to ask myself – "Why?"  Why does it seem that nothing has been
accomplished?  Why do we continue to recycle the same information?  How
may times have you seen:

• Communicate with your audience
• Provide reinforcement for behaviors that are aligned with mission/vision/values
• Ensure reward programs include choice of reward to assure that audience members find the incentive valuable
• Management must engage with their employees if they want employees to engage with them
• Recognition must be personal, timely and specific

How many times?  Too many.

Companies Don't Care About Engagement

I
had dinner with a CEO of a $150 million service company with 300
employees a couple of months ago.  We were chatting about the things
that were high on his priority list and wellness come up.  Here's the
comment I got from the CEO…

"I don't care about wellness.  Do
I really care if someone is overweight or if they smoke?  Hell, no.  I
care if it affects the bottom line – and it does.  If I thought I could
get away without running a wellness program and still lower my costs
I'd do it.  Most CEOs don't care about the wellness of their employees
- what they care about is the financial impact of employee wellness."

At
the time it just kinda rolled off of me and I filed it under – "don't
try to talk wellness initiatives and don't ask for a personal favor
from this guy."

But as I see all the repeat advice and repeat
information on how to drive performance and engagement I think the real
issue isn't that companies can't engage – it's they really, really
don't care to engage.

My point is this…

If you run engagement to drive business results you will fail.

If you run wellness programs to drive business results you will fail.

If your run reward programs to drive business results you will fail.

But… But…

…if you run programs to engage with employees because you care about their opinions

…if
you run recognition programs to see the recipient's face light up

…if
you run wellness programs because you don't want to see that person die
young or be a burden to their family

You will succeed.

Don't run programs because you want results – run programs because you care.

Run programs because you want the individual to benefit – not because you want stockholders to benefit.

Run programs because it makes sense to help others and be a part of THEIR success.

Don't run programs so that the participant can be part of YOUR success.

I'm not against results – I'm against results at the expense of a true connection to an audience.  I want results – I just want to engage more. 

I really, really, really (one more time) really believe that if you focus on what others want and need – you'll get what you want and need.