How to Reward Employees the Right Way

Have you heard a customer say something nice about your business in the past few days? Have you received a positive online review in the last week? If your answer is yes, stop right now and go straight to the employee who was responsible for helping that satisfied customer or shedding a positive light on your company and thank him or her, now! In an environment where bonuses are come by, even for your star employees, and employees are feeling desperate about their jobs with the state of the economy, the best way to keep morale high in your businesses is to reward people for their hard work—and do it almost as soon as it happens, writes Tim Berry in a Small Business column for U.S. News & World Report.

Most employees would rather receive immediate recognition for a job well done than get a bonus a few months down the road anyway, writes Berry, president and founder of Palo Alto Software. He suggests rewarding employees who have gone above and beyond with dinner on the company tab, a gift certificate or a new technological gadget for the home or office. For more tips on creative (but affordable) ways to reward employees, check out this NFIB.com article. Remember: A quick, tangible reward is much more meaningful and memorable to employees—and hey, they deserve it, too!