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Tips for Rewarding Top Talent

I have been working in the IT staffing industry for almost six years and one thing that has remained a constant over the years – it is a technology candidate’s market place.
People who have hands on IT experience and expertise in widely used technology platforms such as SAP, Oracle, IBM, and Microsoft, are in demand with seemingly endless job opportunities. Companies looking to attract highly skilled IT candidates are having a tough time finding qualified candidates to fill their positions. Once a company hires a highly skilled candidate, it should make every effort to ensure they retain this employee. Recognizing and rewarding top talent and hard work is one of many key factors that play in role in a companies’ success.

The following are some tips for helping companies reward their top talent:

• Formalize a Recognition Program.

  Create a company-wide or department-wide employee recognition program and share it with all employees. The program should focus and be tied to the company’s mission and goals. Include ‘stretch’ goals and targets that are attainable for every employee as well as a clear explanation of what reward(s) will be issued if the goal or target is met. Ensure the program recognizes people based on specific results and behaviors such as outstanding customer service, innovation, teamwork, revenue achievement or cost-cutting.

• Avoid Favoritism.

  Do not design programs or processes in which managers arbitrarily choose the employees to receive recognition since this will likely be viewed as favoritism.  Recognition programs that single out an individual such as “Employee of the Month” are rarely effective.

• Show Appreciation.

  Showing an employee sincere gratitude and thanks does not always need to involve money. Issuing an extra vacation day, a public thank you, a hand written letter of gratitude, allowing them to work from home, flex hours, or even a reserved parking spot can often go a long way and be an effective low cost way to show appreciation.

Recognizing employees will often pay off in many ways.   Statistics show that people who are rewarded and recognized for their efforts feel valued, committed to their job, and will more likely stay with their company as long term employees.

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EDI Staffing can take the pain away from finding qualified IT candidates. Schedule a conversation with someone who specializes in your location today.