Cash or Non-Cash Awards: Which Is More Effective?

Kelly | Employee Recruitment and Retention | Thursday, January 24th, 2008

(This column appeared in the Northwest Business Monthly Magazine, December 2007)

Have you ever wondered what is more effective – a $100.00 holiday bonus or an iPod – in recognizing and awarding your employees?  Both cash and non-cash awards are widely used by employers, but little has been studied about how businesses can and should implement award/motivational programs and the extent to which these programs can help achieve a broad range of business objectives.  A preliminary study into this field was conducted by a group of academics from University of Wisconsin-Whitewater and Northwestern University and presented to Forum for People Performance Management and Measurement.   A summary of their findings is noted in this article. (more…)