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Should You Give A Christmas Bonus?

I once worked in a company
where they gave out frozen turkeys
as a Christmas bonus.
Delivery was a nightmare,
getting it home still frozen was a challenge,
and for single people,
a 15 lb turkey was a waste.

Other companies are more practical
and give out cash.

So as an entrepreneur,
should you give out a Christmas bonus?

If the bonus is not tied to company performance…

No.

Yes, you might be able to afford it this year
but what about next year
or twenty years from now?
A consistent Christmas bonus is like pay.
Employees take it for granted
unless it is taken away
and then morale nose dives.

That means the bonus should be small enough
to be sustainable
which usually means it is too small
to make an impact.
It also does nothing to motivate employees.

If you’re going to make it
inconsistent,
then you might as well link it
to company performance.

What Percent Of Employees Should Meet Incentive?

A great way to motivate salespeople
is with incentives or contests.

Many companies offer a single ‘Grand Prize’
and wonder why the incentive
doesn’t work.

Why doesn’t it work?

Because the top salesperson
has enough motivation
maintaining his number one ranking.
The number two
is already gunning for number one.
And the rest feel
they’ll never win
so they don’t bother trying.

In
Selling Is Everyone’s Business
written by
Steve Johnson and Adam Shaivitz,
Mark Benjamin at ADP advises
“the benchmark is set right
for a contest or incentive trip
if about 30 to 50 percent make it.
The top 3 to 5 percent will be there anyway.
These rewards are in place
to get the next larger group
to the next level.
You can still do something nice
for the top 5 percent,
like a special cocktail hour with the CEO
or upgraded hotel rooms,
and that does what you need
in giving them
the extra bit of recognition.”

Do You REALLY Need An MBA?

I believe in education,
I have a bachelors degree and
an accounting designation,
so my blanket answer to
‘Should I get my MBA?’
is usually yes.

Usually.
Not always.

A friend of a friend approached me.
She is one of those rare creatures,
a female engineer
working in a large consulting company.
She wants to get her MBA
so she can make the switch
from design to marketing.
This is not an executive MBA
(done after hours).
This is not being paid for by her company.

My advice?
There are easier ways to accomplish
her goal.

Like simply applying for the position.
Being a female engineer differentiates her enough
to land an interview.
It would be up to her selling skills to do the rest.

Seth Godin is offering another option.

Getting Off Your Ass

One month to the end of 2008.
Look at your goals for this year.
Have you accomplished them?

If not,
it is time to get off your ass.
Andrew at Lyved
has a checklist to assist you.

My favorite is
“Figure out what you want to do now;
not what you want to do forever”

Today, I’m editing a novel.
Last week, I was pre-auditing accounts.
The week before, I was programming code.
All were enjoyable
but I wouldn’t want to do any one task forever.
If I had to make that choice,
I’d still be deciding.

Do what you have to get done for today,
THEN worry about tomorrow.

And GET MOVING!

Banning Tiffany

Yesterday, I received 132 spam emails
from Tiffany
(all to do with Christmas shopping).
The day before,
I received about the same amount.
They went straight to the spam folder
but as legit emails find their way in there too,
I always have a look through.

So what do you do if YOUR name is Tiffany?

You use this as an excuse
to talk to your contact list
by…
phone or snail mail or in person.
You remind them to add you
to their email contact list.
You make light of it
and
use it as a marketing tool.

The opportunities are endless.

Regrets, I’ve Had A Few…

My local paper has a
‘Sorry, I missed you…’
daily column.

Every day, they feature 3 messages
(out of many submitted)
from people now having regrets
because
they didn’t get a fellow commuter’s name and number.
I read it as a daily reminder
to take action.

And right now is a great time
to take action.
It is a time of change,
yes, some of it painful,
but everyone is now forced
to think in different ways
and do new things.

That new thing could be
buying a new product,
YOUR new product.

Should You Invest In Company Stock?

If you want a future in the company
and that company has an employee stock purchase plan,
then yes, you should.
At least a token amount.

Yes, I know the plan is supposed to be confidential
but the key words there are
‘supposed to be.’

Even if that information isn’t leaked,
you will be asked
(at some point)
and most people are horrible liars.
Sniffing out liars is an exec sport.

Also as a new business development gal,
I could never stand up in front of an exec team
proposing my solution as
best for the company
without owning a piece of that company.
That type of internal disconnect is a career killer.

You Are A Fraud

A friend of mine told me
she doesn’t consider herself a writer
but instead as someone who writes.
She feels like a fraud
calling herself a writer
because she has only had
one novel
(out of forty published)
top the New York Times Bestseller List.

I bill myself as a new business development gal
but the thing is,
I’ve only launched a few hundred products.
There are many people who have launched more.

We all think we’re frauds.

There will always be people who
have done more
or know more
in your chosen field.
That doesn’t mean you’re not worthy of the expert label.

Some clear indications that you’re worthy are…
– You are asked to speak on the topic
– Clients solicit your consulting services
(no pitch required)
– You attend a seminar on the subject
and know more than the presenter
– You give more back in knowledge
than you take

The Retirement Talent Pool

A loved one had an RFP for a high profile deal.
His current staff couldn’t handle the additional workload.
He didn’t have time to train a temp,
Instead, he offered a contract assignment
to
a newly retired employee.

She knew the systems.
She had the skills.
She even had contacts at the company
they were pitching to.
It was the perfect solution.

It is called double dipping,
an employee receiving
both retirement income
and employment income
from the same company.

It works out well for everyone.
The company gets a well trained temp
and the retiree gets a boost to her bank account.

Unfortunately,
45 percent of companies place restrictions
on rehiring retirees.

If your company doesn’t,
stay in touch with your retiring employees
(the ones you wouldn’t mind rehiring).
Keep them in mind for special projects.

Making Hay

My previous contract gig ended on Friday.
I started my new contract gig yesterday.

I wasn’t too enthused about
starting a new assignment so soon
but the opportunity is interesting
and I can see a slowdown
in contract gigs
hovering on the horizon.

So I decided to do
what my farming grandfather always advised
“Make hay while the sun shines.”

Yes, opportunities come regularly
but when you need that opportunity,
it is best to take it
when it is offered.

Just in case.