I am the ISO Representative for a 35 employee Printing Press. I am looking for incentives to motivate hourly employees to get the job done right the first time.
Appreciate any suggestions!:D

Welcome Becky!

Incentives to get the job done right the first time. Maybe it is a culture thing, but if the hourly people are not doing their jobs properly, shouldn't you be looking at what your management is doing that allows this? You will get what you accept. If managers (supervisors, leads, whatever) accept work that is not right, where is the incentive for the hourly people to do it right. Raise the expectations, accept what you expect, nothing less, and get some training for management on coaching, hiring, firing and development.

Becky,

First, welcome to the Cove!

Concerning your question, I have some concerns, other than those so eloquently advanced by the esteemed Steel.

First, the first time an incentive is given to an individual, it is indeed an incentive. After that, there is a danger that it can become to be seen as just another component of the compensation package.

There is also something else that is very powerful that can come into play here: What gets measured is what gets done, sometimes even to the detriment of other areas of importance. If you do decide to implement an incentive package, keep this in mind.

Next, there is the possibility that the incentive is seen as a way to reward management favorites. That is why one of my favorites is the unannounced pizza blitz - I just show up with more pizza (or doughnuts, whatever) than the crew can possibly eat for break. The main thing here is that it is the crew that is recognized. This can be a great morale booster, and I just happen to like pizza.

One way that we use incentives is to request ideas for improvement (process improvement, safety improvement, etc.) Each month one of the good ones is chosen, and the person(s) who turned the idea in gets to choose a prize from the prize vault. The monthly winners are posted on our bulletin board, along with a picture of recently implemented ideas. If you are having problems with getting things done right the first time, this may actually be your most powerful tool.

Anyhow, Becky, what do you think of these ideas? Is there something you can use? If not, please give us more information. I am sure others here have some great ideas too.

I am the ISO Representative for a 35 employee Printing Press. I am looking for incentives to motivate hourly employees to get the job done right the first time.
Appreciate any suggestions!:D

Hi Becky,
The dark side of incentives in quality and safety is that no one wants to be the bad guy and loose the incentive. Therefore, hiding of mistakes/injuries become a problem. I have been doing a lot of thinking on this subject and the only way that I can come to a conclusion is to have the incentives or new ideas for improvement voted on by the company staff. I see a two fold benefit, cooperation between departments, (because the people you are working will will be voting for or against you) and brings good ideas to light in a positive way.

JMT.

Tim

Hello, Becky!

It's a good question, with a great motivation behind it. Incentives are generally good for a short time. Say someone gives you five dollars for every time you close the door. You get good at closing the door.... for five dollars. Eventually, you will want ten dollars instead of five dollars. Too, you will want to be paid for other things too.

However, Craig was right on the money in providing periodic incentive. If you are going to offer incentives, following his advice can get you a lot of mileage out of it. You cannot ignore people.

Steel had a really good suggestion of focusing on the process. Many of your hourly employees would probably enjoy contributing to improve the process.

As you probably know, people look for more things than money from a job. Tap into that. By improving the process and minimizing printing mistakes, improving throughput, decreasing changeovers, etc., your company will make money. That's something that will provide incentive for everybody.

I am the ISO Representative for a 35 employee Printing Press. I am looking for incentives to motivate hourly employees to get the job done right the first time.
Appreciate any suggestions!:D

Welcome, Becky

[lame old joke] When I was an hourly worker, I was good for nothing. [/lame old joke]

But seriously, you need to first look at the processes, and make sure that operators aren't being blamed for things they have no control over. Once that's done, you'll probably find that incentives aren't necessary, and you'll be able to correct poor performance as it happens.

I am the ISO Representative for a 35 employee Printing Press. I am looking for incentives to motivate hourly employees to get the job done right the first time.
Appreciate any suggestions!:D

The Roman's call it "Decimation"

The Roman's call it "Decimation"

Is Jack Welch a Roman? :tg:

Well, I've taken everyone's advice to heart!

I now plan to do a Pizza day for celebration of Certification (hopefully we will be ready in July). This will not only be for the shop workers, but for the entire company. Then possibly again at every passing internal audit...

I did however do a suprise "spot-check" on the maintenance logs that were given out to the shop workers 2 weeks ago. It was a bit of a shock to find that only 1 employee had filled in his logbook daily. A few others had made 1-2 attempts...
In my bi-weekly ISO newsletter (that comes out today with paychecks) I made a big deal about that one employee and announced that he will be given a $50 bonus. The owner of our company has agreed to that "bonus" for all employees who pass the "spot check" that I will probably do every other month.

Becky

I did however do a suprise "spot-check" on the maintenance logs that were given out to the shop workers 2 weeks ago. It was a bit of a shock to find that only 1 employee had filled in his logbook daily. A few others had made 1-2 attempts...
In my bi-weekly ISO newsletter (that comes out today with paychecks) I made a big deal about that one employee and announced that he will be given a $50 bonus. The owner of our company has agreed to that "bonus" for all employees who pass the "spot check" that I will probably do every other month.

Becky

The "spot-check" is awesome!! You know what else would work, and would save the owner a lot of money? Have the owner spot check the system. When they pass the spot check, have the owner "stop the press" and say "This is good. This is what I expect. Nice job", in front of the entire group. Then he/she can walk back to the office.

I'm not really an advocate of individual bonuses or incentives. I suppose it depends on the situation, but in my experience most goals in an organization are achieved through combined effort. In that respect we placed an incentive into effect at my past employer, if the goal was obtained we had a quarterly cook out for the employees. It doesn't sound like much but it really worked, the best employees put more effort into assisting others, overall it improved the shift as a team. The cook out was not very costly and allowed employees to socialize and have fun at work. We also invited local clients to join the fun, they would come and often give praise to the staffs performance which further boosted their sense of acheivement. It really turned out to be a great plan and good fun. Sounds like you have the right idea in mind, hope all goes well :)

Then possibly again at every passing internal audit...

I did however do a suprise "spot-check" on the maintenance logs that were given out to the shop workers 2 weeks ago. It was a bit of a shock to find that only 1 employee had filled in his logbook daily. A few others had made 1-2 attempts...
In my bi-weekly ISO newsletter (that comes out today with paychecks) I made a big deal about that one employee and announced that he will be given a $50 bonus. The owner of our company has agreed to that "bonus" for all employees who pass the "spot check" that I will probably do every other month.

Becky


What would a "failing internal audit" look like?

You're also giving a bonus to people for just doing their job? That one employee just fulfilled expectations. He's paid to fill out his log book isn't he?

What incentive did you give the folks that didn't fill out their logs?

I'm also not a big proponent of piecework incentives because it quickly becomes expected.
As far as monetary incentive I'd go with more of a profit sharing plan where eveyone is give a piece of a pool of profits should the company reach a certain profit level for a given period. Of course some intense and frequent training should go along with this to let everyone know how they can help make sure the profit level is reached... working efficiently, submitting preventive actions and suggestions for improvements, etc.

Having the boss give an attaboy infront of everyone, as Brad said, is also a great idea. Recognition goes a very long way.

Give recognition and provide a manner to make a difference and you're hitting the two 'top levels' of Maslow's Heirarchy.

Give recognition and provide a manner to make a difference and you're hitting the two 'top levels' of Maslow's Heirarchy.

Ah, Maslow, hang on whilst I self actualize myself:lol:

What would a "failing internal audit" look like?

You're also giving a bonus to people for just doing their job? That one employee just fulfilled expectations. He's paid to fill out his log book isn't he?

What incentive did you give the folks that didn't fill out their logs?

Great point Randy.
You have just rewarded someone for just doing their job instead of punishing those who don't.
Seems like you have a process issue which is allowing workers to turn in paperwork which has not been properly completed, and you probably need to address that issue before considering any type of incentive program.
You have to be careful that you don't send the message that it is OK not to follow the companies policies and procedures and that you can earn extra money just by doing the minimum of what is expected.
I see no problem with rewarding someone for going above and beyond the call of duty, but to give someone $50 extra just for doing what was expected just doesn't seem right.

I agree with the idea that incentives shouldn't be needed.

This is discussed in another thread (http://elsmar.com/Forums/showthread.php?t=15525&highlight=the+enthusiastic+employee).

One thing is certain in my view: if a person is treated like a pack horse, he/she will act like one.

What does pack horse mean? It's a beast of burden that, while important, carries the weight for someone else who gets to enjoy what's in the burden. The beast knows this, and so moves along with little incentive to hurry or improve.

What are the consequences for errors? How have employees been informed of the consequences? I don't mean just costs of waste--what are the long term consequences, and do the employees understand them?

Are you looking at ways to make them feel as though they can influence how work is done so there will be fewer errors? That is, how much does your system consult with them--they who are the ones working in the processes all the time? Taking employees' input seriously sometimes helps them feel more tied to outcomes.

Do they have any sense of ownership in the outcomes? Do they understand that Mr. Smith's printing account is important to the company, and they are part of the care system for Mr. Smith's printing needs?

Do they get any positive news of how things are going with error control, or just reports of how many errors were made?

This is a big and cloudy subject, but based on my reading in books like The Enthusiastic Employee and The Rise of the Creative Class, even hourly employees want to feel like they are personally involved satisfaction providers. That seems to be more motivating than money rewards, but David Sirota (one of the Enthusiastic Employee authors) points out that people need to feel well compensated in a money sense too. If they get a sense of pack horse status, they could easily conclude it doesn't matter much what they do.

Now, even thogh incentives shouldn't be needed, I think they can work if they are designed carefully and used with transparency. Never should the rewards reflect conditions that the employees can't influence.

For behavior alone, I prefer to see them go to teams and not individuals.

In reality, the best incentive of great work...is great work. Unfortunately most people want something more tangible and/or immediate for their efforts. Great progess is measured over time and I'm still running up an avalance trying to have people understand that. Yeah, we do the spot chacks, the verbal kudos, the pizza days...but unfortunately that stuff becomes expected by the masses.

Personally if I can measure and prove that my quality/speed/accuracy etc...have increased resulting in less nonconformities and less wastes...that is my incentive. The problem is that it takes a while before true benefits pay off.

Incentives have to be meaningful and rewards truly earned.

My last assignment in the military was as a Cavalry Scout in an Armor unit (for you non-miltary types that basically means I did reconnaissance for an M-1 Tank battalion).

Part of every soldiers job is to qualify with their assigned weapons.

The Tankers had their M-16's & pistols and on the tank you had the Main Gun (120mm) and 3 machine guns (.50cal for the commander, .30cal for the loader and a .30cal coax for the gunner).

Scouts had M-16's, M-203's (40mm grenade launcher), pistols, and then Tow missles, Dragon missles,.50cal machine guns, .30cal machine guns and MK-19 40mm Grenade Launchers (a really big machine gun of sorts)

The Tankers for qualifying with the weapons on the Tank would be awarded either Army Achievement Medals for qualifying or if they were the top crews shooting Expert an Army Commendation Medal.

Scouts received no recognition for either qualifying or shooting Expert other than the standard qualification badge, because it was our job to do so.

OK, I'll reiterate...all soldiers are required to qualify with their weapons regardless of weapon.

The rewards did not match the accomplishement, the Tankers qualifying was a minimum requirement that they were being paid to do. (No spilt milk here, I myself was a qualified M-1 Commander and shot expert as well. Along with a couple of my peers we declined an award because of its unfairness)

As a result the morale of the Scouts and their brothers, the Mortor guys, would bottom out.

Rewards should only be given when the accomplishment exceeds, not meets expectations.

Whatever happend to the idea that the incentive for doing a good job, was having a job?

Ah, Maslow, hang on whilst I self actualize myself:lol:

And here I've thought you've already actualized and trancended.

And here I've thought you've already actualized and trancended.


I have had so many peks I am now trying achieve the "peak-of-the-peak"

BTW, I noticed that along with John Quincy Adams we share the same birthday.

Would respect, support, and increasing competency work? How about positive reinformcement instead of negative reinforcement or punishement?

Regards,

Dirk

Would respect, support, and increasing competency work? How about positive reinformcement instead of negative reinforcement or punishement?

Regards,

Dirk

Do you mean to say that negative reinforcement can't be used as a positive motivation tool?

I have had so many peks I am now trying achieve the "peak-of-the-peak"

BTW, I noticed that along with John Quincy Adams we share the same birthday.

And Thomas Bowdler the famous expurgator!

(and three - yes three - other people here where I work. In a plant of about 150 - what are the odds?)

I don't know what a positive motivation tool is but what I meant is the following:

In almost every psychology study ever done on the different types of reinofrcement, postivie reinforcement is identified to have the greatest affect on behavior. Negative reinforcement is second, and punishement is has the least effect.

Positive reinforcement has been shown the have the most significant and longest lasting affect on behavior.

Also, does giving individual rewards, reinforcement, etc. support the process approach where all of the interconnecrted processes make the system? Indivdual rewards can quickly lead to suboptimizing one part, one step of the system.

Regards,

Dirk

In almost every psychology study ever done on the different types of reinofrcement, postivie reinforcement is identified to have the greatest affect on behavior. Negative reinforcement is second, and punishement is has the least effect.

Positive reinforcement has been shown the have the most significant and longest lasting affect on behavior.


"A kind word and a gun will get you more than a kind word alone" A. Capone

Apparently you didn't go through Marine Boot Camp. Trust me when I say that the greatest and longest lasting changes in attitude came after the negative reinforcement activities we participated in:lol: Many of the attitude changes still exist nearly 40 years after the fact and being told that I was a nice young fellow didn't make it happen.

I have spent some time in production management. I do agree that positive reinforcement works better than negative. It is amazing what kind of response you can get with a few words of encouragement.
Having said that, I do not think it is "positive" to give someone an extra $50 just for doing their job.
If you have 35 employees, and only 1 does their job as expected, then it sounds like a there is a problem with the system that allows 34 people to do less than what is expected.
Simply handing out $50 to every employee who does the minimum of what is expected will not fix the system issue.
Why are hourly workers being allowed to turn in incorrect paperwork? You need to find the true root cause of the issue. If you do not address the root cause, you will never fix the issue.
If that ends with negative reinforcement, or punishment of certain individuals in order to correct the issue, so be it.

If you have 35 employees, and only 1 does their job as expected, then it sounds like a there is a problem with the system that allows 34 people to do less than what is expected.

Exactly what I said earlier. Every employee should get the job done right the first time. Anything less is the fault of the system that allows it to happen. If that system is in who you hire, fix it. If it is in how you train, fix it. If morale is low, well, who's fault is that? - fix it. If management is too wishy washy to expect the job to be done right, what good is handing out $50? Yes, rewards are good, and they should be used. but not just because someone did the minimum to get by.

Hi Becky,
How about a employee of the month program! My company has been doing this and it has boosted the performance of the workers.
The hourly workers are rated on different catorgories managers and supervisors vote and they are not eligiable.
1. attendance perfect for one month
2. Be at the work station on time
3.productivity that meets or exceeds company standards
4. Excellent Quality and safty compliance
5. positive work attitude
6. no write ups or verbal warnings

hope this helps,
diptankd

Hi Becky,
How about a employee of the month program! My company has been doing this and it has boosted the performance of the workers.
The hourly workers are rated on different catorgories managers and supervisors vote and they are not eligiable.
1. attendance perfect for one month
2. Be at the work station on time
3.productivity that meets or exceeds company standards
4. Excellent Quality and safty compliance
5. positive work attitude
6. no write ups or verbal warnings


Now this is where I sometimes differ. Granted it works for a lot of businesses and that's great, but personally I dont feel "rewards for the expected" are of any value.

#'s 3, 4, and 5....bang on! If you continually make quality product that meets company and customer requirements, perform safely for yourself and others, and always display a positive attitude then reward is given. These are the attributes every company wants displayed and will foster the right environment (leading by example).

#s 1, 2, and 6 however are questionable in my books.
1. Rewarding for perfect attendance is in essence saying..."congratulations on not being sick" and IMO has no merit on the employee's performance. In addition, there could be outside factors such as a sick child or an appointment that would immediately detract from the attendance through no fault of their own. Flipside = comes in for overtime when asked or volunteers to help out should be rewarded.
2. Being ready to work on time, as noble as it is nowadays, is still an expectation and again is something that should be noticed, but not rewarded. Again, outside factors play a roll (traffic, storms, geese on the road...at least here). Flipside = being a few minutes early to see what is needed or skipping that 10 minute break to get the rush order out on time should be rewarded.
6. Complying to the rules, being courteous, and showing no malfeasance again are expectations. Congratulations on not being a jerk? Flipside = be a mentor and help someone out who may be struggling. Lend a helping hand or an encouraging word.

Please dont take me wrong...I'm not shooting it down and if it works, run with it! Alot of companies are better because of it actually. Simply, :2cents: I'm from a tough love school and being rewarded for things that are expected in society doesnt make sence. I relate it to a restaurant...you expect your food to be correct but you dont reward for it. The tip is for what is over and above what is expected.

Man, tough crowd.

Whilst I tend to agree with a lot of what has been said, I would disagree that incentives cannot be a successful program. The reason I believe this is that if you think about the situation, a company is trying to achieve something that has not previously been required or asked of those that work there. So, in reality, they are trying to accomodate and improve, yes, it is for the sake of their job, but, in a different capacity. If we took that philosophy literally, there should not be raises or compensation that benefits the worker either. An employer is the first one to take actions that benefit the company even if it has a negative impact on people's lives - as it is their right, however, they are also the first to reap the reward and forget about the employees in times of prosperity. Business owners take tremdous risk to run daily operations that everyone else benifits from, but, if they are successful, they need to remember the minions that are providing the caviar lifestyle also. Manufacturing Industries have a long way to go to catch up to the benifits and incentives that retail and commercial employers offer. Remember - (and I fully believe this) the only place that gets a Union is one that deserves one. So, from my expierience (35 full time employees), give a little - you'll get a couple individuals that give you the "Why did they get it and I didn't" but, in the end, I believe that it boosts morale for more than just "a little while".
I completely agree with Randy that the military is a different animal, your reward for learning there is staying alive and keeping those around you in that state also - there is no time for Romper Room antics when a man with a gun is taking aim.

We tried a several different incentive programs.
It became a very sensitive issue at times. The Employee of the Month was polluted with corrupt voting practices. I really put emphasis on Teamwork.
Yes, individuals need and deserve praise when exceptional work is done.
The way I see it is that when you empower the team as a whole unit great things can happen. Empower, Engage, provide the atmosphere of Ownership. If the team works together as a cohesive unit and ultimately acheives the goal-A Happy Customer- A Quality Product-On Time. The Team Wins !!!
Incentive Programs can be a very tumultuous subject.