BEC高级文章精选：人力资源管理之员工激励

BEC高级商务英语文章阅读精选：人力资源管理之员工激励（Motivation Equation：激励方程式）

导读：员工激励是企业人力资源部门的一项重要管理工作，也是很多HR专家学者广泛探讨的话题。本文作者David Sturt 是一家学术机构的常务副校长，同时也是纽约时报畅销书《Great Work: How to Make a Different People Love （了不起的工作：如何让他人乐于接受转变）》作者。

以下文章选自国外专业人力资源网站HRO TODAY，本文针对企业人力资源部门如何有效激励员工分享了个人的观点及看法，并通过列举Informatica公司的员工激励政策作为典型案例。重点生词及实用短语已用蓝色高亮，希望能够对正在BEC备考的童鞋有所帮助。

If companies are waiting until the five-year anniversary to celebrate their employee’s accomplishments with their company, they may never get the chance to recognize them. Work perks, benefits, raises, and promotions all play a role in creating an organization’s culture and demonstrating the value of employees. But what about recognition? Traditionally, employee recognition has served to commemorate career milestones and to reward employees who’ve gone the extra mile.

However, today’s workforce has been transformed by sweeping generational changes. Millennials, Generation Xers, and baby boomers share the same work environments, yet each view recognition in a different light. Younger employees seek early and frequent validation for their performance. Tenured employees look back on their career and long for meaning—the knowledge that their achievements have made a lasting impact. To meet the needs of these diverse generations, employers should strive to establish a culture of appreciation that begins with an employee’s first day. Recent research from The Cicero Group found that 86 percent of new hires decide whether to leave a new job within the first six months. Plus, employees at companies with an effective years-of-service awards program plan to stay nearly four years longer than employees at companies that don’t have a years-of-service program. Employees also want a social score card, a display piece that serves as a symbolic award to exemplify the contributions they’ve made.

More and more, companies are also recognizing the power of story as a way to connect by highlighting 
the recipient’s unique qualities and illustrating their contributions to the rest of the organization. Talking about their unique accomplishments also provides managers with an opportunity to link their contributions to the organization’s brand values and overall vision.

No matter the lens from which it’s viewed, one constant is certain: Recognition remains one of the most important things a manager or company can do to encourage employees to produce great work. Career and accomplishment recognitions are unmatched in terms of helping employees feel like they fit within a company culture while showing them the company cares.

Case study: Informatica

For Informatica, the world’s number one independent provider of data integration software, aligning employees with the company’s mission has become a serious priority of its leadership team. Following the launch of a new rewards program in 2011, recognition is now embedded in the organization’s culture.

Performance and results are rewarded with awards and points, while peer-to-peer shout outs with fun eCards and eButtons have replaced the traditional spot bonus. The company recognizes employees with “appreciation stations” featuring starter kits, books, buttons, and note cards. Plus, career achievement awards are given for anniversaries at year five, 10, 15, and above.

Recognition is publicly discussed at company
meetings and has increasingly become embedded in 
the expectations of managers. From hiring to goal management to coaching, more tools and training are being offered to help managers get the best out of their teams.

The company’s focus on culture and appreciation is paying off. In 2013 alone, the Silicon Valley Business Journal ranked Informatica as the fifth happiest company based in Silicon Valley and Forbes magazine named it to its “The Best Enterprise Software Companies And CEOs To Work For” list. With customers that include 
84 of the Fortune 100 companies, the Silicon Valley- based organization has seen its global success continue to grow—a success that leadership attributes to the commitment of its 3,000 employees.

“Everybody wants to be appreciated at work,” explains Jo Stoner, senior vice president of global human resources for Informatica. “It doesn’t matter where you are, if you’re 20 or 50, or if it’s your first job or fifth job. Knowing that what you’re doing makes a difference. Knowing how your behaviors align to our values and how your contributions align to the overall goals of the company and being valued for that contribution makes you want to stay for a long time.”

注：Generation Xers：通常缩写为：“Gen-Xers”指20世纪60年代末到70年代中期出生的那拨人，意为“失落的一代”；Baby boomers：婴儿潮时期出生的人，那些在第二次大战后大约二十年期间出生的人。（1946-1964年出生）；Millennials：国际上有一个专门的代际术语“千禧一代”(1983-2000出生)。