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Reward Power refers to the incentives and benefits provided for the obedience and compliance of the organization’s targets. It is a leadership trick used to utilize employees’ capabilities by providing a reward in the form of compensation, bonuses, incentives, a salary increase, or more off days. The benefits are provided to encourage employees to perform more productively. It revitalizes the strength and productivity of performance. It multiplies the performance of the employees.
As George Herbert once said, “service without reward is punishment.” Thus,
Reward power genuinely increases the motivation level of the employees.
Human’s natural inclination toward Reward power:
Even animals such as dogs get used to the owner if the owner frequently remunerates them. Humans have a natural preference and inclination toward reward power. Their propensity toward being compensated when achieving goals makes them better performers. Besides this, if the employee outperforms themselves and excels in the performance, then the reward power seems logical and justified. Thus, humans, intrinsic nature yearns to receive compensation for their performance.
Advantages of Reward Power:
Increasing courage and motivation: The provision of reward power proves to be detrimental in increasing employee motivation and encouragement. The underachievers in the organization seeing the financial compensation provided to the achievers, eventually, get the courage to invest their wholehearted performance in outshining the others in the organization. Likewise, their greed for incentives and bonuses works as an energizer that increases the employees’ stamina.
Thus, reward power works as a full-time booster to increase the motivation of the employees.
1. Increasing contentment of the Employees:
Reward power helps increase the satisfaction and contentment of the employees. The employees feel connected to the organization. Their insecurities about being devalued and underrated tend to be diminished with the provision of the compensation system. Likewise, the employees feel financial security when reward power is used.
Their sense of joy increases, as does their satisfaction with their job. The author of the happiness project, namely Gretchen Robin, said that job satisfaction takes hold of the employee and gives them a sense of control and hold. Thus, reward power provides contentment and satisfaction to the employees of the organization.
2. Feelings of Job control to the employees :
The organization’s employees feel job security and control, while the reward power is being implemented for outperformance in the organization. Job security and control is essential when it comes to better performance. The employees get involved in the goals and objectives of the organization wholeheartedly. The employees own the objectives. And the equipment of the organization is maintained carefully because of job security. Thus, the reward power provides a sense of security to the employees.
3. Retention of the Employees :
The retention of employees minimizes the cost of the recruitment of newer staff by double. Reward power helps the organization retain employees for a longer period.
A long-term relationship between the organization and employees is thus nurtured and developed through incentives and bonuses. Thus, retention of the employees becomes easier with the provision of reward power.
4. Increasing competition in the organization:
With the provision of reward power, the organization is subjected to intense internal competition among employees.
The increased competition paves the way for innovative ideas and actions in the organization. Likewise, thinking out of the box becomes easier with bonuses and compensation. The employees work harder and compete to get more rewards for their work performance in the organization.
Besides this, the competing employees give birth to more innovative ideas in the organization. And innovative ideas help the organization grow rapidly.
Demerits of the Reward Power:
Although there are numerous advantages of the provision of reward power.
But with every advantage comes demerits as well. Following are some of the negatives of the reward system:
1. Causing resentment amongst employees:
The employees that have been blessed to receive frequent remuneration for their performance might create anguish among passive achievers. This resentment will affect productivity and undermine the abilities of the deprived staff. This anguish among the deprived staff might resultantly cause diminished motivation levels.
Thus, an equal reward power system is necessary to eliminate unjust favoritism in the organization.
2. Temporary motivation and encouragement:
The remuneration incentives in the form of reward power may become futile in the long run. The motivation may diminish with the immediate provision of the incentives. This will drastically affect the performance of organizational goals and objectives. Thus, while opting to establish a system of reward power in an organization, the boss must be prudent of the coin’s dual sides.
In a nutshell, the reward power system has endless competitive advantages to boost the productivity of the employees. One of the greater advantages of the reward power system is the birth of innovative ideas in an organization. The employees will be motivated to brainstorm ideas and solutions to problems.
The excitement towards incentives will increase the employees’ potential capabilities to present unique ideas to achieve the organization’s goals smoothly. However, the organization’s boss must be cautious enough to overlook the budget and capacity of the organization to endure frequent incentives. This will help to save time and resources cautiously.