It is very tempting to use rewards as a way to motivate staff to complete a job well or go beyond their call of duty and this is not unreasonable. An additional reward can be anything from a "well done2 box of donuts to an extra monetary bonus and is designed to generate good will amongst hard working staff since it is a practical demonstration of gratitude. It is important to look at rewards for motivational purposes to see that they are appropriate and effective.

Rewards can be de-motivational if they are seen as a smoke screen for a serious problem, for example white washing over the cracks, inappropriate or unequal to the task carried out. If staff have worked for no extra money every weekend for three months to get a task completed and you hand them a donut and a thank you at the end of it, then they may not feel inclined to help you again. They would not be motivated to go beyond the call of duty since there was very little in it for them. Those that are seriously considered and given promotions based on this extra work, a monetary bonus or some other practical reward will consider themselves appreciated and will be motivated to continue working hard in the future.

Let us look at a topical problem of reward for motivation. On April 29th 2011, Prince William married Kate Middleton. This celebration was been declared a public holiday so the entire country received an extra day of paid holiday, (for those who are permanently employed) so they can join fully in the celebrations. On the face of it this looks like a brilliant way to motivate the general public to support the event since everyone loves a free holiday and Britain has less of them than many other European countries.

It is a problem however that in a time of economic crisis, this public holiday costs the economy of the country around 2.9 billion pounds. The other issue is that while the families will pay for the wedding, some costs such as security will be passed on to the taxpayer. This cost could run into millions. In this way the motivation caused by the public holiday could well be seen as a smoke screen and therefore cause bad feeling.

In an office environment it would be like treating the staff to a free lunch as a reward for hard work, but taking the money to do it from their Christmas bonus. The moral of the story is that if you are going to reward your staff then it better be in addition to the standard rewards or you will be de-motivating them for the future.

In the same way a reward cannot be seen as something hiding a problem, which it could be viewed as in this instance. If something has gone wrong and the employees have worked especially hard to correct the situation for you then a reward is appropriate. It must however be coupled with working towards a solution to the original problem. If it becomes an annual occurrence where they are again required to go beyond the call of duty then the thought of a reward may not be enough to motivate them properly.

The reward should also be appropriate to the achievement. Little goals and milestones achieved could be rewarded with simple, smaller rewards such as a lunch on the company or some treats put in the office kitchen. I once worked at an office where the manager would drive past the donut shop on the way to work if something had been achieved or order breakfast for everyone from the local café. It may have to be a small gesture if the company budget does not allow for it, but a little can go a long way in these situations.

For larger goals achieved, the rewards must be larger. People may be motivated with rewards such as training in some area they want to develop in or being considered for more responsibility or promotion. This sort of thing needs to be determined on an individual basis and discussed with the employee. To achieve motivation it should be something that the employee wants rather than something you as their manager want them to do, otherwise they will see it as a burden brought on by their hard work instead of a reward.