Performance-Based Pay.
A successful tool to boost your employees’ performance or a possible cause for burnout?
“Performance-based pay systems can motivate workers to put in the effort to earn their pay, but they can also cause them to feel more stressed out at work and make them less satisfied with their jobs.”
Widely implemented among businesses of different sizes and industries. Although employers have grown to like performance-based pay over time, it might not be as efficient as some people think. According to studies, some incentive-based compensation arrangements have unfavorable outcomes instead of inspiring personnel.
What is performance-based pay?
Performance-based pay, as the name implies, ties employee compensation to their contributions to the business. Consider a commission-based car salesperson: if no cars sell that day, the company doesn’t make money, and thus the employees don’t either.
However, based on this formula, only the most productive staff will survive thanks to this wage system, and many companies claim that it’s an excellent technique to raise staff productivity.
What are the Types of Pay for Performance Models?
Mainly with two main categories, they focus on increasing performance and inspiring your staff, and can be used as one strategy or combine both:
- Merit Pay
Merit pay is the first pay-for-performance approach. When an employee performs well, their base compensation is raised in this situation. You reward an employee by increasing their pay at the subsequent salary review meeting if they achieve or surpass expectations.
- Variable Pay
This model includes a range of bonus types that vary according to payout period, eligibility, and employee metrics. They are usually tied into your employee recognition programs and, unlike merit pay, they are not dependent on annual salary reviews.
A study published in the Human Resource Management Journal revealed that workers who receive performance-based pay, such as those whose pay ties into individual or companywide performance, work harder but end up with higher stress levels and lower levels of job satisfaction.
Whether it was based on a certain scale of measurements, a strategy with standard regulations, or an open field experiment-like environment, employees’ performance should be based on their own dedication toward their jobs, not that of forced obligations to score a number in order to get paid. Every business administration must provide the proper environment for its employees. Once they’ve reached mental satisfaction, their results are shown in their work, and accordingly, in an amazing performance.
