This article delineates on how non-conventional rewarding favors emotional intelligence thereby promoting employee engagement.

1. NON-CONVENTIONAL REWARDING AND ITS EFFECT
ON EMPLOYEE ENGAGEMENT AND PRODUCTIVITY
By Anish Mathew John
Sub Title
Studies done on how non-conventional rewarding helps in Employee Engagement and better productivity
in an IT/ITES setup.
Synopsis
Employee productivity is of utmost importance for any business concern. This finds relevance especially in
an environment where the revenue gets proportionally linked to the productivity collectively exhibited by
employees in the organization. The IT/ ITES industry in India has an overall people turn over rate
(attrition) of 40% and more. Managing attrition has now become a daunting task by both the production
floor as well as the Human Resource Department. Higher the levels of engagement, better will be the
productivity. The Pareto analysis (80-20) with emphasis on improving the overall performance of a system
by taking care of the 20% ‘important portion’ finds immense significance here. The 20% if related to a
work place is nothing but the much required personal-connect required which would result in identifying
unique personality traits and inborn potentials/ talents of an employee. Unfortunately, psychology finds
lesser significance in the IT/ ITES industry. Supervisors and managers need to learn the art of emotional
intelligence equipping them to learn how to categorize human behavior at work place. For example,
management theories like Johari window could be taught, for managers and supervisors to understand,
classify, interpret and correct human behavior paving way towards creating a better ambience,
promoting self-awareness and confidence at work place. A supervisor who knows how to manage his/her
emotions would definitely be in a better position to manage the emotions of his/her subordinates. The
sincere efforts taken by a Manager in understanding the behavioral traits of their staff should be
complemented by a reward mechanism which need not be connected to their productivity metrics.
Seldom do Companies create a reward mechanism rewarding an employee who is punctual to office,
takes less number of leaves/ gives an advanced notification before going on leave, adhering to the
Corporate Dress Code, being able to Smile from the heart even in the midst of a high pressure situation
etc. Those who come first on these aspects would not always be high on performance ranking.
A monthly reward mechanism created on lines with rewarding employees, congratulating them on
aspects not directly linked to their performance would soon after show up on the productivity metrics
supporting the theory of Pareto. Most of the companies apart from having a Training & Development
department meant at Organizational Training, would find it hard to focus on Individual Training needs. By
and large, the training modules are designed to satisfy the organizational goals resulting in Employees
being trained on topics which would result in boosting their morale. Though this has a transient effect, a
long lasting impact could be created by the Managers themselves taking the responsibility of training
their team members on modules resulting in the overall development of an individual. Surveys conducted
across the IT and ITes industries conclude that the primary reason for an employee leaving a company is
not just because of the salary but because of dissatisfaction in line with his role for which his/ her
supervisor becomes the reason. Knowing the personal traits of an individual would help a Manager focus

2. his/ her attention to a group providing tailor
Leaders or other Team Managers on the floor to assist him in this exercise if the span of control
beyond 20.
A highly engaged employee, who is taken care of well by his/ her Manager who does even understand
their personal traits, would seldom le
attrition could be controlled to a very large extent by complimenting the personal traits/ in born talents
of an employee. The research conducted and observation made infers that employees tend to
more motivated and develop a
potential/ talents are pampered, nurtured and complimented thereby enhancing productivity.
Proposed reward mechanism
A NASSCOM-Hewitt Associates survey
salary, very much a worrisome aspect to comprehend for those operating on thin margins
ITes industry currently has an attrition rate hovering around
if one were to look at BPO companies primarily handling Voice Support for its customers be it Technical
OR non-Technical.
The Indian outsourcing sector directly employs 2.54 million workers and accounts for 6.4 percent of the
country’s gross domestic product
stood at 55% as on April 2011.
his/ her attention to a group providing tailor-made solutions. A Manager could seek the help of T
Leaders or other Team Managers on the floor to assist him in this exercise if the span of control
A highly engaged employee, who is taken care of well by his/ her Manager who does even understand
their personal traits, would seldom leave a company for a better job. Unscheduled absenteeism and
attrition could be controlled to a very large extent by complimenting the personal traits/ in born talents
of an employee. The research conducted and observation made infers that employees tend to
more motivated and develop a true sense of belongingness when their personal traits and innate
potential/ talents are pampered, nurtured and complimented thereby enhancing productivity.
Hewitt Associates survey says that the cost of attrition in the industry is 1.5 times the annual
, very much a worrisome aspect to comprehend for those operating on thin margins
ITes industry currently has an attrition rate hovering around 50% (annualized). T
if one were to look at BPO companies primarily handling Voice Support for its customers be it Technical
The Indian outsourcing sector directly employs 2.54 million workers and accounts for 6.4 percent of the
try’s gross domestic product (GDP). The latest figures of attrition across the bpo industry in India
made solutions. A Manager could seek the help of Team
Leaders or other Team Managers on the floor to assist him in this exercise if the span of control goes
A highly engaged employee, who is taken care of well by his/ her Manager who does even understand
ave a company for a better job. Unscheduled absenteeism and
attrition could be controlled to a very large extent by complimenting the personal traits/ in born talents
of an employee. The research conducted and observation made infers that employees tend to become
sense of belongingness when their personal traits and innate
potential/ talents are pampered, nurtured and complimented thereby enhancing productivity.
says that the cost of attrition in the industry is 1.5 times the annual
, very much a worrisome aspect to comprehend for those operating on thin margins. The Indian IT/
0% (annualized). The figure is much higher
if one were to look at BPO companies primarily handling Voice Support for its customers be it Technical
The Indian outsourcing sector directly employs 2.54 million workers and accounts for 6.4 percent of the
The latest figures of attrition across the bpo industry in India

3. Impact on attrition and unscheduled absenteeism
Emotional Intelligence practiced in organizations would certainly help in curbing attrition and would also
lead to controlling absenteeism. Better the personal/ emotional connect, better are the chances of
predicting and controlling attrition and absenteeism.
The immediate impact could be measured by looking at the attrition data of any company soon after
implementing the aforementioned aspects in an organization. Companies who had followed this
stringently were able to see a drastic reduction in their attrition level. The productivity of employees were
seen gradually moving up and in some cases there was a noticeable leap compared to past performances.
Copyright reserved by Anish Mathew John, India (AFJPJ 5518E)
Anish Mathew John works as a Human Resources Manager for a renowned firm in the IT/ITes sector in India.
Award category.xlsx