How to Reward Staff for Outstanding Behavior Without Breaking the Bank

In a business in which service consistency and quality can make or break you, high-quality employees may well be a restaurant's most valuable feature. And in a business in which margins are tight and you have to watch every penny, rewarding top performers isn't always easy.

There's the rub. Still, you want your best and brightest to stay and be happy.

The good news is operators needn't break the bank to accomplish this. In fact, there are rewards that are equally if not more important to staff members than cash. For owners, creativity and personal touch in this regard can go a long way.

"Over the years I have learned that rewarding staff, if done properly, is not an easy task," says G. Pony Boy Morrell, the chef/owner of Pony Boy Blue Blaze Café, a pizza, wings and "local brews" establishment in Damascus, Virginia.

"It's a bit like picking out a gift for someone's birthday or a holiday: You can spend no time at all and go to 1-800-flowers and get the job done, or you can spend a few hours at a vintage bookstore and pick out a signed first edition of a book written by the recipient's favorite author," Morrell says.

It is easy to offer a $50 bill on a dessert contest, but most of the time the thrill is short-lived and underappreciated. However, two tickets to a band that you saw on their T-shirt on their day off will go a long, long way.

One thing Morrell says he has learned during his career is that few staff members are as money-motivated as most operators are. "It is easy to offer a $50 bill on a dessert contest, but most of the time the thrill is short-lived and underappreciated. However, two tickets to a band that you saw on their T-shirt on their day off will go a long, long way," he says.

There is any number of approaches that restaurateurs can take with incentives.