How to Motivate People

Many companies use incentive programs—but how are they working, really?  

Ed Finkel 

Motivating employees is a fine art, and pest management companies continue tinkering with incentives they offer, in most cases targeting individual performance but also offering rewards at the group level for hitting certain targets. 

They’re like firms in most industries in that regard, according to the 2021 “Incentives Pay Practices Study” from WorldatWork, a global nonprofit focused on total reward packages. That study found that 99% of publicly traded firms, 93% of privately held companies, and 82% of nonprofit organizations offer short-term incentive plans, like annual incentives, spot awards, discretionary bonuses, and retention bonuses. 

“A well-designed, well-communicated incentive plan should be a win-win for the employee and the company,” providing extra bucks for the bang while giving the company the flexibility to be less generous in a down year, according to an article published by the Society for Human Resource Management and written by Greg Stoskopf, managing director and national compensation strategies practice leader at Deloitte. 

A note of caution: In the same article, Liz Supinski, director of research and insights at WorldatWork, says plans must be “calibrated to a level that an organization can afford to spend in most years. Taking away or reducing an existing plan, other than in very rare economic circumstances, is very poorly received by employees.” 

A Multipronged Approach  

Vienna, Virginia-based My Pest Pros, which serves the District of Columbia, Maryland, and northern Virginia, offers monthly, quarterly, and annual bonuses along with a separate incentive system that allows team members to choose from among Amazon purchases, gift cards, the company’s own gift catalog, or simply pulling money out through Venmo or PayPal, says owner Brett Lieberman. 

“Every company is looking for this miracle cure to incentivize people. I don’t think there’s any one-size-fits-all,” he says. “Whether it’s doing contests or regular incentive-type programs, some things resonate with some people and not with others. Some people want more time off. Other people are more money focused.” 

My Pest Pros has found that choosing gift cards or other prizes was “hit or miss” depending on the person’s shopping or dining preferences, while cash bonuses added to an employee’s check weren’t necessarily noticed, Lieberman says. So, about a year ago, the company started an incentive engagement program through a third-party vendor that tracks accomplishments and rewards employees however they’d like to be rewarded. 

“First of all, it made it easier for us. Instead of having to buy gift cards or do different things, it empowered employees,” he says. “There are dozens, if not hundreds, of gift cards. Let’s say you’re a big gamer, and you want a GameStop gift card. Or you can Venmo or PayPal yourself the money out of there. I know somebody who regularly uses that to pay utility bills. You can also donate money to charity.” 

My Pest Pros’ gift catalog includes everything from a massage, a mani-pedi, or home cleaning to a laptop or video game system, Lieberman says. “One of our guys is very into cars; he bought some tool he really wanted,” he says, adding that taking a half-day or full day off is also an option. 

Team members took a while to get used to the idea of recommending one another for points on the system, Lieberman says. But it can be as simple as a “thanks for bailing me out when that piece of equipment wasn’t working,” he says, as one example. “Or somebody calls out sick and another technician steps up and bails out the office, so we don’t have to cancel on people.” 

Completely separately, My Pest Pros doles out monthly, quarterly, and annual bonuses based on metrics like the lowest callback rates, most positive reviews, or highest production, Lieberman says. The company also holds team-based contests that incentivize members, for example, by giving out a bonus and a free breakfast outing for the team that generates the most customer leads. 

“It could be about protecting a client that has one service but not another,” he says. “You’re doing general pest treatment, kind of walking around the home, and getting eaten up by mosquitoes. So, submitting that as a lead. They don’t have to sell it.” 

Team contests are often the most effective, Lieberman says. “It’s a little bit of pushing each other, motivating each other,” he says. “You don’t want to let somebody down. They can get on somebody to step it up a little better than I can, in a different tone and manner. You don’t want to disappoint your co-worker. They may not care as much about disappointing the boss.” 

Money Plus That Personal Touch 

Pest Management Systems Inc., based in Greensboro, North Carolina, mostly uses individual incentives, although the company does mix in some team contests, says Julie Tesh-Clark, director of marketing and communication. PMi chooses a field team member and office team member of the month, who receive company-branded gift cards. It also provides incentives for achieving a certain level of sales or a certain number of customer referrals, she says, and bonuses of up to $1,000 for having referred a new hire—$500 at 60 days and $500 at 90 days. 

“Most people are motivated by money, so we want to incentivize them by putting extra dollars in their back pockets,” Tesh-Clark says. “But there’s a percentage of people also motivated by feel-goods of what the office can bring them. We try to have a balance of both.” 

Some of the types of rewards provided can be seasonal. “In the summer, we give gifts like TVs, Yeti coolers. Last year we did a grill,” she says. “In the winter months, we have a boots-on-the-ground sales program—they can go on a shopping spree and get work boots.” 

PMi runs a certain number of sales contests that are team-based—divided by types of pests targeted—keeping in mind that teams have different numbers of personnel, Tesh-Clark says. “Sometimes, we will have divisions competing against the others,” she says. “But it’s mostly individual. I feel like our team thinks of each other as a team, whether [a contest is] individually based or not.” 

During the busy season from May through August, the call center fields 10,000 calls per month, Tesh-Clark says. “The top three girls who answer the most calls get a gift card,” she says. 

I try to get to know each person to KNOW HOW I CAN MAKE THEM FEEL SPECIAL AND APPRECIATED — not just the money motivator but the personal touch. 

—Julie Tesh-Clark, PMi

Rewards and Profit-Sharing  

Debug Pest Control in Smithfield, Rhode Island, has concentrated mostly on individual incentives but is now developing team-based carrots, says Justin Rechter, people, operations, and culture director, who started in February. “People tend to be motivated by different things,” he agrees. “Some people are motivated by money, some by time off, some by recognition and praise. Trying to figure out the balance around what’s everyone’s hot spot is something I’m trying to do as I get to know everyone at the company.” 

Debug has partnered with a third-party company that gives technicians monetary compensation every time they earn a five-star review from a customer, Rechter says, adding that one technician earned about an extra $1,000 just between February and May.  

“Another thing we’re doing is adopting the idea of career progression,” he says. “We’re looking at ways to give our technicians and customer-care reps something to strive toward in terms of a career path—recognizing that the level they’re in now is not the be-all and end-all stop for them.” 

This spring, Debug revamped its key performance indicators for all employees, all tied to the company’s profit-sharing plan, Rechter says. “If someone is meeting their expectations, they’ll get rewarded,” he says. “If they’re exceeding expectations, they’ll get a larger piece of our profits. They can earn more based on their performance against our metrics. We expect this to incentivize positive behaviors.” 

Debug is also working on team incentives, mostly for its customer care reps, such as shared goals around team sales targets, Rechter says. “They have a sales component tied to their role, but from an equity standpoint, with how calls are routed, it’s not completely equitable for every customer care rep to have the same goal,” he says. “We’re building a team-based goaling structure on top of individual goals so they’re all rewarded as a collective unit. We feel it’s very critical to ensure that our team members are incentivized.”