I work for a medium-sized recruitment firm as a manager of the technical jobs section. The firm has a pay system in which all employees receive the same pay increase annually. I believe this is demoralising and hits the motivation and commitment of my best employees hardest - I think some are wondering ‘what’s in this for me?’ A transparent system based on merit is, I believe, a better proposition. But senior management do not seem to agree. What is your opinion?
DB, Dubai
Being fairly remunerated and compensated is one of the elements in keeping employees motivated. A clear compensation and benefits policy driven by Human Resource Management helps give benefits to employees based on their performance, potentially bringing out the best in what employees have to offer the organisation. The annual pay increase system is just one component of the overall compensation and benefit approach of a company.
To add a different perspective, take some of the research and literature around remuneration and employee motivation into account and you’ll notice that salary alone is not always the instrumental driver in staff motivation and performance. Clinical psychologist Frederick Herzberg did research more than half a century ago, which showed that employees are motivated to work harder through less tangible, intrinsic motivators such as more responsibility, achievement, advancement and development. Extrinsic motivators, such as salary and benefits may lead to dissatisfaction when they are not present, but they are unlikely to keep employees motivated in the long run.
Daniel Pink, author and motivation expert, claims that science knows that incentives don’t work in terms of motivating employees, and that businesses need to catch up to this. He promotes an approach that relies on giving employees three key things: autonomy over their work, a feeling that they can achieve mastery and a larger sense of purpose.
The reputation of the company, the job profile itself, the overall package of salary, benefits and incentives are part of what attract people to work for a specific organisation. However, people also look at the culture, meaning and purpose of the organisation, the nature of leadership, the work environment and their ability to contribute and feel valued.
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So, keeping this in mind, let’s revert back to the situation you are describing. Companies have different processes and policies in place with regards to pay increases. Factors that may influence how companies approach pay increases include the success of the company overall, starting salaries, market benchmarking, employee performance and achievement of goals. For example, the Dubai Government Human Resources Management Law no (27) 2006 states that "annual salary increments shall be based on the employee’s performance as measured by the performance management system and not on the basis of seniority. To be entitled to this increment, an employee must receive a rating not less than Good".
It’s not unusual for organisations to apply an across the board salary increase percentage to align remuneration with cost of living inflation, and in strong business development based environments, to additionally offer incentive schemes to recognise individual performances. That being said, in more complex environments where collaboration across a team or a reliance on interdepartmental cooperation is necessary and important for new client acquisition or retaining existing clients, there is also a business case for more collective based team incentives, as individual incentives in these situations can sometimes drive the wrong behavioural patterns.
It seems that your firm's culture is rooted in an across the board increase system, which realistically may not be within your scope to address. However, it would be good to have a better understanding of your firm’s approach to performance review and management.
Doctor’s prescription:
Consider what you are able to influence to better recognise and motivate your best employees. It may require these employees to take on more responsibilities to enable a further increase in salary. Likewise, there may be bonus schemes or benefits available to acknowledge the achievements and hard work of these employees. To meet your employees needs on a more intrinsic level, provide additional variety and a wider range of more complex or challenging tasks to make work more interesting. Furthermore, empower them to make more autonomous decisions around their own work. Your personal leadership effectiveness with your team will have a greater impact on their overall motivation than being able to negotiate variable or individual salary increases.
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
The specs: 2018 Bentley Bentayga V8
Price, base: Dh853,226
Engine: 4.0-litre twin-turbo V8
Transmission: Eight-speed automatic
Power: 550hp @ 6,000pm
Torque: 770Nm @ 1,960rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 11.4L / 100km
The specs
Engine: 3.8-litre twin-turbo flat-six
Power: 650hp at 6,750rpm
Torque: 800Nm from 2,500-4,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed dual-clutch auto
Fuel consumption: 11.12L/100km
Price: From Dh796,600
On sale: now
EXPATS
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COMPANY%20PROFILE
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Will the pound fall to parity with the dollar?
The idea of pound parity now seems less far-fetched as the risk grows that Britain may split away from the European Union without a deal.
Rupert Harrison, a fund manager at BlackRock, sees the risk of it falling to trade level with the dollar on a no-deal Brexit. The view echoes Morgan Stanley’s recent forecast that the currency can plunge toward $1 (Dh3.67) on such an outcome. That isn’t the majority view yet – a Bloomberg survey this month estimated the pound will slide to $1.10 should the UK exit the bloc without an agreement.
New Prime Minister Boris Johnson has repeatedly said that Britain will leave the EU on the October 31 deadline with or without an agreement, fuelling concern the nation is headed for a disorderly departure and fanning pessimism toward the pound. Sterling has fallen more than 7 per cent in the past three months, the worst performance among major developed-market currencies.
“The pound is at a much lower level now but I still think a no-deal exit would lead to significant volatility and we could be testing parity on a really bad outcome,” said Mr Harrison, who manages more than $10 billion in assets at BlackRock. “We will see this game of chicken continue through August and that’s likely negative for sterling,” he said about the deadlocked Brexit talks.
The pound fell 0.8 per cent to $1.2033 on Friday, its weakest closing level since the 1980s, after a report on the second quarter showed the UK economy shrank for the first time in six years. The data means it is likely the Bank of England will cut interest rates, according to Mizuho Bank.
The BOE said in November that the currency could fall even below $1 in an analysis on possible worst-case Brexit scenarios. Options-based calculations showed around a 6.4 per cent chance of pound-dollar parity in the next one year, markedly higher than 0.2 per cent in early March when prospects of a no-deal outcome were seemingly off the table.
Bloomberg
In numbers: PKK’s money network in Europe
Germany: PKK collectors typically bring in $18 million in cash a year – amount has trebled since 2010
Revolutionary tax: Investigators say about $2 million a year raised from ‘tax collection’ around Marseille
Extortion: Gunman convicted in 2023 of demanding $10,000 from Kurdish businessman in Stockholm
Drug trade: PKK income claimed by Turkish anti-drugs force in 2024 to be as high as $500 million a year
Denmark: PKK one of two terrorist groups along with Iranian separatists ASMLA to raise “two-digit million amounts”
Contributions: Hundreds of euros expected from typical Kurdish families and thousands from business owners
TV channel: Kurdish Roj TV accounts frozen and went bankrupt after Denmark fined it more than $1 million over PKK links in 2013
Tips to avoid getting scammed
1) Beware of cheques presented late on Thursday
2) Visit an RTA centre to change registration only after receiving payment
3) Be aware of people asking to test drive the car alone
4) Try not to close the sale at night
5) Don't be rushed into a sale
6) Call 901 if you see any suspicious behaviour
The%20Emperor%20and%20the%20Elephant
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Results
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EStage%202%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%3Cbr%3E1.%20Soudal%E2%80%93Quick-Step%20-%2018%E2%80%9911%E2%80%9D%3Cbr%3E2.%20EF%20Education%20%E2%80%93%20EasyPost%20-%201%22%3Cbr%3E3.%20Ineos%20Grenadiers%20-%203%22%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EGeneral%20classification%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%3Cbr%3E1.%20Lucas%20Plapp%20(AUS)%20Ineos%20Grenadiers%3Cbr%3E2.%20Remco%20Evenepoel%20(BEL)%20Soudal%E2%80%93Quick-Step%20-%20ST%3Cbr%3E3.%20Nikias%20Arndt%20(GER)%20Bahrain%20Victorious%20-%203%22%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
SCHEDULE FOR SHOW COURTS
Centre Court - from 4pm (UAE time)
Angelique Kerber (1) v Irina Falconi
Martin Klizan v Novak Djokovic (2)
Alexandr Dolgopolov v Roger Federer (3)
Court One - from 4pm
Milos Raonic (6) v Jan-Lennard Struff
Karolina Pliskova (3) v Evgeniya Rodina
Dominic Thiem (8) v Vasek Pospisil
Court Two - from 2.30pm
Juan Martin Del Potro (29) v Thanasi Kokkinakis
Agnieszka Radwanska (9) v Jelena Jankovic
Jeremy Chardy v Tomas Berdych (11)
Ons Jabeur v Svetlana Kuznetsova (7)
GOLF’S RAHMBO
- 5 wins in 22 months as pro
- Three wins in past 10 starts
- 45 pro starts worldwide: 5 wins, 17 top 5s
- Ranked 551th in world on debut, now No 4 (was No 2 earlier this year)
- 5th player in last 30 years to win 3 European Tour and 2 PGA Tour titles before age 24 (Woods, Garcia, McIlroy, Spieth)
The rules on fostering in the UAE
A foster couple or family must:
- be Muslim, Emirati and be residing in the UAE
- not be younger than 25 years old
- not have been convicted of offences or crimes involving moral turpitude
- be free of infectious diseases or psychological and mental disorders
- have the ability to support its members and the foster child financially
- undertake to treat and raise the child in a proper manner and take care of his or her health and well-being
- A single, divorced or widowed Muslim Emirati female, residing in the UAE may apply to foster a child if she is at least 30 years old and able to support the child financially
The specs
AT4 Ultimate, as tested
Engine: 6.2-litre V8
Power: 420hp
Torque: 623Nm
Transmission: 10-speed automatic
Price: From Dh330,800 (Elevation: Dh236,400; AT4: Dh286,800; Denali: Dh345,800)
On sale: Now
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
NO OTHER LAND
Director: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal
Stars: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham
Rating: 3.5/5
