DHL Program Seeks to Hold on to IT Staff
Courier plans perks to reward, keep workers
January 17, 2005 (Computerworld)
In a move reminiscent of the aggressive IT employee retention strategies that were common during the dot-com boom, DHL is launching a personalized rewards and recognition program for its 1,200 U.S. IT workers, executives at the express delivery company said last week.
While IT management experts said that DHL's so-called "carrot a day" philosophy isn't unique, it does represent the first proactive and notable IT worker recognition effort they have witnessed since the technology bubble burst in 2000.
The program aims to reward and recognize U.S. IT workers on a continual basis with perks ranging from verbal praise by a manager at a staff meeting to gift certificates or e-mail notes from a senior IT executive. The goal, said DHL CIO Steve Bandrowczak, is to create a world-class working environment that helps the company attract and retain top-notch employees.
"I haven't seen any examples of this recently," said Rob Austin, a professor at Harvard Business School.
DHL's employee-driven recognition and rewards program "is a really good idea," said John Parkinson, senior vice president and chief technologist for the Americas region at Capgemini U.S. in Chicago. "A top-down approach tends to create programs that managers would like, not what employees would like."
Steve Bandrowczak, CIO at DHL
Bandrowczak and other DHL executives began exploring the concept of a reward/recognition program in September, after the company conducted a survey of its U.S. IT staffers. The workers indicated that they wanted senior management to acknowledge their accomplishments in more meaningful ways, said Tony Treglia, human resources director at DHL.
As part of the program, DHL has 20 teams of IT workers gathering input from their peers on topics ranging from interpersonal communication to idea and process diversity, Treglia said.
DHL, which is launching a parallel program with its 500-person national billing center in Houston, plans to gather the input from its IT workers and come up with specific reward and recognition programs that will be rolled out by the end of next month, said Treglia.
"What makes this different than a lot of programs with cash bonuses is that DHL is using recognition as a powerful tool on a continual basis," said Chester Elton, a consultant at O.C. Tanner Co., a Salt Lake City-based employee-recognition consultancy that's working with DHL. "This isn't a one-time thing like, 'Hey, let's blitz everyone with T-shirts and ball caps.' "
Bandrowczak, previously CIO at Phoenix-based Avnet Inc., said the recognition program wasn't established in reaction to poor morale or other staff problems. "We want to be one of the most exciting places to work in the [Phoenix area], and we haven't gotten there yet," he said. The turnover rate within the 1,200-person U.S. IT division is now at about 9%. Treglia said DHL hopes to eventually bring turnover down to around 5%.
Maria Schafer, an IT labor analyst at Meta Group Inc. in Stamford, Conn., said DHL's employee-recognition efforts make sense as part of an effort to improve employee retention. "The reason you focus on a better retention plan is to avoid the higher cost of turnover and create a more productive environment, which will produce a stronger culture long term," she said.
Schafer said she believes that more companies should follow DHL's lead in taking on the issue proactively. She noted that as a growing number of baby boomers reach retirement age, fewer new IT workers will enter the workforce. The result: a tightening of the U.S. IT labor market over the next 10 years.
Bandrowczak and other DHL executives said they don't have a return-on-investment target for the carrot-a-day program, nor could they quantify the investment they have made in the effort. Still, they do believe that a happier IT workforce will ultimately benefit the company and its bottom line.
"If we have a very happy workforce and one that feels empowered and engaged, they are likely to bring more value to DHL and to our customers," said Gary Griffin, head of DHL's Scottsdale data center.
IT Worker Retention Program
COMPANY: DHL
LOCATION: Scottsdale, Ariz.
WHAT IS IT DOING? Launching a rewards/recognition program for 1,200 U.S. IT workers
WHAT IS UNIQUE? 20 teams of IT workers are canvassing their peers to determine the types of rewards and recognition that matter most to them
WHAT IS THE GOAL? To create a world-class working environment for retaining and recruiting IT staffers