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Achievers Focuses on Success Rather Than Rewards

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be focused on employees and employee great customer experience is to frst have a or problems? Understanding the customer’s
success. We only learned later that great employee experience. The way that area of pain and being able to process and
rewards are only one element of that. If management treats employees is the way understand their business and then translate
you continue up the Maslow hierarchy of employees treat customers.” that into a solution is essential.”
needs and look at Self-Actualization, it’s So what’s standing in the way of As a result, Achievers has focused
really about success. What was I put on change? “Many businesses don’t have the specifcally on certain industry verticals so
this planet to do? If we can align employee solution yet. There’s no general agreement it can apply in-depth industry knowledge.
success to company success, we provide an on how to effectively engage people the “At frst we thought that might be a problem,
invaluable service – performance.”
way there are formal frameworks in other but we now realize clients appreciate our
In short, explains Suleman, “We’ve felds. Engagement is now a ‘painkiller.’ The deep understanding of their business felds,”
evolved from a focus on rewards to a focus opportunity is for it to become a proft center. Suleman notes.
on success. That’s what differentiates us That’s when it will scale.” Once the sales team identifes an
from the competition. We believe we can opportunity, the company brings in separate
do what others can’t do, for the same reason A COMPLETE TOOL BOX consultants who have the training and
Blockbuster didn’t become the next Netfix. While the rest of the recognition feld goes knowledge to provide high-level solutions.
We were fortunate that we came in when a lot after social recognition, Achievers tends to “It’s defnitely resource heavy. Conducting a
of things were changing in the marketplace downplay that emphasis. Two years ago, proper ‘discovery’ is critical, and we’ll push
that would get the attention of the C-Suite.” the company developed a vision around back if we feel our customers are heading
Employee Success. The idea, says Suleman,
Suleman is optimistic about the down the wrong path. And we’ll even walk
emergence of engagement “…because the is to tie engagement with performance. “If away from business if we think what we’re
you look at our journey as a company –
trend is our friend for I think about the last from our original name as I Love Rewards being asked to do will fail.”
10 years. There are a lot more people that to our leadership in engagement and social Suleman sees the sales process as akin
are thoughtful about the entire issue of recognition – we know that recognition to a three-story building. “In the discovery
engagement. But there’s a big difference is just one component of a broader process, we often learn that the customer has
between getting it intellectually and getting engagement strategy. If the only tool you a rewards problem,” he says. “This is like
it done. There are a lot of companies that have is a hammer, every problem looks like the frst foor. Further questioning may reveal
‘get it’ but haven’t yet developed a formal a nail. We want to provide a complete tool that they have a recognition or incentive
plan. I do think that most executives believe box. What problem do you want to solve? Is problem, and there are a lot more questions
having highly engaged employees is the it to have happy customers? Healthy or safe around that. And then, through that process,
key to success, but when you ask them employees? High quality or productivity? we may discover a client has an employee
about how well their organization is doing Sometimes incentives or rewards & success problem – the third foor. We’re
at making this connection, their views don’t recognition are the right tools; sometimes ready to work with our clients to address
always match those of their employees. building a person’s status or reputation every level of need.”
In one of our surveys, we found that more in the organization will work. Often, the
than half of CEOs thought employees were problem is front-line management. There JUST THE BEGINNING
getting immediate recognition, but only are so many ways you can solve bigger So what does Suleman tell people he meets
24% of employees had the same response. business problems when you have a broader casually when they ask what his company
Yet everyone agrees that they don’t like defnition of employee engagement.” does? “I generally say we’re in the business
annual performance reports. When we think of employee engagement,” he says. Above
about our mission, it’s to change the way the With the backing of Silicon Valley all else, he’s extremely optimistic about the
business world works.” comes the need to grow. Suleman says the emergence of the engagement feld.
company is growing at nearly 60% a year,
THE DISCONNECTED CEO focusing primarily on employee engagement. “I can’t say if it will be as big as
Suleman sees a generational shift. “If you He recognizes the opportunity to expand into advertising, but I do think that engagement is
think about it, most CEOs grew up in the customer, distributor, sales force, vendor one of the top three opportunities in business
era when the mentality was ‘You’re lucky and community engagement, but says what’s today. I can’t see how anyone could argue
to have a job.’ It was a ‘You have to pay most important is focus. “We want to perfect that engagement isn’t one of the top priorities
your dues’ type of world. That’s what they our methodologies in our key marketplaces of business executives, and we’re just at the
personally experienced in their rise to the so that we can expand with confdence beginning. A recent Gartner research study
corner offce. As a result, some CEOs may beyond them,” he explains. put the category of employee engagement
be disconnected from the world today. systems at 3%-5% market penetration.”
Look at Millennials. They’re a bigger INSPIRING THE CUSTOMER Suleman says he welcomes more
demographic then even the Baby Boomers One key to scale is the sales force. “I competitors embracing the Achievers
(in terms of total size), and they don’t think think 90% of salespeople sell features and approach. “You need healthy competition
the same way. Lifestyle and experiences functions,” says Suleman. “The problem with to create a marketplace,” he notes. For
are much more important to them. I do that approach is that it’s not inspiring and it Achievers, the focus is to provide a complete
think CEOs understand that there’s a new doesn’t serve the customer well. We try to fnd toolbox of solutions focusing on employee
generation of customers and employees who people who are solutions-oriented – people success rather than a more traditional focus
have more information and choices than who can ask good questions. What does the on rewards. “This is the second inning of
ever before. CEOs know their customer company want more of in their business? Game 1 of the World Series,” he says. “We’re
experiences are important, and more and What are they trying to get people focused just getting started.” ESM
more know that the only way to have a on? What are their fundamental challenges
18 engagement strategies Vol.18 Issue 2
18 engagement strategies Vol.18 Issue 2