Don't Show Me the Money: The Growing Popularity of Non-Monetary Incentives in the WorkplaceAs the economy continues to decline, more and more employers are using non-monetary incentives to motivate employees , obtaining positive results. While everyone needs money for daily living expenses, most current and longtime employees rarely consider cash to be a good motivator. If an employer pays fairly, employees want appreciation and other nonmonetary rewards in exchange for a job well done. This trend is becoming increasingly popular as companies explore ways to motivate employees without breaking the budget. The benefits are much greater for businesses in offering what employees want: growth opportunities, flexible hours, recognition, opportunities to contribute and autonomy, rather than compensating employees in cash. This paper will discuss the benefits of using non-monetary incentives in the workplace. Monetary Rewards While everyone needs money to obtain the smallest of living essentials, employees prefer the benefits of non-monetary gifts and incentives for workplace motivation. When employees receive money as a reward, the money is typically spent on bills and other expenses or purchases that the employee needs. The reward is considered an impersonal gift, since it will not be spent on something that the employee would like. Monetary incentives also discourage creativity in the workplace. Employees focus on compliance rather than risk taking. More employees may be motivated to do things just to get money, rather than doing things “because it's the right thing to do.” This can destroy relationships between employees because they transform from colleagues to competitors,” (Ballentine, 2007, ¶ 8). Monetary incentives can also be compensation for poor management in the workplace. For example, an employer offering a monetary incentive to increase sales in that department could act as cover for poor management in that department. Employees are called upon to fill the gap so that the minimum sales quotas are reached. This can cause employees to become insubordinate because they are in senior management jobs (Ballentine, 2007). Nonmonetary Rewards While companies experience some of the same challenges with nonmonetary incentives, the extremes are much fewer. Therefore, the benefits are far greater in using non-monetary gifts in the workplace. Non-monetary gifts tend to promote creativity among employees in the workplace. If employees know that the reward they receive has no monetary value, they will work harder to go further, rather than just meet the guidelines provided, to complete the task..